References to the Stratocaster in films etc. plus anti-Strat people

Riot_Rain

I am doing a project on the Stratocaster for a Culture Studies class. Got some interesting stuff so far, but was thinking you guys could probably point out some stuff I've been missing as well.

Anyone know of any references to the Strat in films/songs/etc?

Films/series the Strat is used in?

I would also appreciate any statements by people who are 100% anti-Strat (+ what guitar you like instead + why)

Have found a couple of Simpsons pics, do you guys think these are Strats as well:
http://tvmedia.ign.com/tv/image/article/730/730566/thesimpsons-homerpalooza_1157493000.jpg
http://www.geocities.com/on_the_simpsons/images/Ramones_Simpsons1.jpg

Thanks

Anon

Excaliber!!!!

The strat in waynes world....

i love my strat, so no negative comments from me. sorry. good luck with your project!

Riot_Rain

Pj_Gurl wrote:

Excaliber!!!!

The strat in waynes world....

i love my strat, so no negative comments from me. sorry. good luck with your project!

Thanks Had been looking at Wayne's World pics but seemed to only find other guitars... Will have another look! I remember taking part in a competition waaaay back to win a white Wayne's World Fender though. I won the sweater instead (and it wasn't even a Waynestock one), grrr

Anon

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/ottoautopilot/waynes-world-fender-stratocaster-ex.jpg

westsidepie

It is funny that the Simpsons still showed Peter Frampton with a strat, since he usually plays a Les Paul. They usually don't make mistakes like that. The movie Crossroads features a strat very prominently.

kitfoo

As far as anti-strat opinions, you could try the forums here: http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/

I'm sure there's some 12yr old emo kid in there who thinks his Epiphone Billy Joe Les Paul is WAY better than Mike's '59 Strat.

Riot_Rain

Pj_Gurl wrote:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v56/ottoautopilot/waynes-world-fender-stratocaster-ex.jpg

I am not worthy!

Many thanks

Riot_Rain

westsidepie wrote:

It is funny that the Simpsons still showed Peter Frampton with a strat, since he usually plays a Les Paul. They usually don't make mistakes like that. The movie Crossroads features a strat very prominently.

Thanks for the Peter Frampton comment. I googled him separately to find 'real' pictures of him with a Strat and noticed the same. Very useful for the project!

Interesting stuff about the Crossroads film as well, I had never heard of it, only knew Crossroads as an Eric Clapton project.

There's so much material out there!

Many thanks!!!!

Riot_Rain

kitfoo wrote:

As far as anti-strat opinions, you could try the forums here: http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/

I'm sure there's some 12yr old emo kid in there who thinks his Epiphone Billy Joe Les Paul is WAY better than Mike's '59 Strat.

Excellent

westsidepie

Riot_Rain wrote:

Thanks for the Peter Frampton comment. I googled him separately to find 'real' pictures of him with a Strat and noticed the same. Very useful for the project!

Interesting stuff about the Crossroads film as well, I had never heard of it, only knew Crossroads as an Eric Clapton project.

There's so much material out there!

Many thanks!!!!

Along the line of what you are researching is the role the strat plays in the film Crossroads. It becomes the symbol of the electric blues.

Lukin_oz

Riot_Rain wrote:

Interesting stuff about the Crossroads film as well, I had never heard of it, only knew Crossroads as an Eric Clapton project.

There's so much material out there!

Many thanks!!!!

I actually scored the soundtrack on vinyl at a record fair last weekend, (lots of blues on it) could send you a photo of the cover

who's_pearljam?

I love the Strat! Anyone who HATES any type of guitar ain't a player!

From the foggy memory of Who's_pearljam?

I do believe that the first person to make the Strat "semi" popular was Buddy Holly. He took that plank of wood and started changing the world of music. He was on TV, which was new at the time, and more people got to see that guitar with no holes. Haha,, I can't believe I"m old enough to have watched this! :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhgO8rZs1Fg&feature=related


Then came the REAL popularizer of the Strat. It took about 6 minutes to open up the eyes and ears of the world and everyone wanted one after this:

Go Jimi!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Irc7ZntLEZw&feature=related


The other one I loved was the one that Hendrix burned up in Miami. A guitar tech gave the mess to Frank Zappa and he restored it with a new neck and pickups and used it in the 70's.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/229/491839308_aadc491047.jpg?v=0

westsidepie

I just thought of another one. The strat is to surf music/california beach films what the 1955 Chevy is to Hot Rodding (wouldn't you like to see this analogy on the SATs). Do a search for Dick Dale/Beach Boys. Every old Frakie Avalon and Annette Funicello beach movie had music and a band. Every guitarist was playing a strat.

Here are some wiki links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beach_Party

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beach_Party_film

Riot_Rain

who's_pearljam? wrote:

I love the Strat! Anyone who HATES any type of guitar ain't a player!

From the foggy memory of Who's_pearljam?

I do believe that the first person to make the Strat "semi" popular was Buddy Holly. He took that plank of wood and started changing the world of music. He was on TV, which was new at the time, and more people got to see that guitar with no holes. Haha,, I can't believe I"m old enough to have watched this! :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhgO8rZs1Fg&feature=related


Then came the REAL popularizer of the Strat. It took about 6 minutes to open up the eyes and ears of the world and everyone wanted one after this:

Go Jimi!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Irc7ZntLEZw&feature=related


The other one I loved was the one that Hendrix burned up in Miami. A guitar tech gave the mess to Frank Zappa and he restored it with a new neck and pickups and used it in the 70's.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/229/491839308_aadc491047.jpg?v=0

Great stuff And thanks for the links!

Riot_Rain

westsidepie wrote:

I just thought of another one. The strat is to surf music/california beach films what the 1955 Chevy is to Hot Rodding (wouldn't you like to see this analogy on the SATs). Do a search for Dick Dale/Beach Boys. Every old Frakie Avalon and Annette Funicello beach movie had music and a band. Every guitarist was playing a strat.

Here are some wiki links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beach_Party

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beach_Party_film

Look what I found:
http://image.listen.com/img/356x237/0/8/1/9/649180_356x237.jpg
http://crawdaddy.wolfgangsvault.com/uploadedImages/Wolfgangs_Vault/Crawdaddy!/Copy/Articles/Issue_126/Dick-Dale1%20Large%20.jpg

And he has a custom strat, thanks so much for the tip off!

westsidepie

Riot_Rain wrote:

Look what I found:
http://image.listen.com/img/356x237/0/8/1/9/649180_356x237.jpg
http://crawdaddy.wolfgangsvault.com/uploadedImages/Wolfgangs_Vault/Crawdaddy!/Copy/Articles/Issue_126/Dick-Dale1%20Large%20.jpg

And he has a custom strat, thanks so much for the tip off!

Those are great. Dale is on a '57 in the first picture. These are the kinds of images that made me want to go to California as a kid.

mccreadyisgod

I there are several friends of mine who are musicians, who refuse to own or play a Strat...

These guys are all big Fender fans, love the Jazzmaster and Jaguar, Tele's and so on.

The reason they hate the Strat, or at least refuse to use one, is that they are SOOOO iconic. The Strat is the default electric guitar, the one that everyone thinks of when you ask someone to picture an electric guitar in their head. The Strat is the electric guitar that non-musicians know.

I am a Strat owner, but I have to admit, I'd rather build a custom Tele to do the same job, so I didn't have that body outline. It's just the little bit of anti-conformist in me.

BTW, Billie Joe Armstrong used a Strat for almost all of Dookie and the subsequent tour... he owes his original popularity in some small part to a Strat, so we can't ignore him. Rivers Cuomo had a similar Strat for the earliest Weezer days, and it's a crowd favorite.

ianvomsaal

http://i.realone.com/assets/rn/cms/2004/other/Bob_Dylan_170x170_the_moments_rs_951.6085475.jpg
One of the most notorious live performance in rock & roll lasted about fifteen minutes
when Bob Dylan went electric at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965 (Strat in hand).
Read This: http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6085476/dylan_goes_electric_in_1965
Here's a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMxJFsyR85o

lucylespian

Oz (Seth Green) played a Strat in his band "The Dingo Ate my Baby" on Buffy the VAmpire Slayer.

MLC2006

in one of the early seasons of "The Sopranos", Janice Soprano (Tony's siter) tries to learn to play guitar and had a Fender Strat. she also had a Rolling Stones tattoo on her breast.

StickmanJam

as far as references go, in the Will Ferrell movie Stranger Than Fiction (which is a good flick for anyone interested), his character finally buys a guitar after years of having the urge to learn. He buys a sea foam green stratocaster, and is even referenced in the ending of the movie by the narrator as being one of the the treats of life.

kitfoo

I think Julia Stiles in "10 Things I Hate About You" is pining over a strat and eventually gets one in the end. (so to speak)

Hebejebe

who's_pearljam? wrote:

The other one I loved was the one that Hendrix burned up in Miami. A guitar tech gave the mess to Frank Zappa and he restored it with a new neck and pickups and used it in the 70's.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/229/491839308_aadc491047.jpg?v=0

Thanks for posting that. I always thought it was the Monterey guitar that Zappa had, but I was wrong

Riot_Rain

StickmanJam wrote:

as far as references go, in the Will Ferrell movie Stranger Than Fiction (which is a good flick for anyone interested), his character finally buys a guitar after years of having the urge to learn. He buys a sea foam green stratocaster, and is even referenced in the ending of the movie by the narrator as being one of the the treats of life.

"I rock"

Will definitely be able to use this in my project. Have found movie stills and the script as well

Pacomc79

mccreadyisgod wrote:

I there are several friends of mine who are musicians, who refuse to own or play a Strat...

These guys are all big Fender fans, love the Jazzmaster and Jaguar, Tele's and so on.

The reason they hate the Strat, or at least refuse to use one, is that they are SOOOO iconic. The Strat is the default electric guitar, the one that everyone thinks of when you ask someone to picture an electric guitar in their head. The Strat is the electric guitar that non-musicians know.

I am a Strat owner, but I have to admit, I'd rather build a custom Tele to do the same job, so I didn't have that body outline. It's just the little bit of anti-conformist in me.

BTW, Billie Joe Armstrong used a Strat for almost all of Dookie and the subsequent tour... he owes his original popularity in some small part to a Strat, so we can't ignore him. Rivers Cuomo had a similar Strat for the earliest Weezer days, and it's a crowd favorite.

yeah but by the time you get to the arm rib and tummy cut double cut away custom body and all.... why not just get a strat?

We all have our favorites. I loath some of them. I almost think the Sunburst Les Paul is more iconic in some circles and for good reason

Sigh, I need the Beauty of the Burst book for my coffee table.

westsidepie

Pacomc79 wrote:

yeah but by the time you get to the arm rib and tummy cut double cut away custom body and all.... why not just get a strat?

We all have our favorites. I loath some of them. I almost think the Sunburst Les Paul is more iconic in some circles and for good reason

Sigh, I need the Beauty of the Burst book for my coffee table.

The same can be said of the the Goldtop Les Paul. I love the Goldtops.

mccreadyisgod

Pacomc79 wrote:

I almost think the Sunburst Les Paul is more iconic in some circles and for good reason.

That's true... but if you asked a non-musician to picture an electric guitar in their head, and then showed them a Tele, Strat, and a Les Paul (the three most iconic electric guitars), I'd bet that most would say the Strat was what they were thinking of.

Riot_Rain

mccreadyisgod wrote:

That's true... but if you asked a non-musician to picture an electric guitar in their head, and then showed them a Tele, Strat, and a Les Paul (the three most iconic electric guitars), I'd bet that most would say the Strat was what they were thinking of.

That's exactly what my project is about, the Strat as a cultural artefact

I also have to look at dominant, negotiated and oppositional 'readings' of the Strat, which is where things get really interesting (people who hate the strat, cultural phenomena like evasion and resistance and things like the Hello Kitty Squier ).

Right, better get back to my analysis