Skip to main content
Music Radar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
(opens in new tab) (opens in new tab) (opens in new tab) (opens in new tab) (opens in new tab)
  • Guitars
  • Amps
  • Pedals
  • Drums
  • Synths
  • Software
  • Pianos
  • Controllers
  • Recording
  • Buyer’s guides
  • Live
  • DJ
  • Advice
  • Acoustic
  • Bass
  • About us
  • More
    • Reviews
Magazines
  • Computer Music
  • Electronic Musician
  • Future Music
  • Keyboard Magazine
  • Guitarist (opens in new tab)
  • Guitar Techniques (opens in new tab)
  • Total Guitar (opens in new tab)
  • Bass Player (opens in new tab)
More
  • Lennon on Eleanor Rigby
  • Jimmy Page demos classic Led Zep gear
  • Classic rock riffs for beginners
  • Omnichord @ 70
  • SampleRadar: 163 tape loops samples

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

  1. Home
  2. News

The best Stratocaster players of all time

By Rob Power
published 16 June 2014

As voted for by you

  • (opens in new tab)
  • (opens in new tab)
  • (opens in new tab)
  • (opens in new tab)
The best Stratocaster players of all time
Hank and co kick things off with the greatest Strat players of the '50s.
(Image credit: Corbis)

The best Stratocaster players of all time

60 DAYS OF STRAT: The Fender Stratocaster is many things: a design masterpiece; an object of desire; an American classic; but first and foremost, it's an instrument built for players to express themselves musically as never before.

Don't Miss

• The 10 best Stratocasters: our pick of the best Strat guitars
•
Stratocaster vs Telecaster: which is right for you?

With that in mind, we set out to establish a roster of the finest players ever to have strapped on a Strat and jammed the pickup selector switch in between the first and second position. We ran a series of polls giving you the opportunity to choose your favourite Strat players through the ages, and you voted - in your thousands.

So without further ado, follow this link to find out who you voted the very best Stratocaster players of the 1950s.

Click through our gallery for links to the results for every decade right up to the present day...

Page 1 of 6
Page 1 of 6
The best Stratocaster players of the 1960s
George was surprisingly loyal to his Strat.
(Image credit: Corbis)

The best Stratocaster players of the 1960s

Click here to see who you voted the best Stratocaster players of the 1960s.

Page 2 of 6
Page 2 of 6
The best Stratocaster players of the 1970s
Eric Strats it up.
(Image credit: Corbis)

The best Stratocaster players of the 1970s

Click here to see who you voted the best Stratocaster players of the 1970s.

Page 3 of 6
Page 3 of 6
The best Stratocaster players of the 1980s
Yngwie ripped it up in the '80s.
(Image credit: Corbis)

The best Stratocaster players of the 1980s

Click here to see who you voted the best Stratocaster players of the 1980s.

Page 4 of 6
Page 4 of 6
The best Stratocaster players of the 1990s
Billy Corgan: alt-rock Strat hero.
(Image credit: Corbis)

The best Stratocaster players of the 1990s

Click here to see who you voted the best Stratcoaster players of the 1990s.

Page 5 of 6
Page 5 of 6
The best Stratocaster players of the 21st century
Alex Turner and his appropriately arctic white Strat.

The best Stratocaster players of the 21st century

Click here to see who you voted the best Stratocaster players of the 21st century.

Page 6 of 6
Page 6 of 6
  • (opens in new tab)
  • (opens in new tab)
  • (opens in new tab)
  • (opens in new tab)
Rob Power
Social Links Navigation
More about guitars
Catalinbread STS-8 Flanger/Reverb

Catalinbread launches the STS-88, “a love letter to the flanger” that can cloak its modulated swoosh in huge dreamy reverb

Harley Benton 25th Anniversary Firemist

Harley Benton strikes gold for its 25th Anniversary, debuting a Firemist finish and high-quality specs on eight Special Edition models priced under £500

Latest
Millenium MPS-1000 in white and natural finishes

Millenium expands its MPS-1000 full-shell electronic drum kit with a new configuration and two new finish options

See more latest ►
Most Popular
Was Paul McCartney the "best drummer in The Beatles"?* Listen to the fab 4 tracks he played on, and the isolated drum parts, and decide for yourself

By Will Groves30 March 2023

Jackson and Anthrax’s Scott Ian join forces for a signature X Series King V that pays tribute to Dimebag Darrell

By Jonathan Horsley30 March 2023

This is Wikipedia’s new audio logo, which is designed to be ‘The Sound of All Human Knowledge’

By Ben Rogerson30 March 2023

Marshall has been sold to Swedish speaker company Zound, ending over 60 years of family ownership

By Jonathan Horsley30 March 2023

Soundtracking secrets: How to get started writing music to picture

By Andy Price30 March 2023

Spectrasonics’ Keyscape 1.5 includes a Double Felt Grand piano, and existing users get this “#1 most requested sound” for free

By Ben Rogerson30 March 2023

Best hardware vocal compressors 2023: analogue studio hardware to suit all budgets and styles

By Simon Truss30 March 2023

Gear Expo 2023 is coming - tune in on 28 April

By Gear Expo 202130 March 2023

Hear the oldest guitar effects pedal demo ever from 1962

By Rob Laing30 March 2023

A drummer has recorded 75 new versions of the Amen break for you to use in your music

By Ben Rogerson30 March 2023

DW announces Alex Gonzalez ICON snare drum

By Stuart Williams29 March 2023

  1. Sweetwater deals
    1
    Spring is here, and Sweetwater's deals are warming up
  2. 2
    A faulty mixing console meant that Prince’s The Ballad of Dorothy Parker was recorded ‘wrong’, but he used it anyway
  3. 3
    John Lennon on completing Eleanor Rigby's lyrics for Paul McCartney: "It's his first verse, and the rest of the verses are basically mine"
  4. 4
    How to use the '3 reverb approach' to nail reverb in almost any mixing scenario
  5. 5
    An audio engineer shows you "how the pros mix vocals" and get that ‘glued-in’ sound
  1. The microphone brand enlisted engineer Darrell Thorp and drummer Joey Waronker for a fly-on-the-wall video session
    1
    Take a deep dive into drum recording at Foo Fighters’ Studio 606 courtesy of Lauten Audio's in-depth video
  2. 2
    A faulty mixing console meant that Prince’s The Ballad of Dorothy Parker was recorded ‘wrong’, but he used it anyway
  3. 3
    Thom Yorke on his 'executive producer' role for Clark's new album Sus Dog: "I ended up being a kind of backseat driver"
  4. 4
    An audio engineer shows you "how the pros mix vocals" and get that ‘glued-in’ sound
  5. 5
    Hear the oldest guitar effects pedal demo ever from 1962

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site (opens in new tab).

  • About Us (opens in new tab)
  • Contact Future's experts (opens in new tab)
  • Terms and conditions (opens in new tab)
  • Privacy policy (opens in new tab)
  • Cookies policy (opens in new tab)
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers (opens in new tab)

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