I had a Rickenbacker in my hands the other day at the guitar shop. That was a terrible instrument to play!
Really? I love 'em!
I've got a Roger McGuinn 12-string 370-12RM, and a 6-string 360-6. Both fireglo models.
They do take some getting used to because they have quite a narrow neck - especially the 12-string, where the strings are very close together.
But I have never had any problems with fret buzz on either of my Rics. And they sound great when doing 60s-style music. No good for fancy guitar solos or playing loud rock music etc, but great for getting that 60s sound (or for music by bands that copy the 60s sound, like REM or Tom Petty).
Getting back to the Fender vs Gibson debate. I agree that Strats are very versatile, more versatile than a Gibson, but I don't think a Fender will ever match up to the Gibson sound for playing louder rock music.
And Gibson Les Pauls and SGs look way better than a strat, IMO.
I do like the look of Fender Telecasters though. If I bought a Fender it would have to be a Tele.
But I'll stick with my Rics and my Gibson SG and Les Paul!!
PS - just a comment about Gretsch... although Pete Townshend of The Who is most associated with playing Gibson SG during the late 60s and a Les Paul throughout the 70s, he actually used a Gretsch Chet Atkins model in the studio to get the rock sound you hear on songs like Won't Get Fooled Again. His Gretsch is behind many of The Who's great rock recordings, from Who's Next onwards ...
He went on to use Tele and Strat-type models from the 80s onwards and his sound has never matched up to the classic 60s and 70s Who sound