Blackie (guitar)
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Blackie is the nickname given by
Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...
to his favorite
Fender Stratocaster The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of electric guitar designed from 1952 into 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corporation has continuously ...
.


Background

In 1970, Clapton switched from
Gibson Gibson may refer to: People * Gibson (surname) Businesses * Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment * Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based * Gi ...
electric guitars to Fender Stratocasters, largely due to the influences of
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
and
Blind Faith Blind Faith were an English supergroup featuring Steve Winwood, Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, and Ric Grech. They were eagerly anticipated by the music press following on the success of each of the member's former bands, including Clapton a ...
bandmate
Steve Winwood Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a keyboard player and vocalist prominent for his disti ...
. His first Stratocaster, nicknamed " Brownie" because of its sunburst brown finish, was used on his albums ''
Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...
'' and ''
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs ''Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs'' is the only studio album by the English–American rock band Derek and the Dominos, released in November 1970 as a double album. It is best known for its title track, "Layla", and is often regarded as Eric ...
''. The same year, Clapton found the Sho-Bud guitar shop in
Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
. He bought six 1950s Stratocasters for two or three hundred US dollars each (roughly US$1,500-2,300 each in 2023 dollars). After giving one each to
George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...
,
Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s. Townsh ...
, and
Steve Winwood Stephen Lawrence Winwood (born 12 May 1948) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter whose genres include blue-eyed soul, rhythm and blues, blues rock, and pop rock. Though primarily a keyboard player and vocalist prominent for his disti ...
, he took the best parts of the remaining three (built 1956 and 1957) and Nashville luthier Ted Newman Jones assembled "Blackie", so named for its black finish. Clapton first played Blackie live 13 January 1973 at the Rainbow Concert. Clapton would play Blackie for many years on and off stage (such as in his guest appearance in ''
The Last Waltz ''The Last Waltz'' was a concert by the Canadian-American rock group The Band, held on American Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. ''The Last Waltz'' was advertised as The Band's "farewell concert a ...
''); finally, after the Behind The Sun tour in 1985, it was retired due to issues with the neck. In 1988, the
Eric Clapton Stratocaster The Fender Eric Clapton Stratocaster is the signature model electric guitar of English guitarist Eric Clapton. It was the first signature model guitar released by Fender. Background Eric Clapton played a range of different Fender and Gibson mod ...
was released, according to Clapton's specifications; he began playing his new signature model shortly after. Blackie was seen again by the public for a 1990 television commercial for the Japanese automobile firm
Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a product ...
when, at the specific request of the company, Clapton used Blackie to record a new guitar solo on " Bad Love" in New York and was filmed for the commercial doing so. Blackie was also brought out on stage for one number during the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
shows in 1991. In 2019, the guitar was on display at the "''Play it Loud!''" exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, also featuring other instruments from iconic musicians.


Songs recorded with "Blackie"

Clapton played "Blackie" almost exclusively on stage and in the studio from 1974 to 1985 recording hits such as "
Cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...
", "
I Shot The Sheriff "I Shot the Sheriff" is a song written by Jamaican reggae musician Bob Marley and released in 1973 with his band Bob Marley and the Wailers. Bob Marley and the Wailers version The song was first released in 1973 on The Wailers' album '' Burn ...
", "
Wonderful Tonight "Wonderful Tonight" is a ballad written by Eric Clapton. It was included on Clapton's 1977 album ''Slowhand''. Clapton wrote the song about Pattie Boyd. "the hard-rock pioneer and guitar god also become a soft-rock star in the mid-1970s. He cel ...
", "
Farther Up the Road "Farther Up the Road" or "Further On Up the Road" is a blues song first recorded in 1957 by Bobby "Blue" Bland. It is an early influential Texas shuffle and features guitar playing that represents the transition from the 1940s blues style to the ...
", "
Lay Down Sally "Lay Down Sally" is a song performed by Eric Clapton, and written by Clapton, Marcy Levy, and George Terry. It appeared on his November 1977 album ''Slowhand'', and reached No. 3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. Background "Lay Down Sally" i ...
" and various live versions of "
Layla "Layla" is a song written by Eric Clapton and Jim Gordon, originally recorded by Derek and the Dominos, as the thirteenth track from their only studio album, ''Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs'' (1970). Its contrasting movements were compose ...
" featured on several album covers and videos.


World record auction

In 2004, Blackie was sold for 959,500
USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
at a
Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...
auction to support the
Crossroads Centre The Crossroads Centre is a substance-abuse rehabilitation centre for drug and alcohol addiction located on the Caribbean island of Antigua in Antigua and Barbuda. It was founded with support from guitarist/singer Eric Clapton in 1998. He ...
, a drug and alcohol addiction rehabilitation centre founded by Clapton. The auction's winner was the music equipment chain
Guitar Center Guitar Center is an American musical instrument retailer chain. It is the largest company of its kind in the United States, with 294 locations. Its headquarters is in Westlake Village, California. Guitar Center oversees various subsidiaries in ...
, and the bid set the record for the world's most expensive guitar. In 2006, another Stratocaster—signed by a large group of celebrities, including Clapton—was auctioned to benefit the victims of the 2004 Asian tsunami, selling for US$2.8 million surpassing Blackie's record.


Custom Shop reproduction

In November 2006, Fender announced a limited run of 275 Blackie reissues by the
Fender Custom Shop The Fender Custom Shop is a division of Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, housed within their headquarters complex in Corona, Riverside County, California. The Fender Custom Shop produces special-order guitars for customers through a Custo ...
, identical to the original. They were released on 24 November 2006 and sold out within hours. The original Blackie was exhaustively examined and measured for the reproduction. The reproduction Blackies were constructed by a team of master builders, with each of the various 275 produced being assigned to one master builder.


See also

* The Fool * Brownie *
List of guitars This list of guitars details individual guitars which have become famous because of their use by famous musicians; their seminal status; their high value; and the like. Guitars 0–9 * The 0001 Strat – David Gilmour is the owner of this F ...


References


External links


BLACKIE: ERIC CLAPTON'S FENDER STRATOCASTER
{{Fender Stratocaster Eric Clapton's musical instruments Fender Stratocasters Individual guitars Electric guitars