Skip to main content
MusicRadar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Drums Week 25
  • Synths
  • Guitars
  • Guitar Pedals
  • Guitar Amps
  • Keyboards & Pianos
  • Controllers
  • Artist news
  • Drums
  • Software & Apps
  • More
    • Recording
    • DJ Gear
    • Acoustic Guitars
    • Bass Guitars
    • Tech
    • Tutorials
    • Reviews
    • Buying Guides
    • About Us
More
  • Santana on Beck
  • Friday, I'm in Love
  • Knopfler's 4-note secret
  • 95k+ free music samples
Don't miss these
The Fender Richie Kotzen Stratocaster is made in Japan and features a contoured ash body with a stunning figured maple top, and comes with DiMarzio pickups and Gotoh tuners.
Artists Fender gives Richie Kotzen’s figured-maple topped MIJ signature Strat a global release
Fender Custom Shop Ariel Posen Stratocaster: Posen's new signature model was inspired by the Jazzmaster and has custom-wound AP-90 pickups. Check out those cupcake-style control knobs.
Artists Ariel Posen’s new Custom Shop signature Strat is A) stunning and B) inspired by a… Jazzmaster?
Fender American Ultra Luxe Vintage Series
Guitars Fender mixes old-school mojo with 21st-century playability for the American Ultra Luxe Vintage range
Fender American Ultra Luxe 60s Stratocaster
Electric Guitars Fender Ultra Luxe Vintage '60s Stratocaster review
Dickey Betts [left] and Warren Haynes trade licks onstage with the Allman Brothers Band at the 1993 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Haynes's Strat would soon be stolen in New York.
Artists How Warren Haynes turned to Les Pauls after his favourite Strat was stolen
The newly refreshed Classic Series from Squier reworks vintage Fender-inspired electric and bass guitars for beginners and budget-conscious players.
Guitars Squier channels the Fender archive for 10 stunning yet affordable news Classic Vibe models
Mark Speer of Khruangbin sits with his natural finish Fender Strat while Laura Lee holds her new signature Jazz Bass.
Artists Fender unveils DiMarzio-loaded Strat and Jazz Bass for Khruangbin’s Mark Speer and Laura Lee
A Fender Player II Stratocaster and Telecaster on a white piece of wood with lots of holes in it
Electric Guitars Best electric guitars under $1,000/£1,000 in 2025: My top picks for players of all styles
Harley Benton ST-80FR
Guitars Harley Benton erupts with '80s shred fever as it launches the Floyd-equipped ST-80FR Series S-styles
Jackson X and JS Series Surfcasters: the long-awaited offset electric guitar is now being offered in white, satin black and metallic black, and and at the entry-level JS price point and the mid-priced X Series.
Guitars “A bold new take on a classic metal machine”: Having ridden the wave of popular demand, Jackson’s Surfcaster offset has landed – and it’s built for speed
PRS Guitars' new limited edition Custom 24 Satin photographed at the brand's Maryland factory with wood blanks in the background.
Guitars PRS swaps maple for mango to give its “flagship” Custom 24 a 40th anniversary satin nitro makeover
Gretsch Electromatic CVT: The bolt-on double-cut assumes a familiar form to the Jack Antonoff signature model, and features dual humbuckers, a wraparound tailpiece, and some neat vintage finishes.
Guitars Like the Jack Antonoff signature Gretsch? Then you are going to love the CVT Electromatic
Close up of Squier Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster
Electric Guitars Best electric guitars under $500/£500 in 2025: Affordable electrics
PRS CE 24 Special Limited Edition: this run of 1,500 gives the CE Bolt-on platform its first HSH pickup configuration, and is pictured here on the PRS shopfloor, in McCarty Burst and Black Amber respectively.
Guitars PRS promises spanky Strat-esque tones and a lot more from its limited run PRS CE 24 Special
Mark Knopfler
Artists "I did everything wrong, but I think they’re perfect notes”: Mark Knopfler's favourite guitar solo
  1. Guitars
  2. Electric Guitars

Milestone Stratocasters

News
By Mick Taylor ( Guitarist ) published 5 June 2014

10 groundbreaking Strats from down the years

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

1955-58 Fender Stratocaster

1955-58 Fender Stratocaster

60 DAYS OF STRAT: The plastics changed progressively to ABS from the previous, more brittle polystyrene; bodies became predominantly alder from mid-1956.

Pickups moved gradually from Alnico III magnets to Alnico V, the ‘V’ neck shape was introduced, then phased out by 1958 when the Three-Colour Sunburst was brought in. Clapton’s 1956 ‘Brownie’ sold at auction in 1999 for $497,500. His retired and iconic ’56/’57 ‘Blackie’ sold in 2004, for a record $959,500.

Page 1 of 10
Page 1 of 10
1959-63 Fender Stratocaster

1959-63 Fender Stratocaster

1959 was a watershed year, as slab-rosewood fingerboards arrived along with three-ply celluloid pickguards.

The ’board became a ‘round-lam’ veneer in 1962. During this period, Fender’s Custom Colour chart expanded, and it’s from this period you’ll find the most desirable models in Lake Placid Blue, Fiesta Red, Sonic Blue, Surf Green and so on, and of course, good old Three-Colour Sunburst. Fans include SRV, Rory Gallagher, Mark Knopfler, Hank Marvin...

Page 2 of 10
Page 2 of 10
1964-65 Fender Stratocaster

1964-65 Fender Stratocaster

The last of the pre-CBS Strats are often referred to as ‘transition’ Strats.

During this period, the headstock logo changed from gold spaghetti-style to block gold. Clay fingerboard dots changed to pearloid, pickguards changed gradually to white plastic, and the ‘grey-bottom’ pickups arrived, still with alnico V magnets.

Robert Cray’s famous Inca Silver Strat is a ’64, while Bob Dylan’s Sunburst 1964 Newport Strat sold in 2013 for $965,000 (with all pre-transition specs).

Page 3 of 10
Page 3 of 10
1968-71 Fender Stratocaster

1968-71 Fender Stratocaster

By now, the Strat’s headstock had enlarged considerably, and the blocky black logo had arrived. Bodies became less contoured and heavier, finishes got thicker (both more so in the mid-1970s).

Three-bolt necks appeared in 1970, and it was all a bit regrettable... except many artists had great success with these guitars! Hendrix’s ’68 ‘Woodstock’ Strat (that sold in 1990 for £198,000 and again for $1.3m in 1993), Blackmore’s ’68, Malmsteen’s ’71... those guitars made history in good ways, too.

Page 4 of 10
Page 4 of 10
1982 Fender Squier Series Stratocaster '62

1982 Fender Squier Series Stratocaster '62

Facing immense competition from the Asian makers and seemingly unable to make great Strats in the USA, Fender Japan was established.

The results were the first Squier Series instruments, harking back to original Strat specs and aesthetics in many respects. There was a ’57 maple neck variant and a ’62 rosewood ’board model: genuine Fender copies, by all accounts.

Page 5 of 10
Page 5 of 10
1987 Fender American Standard Stratocaster

1987 Fender American Standard Stratocaster

Following years of turmoil, Fender regained its vision and proudly released the American Standard Strat in ’87.

This was a sea-change: four-bolt neck, 22 frets, 9.5-inch radius ’board, two-pivot trem, TBX tone control – it was a Stratocaster that was respectful of the early models, but also had more modern, player-friendly features. Though the spec has evolved, it remains the staple of Fender’s American production to this day.

Page 6 of 10
Page 6 of 10
1988 Fender Eric Clapton Stratocaster

1988 Fender Eric Clapton Stratocaster

This was the first official Fender signature model that kicked off a highly successful artist program.

The collaboration with Clappers took his famous ‘Blackie’ ’56/’57 as basic inspiration, with a V-shape neck profile and more modern tweaks, including Gold Lace Sensor pickups and a 25dB mid boost circuit. EC used prototypes in ’86 on the Eric Clapton & Friends shows, and it became Fender’s most successful signature guitar.

Page 7 of 10
Page 7 of 10
1997 Fender Relic Stratocaster

1997 Fender Relic Stratocaster

Hailing from Fender’s Custom Shop, you might have wondered if the company had lost its mind when the first artificially aged guitars started appearing.

Over 15 years later, Fender is still churning out Relics by the truckload from its hallowed Custom Shop in Corona, California. The Strats have generally vintage specs with a twist or two here and there, and they’re beaten up to look and feel like old workhorses.

Page 8 of 10
Page 8 of 10
2006 Fender Classic Series 50s Stratocaster

2006 Fender Classic Series 50s Stratocaster

Fender Japan established a market for high-quality, lower cost, vintage-style Stratocasters through the 1980s and 1990s.

Fender took that model and applied it to its wholly owned operation in Ensenada, Mexico, with the Classic Series. They’re the affordable ‘vintage reissue’ Strats of choice to this day, sitting way below American Vintage in terms of price. In 2013, Ensenada debuted its first nitro-finished Classic Series guitars.

Page 9 of 10
Page 9 of 10
2014 American Vintage 1954 Stratocaster

2014 American Vintage 1954 Stratocaster

60 years since those first, history-changing Stratocasters, Fender has honoured them with a replica (for 2014 only).

The American Vintage Series in which it sits was upgraded in 2012, and now makes the most historically accurate reissues of old models ever produced outside of its Custom Shop. It’s a neat, full-circle journey for a guitar that is all at once timeless, and yet ever-evolving.

Page 10 of 10
Page 10 of 10
Mick Taylor
Editor-in-chief, Guitars Group
The magazine for serious players image
The magazine for serious players
Subscribe and save today!
More Info
Read more
The Fender Richie Kotzen Stratocaster is made in Japan and features a contoured ash body with a stunning figured maple top, and comes with DiMarzio pickups and Gotoh tuners.
Fender gives Richie Kotzen’s figured-maple topped MIJ signature Strat a global release
Fender Custom Shop Ariel Posen Stratocaster: Posen's new signature model was inspired by the Jazzmaster and has custom-wound AP-90 pickups. Check out those cupcake-style control knobs.
Ariel Posen’s new Custom Shop signature Strat is A) stunning and B) inspired by a… Jazzmaster?
Fender American Ultra Luxe Vintage Series
Fender mixes old-school mojo with 21st-century playability for the American Ultra Luxe Vintage range
Fender American Ultra Luxe 60s Stratocaster
Fender Ultra Luxe Vintage '60s Stratocaster review
Dickey Betts [left] and Warren Haynes trade licks onstage with the Allman Brothers Band at the 1993 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Haynes's Strat would soon be stolen in New York.
How Warren Haynes turned to Les Pauls after his favourite Strat was stolen
The newly refreshed Classic Series from Squier reworks vintage Fender-inspired electric and bass guitars for beginners and budget-conscious players.
Squier channels the Fender archive for 10 stunning yet affordable news Classic Vibe models
Latest in Electric Guitars
Don Felder plays his iconic white Gibson doubleneck electric guitar onstage. Note the double jack: that mod is crucial when playing Hotel California, which he surely is in this picture.
Don Felder on why he had to mod his white Gibson doubleneck to play the Eagles’ biggest hit – and how he got the idea from Chet Atkins
PRS Guitars' new limited edition Custom 24 Satin photographed at the brand's Maryland factory with wood blanks in the background.
PRS swaps maple for mango to give its “flagship” Custom 24 a 40th anniversary satin nitro makeover
Marty McFly (Michael J Fox) takes to the air with the Gibson ES-345 that has been missing since Back To The Future wrapped in 1985. On the right, a teaser of a forthcoming Gibson replica of the guitar.
Cesar Gueikian teases Gibson Custom Shop replica of Marty McFly’s “1955” Back To The Future ES-345
The newly refreshed Classic Series from Squier reworks vintage Fender-inspired electric and bass guitars for beginners and budget-conscious players.
Squier channels the Fender archive for 10 stunning yet affordable news Classic Vibe models
Kirk Hammett plays his Mummy ESP onstage with Metallica. In the middle of this comp'd image is the Thinline custom Triplecaster Hammett commissioned then gifted to White. On the right, White plays his Fender Triplecaster with the yellow pickguard.
Kirk Hammett orders up custom version of Jack White’s Triplecaster – and gets one for White, too
“The most talked-about guitar of the summer is coming to the Gibson Garage London”: P-90s, Light Aging from the Murphy Lab, handwritten Oasis lyrics… The Gibson Custom Noel Gallagher Les Paul Standard has been unveiled and is here photographed in the Gibson Garage, with a variety of close-ups to show every detail.
Gibson unveils Custom Noel Gallagher Les Paul: hand-signed, limited run – the ultimate Oasis guitar?
Latest in News
Ableton Live 12.3
Ableton is playing catch-up with Live 12.3… but its best features are hidden beyond the headlines
Satellite image of Burning Man
Murder investigation underway at Nevada’s Burning Man festival
Damon Albarn in 2001
“A crazy amount of falsetto… definitely related to the drugs I was taking”: Damon Albarn let slips secret about debut Gorillaz album
A selection of Waves plugins on a yellow and orange background
I've been through Waves entire Labor Day plugin sale and these 5 gems at $34.99 each are unmissable - plus get 2 free when you buy 2
Sonicware Liven Lofi-12 XT
Sonicware’s retro Lofi-12 XT sampler’s v1.5 update makes it more creative and versatile than ever
Ava Max performs during the 2024 ARIA Awards at Hordern Pavilion on November 20, 2024 in Sydney, Australia
“The doctor said, ‘I’ve never seen a miracle like this’”: Ava Max reveals how her vocal chords grew back – in a fortnight

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...