Voodoo Child (Hendrix) Tribute Guitar

[Brian Johnston]

A strat to my specs is being built by Stephen Casper (Casper Guitar Technologies), the second guitar this guy is building me (I have 12 guitars and I ALWAYS use his... the others hang on my wall as decoration, lol). The body was sent to a carver (see photo), Mark 'Gig' Goldstein, who also carved me the Alien guitar I posted on here a few months back. The neck will have HENDRIX inlayed into the fretboard, with some happenings on the headstock. A guitar case is being customized by www.ScottOuderkirk.com and the strap by Double Treble. I'll post more pics as things develop.

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/Bodywithpaint.jpg

[guitartango]

A strat to my specs is being built by Stephen Casper (Casper Guitar Technologies), the second guitar this guy is building me (I have 12 guitars and I ALWAYS use his... the others hang on my wall as decoration, lol). The body was sent to a carver (see photo), Mark 'Gig' Goldstein, who also carved me the Alien guitar I posted on here a few months back. The neck will have HENDRIX inlayed into the fretboard, with some happenings on the headstock. A guitar case is being customized by www.ScottOuderkirk.com (http://www.ScottOuderkirk.com) and the strap by Double Treble. I'll post more pics as things develop.

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/Bodywithpaint.jpg

Wow Brian that looks awesome, lets hope the Jimi Hendrix inc dont sue you for copyright !!!! lol

[stingx]

What a cool idea. I think the carved figure looks more like Lionel Richie but the whole concept is killer and I'd love to see this completed. Please update.

[Robert]

Oh, wow - WICKED!

I can't wait to see the final product!

[Brian Johnston]

Can't sue me... it's a one-of-a-kind for my private collection.... it's not being sold to anyone and will not be mass produced. And if Janie Hendrix wants to come to Canada to sue me, she's more than welcomed.

[Spudman]

Can't sue me... it's a one-of-a-kind for my private collection.... it's not being sold to anyone and will not be mass produced. And if Janie Hendrix wants to come to Canada to sue me, she's more than welcomed.

Just tell her it's one of the Jackson brothers, Jimi Jackson. She'll never know.:D

Cool guitar bro.

[bcdon]

Shouldn't it be inverted, otherwise when you play it Jimi style he'll be standing on his head! :poke

[Robert]

Hey Brian, where are you located?

[Brian Johnston]

Sudbury, Ontario

[Brian Johnston]

The body painted:

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/bodydone.jpg

[stingx]

Damn cool!

[Brian Johnston]

A case done for me by www.ScottOuderkirk.com:

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/case.jpg

[otaypanky]

Sudbury, Ontario

I used to have a cottage on an island in the French River, just a bit south of Sudbury. Boy do I miss it ~

Very cool project :AOK

[Brian Johnston]

Nick at Double Treble (a huge Hendrix fan) developed this matching strap:

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/DoubleTrebleStrap.jpg

[Brian Johnston]

The neck inlays are in:

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/HendrixNeckInlays.jpg

[guitartango]

The body painted:

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/bodydone.jpg

Sorry Brian

Think it looks better without the paint, better off all in white or just varnished.

[goteyes]

Gotta say, not crazee 'bout d strap. Looks kinda 'Hanna Montana-ish' to me- like when a commercial co. is trying to make a 'peace and love' item but it doesn't come off. Just my opinion, but after all this work, I would've liked to see a strap decorated w/Jimi's own artwork, like they did on the Monterey Pop strat, have THAT artwork on the strap- or use a real embroidered strap from the era- I forget...oh yeah, like the Ace straps. Thar said, I DO really Like the way they did the f'board inlays top to bottom, so however the guitar is played, lefty or righty, it doesn't look 'upside-down'! That was a smart touch. And the case too- you really went 'all out', huh??? I only wish that JH got into some actual LH axes during his career. I know he HAD some, from time to time, and was given gifts of lefties, but just couldn't cotton to them! That way I could have something to emulate that I could actually PLAY, TOO! (Even though the first ones I tried to play were always righties turned upside-down). -Al

[goteyes]

That's a LOT of work! Think the likeness is a bit better here. It's damn HARD enough to draw a person's likeness to look real- much less to CARVE a likeness of someone in WOOD! The carver's obviously very skilled & talented. The lettering looks GREAT- I might've just continued that theme on the whole body- the kindof trippy 'Are You Experienced' theme and then just thrown in little hints from other album art, to let you know it was a tribute- then you have the f'board inlays. If I was going to put in a likeness, I would've taken a small, very simple black & white 'profile' image, and put it on the back of headstock, rather that to try to get a photo-match of his face in wood. Also, someone else mentioned that someone might want to play it Jimi-style, ie, lefty or upside-down. Of course, if it's just for your own use, I guess it doesn't matter that much. I do have the first US-made 'reverse-image' Fender JH Tribute- the famed 'lefty-made-to-be-played-righty'. Of course, I restrung it so I could play it 'correct-lefty'. No one can fault your ambition, that's for sure. Do you have other JH memorabilia or axes, or is this your first attempt at something like this? PS: I'd love to see the Alien again- I think I missed that!

[stingx]

There's a definite coolness and uniqueness to this guitar but, and don't take this personally now, it's becoming ostentatious. I really don't like that strap and the case is too busy and, again, the face doesn't look like Jimi. Anyway, I would proudly display this on a wall or in a collection but I'd need much bigger balls than I possess to rock this out in public.

[Brian Johnston]

Some viewers may find this axe and its accessories a bit garish or ostentatious, and that is true; however, there is a method to the guitar’s madness. This project was meant to be more than a standard looking Strat with certain 60s specs, only to be called a Hendrix tribute (enough of those floating around). Rather, the idea was to take it to the extremes (as did Jimi’s music), just like Big Daddy Ross’s Rat Fink dragsters, the painted buses at Woodstock, Jimi’s ‘pimped out’ clothing, or the psychedelic and eye-numbing artwork on Axis: Bold as Love.

Every part of the guitar has something about Jimi, from the Star Spangled Banner strap locks to the embedded pick in the headstock; and the package was coordinated further with a leather strap and hardshell case that did not attempt to re-create what already existed among Hendrix memorabilia, but to compliment a new creation as myself and other artisans visualized the project.

And least we not forget, as we Keep on Truckin’ Mr. Crumb, just how colourful and sometimes outlandish the 60s were... its style and presentation far different than what it is today, as we now tend to be more at home with the sleek and modern space-age-looking concepts that slowly are burying the legacy of the Age of Aquarius. No, this guitar is not meant to reflect the tastes of today, of flame-topped maple and ‘active’ pickups, but represents the 60s in concept and form that would have been celebrated along with the hand-made clothes, beaded necklaces and analog recordings that nearly seem as much in the past and ‘illusionary’ to the younger generation as the Roaring 20s, the Great Depression, and Leave it to Beaver.

Few people, musicians or not, deserve an ever-lasting legacy, and the Voodoo Child tribute guitar is but a small contribution to reminding people the importance and influence that Jimi Hendrix had on the world, an unfortunate realization that existed only after his untimely demise.

[Brian Johnston]

The neck inlay was changed so that everything flows horizontal:

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/Dragonfly.jpg
http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/HXPeghead1.jpg
http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/neck.jpg

[Brian Johnston]

The guitar put together, sans pickguard and electronics...

http://i1236.photobucket.com/albums/ff443/logicbdj/hx1.jpg

[Brian Johnston]

With the guitar put together, luthier Stephen Casper forwarded me this YouTube video:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBv__u10xOc