George Harrison’s very first electric guitar is hitting the auction block
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George Harrison’s very first electric guitar is hitting the auction block

George Harrison’s Hofner Club 40 had previously been privately held for over 50 years, but will be scheduled for auction on Saturday May 19. The hollow body guitar features a single cutaway with a honey blonde finish, accented with black body binding. The beautiful guitar is also adorned with all four Beatles’ signatures on its body.

 

“The quiet Beatle” played this guitar throughout the band’s early years, when they were known as The Quarrymen. John Lennon and George Harrison were the first members of the band to get their hands on electric guitars, both receiving identical Hofner Club 40 models. Harrison’s guitar was donated to a band competition aimed to help promote The Beatles’ 1966 German tour, and was won by the German band Faces. Frank Dostal, lead singer and guitarist of the band, owned the guitar until his passing in 2017. His widow, Mary Dostal, offered the guitar for bidding at Julien’s Auctions.  

 

 

Historically, the guitar marks the era where The Beatles transitioned from playing skiffle with acoustic instruments to rock and roll with electric guitars. Joining this symbolic guitar at the auction is Eric Clapton’s Yardbirds-era Granada E444T, in addition to a Fender Telecaster owned by Bob Dylan in 1965. 

 

Find out more about the upcoming auction here.