John Lennon with a Guild acoustic!

walrus

Reverential Member
Gold Supporting
Joined
Dec 23, 2006
Messages
23,956
Reaction score
8,019
Location
Massachusetts
Well, well, well. A picture of John Lennon playing a Guild! I found this by luck! Has it posted already? I don't think I ever saw it before.

It's early 1970 time frame. Next to him is Yoko, both with their hair cut off, which they did to support activist Micheal X at that time.

aYlbBSvl.jpg
[/IMG]

walrus
 

walrus

Reverential Member
Gold Supporting
Joined
Dec 23, 2006
Messages
23,956
Reaction score
8,019
Location
Massachusetts
Apparently, Paul and John only played Guild acoustics in bed...

sAtVrhfl.jpg
[/IMG]

walrus
 

adorshki

Reverential Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2009
Messages
34,176
Reaction score
6,789
Location
Sillycon Valley CA
Was actually expecting to see something from the Bed-In and Tommy Smothers' D55 being played by John.
No location attribution?
Willing to bet it's somebody else's, and with Chesterfield and fretboard inlays it's either an F40 or an F47.
F47 replaced F40 from '63- ca.'73/'74 and had "dome" vs "lips" headstock on first gen F40's, so pretty sure they're F47's.

Paul's actually looks like a different guitar judging by p/g.
Actually looks like original F47 p/g shape from about '63-'65, but the horses only appeared on the earliest ones:
1963-guild-bluegrass-f47-cherry-mahogan-2uCswtu.jpg

John's looks like post-'65 p/g shape.

"Huh.....wonder where the hell they got a-hold of those...."
Did they ever hang out with Richie Havens' rhythm player?
Richie_Havens09.jpg
 
Last edited:

walrus

Reverential Member
Gold Supporting
Joined
Dec 23, 2006
Messages
23,956
Reaction score
8,019
Location
Massachusetts
No location noted on the page I found the Lennon photo. Agreed it's probably not his, but it's cool to see just the same!

Paul's photo we've seen before, but I never saw the Lennon one.

walrus
 

wileypickett

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 18, 2009
Messages
4,964
Reaction score
4,489
Location
Cambridge, MA
Jeez those guys are so competitive -- John plays a G, Paul one-ups him with a G#.

Paul's guitar look like it's outiftted with those cool Kolb tuners with the pearl buttons.

And who gets into bed with their boots on?!
 

SFIV1967

Venerated Member
Joined
Nov 20, 2010
Messages
18,442
Reaction score
8,956
Location
Bavaria / Germany
Guild Total
8
Denmark, 1969 or 1970.
They flew to Denmark on 12/29/69 and returned to England on 1/25/70, so it has to be within this timeframe. Looking at an interview on Youtube from 1/6/70 they still had long hair, so the photo is from later in January 1970 but before 1/25/70.

Now according this: "Lennon and Ono both had their hair cut on this day. It was later described by the Daily Mirror as "the most sensational scalpings since the Red Indians went out of business". The couple kept their shorn locks in a bag for future use. On 4 February 1970 Lennon and Ono swapped the hair for a pair of Muhammad Ali's bloodstained boxing shorts, which they said they intended to auction to raise money for peace."

An according to this: "...on 20 January 1970, the couple shaved off their shoulder-length hair...".

So that puts the date of the picture between 1/20/70 and 1/25/70. Great find walrus!

Ralf
 

adorshki

Reverential Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2009
Messages
34,176
Reaction score
6,789
Location
Sillycon Valley CA
Wrong link, I think: doesn't mention Cox's acquisition.
I have it "memorized" Cox acquired the SF-XII somehow (think the Hard Rock actually got it from him?), just couldn't remember the circumstances, just a vague recollection that they may have been some what "questionable", as in: was it truly gifted to him?
It did come out here at one point but pretty sure it was a few years after that thread you linked.
The real question was in wondering if maybe Cox was a Guild fan himself:
Is it Cox's residence and if those F47's might have been Cox's?
Jeez those guys are so competitive -- John plays a G, Paul one-ups him with a G#.

Paul's guitar look like it's outiftted with those cool Kolb tuners with the pearl buttons.
Period correct for the early F-47's, assuming they were original on a couple of Google Image hits, I noticed that too. (Just don't have "the Book" handy here )
And who gets into bed with their boots on?!
Cowboys?
Bungalo Bill?
Mad Dogs and Englishmen?
 
Last edited:

adorshki

Reverential Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2009
Messages
34,176
Reaction score
6,789
Location
Sillycon Valley CA
The letter authenticating the SF-XII is addressed to Cox. See the first photo.
"DOH"
And I reread the posts twice... but went right past the letter.
It was revisited elsewhere, though, with a backstory on how he got in the first place.
PS Thx for reminder of correct model nomenclature.
 
Last edited:

gjmalcyon

Senior Member
Gold Supporting
Joined
Feb 6, 2011
Messages
4,179
Reaction score
2,417
Location
Gloucester County, NJ
Guild Total
13
My guess is Cox just took the guitar one day! He had no trouble taking Yoko's daughter, why not a guitar

That got me wondering - so far everything says the same thing: "Somehow Tony Cox ended up with the guitar."

If you want to go down the rabbit hole of John's guitars, start here.
 

adorshki

Reverential Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2009
Messages
34,176
Reaction score
6,789
Location
Sillycon Valley CA
That got me wondering - so far everything says the same thing: "Somehow Tony Cox ended up with the guitar."

And if his Wiki page is accurate, it seems it must have happened some time prior to '71:
"However, in 1971 Cox, who had joined a religious group known as the Church of the Living Word or "The Walk" after his divorce from Ono, vanished with Kyoko in violation of the custody order. He left The Walk after a few years, and in 1978, Cox and Kyoko stayed with the Jesus People USA commune in Chicago. He and Kyoko contacted Yoko Ono after the death of Lennon in 1980,[1] but did not specify their location and afterward, Ono agreed to no longer attempt to locate Kyoko, but still wished to make contact with her. "
Curious that Drumbob's letter to Cox was dated 1980.
And trying to rise above my prejudice based on only ever hearing the Lennons' side of the story, I didn't want to flat-out "dis" him in this thread, although I suspect Walrus is right.
I may be mistaken that the true backstory was ever covered here, confusing it with the fact that Cox did somehow acquire it has been confirmed more than once.
FWIW to those interested, that Wiki page contains a link to this '86 People magazine interview:
https://people.com/archive/yoko-ono...with-their-daughter-14-years-ago-vol-25-no-5/
Not that it mentions anything about the guitar or that I consider People to be a paragon of journalistic excellence, but in cases like this, one's willing to gather what info one can from available sources and try to winnow the wheat from the chaff.
:friendly_wink:
.
.
.
.
That got me wondering - so far everything says the same thing: "Somehow Tony Cox ended up with the guitar."

If you want to go down the rabbit hole of John's guitars, start here.

My guess is Cox just took the guitar one day! He had no trouble taking Yoko's daughter, why not a guitar? :emptiness:

https://people.com/archive/yoko-ono...with-their-daughter-14-years-ago-vol-25-no-5/

walrus
Telephone conversation, one day in late 1970:
Cox: "John, I've got ahold of that precious electric 12-string of yours, and I'll give it back if you guys just drop the custody suit."
John: "What electric 12-string?"
 
Last edited:

walrus

Reverential Member
Gold Supporting
Joined
Dec 23, 2006
Messages
23,956
Reaction score
8,019
Location
Massachusetts
"Don't Worry Kyoto, Mummy's Only Looking For Her Hand in the Snow"

.John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Klaus Voorman, and Alan White. Live in Toronto, 1969.

This performance may have got Clapton to quit heroin...





walrus
 

adorshki

Reverential Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2009
Messages
34,176
Reaction score
6,789
Location
Sillycon Valley CA
.John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Klaus Voorman, and Alan White. Live in Toronto, 1969.
What, Yoko doesn't count?
(yeah that's my elbow pokin' yer ribs and trying to dodge any soft spots)
.
This performance may have got Clapton to quit heroin...
You sure it might not be the one that got him hooked?
:glee:
(and it was, after all, originally the B side of "Cold Turkey")
 
Top