Fender Stratocaster, the King of Rock n Roll

It seems utterly amazing that the Strat, the archetypal electric guitar, is over 50 years old. The Rickenbacker ‘Frying Pan’ may have got there first, and even Fender’s own Telecaster was a precursor, but the Strat was the guitar that became the true king of rock ‘n roll.

Those stratchplate horns, that curvaceous scratchplate, the three single-coil pickups and , yes, oh yes, the tremolo bar.

Why has this shape become ubiquitous? Because it was so ergonomic right from the start, with those twin cutaways giving access to the full length of the rosewood fingerboard. Yet despite more me-too products than the iPod will ever have to suffer, the Fender ‘twang’ is a sound that has proven impossible to replicate.This ‘60s Classic reissue harks back to the days when rock really came of age, with Clapton and Jimmy Page riffing ‘till their trousers were just that little bit too tight. Those guys were shaping the future of music, and they didn’t care if their genitalia had to suffer.

Thanks to new computer applications like GarageBand, it’s arguably a more exciting time than ever to rock out with your electric guitar, not to mention being much easier….