Cocaine

The recording

The track was recorded in May 1977 at Olympic Studios in London with producer Glyn Johns. Clapton’s guitar sits forward in the mix, delivering a bright, mid‑rich tone that drives the song’s groove, and the solo’s wah‑wah sweep adds vocal‑like expression.

Tuning Standard E A D G B E

Reported gear

Fender Stratocaster (1960s era)

Guitar

TonesMatch lists the recorded guitar for “Cocaine” as a Fender Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster, a modern re‑issue of the Strat he favored in the 1970s, and the bright bridge‑pickup tone matches the track’s sound.

Dunlop Cry Baby GCB95F Wah

Wah Pedal

Both the KLPX article and the TonesMatch chain identify a Dunlop Cry Baby GCB95F wah as the effect used for the expressive solo sweep on “Cocaine”.

Fender Custom Series '57 Bandmaster

Amplifier

TonesMatch attributes the studio amp to a Fender Custom Series ’57 Bandmaster, hand‑wired and later modified by Alexander Dumble for Clapton; the page notes the original session may have used a standard Fender amp rather than the Dumble‑modded version.

Alternatives

Fender Player Stratocaster

Modern equivalent · for the Fender Stratocaster (1960s era)

$600 to $800

Fender '57 Bandmaster Reissue

Modern equivalent · for the Fender Custom Series '57 Bandmaster

$1,200 to $1,500

Dunlop Cry Baby Classic Wah

Budget alternative · for the Dunlop Cry Baby GCB95F Wah

$50 to $70

Practical playing approach

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

1. 1.Set the wah pedal to a full sweep and engage it during the solo for vocal‑like articulation.
2. 2.Select the bridge pickup on a Stratocaster to capture the bright, cutting attack heard on the track.
3. 3.Use slight finger vibrato on sustained notes to emulate Clapton’s vocal‑style phrasing.
4. 4.Apply light palm‑muting on the rhythm parts to tighten the chunky groove.
5. 5.Keep the picking attack tight and let the amp’s natural mid‑boost shape the tone.