Following the record-breaking sale of a long-lost John Lennon guitar in May, a George Harrison axe has followed suit.
The Quiet Beatle’s 1958 Resonet Futurama solid body electric guitar was up for sale at Nashville’s Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum as part of Julien’s Auctions Played, Worn & Torn II two-day event.
Among items previously owned and used by Freddie Mercury, Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson was the instrument that Harrison most frequently used in the early Beatles era of 1959-1961.
The late star, who died in 2001, played it in over 324 performances, including at the Fab Four’s first official recording for Polydor.
He purchased the guitar in Liverpool as it was the closest British musicians could get to a US made Fender Stratocaster, as used by Buddy Holly.
However, a UK government embargo on foreign imports that had been in place since 1951 meant Harrison had to go for something else.
He later reflected: “The only thing I could find resembling a Strat was a Futurama…It was very difficult to play, had an action about half an inch off the fingerboard, but nevertheless it did look kind of futuristic… Paul came with me when I bought the Futurama. It was on the wall with all the other guitars and Paul plugged it into the amp but couldn’t get any sound out of it, so he turned the amp right up. The guitar had three rocker switches and I just hit one and there was an almighty ‘boom’ through the amplifier and all the other guitars fell off the wall. My mother signed the hire-purchase agreement for me. That is one pound down and the rest when they catch you.”
Harrison told Guitar Player magazine in November 1987 that the Futurama was “a dog” to play, but admitted, “it had a great sound though, and a real good way of switching in the three pickups and all the combinations.”
Having been estimated at $600,000-$800,000, the instrument sold at auction this week for twice as much at $1.27 million, making it the most expensive George Harrison guitar ever sold at auction.