“Right here’s a rare instrument and a fab instance of something Jimi would maintain performed help in 1969/1970”: Joe Bonamassa teaches us his favourite Hendrix-inspired licks on a truly special Stratocaster

This month’s “Instrument of the replace” is a 1969 white “maple cap” Fender Stratocaster, which I refer to as my “bronchitis Strat.” I purchased this guitar in Des Moines, Iowa, in 2017. While the band turn out to be in Chicago, our crew had been staying in Des Moines and my tech, Mike Hickey, had been at a song store the day earlier than and took an image of this guitar and sent it to me. 

Since my earliest days of guitar collecting, I had been making an strive to search out a Jimi Hendrix “Woodstock” Strat, which on this case is a white one from 1969 with a “maple cap” fretboard. The neck is one piece of maple, after which affixed atop of it is far a separate maple fretboard.

My supervisor wished me to homicide the demonstrate we had scheduled in Des Moines that evening attributable to I turn out to be struggling from a tainted bout of bronchitis; I might presumably presumably barely breathe or run, let by myself achieve. But I made up my thoughts to battle through with the demonstrate, usually attributable to I real wished to breeze to Des Moines to get rid of this guitar earlier than the gig. 

Fortunately, the doctors pumped me paunchy of meds, and I performed the demonstrate, purchased the guitar, and by no methodology looked support! Right here’s a rare instrument and a fab instance of something Jimi would maintain performed help in 1969/1970. When I bought it, it tranquil had the distinctive tags on it, as well because the “ash tray,” because the bridge disguise is affectionately known.

Figure 1 is an instance performed with the guitar location on its neck pickup: the sound is paunchy and warm, significantly whereas you strike the strings over the neck pickup or the fretboard itself, as Jimi would continually secure. 

All the phrases listed below are alongside the traces of what Jimi would play on songs akin to Dinky Cruise, The Wind Cries Mary or Fearless As Cherish: I begin up by sounding E major triads via hammering on from F#, the 2nd, to G#, the major third, whereas barring across the D and G strings at the Ninth be troubled. 

In bar 2, this vogue modulates to A after which returns to E in bar 3, supplemented with double-discontinue (two-screen) slides up and down the G and B strings. I swap to B major chord embellishments in bar 4, then pass from E to A to B and resolve the line support to E.

In Figure 2, I swap to the center pickup, which yields a throatier, extra mid-rangy sound. These bluesy traces are basically basically based mostly totally on the E blues scale (E, G, A, Bb, B, D) and performed SRV-vogue, with an abundance of lickety-split pull-offs and finger slides. 

I acquire the guitar’s bridge pickup in Figure 3 and play traditional blues-form traces in the principle of G, once extra counting on lickety-split slides, hammer-ons, and pull-offs. Despite the indisputable fact that the sound is strident, the maple cap adds extra heft and fullness to the tone.

While on the neck pickup, this guitar will yield those pleasing, gap rhythm sounds all of us associate with Hendrix classics like The Wind Cries Mary. 1969 “maple cap” white Strats are arduous to search out, so whereas you encounter one, it’s well worth the investment!