Gear / Guitar

Fender Stratocaster

On 35 sourced rigs at ToneLineage.

Who uses it

• Brad PaisleyTime Well Wasted sessions 2005

  Fender Stratocaster, 1961: Crunch on 'Alcohol'. Ask Zac (Zac Childs with Chad Weaver): Time Well Wasted gear notes ↗

• Brian MaySignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…es guitars whose design is modelled after the original red special guitar. *july 1973 – may 1974: fender stratocaster cbs era (thought to be 1972) *october 1974 – may 1975: gibson les paul deluxe, and the stratocaster fr…” Wikipedia: Brian May ↗

• Duane AllmanSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…itar was a red 1959 gibson les paul junior, which was followed shortly by a fender telecaster modified with a stratocaster neck. in 1968 or early 1969, allman bought a 1957 les paul goldtop (serial #7 3312) from lipham music in ga…” Wikipedia: Duane Allman ↗

• Eric ClaptonCream psychedelia: The Fool and Lucy 1967–1968

  Fender Stratocaster, 1956 'Brownie' (bought May 7, 1967): Serial 12073; bought at London's Sound City while the Fool SG was still his main guitar, and barely played on stage for about three years. GroundGuitar (fan archive): Eric Clapton's 1956 'Brownie' ↗

• George HarrisonSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…backer 360/12 guitar, which was the second of its kind to be manufactured. harrison obtained his first fender stratocaster in 1965 and first used it during the recording of the help! album that february; he also used it when r…” Wikipedia: George Harrison ↗

• Jeff BeckSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…blues, particularly in his two collaborations with stewart. right beck performing live on a fender stratocaster with reversed headstock in 2016 the guitar model beck is most associated with is the fender stratocaster,…” Wikipedia: Jeff Beck ↗

• Jimi HendrixExperience / Band of Gypsys 1966–1970Woodstock / Band of Gypsys 1969–1970

  His defining instrument. Wikipedia: Jimi Hendrix ↗

  Fender Stratocaster, 1968 ('Izabella', Woodstock): White '68 Strat with a strap button on the lower horn and maple neck. Guitar World: Jimi Hendrix's guitar gear guide ↗

• Joe BonamassaSignature era 2010s

  Signature '59-style Strat with Fender. Wikipedia: Joe Bonamassa ↗

• John MayerJohn Mayer Trio / Try! 2005–2006Born and Raised / Paradise Valley 2012–2014

  Fender Stratocaster, 1964: Acquired around 2005; first on record on Continuum. GroundGuitar (gear archive): John Mayer's guitars, amps and gear ↗

  Fender Stratocaster, 1964 (main stage guitar): Became his main stage instrument just before the 2012 tour. GroundGuitar (gear archive): John Mayer's guitars, amps and gear ↗

• Keith RichardsSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…n stage for many songs, including "you can't always get what you want" and "tumbling dice". 1958 fender stratocaster fellow rolling stones guitarist ronnie wood gave richards his 1958 mary kaye signature stratocaster after…” Wikipedia: Keith Richards ↗

• Kurt CobainSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…nevermind , due to their slim necks and wide availability in left-handed orientation. these included several stratocasters fitted with humbucker pickups in the bridge positions, as well as a 1965 jaguar with dimarzio pickups and…” Wikipedia: Kurt Cobain ↗

• Mark KnopflerDire Straits / Communiqué 1977–1979Solo studio guitars (Privateering era) 2004–2012

  Fender Stratocaster, 1961 (red, rosewood board): Knopfler to Guitar World: his first Strat, bought in 1977, 'was basically the only thing I played on [our] first album'. Guitar World: Mark Knopfler discusses his '61 Strat and 'Sultans of Swing' ↗

  Fender Stratocaster, 1954: Used with the bar in hand for picked parts; on 'I Used to Could' (Privateering). Vintage Guitar: Mark Knopfler interview (Privateering, 2012) ↗

• Randy RhoadsSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…oval "polka dot" v *jackson rhoads white "prototype" concorde *jackson rhoads black with fixed bridge *fender stratocaster upright 0.6 mxr distortion + randy's pedalboard was specially designed to have his main pedals all…” Wikipedia: Randy Rhoads ↗

• Ritchie BlackmoreSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…e in hamburg, 1971 during the 1960s, blackmore played a gibson es-335 but from 1970 he mainly played a fender stratocaster until he formed blackmore's night in 1997. the middle pick-up on his stratocaster is screwed down and not u…” Wikipedia: Ritchie Blackmore ↗

• The EdgeThe Unforgettable Fire / The Joshua Tree 1984–1987

  Fender Stratocaster (Infinite Guitar mod): Edge: a 'Fender Stratocaster which I've modified to be used for a new device called the Infinite Guitar' (Michael Brooks). Guitar World (1987 archive): The Edge on The Joshua Tree ↗

• Tony IommiSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…lux, a p-90 style single coil in the neck position. the guitar became iommi's main instrument after his white stratocaster's neck pick-up failed during the recording of black sabbath's self-titled album. it is currently on permane…” Wikipedia: Tony Iommi ↗

• Yngwie MalmsteenSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…right maple fretboard yjm stratocasters right scalloped maple fretboard on a yjm strat 180px yngwie malmsteen signature fender strat…” Wikipedia: Yngwie Malmsteen ↗

• Allan HoldsworthSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…n the mid-1970s, his main instrument was the gibson sg. he then switched to playing custom fender stratocaster guitars that were modified with humbucker pickups. during his time with soft machine in the 1970s, holdswor…” Wikipedia: Allan Holdsworth ↗

• Dave NavarroSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…es guitars (seen in "hungry"), gibson flying v (seen in "bringin' on the heartbreak"), and custom shop fender stratocasters (seen in "aeroplane" and used for a majority of his time in rhcp). he has also used a fernandes mini trave…” Wikipedia: Dave Navarro ↗

• Dickey BettsSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…uitarists to receive a custom alembic model but rarely used it. in the 1990s, betts sometimes played a fender stratocaster with a seymour duncan "hot rail" humbucker, and he later began playing prs mccarty models. other guitar mod…” Wikipedia: Dickey Betts ↗

• Ed O'BrienSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…ter and kid a . what we needed was another great record just to seal it." o'brien usually plays fender stratocasters, particularly an eric clapton stratocaster. he did not identify with classic rock guitarists famous for us…” Wikipedia: Ed O'Brien ↗

• Eric JohnsonTones to Ah Via Musicom 1986–1990

  Fender Stratocaster, 1954 'Virginia': Traded a Gibson for it early on; named after masking tape in a pickup cavity. 25 seconds of the 'Cliffs of Dover' intro. Guitar Player: Eric Johnson's 1954 'Virginia' Strat mods (Jan 2025) ↗

  Fender Stratocaster, 1958 (sunburst): With the '54 on Ah Via Musicom. Vintage Guitar: Pop 'N Hiss, Eric Johnson's Ah Via Musicom ↗

• Gary MooreSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…"greeny" guitar. on corridors of power and victims of the future , moore used a 1961 fiesta red fender stratocaster, which had previously belonged to tommy steele. in 2017, fender custom shop released a limited edition repl…” Wikipedia: Gary Moore ↗

• Keith UrbanDumble era 2010s–present

  Fender Stratocaster, 1964 (heavily worn): Guitar.com 2019. Guitar.com: Keith Urban on Dumbles and his guitars (2019) ↗

• Kim DealSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…p through surfer rosa (before he acquired his own) and then by kelley deal in the breeders. * 1991 fender stratocaster ultra – kelley deal also has the same model, which she received as a christmas present from kim in 1991. *…” Wikipedia: Kim Deal ↗

• Mick JonesSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…les paul standard and later to gibson les paul custom. jones also occasionally played an olympic white fender stratocaster (for live versions of "straight to hell") and several bond electraglide guitars that were donated to him by…” Wikipedia: Mick Jones (The Clash guitarist) ↗

• Rory GallagherSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…although most widely associated with his 1961 fender stratocaster, gallagher also used a number of other guitars throughout his career. in his early years, he favoured a 196…” Wikipedia: Rory Gallagher ↗

• Steve HoweSignature gear (career overview) career

  Fender Stratocaster (used on "Parallels"): Named in the article's equipment section: “…he album's longest track, a rickenbacker electric 12-string, pedal steel and the telecaster. he switched to a stratocaster for "parallels" and a gibson l-5 on the fadeout of "wonderous stories", as an homage to wes montgomery. sf…” Wikipedia: Steve Howe ↗

• Tom DeLongeSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…ds or something just to try and fill in the space." in the early years of blink-182, delonge used a squier stratocaster on the band's demos and debut album cheshire cat . in late 1994, he acquired a white 40th anniversary ed…” Wikipedia: Tom DeLonge ↗

• Albert LeeSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article: “…tar shown in the photographs) and a 1950s telecaster (and has versions of both with custom b-benders), a 1958 stratocaster and a martin 000-28 acoustic. despite his being heavily associated with the fender telecaster, guitar manuf…” Wikipedia: Albert Lee ↗

• Joey SignaArtist video (rig rundown) (2023-10-25) 2023

  Fender Stratocaster (Mod Shop, bridge humbucker): Named by the player in the video (Whisper transcript: “fender stratocaster with the humbucker”). Artist video (rig rundown): Gear Rundown | Joey Signa | Electric Guitar | Elevation Worship (Elevation Worship Resources, 2023-10-25) ↗

• Richie KotzenSignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…zen has used fender electric guitars for most of his career, most notably his signature model telecasters and stratocasters, as well as other custom-made models. currently, there are two richie kotzen signature models made by fend…” Wikipedia: Richie Kotzen ↗

• Buddy GuySignature gear (career overview) career

  Named in the article's equipment section: “…o i'd have that with me the rest of my life.' the original guitar was based on the eric clapton custom shop stratocaster that guy had been playing in the late 1980s and has since been developed into its own line of buddy guy sig…” Wikipedia: Buddy Guy ↗

• Kenny VaughanFabulous Superlatives rundown 2020s

  Principal instrument. Premier Guitar: Rig Rundown: Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives ↗

• Marty StuartJohnny Cash band → solo 1980–2000s

  Fender Stratocaster, 1954 (parts guitar): Guitar.com: Susie White also sold him the '54 Strat 'used as a parts guitar for Clarence's pull-string'. Guitar.com: Marty Stuart – Country Strong ↗

Affordable clones & alternatives

Affiliate links. ToneLineage may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. Approximate new prices from zZounds listings checked 2026-10-21; they change.

• Squier Sonic Stratocaster Electric Guitar, Laurel Fingerboard~$250 new approx.
• Squier Classic Vibe '50s Stratocaster Electric Guitar, Maple~$500 new approx.

Budget clone

Squier Classic Vibe Strat

Boutique clone

Suhr Classic S / Fender Custom Shop

Suggested alternative Clones are editorial suggestions, not claims about what any artist uses.

Buy the real thing

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