Lennon guitar goes under the hammer

The guitar John Lennon used to record the Beatles’ Paperback Writer is going to auction.

And the Gretsch 6120 he played in 1966 is expected to fetch up to £600,000.

Lennon gave the guitar to his cousin David Birch in 1967 – a year after the single was recorded at Abbey Road Studios, London during the Beatles Revolver sessions. It was their 11th single and it hit the top spot in the UK and US charts.

Birch says: “I was just cheeky enough to ask John for one of his spare guitars. I had my eye on a blue Fender Stratocaster that was lying in the studio, but John suggested the Gretsch and gave it to me as we were talking.”

The guitar has an estimated sales price of between £400,000 and £600,000 and online bidding begins on November 14 via Tracksauction.com. The live auction takes place at Le Meridien Hotel, Piccadilly, London on November 23, where over 100 lots of Beatles memorabilia will be available.

Included in the auction is a copy of the Sgt. Pepper album, signed by all four Beatles, items from the collection of Lennon’s friend Pete Shotton and the banjo used by Rod Davis in Lennon’s The Quarrymen.

In May this year, George Harrison’s Rickenbacker 425 – used on Beatles hit I Want To Hold Your Hand – sold at auction for $657,000 in New York.

Scott has spent 37 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in 2014 before moving into e-commerce in 2020. Scott maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, highlights deals, and reviews headphones, speakers, earplugs and more. Over the last 12 years, Scott has written more than 11,500 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog. He's previously written for publications including IGN, Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from news and features, to tech reviews, video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, Marillion and Rush.