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Some famous musicians behind their Rickenbacker and Gretsch guitars
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Beethoven’s vintage Gretsch Duo Jet, performing “Roll over Beethoven”
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Some cool pix going on here Jung… Now that has me thinking, did The Bangles, The Go-Go’s, Heart, etc use these as well… Please dig up some more findings to add…. Lol ?
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Bangles: Susanna Hoff – Rickenbacker 350v63
-Thanks for pointing out the Bangles, Jacki
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You’re welcome Jung?
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Actually… Susanna Hoffs has her own custom Rickenbacker 350SH (SH for Susanna Hoffs) Testament to her guitar playing abilities and Rickenbacker preference, I would think.
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Tomas, that’s a great honor to have a special edition guitar issued after you.
There is also a Rickenbacker 360 12/CW Fireglo, to honor Beach Boys Carl Wilson who favored their guitars too, that came out in 2000.
I can see one day a Rickenbacker 350v63/MLT, and a Gretsch G6128T-MLT Duo Jet for Mona and Lisa. Would be well deserved.
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I was going to mention Susanna Hoffs too!
By the way… did you all know that John Lennon’s 325 was not originally black? When he purchased it, it was a natural finish, which you can see in early pictures. He took it apart and painted it black around 1962.
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I don’t have a picture of him with this but this is John Lennon’s one-off Rickenbacker 325/12. It was on display at the Met last year in the “Play It Loud” exhibition:
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Here’s John with his 325-12.
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Also, here’s John with his 325c58 before he disassembled it and painted it black!
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The interesting thing about George’s 360-12 is that it was the second prototype produced by Rickenbacker (the first was presented to country singer Suzi Arden) and presented to George as a gift prior to a performance on The Ed Sullivan Show… and used extensively throughout A Hard Days Night. You’ll notice that George’s 360-12 is different from a production model in that the top is squared and bound, while the production model that followed has the top rounded to the sides. Roger McGuinn purchased his because he so admired George’s sound!
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This has become quite an informative thread, music to my guitar love mind and eyes and ears??
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Wow, John was quite resourceful stripping his guitar down to re-paint it black. Sounded like he was fond of his instruments. This reminds me of the story where Donovan convinced John and George to sand their guitars down to bare wood later on. It sounds like guys customizing their pride and joy cars to modify the performance!Donovan convinced the trio to sand the finish off their instruments, telling them how a guitar sounds better without a heavy finish. After returning to London, during sessions for the self-titled “white album,” Lennon and Harrison sanded their Casinos. Lennon primarily played his newly stripped Casino for the sessions. Harrison said that once they’d removed the finish, they became much better guitars. “I think that works on a lot of guitars,” he explained. “If you take the paint and varnish off and get the bare wood, it seems to sort of breathe.
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Just as George Harrison was very fond of his Gretsch Duo Jet which he rose to fame with and referred to it as his sentimental favorite guitar, David Gilmour was also very fond of a particular original Gretsch Duo Jet he owned and talks about it here.David Gilmour: There’s Something Magical About This Old Guitar, I Haven’t Got a Spare for It
Pink Floyd guitar icon David Gilmour discussed his guitar collection, singling an old Gretsch Duo Jet for its distinctive sound he cannot seem to replicate.
Asked by Music Radar about his trusty black Fender Strat, Mr. Gilmour replied: “Well, I used the Strat quite a bit. I also have a black Gretsch Duo Jet that I used quite a lot.
“It’s a really old one. The old ones have got a very curious sort of hi-fi sound, a lovely top end. It has got a very different sound.
“I don’t know what it is about it that makes it have that sound, but I’ve tried to buy a spare to take on the road and looked at other ones and newer ones, but there’s something missing.
“There’s something in the sound of that old one, and I haven’t got a spare for it. If I break a string or something when I’m using it on stage, I have to switch to another one that’s OK, but it’s not quite in the same league.
“I don’t understand why those particular pickups on that particular guitar have got a sort of hi-fi top end. It’s unusual on an electric guitar.”It sounds like the Gretsch Duo Jet is a very special instrument favored by 3 remarkable guitarists we know, George, David, and Lisa!
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Great info Jung. Here’s John with the Casino during the Rooftop Concert from Let it Be. John and George’s Casinos were really interesting. The had the less common dog-eared P-90 pickups. John played that Casino well beyond his Beatles days!
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