Liverpool Beat

I tried a Rickenbacker 325 for the first time a few years back at Frailers in Widnes and after about 30 minutes of examining the guitar, its action and its pick up variations, I came to the conclusion that the guitar was the biggest hoax in the history of Rock 'n' Roll guitars. Not only was it priced way above classic Fender, Gretsch and Gibson guitars in the store, but it was also total rubbish.

Even with my short stubby fingers the guitar seemed to be made for an eight year old kid, but then again to some people might say that described John Lennon to a T.

Was it just me? No, I don’t think so and I think the same went for John too, for as soon as Beatlemania calmed down the Rickenbacker was despatched to the cupboard forever.

Over the years John gravitated to many different guitars, but Gibson’s seemed to play a pivotal role in his playing as time went on.

Whenever John Lennon played a Gibson, it became more than a guitar. It transformed into a powerful instrument of change.

Whether issuing a desperate cry for "Help!" with his J-160E acoustic....

.....inciting political activism in "Revolution" on his prized Epiphone E230TD Casino.....

........which is the guitar he used on the rooftop session of the Beatles' Apple headquarters....

 or during one of his last public appearances, at which he played his customized Gibson Les Paul Junior, Lennon's choice of guitars were an essential extension of his unique personality and creativity.

Gibson have created a number of JL models over the years including the Epiphone created limited-editions John Lennon Casino models, the Epiphone John Lennon "65" Casino and the Epiphone John Lennon "Revolution" Casino (stripped to its natural finish). Both guitars were immediate hits with players and Beatles' fans alike. And in 2002, Gibson introduced the Gibson John Lennon J-160E Peace Model, a limited edition replica of the 1962 guitar that Lennon used faithfully while recording, in movies, and for live performances.

The Epiphone Casino

John had used the Epiphone from time to time during his time with Beatles but it was Lennon’s appearance at the Live in Toronto concert, celebrating’50s rock ‘n’ roll, which elevated the guitar to iconic status. With Eric Clapton, bassist Klaus Voorman, and drummer Alan White (who later replaced Bill Bruford in Yes) and no set list they gave the audience a moment to remember.

Videos of the Show

After a number of years away from live performances , Lennon is seen grinding out nasty chords and Clapton tossing off raunchy pentatonic solos on “Blue Suede Shoes” and “Dizzy Miss Lizzy,” the kind of material that fuelled the early Beatles.

After the early rock numbers at the beginning of the Plastic Ono Band’s set Lennon delves into his own catalog with a great version of the Beatles “Yer Blues,” ( Except for somebody screaming in the background) where he bites hard into his Casino’s strings to conjure gravel-throated riffs.

The Casino Lennon was reissued as the John Lennon Revolution model, a historic recreation accurate right down to the pole position spacing of its P-90s single-coil pickups and the serial number stamped in its neck: #328393. Lennon’s 1965 Casino has the distinction of being one of the few guitars to be reissued in two incarnations, since it was originally acquired by Lennon in 1966 and used on Revolver, as a sunburst model.

The original version of the instrument, a match for George Harrison’s first Casino except for a Bigsby tailpiece, was reissued as the John Lennon Epiphone Casino.

The Gibson J-160E

Another Gibson played a major role in Lennon’s career. The J-160E first purchased from Bob Hobbs at Rushworth and Dreaper in 1962, and used on Love Me Do and Please Please Me.

The J-160E went on to be played throughout his career. In 1967 the guitar got a psychedelic paint job, but by 1969 it was stripped back to its original appearance, albeit with a volume and tone control for its pickup. That version was reissued by Gibson in 2002.

The Gibson Les Paul Junior

The guitar that has always fascinated me however was the cheapo Les Paul Junior, one of the least expensive Gibson models which he played on his unforgettable performance on August 30, 1972 at New York City's Madison Square Garden.

The Gibson Custom Shop have recently produced a replica of the model , the Gibson John Lennon Les Paul, a faithful reproduction of the modified 1950s Les Paul Junior Lennon played. When Lennon bought the single-cutaway Gibson Les Paul Junior, it was still in its original factory condition—Tobacco Sunburst finish, single P-90 pickup, wraparound tail piece, and Kluson tuners—but he wanted it modified. As he told New York guitar luthier Ron DeMarino, he wanted a "humberdincker" pickup in it, obviously referring to a humbucker. (Somewhat surprisingly, John was blissfully unaware of many guitar specifics.) Instead of a humbucker, however, DeMarino installed a Charlie Christian pickup in the neck position. First used on the Gibson ES-150 in 1936, the Charlie Christian pickup, with its narrow string-sensing blade, was noted for its clear and powerful sound. Other changes to the guitar included removing the wraparound tailpiece, plugging the holes, and installing a Gibson tune-o-matic bridge with a stop tailpiece. Lennon was delighted with the results, but he had one final request: Sand off the Sunburst finish. When Lennon played the guitar at Madison Square Garden, the guitar's body was bare wood mahogany.

When it was decided to replicate the guitar, Gibson flew one of their designers Charlie Wilson to the John Lennon Museum in Tokyo to view the original guitar who found that the frets were in unusually good shape. He commented “Pre '57, Gibson made very thin frets, so if you had a very heavy fretting technique, or if you bent strings a lot, you’d have a lot of wear and tear. Nothing like that existed on the Lennon original. That leads me to believe that he played with a very light touch with his fretting hand. Another factor could be the extremely light gauge strings he used—.009s, I believe; they were very thin. It’s funny: John performed with such force, but I think it came from his entire body; he didn’t beat his strings to death.” (It should be noted that the John Lennon Les Paul is strung with a set of .010s. “That’s our one change,” says Wilson. “Most players prefer a little heavier gauge.”)

While inspecting the original, Wilson was allowed to remove the back plate and section in front that covers the pickup magnets and toggle switch. Photos were taken so that the guitar builders at the Custom Shop could accurately reproduce the pickup wiring. According to Wilson, including the Charlie Christian pickup was a “have to.” Being that it was a unique modification that Lennon himself insisted on, to reproduce the guitar in any other fashion, in Wilson’s words, “would’ve run counter to the spirit of Lennon’s wishes.”

After performing at Madison Square Garden, Lennon had his original Les Paul Junior refinished in Cherry, and the John Lennon Les Paul is representative of this alteration. Various dents and dings have been scrupulously recreated; chief among them are Lennon’s scratch marks between the Charlie Christian pickup and the top cutaway. "It’s such a distinctive mark," says Wilson. "You look at it and think, Now, how would that ever happen? But that’s what separates John Lennon from everybody else. He had his own style of playing."

So, to all those Beatle freaks, throw away those horrible Rickys and buy yereself a real Lennon Guitar the Les Paul Junior.

John's other Guitars