Share My Guitar is proud to announce a new series of guest posts by John F. Crowley about guitars owned by members of the Beatles. Each week we will unleash another article covering the history and impact of these fab guitars.

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John Lennon seen above jamming on the Hofner Club 40, one of his earlier guitars

The ‘59 Hofner Club 40 hollow-body, fawn colored electric (vintage unknown). Although McCartney says in an interview that Lennon and Harrison both bought Club 40s in Hamburg, a photo taken in the autumn of 1959 — months before their first Hamburg trip — shows Lennon playing his Club 40 at Liverpool’s Casbah Club.

In his book Beatles gear, Andy Babiuk cleverly researched the origins of this guitar. Apparently, the guitar “Guaranteed Not to Split” had suffered some damage, so the day before that Casbah gig, Aunt Mimi, after considerable pleading, had taken Lennon to Hessy’s music store in Liverpool and plunked down a £17 deposit on this guitar and co-signed for it. Its total price, with hire-purchase charges, was about £30. Lennon made sporadic payments, and at one point Hessy’s account ledger notes “Son in Germany — mother paying.” He played this guitar — his first electric — until buying a Rickenbacker in Hamburg the following year. He then loaned this Hofner to McCartney, who restrung it lefty and used it until Lennon sold it, in his words, “at a profit.” Where is this guitar now? People of Hamburg, check your attics!

Note: Lennon’s Club 40 is not to be confused with the Hofner Club included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 2000 Lennon exhibit; that guitar, a Club 50 model, is erroneously described as an instrument Lennon purchased in Germany in the early ’60s and shared with Harrison. More likely, Lennon picked it up not long before he gave it to son Julian in ‘74.

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Share My Guitar is proud to announce a new series of guest posts by John F. Crowley about guitars owned by members of the Beatles. Each week we will unleash another article covering the history and impact of these fab guitars.

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Paul McCartney picking on his ‘63 Hofner 500/1 Bass Guitar

The 1963 Hofner 500/1 bass

Hofner had updated its violin bass in ‘62, and in ‘63 gave one to McCartney. First use: Ready, Steady, Go! broadcast, 4 October.

Variations from his first bass include the neck (two-piece rather than three-piece); machine heads (two-on-a-strip open-back as opposed to single open-back “rugby ball” tuners); pickups (“staple-top” rather than “diamond logo,” with one of the two moved nearer the bridge); headstock logo (horizontal script rather than vertical lettering); body (round back rather than flat), and fretboard dot inlay (to the 21st fret rather than the 19th).

Although by ‘65 he’d switched largely to the Rickenbacker bass for studio work, McCartney appeared and recorded with this Hofner from “I Want to Hold Your Hand” through Let It Be and beyond.

Some time in 1966 he removed the pickguard, and its last Beatles action was the Apple rooftop session, complete with a “Bassman” sticker from his speaker cabinet. McCartney resurrected this bass at Elvis Costello’s request for Flowers in the Dirt, and later for tours, comparing it to Charlie Chaplain’s cane: “You just expect to see it.”

The ‘63 Hofner Today

McCartney had strap buttons added so he’d no longer have to “dog-clip” one end to the tailpiece and tie the other end around the heel and under the fretboard.

This old workhorse still has the set list from the ‘66 tours taped onto it; it reads “Rock & Roll,” “She’s a Woman,” “If I Needed,” “Tripper,” “Baby’s in Black,” “I Feel Fine,” “Yesterday,” “Wanna Be,” “Nowhere Man,” “Paperback” and “Long Tall.”

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Like this post? Then you won’t want to miss the other awesome posts we have planned. Subscribe to Share My Guitar and get new posts delivered daily…for FREE!

Share My Guitar is pleased to announce a new series of guest posts by John F. Crowley about guitars owned by members of the Beatles. Each week we will unleash another article covering the history and impact of these fab guitars.

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George Harrison and the 1963 Gretsch 6122 Country Gentleman

When his first Gent went back to Sound City for repairs, they gave Harrison this one, identical to his first except for the mutes, which were flip-up rather than dial-up, and Harrison came to prefer it.

Seen on the Sullivan shows and used on the ‘64 and ‘65 U.S. tours, this was the guitar for the Beatles’ first flush of worldwide success. What happened to this guitar? Brian O’Hara of The Fourmost, interviewed by Andy Babiuk, said Harrison gave him the Country Gent during a studio visit at Abbey Road and that he (O’Hara) remembers trading it for something or other. But in a recent interview in Modern Drummer, Mark Hudson tells of Ringo taking him to his house and showing him, among others, the Country Gent, which they promptly brought to the studio and used on the song “Satisfied.” I followed up in 2006 with my own interview with Hudson, who confirmed the story.

JFC: OK. When did you see the first Beatle guitar? When did Ringo actually pull it out?
MH: He took me in his house in England, I was there before the band got there, and he took me into his house where his has all his original stuff, his Sgt. Pepper outfit, Magical Mystery Tour, all that great stuff that he still retains. And he goes (imitating Ringo) “Well, I’ll show you these,” and I see these three guitar cases. You know, and full well knowing – being a John Lennon freak – I knew what that was.
JFC: It was a Rickenbacker case?
MH: Yes, a Rickenbacker case. As soon as I saw that, I knew. And then I saw something shaped like a Country Gentleman Gretsch, and I knew what that was, and something else I didn’t recognize. So the first thing he opens is John’s Rickenbacker.
JFC: The Fire-Glo?
MH: Yes. And my heart fell to my ass. And I went “Oh, my God,” you know, and I said “May I?” And he went “Yeah, go ahead and play it.” And like, there I was – strumming that guitar. And then he opened up the other one, and it was George’s Country Gentleman. And it was immaculate. Olivia gave that to Ringo. And it was the guitar.

Read the full interview here!

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Like this post? Then you won’t want to miss the other awesome posts we have planned. Subscribe to Share My Guitar and get new posts delivered daily…for FREE!

Share My Guitar is pleased to announce a new series of guest posts by John F. Crowley about guitars owned by members of the Beatles. Each week we will unleash another article covering the history and impact of these fab guitars.

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John Lennon’s ‘64 Rickenbacker 325-12

John Lennon sitting with his ‘64 Rickenbacker 325-12 String!

At their New York meeting, Lennon asked Hall to make him a twelve-string model to match his 325, and in March ‘64, Rickenbacker shipped this guitar to him in London. The only differences are the headstock and the tailpiece. This short-scale guitar was used on a Dutch TV show, in the studio (Beatles For Sale) and served as a backup throughout 1964, and saw actual use at a show in Boston on 12 September. Tom Hartman, who recorded in Abbey Road as a young man, recalls seeing it in the storage area with a set list taped to it.

Rickenbacker CEO John Hall remembers “seeing this guitar at one point with a vibrato on it as the model number describes (which didn’t work well at all).” Because it made the guitar impossible to keep in tune, the vibrato was removed and replaced with a trapeze tailpiece before this prototype was sent to Lennon. Most recently on display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Owned by the Lennon Estate.

Stay tuned for next weeks Beatles guitar…

Share My Guitar is pleased to announce a new series of guest posts by John F. Crowley about guitars owned by members of the Beatles. Each week we will unleash another article covering the history and impact of these fab guitars.

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The Beatles: Paul McCartney’s ‘66 Fender Esquire…

1966 Fender Esquire sunburst (vintage unknown): McCartney bought this single-pickup Telecaster model during the Revolver sessions and had the strap button moved to the “horn” side of the body. Also used on “Good Morning, Good Morning” and “Helter Skelter.” As far as I know, McCartney still has this guitar.

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Macca’s ‘68 Martin D-28 Acoustic Guitar…

C.F. Martin D-28 acoustic (vintage unknown): This sweet-sounding dreadnought surfaced during the “White Album” sessions (it’s the one used on “Blackbird“), and can be seen in the “Two of Us” scene in the “Let It Be” film.

Share My Guitar is pleased to announce a new series of guest posts by John F. Crowley about guitars owned by members of the Beatles. Each week we will unleash another article covering the history and impact of these fab guitars.

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It’s fair to say George Harrison didn’t just waltz into the Beatles’ lead guitar slot.

Through talent and tenacity, he earned it. Harrison was the funny-looking, skinny chap Paul McCartney used to see on the bus to school. He had a flair for colorful clothes and, above all, a love of the guitar, which he shared with the slightly older McCartney.

In 1958, with nothing more impressive on his resume but one gig at the British Legion Club with his brother Peter and a couple mates, the 15 year old began sitting in with the group McCartney had just joined — The Quarry Men — and filled in when one or another of the guitarists didn’t show. Before long his chops — honed from arduous practice and careful devotion to R&B and Country and Western hits from America — won him a permanent position as the band’s go-to guy.

During a lean period in 1959 Harrison played with the Les Stewart Quartet but by August he was back with the Beatles to open the Casbah Club, and for every gig they played thereafter.

In a solo career populated by both worldwide hits and spectacular misses, Harrison has earned the respect of fans, musicians and critics alike with his unique palette of humor, devotion, irony and craftsmanship. “I believe I love my guitar more than the others love theirs,” Harrison once told Beatles Monthly. “For John and Paul, songwriting is pretty important and guitar playing is a means to an end. While they’re making up new tunes I can thoroughly enjoy myself just doodling around with a guitar for a whole evening. I’m fascinated by new sounds I can get from different instruments I try out. I’m not sure that makes me particularly musical. Just call me a guitar fanatic instead, and I’ll be satisfied.”

Despite his status as master songwriter and cultural icon, John Lennon (1940-1980) was, first, a guitar player.

Lennon, founding member of The Beatles, played rhythm formidably, as evidenced by rock-steady chording, deft figures (“I Feel Fine”), rapid-fire triplets (“All My Loving”), delicate jazz fingerings (“Til There Was You”), and fine fingerpicking (“Julia,” “Look at Me”).

Although he had played some Chuck Berry-type leads in the band’s early days, Lennon gladly turned over those duties to George Harrison. In the studio, however, he did like to keep his hand in. Lennon’s first lead on record occurred on 25 February 1964, on his composition “You Can’t Do That,” followed a few days later by a solo on “Long Tall Sally” (a song the boys nailed in one take). There followed solos on, among other songs, “Every Little Thing,” “Get Back,” “I Want You (She’s So Heavy),” “Happiness Is a Warm Gun,” “Yer Blues,” “Honey Pie,” “Ballad of John and Yoko,” a slide solo on “For You Blue,” and, alternating with Harrison and Paul McCartney, “The End.”

Lennon did all the lead work on his first solo album, Plastic Ono Band, but on subsequent outings relied on Harrison, Eric Clapton and Jessie Ed Davis, among others. In the course of his career he traded riffs onstage with Chuck Berry, Keith Richard, Clapton and Frank Zappa.

His last piece of guitar playing, a manic lead on Yoko Ono’s “Walking On Thin Ice” (12/80), showed his self-described “primitive” lead playing at its zenith.

Share My Guitar is pleased to announce a new series of guest posts by John F. Crowley about guitars owned by members of the Beatles. Each week we will unleash another article covering the history and impact of these fab guitars.

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Although primarily known for his bass playing, Sir Paul McCartney started his rock and roll career on a six-string guitar.

When he met John Lennon at the St. Peter’s Parish Fete on 6 July 1957, he impressed the leader of The Quarry Men by knocking out a dead-on version of “Twenty Flight Rock.” McCartney was soon offered a job with the band and after a few practices debuted at the New Clubmoor Hall, Norris Green, Liverpool on 18 October 1957.

“I kind of went in first of all as lead guitarist really,” McCartney says in the Tony Bacon interview from The Bass Book, “because I wasn’t bad on guitar. And when I wasn’t on stage I was even better. But when I got up on stage at the very first gig I totally blew it — I had never experienced these things called nerves before.”

After cocking up his solo on “Guitar Boogie Shuffle,” he decided to “lean back” and play rhythm.  Significantly, in an effort to impress Lennon after this disastrous outing, McCartney showed him a song he’d written, “I Lost My Little Girl,” which promped Lennon to show McCartney a few songs he’d written — launching a formidable songwriting partnership.

Before long McCartney nominated his mate George Harrison for lead duties, and continued playing rhythm through the second Hamburg trip in early 1961, when he was called upon to replace bassist Stuart Sutcliffe. From that point he would provide innovative, highly musical bass accompaniment for The Beatles throughout their career.

From his first solo album McCartney has stepped out from behind the bass and displayed his considerable talent playing six-string guitar, but few fans realized during the Beatles’ recording years that McCartney was providing some of the tastiest guitar playing to be heard on those records, rivaling Lennon in spirit and Harrison in technique. His solos can be heard on, among other songs, “Taxman,” “Drive My Car,” “The End,” “Good Morning, Good Morning” and “Helter Skelter.” Now this musician, who brought a new spirit and prestige to bass guitar, is being appreciated belatedly for his six-string work.

Share My Guitar is pleased to announce a new series of guest posts by John F. Crowley about guitars owned by members of the Beatles. Each week we will unleash another article covering the history and impact of these fab guitars.

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Gretsch 6119 Tennessean – vintage ‘62 or ‘63

Harrison found the perfect country-rock twang he’d been looking for when he got this double-pickup, single-cutaway “Type 2″ model — with painted-on f-holes — late in the year, and before long it edged out the second Gent as his go-to guitar. It’s first spotted at the ‘63 Christmas shows, later at Carnegie Hall, and used on the For Sale sessions and for tours, concerts and TV appearances well into ‘65 — most notably in the opening sequence of the film “Help!” and at the triumphant first Shea Stadium concert that August.

It took a back seat for a while but resurfaced for the Sgt. Pepper sessions. Where is this guitar? In the foreward for Jay Scott’s Gretsch Book (1992), Harrison says he owns a number of Gretsch guitars, including a “1957 Tennessean, which to me is the Eddie Cochran / Duane Eddy model.” Apparently he’s referring to his model 6120, the “Chet Atkins” hollow-body, a gift from his wife, and although in his Guitar Player interview he provides photos of his Gretsches, the ‘62/’63 Tennessean is not among them. Likely it was stolen from a storage closet at EMI’s Abbey Road studio, along with a couple other guitars.

Share My Guitar is pleased to announce a new series of guest posts by John F. Crowley about guitars owned by members of the Beatles. Each week we will unleash another article covering the history and impact of these fab guitars.

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1964 Rickenbacker 325 Jetglo; Serial #DB122

This updated, solid-top 325 was designed with Lennon in mind but not yet ready when Rickenbacker president F. C. Hall arrived in New York to meet with the Beatles before their Ed Sullivan debut. Hall had heard about the British band using his guitars, and had tracked down Brian Epstein, and arranged a private meeting, to which Epstein, probably with an eye toward replacing Lennon’s battered Hamburg 325, readily agreed. (To this meeting Hall also brought an electric 12-string, which the group schlepped over to an ailing George Harrison, and a prototype Model 4001 bass, which Paul McCartney passed on, for some reason). Lennon’s new 325 — updated with an extra fine-tune knob, double-layered pickguard, improved vibrato and slimmer body — was shipped to Lennon at the Deauville Hotel in Miami Beach in time for rehearsals for the second Sullivan broadcast and immediately took over from the “Hamburg” 325 as Lennon’s workhorse; it saw action right up until late ‘65 tours, after which it served as a backup. Temporarily out of action after Lennon dropped it at the Hammersmith Odeon during a ‘64 Christmas show. First album use: A Hard Day’s Night. On display at the John Lennon Museum in Japan, where it still has a nasty crack in the headstock, near the machine heads.

Photo courtesy of Frank Trevino

Lennon’s ‘64 Rick still has cello tape on it from the ‘65 tour set list. Lennon bent the vibrato arm, presumably to get it out of his way. When this model went into production it sold for about £400. Rickenbacker has introduced a faithful replica, the 325C63.