Sep 18th, 2026
There are two recordings of Little Wing that most of us know. Jimi's original and Stevie Ray Vaughan's cover.
But there are so many more covers of that song, and today I'm going to list some amazing covers that show what's possible with this beautiful song.
From Stevie Ray Vaughan to Jeff Beck, and many more, here are seven Little Wing performances you probably haven't seen.
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Little Wing at El Mocambo
Let’s start with one that I didn’t realize existed until a few years ago. It turns out, Stevie’s El Mocambo show was longer than what was released on VHS, and later on DVD. One of those missing tracks was this incendiary cover of Little Wing.
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Little Wing Live At Rockpalast
Another great live performance from Stevie Ray Vaughan was the Live at Rockpalast (Lorelei Pop Festival) in 1984. This one has a lot of amazing parts, but I really like the octaves around 4:23.
Skid Row - Little Wing Music Video
This one is… interesting. An 80’s hair metal band covering a sentimental ballad (recorded in 1992). I wanted to hate it because I’m not a big fan of that era of music, but I kind of like it.
Jeff Beck - Little Wing (2011)
This is a really interesting cover from Jeff Beck that I had never watched before. He’s obviously doing his Jeff Beck thing, but paying homage to Hendrix at the same time. Further into the track it gets a little more “out there”, but it just goes to show how much is possible with this track.
Widespread Panic - Little Wing (2023)
I have never listened to Widespread Panic, but I know of Jimmy Herring, and he does absolutely beautiful work on this cover. His Hendrix’isms are top notch, and his soloing is so melodic and powerful.
Eric Gales - Little Wing (2017)
I don’t even know what to say about this one. Eric’s imagination combine with his technical proficiency and feel are just really hard to believe. And while his take on this song sounds less like the original than just about anyone other cover listed here, he takes it to places no one else has (or could)
Paul Gilbert - Little Wing (2017)
Keeping in mind that I am not a shredder, or a consumer of shreddy music… I just have to say I have always found Paul Gilbert’s playing delightful, and the way he covers “Little Wing” in this video is spectacular.
Start Your Own Little Wing Journey
I created this course because I was tired of going through the motions for Little Wing without understanding what I was doing. I decided that I was going to REALLY learn Little Wing at a fundamental level.
This mission took me on a six-month journey of exploration and discovery, during which I spent countless hours listening and documenting what I found.
The result is Little Wing Deep Dive, a 10-hour course that takes you inside this song and helps you understand the theory, the chords, the embellishments, and the soloing techniques you need to play it.
More Info
Wrapping Up
I'm actually kind of surprised how much I enjoyed the more "out there" performances, but I'm curious to hear what you thought.
Which of these performances was your favorite?
