Strat Turns 60

This year marks the 60^th anniversary of theFender Stratocaster. The guitar was created in 1954 and continues to be one ofthe most popular electric models today. Famous players range from Buddy Hollyto Buddy Guy, Jimi Hendrix to Jeff Beck and Eric Johnson to Eric Clapton.

Clapton purchased his first Fender Stratocaster on May 7th,1967, while he was playing with Cream. This second-hand 1956 model, bought fromLondon’s Sound City music shop for £150, went on to become one of the mostfamous guitars in music history. ‘Brownie’ was used to record ‘Layla’, and was Clapton’smain stage guitar until it was replaced by ‘Blackie’ – another Strat – in 1971.‘Blackie’ was used up until its retirement in 1985, when Fender createdClapton’s Signature Series of Stratocasters: Clapton’s current choice ofinstrument.

‘I don’t think there’s anything on the Stratocaster thatdoesn’t come from pure logic. I would challenge anybody to come up with abetter design for a guitar. The Stratocaster is as good as it gets, isn’t it?’ – Eric Clapton

To share what Strats and Clapton have meant to you over theyears, you can comment on Twitter with the hashtags #SixStringStories and #STRAT60.You can order Clapton’s limited edition book, which features these pivotalinstruments, by clicking here.

Left: Eric Clapton © Neal Preston, taken from SIX-STRING STORIES