Noting the craze for vintage pre-CBS Stratocasters, Fender embarked on a program to recreate a few special models from that period. Dan Smith and John Page headed the program. The result was not an exact reproduction of the earlier models, but rather modern renditions of the originals. Though designated as if based on a 1962 model, this guitar was more based on a 1961 original. After the transfer of Fender from CBS to FMI, this model resurfaced as the American Vintage '62 Stratocaster.