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Watch Tom Morello, Nile Rodgers and more cover Jimi Hendrix’s Voodoo Child to celebrate 70 years of the Stratocaster
Join Fender as it pays tribute to one of the most legendary tunes recorded with a Strat.
Credit: Fender
Fender is celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the Stratocaster with an all-star cover of Jimi Hendrix’s Voodoo Child (Slight Return).
In the video titled ‘Voodoo Child (Slight Return): Forever Ahead of Its Time’, virtuosos Mateus Asato, Nile Rodgers, Tom Morello, REI, Tash Sultana, Jimmie Vaughan and more come together to pay homage to the iconic instrument and one of its most legendary riffs.
The video’s set design – with its outdoor platform and stacks of Fender amps – meanwhile, is a nod to Hendrix’s infamous Live In Maui performance in 1970. Other artists to appear include Ari O’Neal, Tyler Bryant, Rebecca Lovell and Simon Neil.
Jimi Hendrix played many guitars over the course of his career, but none were more synonymous with him than the Fender Stratocaster. Despite being a lefty, Hendrix famously restrung his right-handed Stratocasters upside down – perhaps the greatest proof ever that rules don’t matter in rock music.
As part of its ‘Year of the Stratocaster’ campaign, the Big F has also invited musicians to share the stories of their personal Strats. Speaking about his famed Hitmaker, Chic co-founder Nile Rodgers says: “I got my Stratocaster in 1973 when I realised that it was what my sound was missing, and once I did… it changed my life 1000%.”
“I have been able to write the jazz influenced dance-disco funk pop songs that people have loved for decades as well as rock, country, folk and EDM collaborations thanks to my Strat,” he adds.
“Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour, Jeff Beck, Ritchie Blackmore, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Andy Gill of Gang of Four and Brother Wayne Kramer of the mighty MC5 have all wielded the Strat in inspirational ways and my ‘SOUL POWER’ Strat allowed me to unlock a new era of sound and fury in Audioslave,” says Tom Morello.
“Jimi loved to hear artists play his music,” says his sister Janie Hendrix. “In fact he once said he’d been imitated so well that people had even copied his mistakes. Decades later, his music lives on being played by contemporary artists and conceivably will be for generations to come. That really speaks to the impact and relevance of a musician – an incredible musician, who was so far ahead of his time, that his songs will always be the current sound. Timeless. I believe his guitars, like his Stratocaster, helped give him transport.”
Late last year, Fender announced a string of limited-edition Stratocasters and new colourways to celebrate the iconic model’s 70th anniversary.
To learn more about the 70th anniversary of the Strat, head to Fender.