In response to high-quality, low-priced import guitars, Fender created the Lead Series in 1979, featuring a new solid-body design, hard-tail bridges and cool new wiring options. Appealing to a wide variety of players, the sleek new Lead models kicked off a fresh creative era in Fender’s history.

The Player Lead III, a tribute to the original 1982-only model, features a set of hot alnico Player humbucking pickups, dual-toggle switches for pickup selection and coil-splits, and a modern "C" neck shape with medium jumbo frets.