Beginner Acoustic Guitar

Beatles Guitars...What They Played

Beatles Guitars

Alright, we flat out love the Beatles. John, Paul, George, and Ringo changed music forever. Honing their craft for years in England and Hamburg before exploding on to the scene, they changed the way people wrote, thought about, and played music. Their music holds up today as it did all those yeas ago.

This being a guitar site, we are going to share some things we have learned over the years about the Beatles and their guitars.(bass in Paul's case) A lot of this research is from books and research done by the author of this page and is accurate to the best of our ability. We own an extensive library of books and websites involving the group.

John Lennon elcetric guitars

1958 Hofner Senator Guitar - We know(think) he had this guitar because it sold for $337,000 in 2009 and included a letter of authenticity from none other than Mr. George Harrison himself. It is said to be a guitar he kept at home to write with. There seems to be no photographic proof of this, though.

Hofner Club 40 - A guitar John himself called 'his first real guitar' He played this one in Hamburg.

Gibson J160E - There is only one guitar that Lennon used on every album with the Beatles and it is this guitar. You can see Lennon(and George Harrison) playing this model on stage in many of the concert footage. It is an acoustic-electric guitar.

Rickenbacker 325 - John made this guitar famous, playing it before he was famous, through the whole life of the Beatles, and even during his solo career. Sean Lennon still has the original 1958 and it is put on display occationally.


George Harrison Guitar

Being the lead guitarist, George had the widest arry guitars. Here are a few:

Hofner President - George's first guitar bought in Liverpool.

1957 Gretsch 6128 Duo Jet - Used in early singles, the Please Please Me Album and all the shows in Hamburg, at the Cavern, the Casbah and throughout Britain until late spring 1963.

Gretsch modles were a main stay for Harrison. He also played a:
-1962 Gretsch 6122 Country Gentleman
-Gretsch 6119 Tennessean

1962 Gibson J-160E - Guitar he got in 1962 and played all the way through the Sgt. Pepper Album.

Rickenbacker
-1962 Rickenbacker 425
-1963 Rickenbacker 360
-1965 Rickenbacker 360


Paul McCartney Guitar

Zenith Model 17 - His first guitar.

Rosetti Solid 7 - He sometimes converted this into a bass.

Hofner 500/1 Violin Bass - His signature instrument that he bought in Hamburg in 1961. There are 1000's of photos and some pretty damn good music associated with this instrument.


If you love the sound, these are instruments that made it.

Beatles Guitars