All Along the Watchtower

The recording

Hendrix recorded his guitar parts at Olympic Studios in London and later overdubbed them at the Record Plant in New York. The lead and rhythm lines were played on a 1968 left‑handed Fender Stratocaster, routed through a Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face and a Vox V847 wah‑wah before being amplified by a Vox AC30 placed near the control‑room window. Engineer Phil Brown mic'd the amp with Neumann U67s, capturing natural room ambience. The solos were double‑tracked and panned left‑right, with tape‑delay and automatic double‑tracking (ADT) applied in the mix to create the iconic swirling reverb.

Tuning Standard (E A D G B E)

Reported gear

1968 Fender Stratocaster (left‑handed, sunburst)

Guitar

Hendrix performed the lead and rhythm parts on his 1968 left‑handed Fender Stratocaster, the instrument he used for most of the Electric Ladyland sessions.

Vox V847 Wah Pedal (late 1960s)

Wah

A wah‑wah pedal was used to give the lead lines their vocal‑like sweeps, as noted in Hendrix’s studio sessions.

Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face (late 1960s)

Fuzz

A fuzz box, most likely a Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face – the distortion unit Hendrix favored – provided the thick, saturated tone heard in the solos.

Vox AC30 (1968)

Amp

All overdubbed guitar tracks were recorded through a Vox AC30 positioned near the control‑room window, as recounted by engineer Phil Brown.

Alternatives

Squier Classic Vibe '60s Stratocaster

Modern equivalent · for the 1968 Fender Stratocaster (left‑handed, sunburst)

$450 to $600

Analog Man Fuzz Face

Modern equivalent · for the Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face (late 1960s)

$150 to $180

Dunlop Cry Baby Wah

Modern equivalent · for the Vox V847 Wah Pedal (late 1960s)

$100 to $130

Vox AC30 reissue

Reissue · for the Vox AC30 (1968)

$2,200 to $2,500

Practical playing approach

Recreation guidance, not a claim about undocumented studio control positions.

1. 1.Play the lead parts on the Strat’s neck pickup for a smoother, warmer tone.
2. 2.Engage the fuzz pedal and set it to full saturation for the searing solo.
3. 3.Use a slow wah sweep on each phrase to emulate Hendrix’s vocal‑like articulation.
4. 4.Double‑track the rhythm part and pan one take left, the other right for a wide stereo field.