“I remember Bruce calling me and asking me for my permission to switch to Telecaster”: Stevie Van Zandt on why the Strat became his go-to guitar for decades – after passing the Tele baton to Bruce Springsteen

American singer and guitarist Bruce Springsteen performs live during a concert at the Rock festival in Rome, at the Capannelle Hippodrome. At his side, the historic American guitarist Steven Van Zandt, also known as Little Steven. Rome (Italy), July 11th, 2013.

Stevie Van Zandt knows a thing or two about the music industry – from being the guitar slinger in the E Street Band, side by side with Bruce Springsteen, to his Grammy-nominated HBO film, Stevie Van Zandt: Disciple, which came out last year. And while he's now the owner of many a formidable guitar, Van Zandt’s penchant for Strats – most famously, the well-worn 1957 Stratocaster featured in the 1980 No Nukes concert film – harks back to a time when players typically owned just one guitar.

Yet his relationship with Fenders started with the Telecaster. “I started to notice that the guitar superstars at the time were playing Telecasters. Mike Bloomfield. Jeff Beck. Even Eric Clapton played one for a while,” he tells Premier Guitar.