As Made Famous By
1934 National Style O Resonator,
Nickel on Brass,
as made famous by Mark Knopfler
OK, his is a 1937, with flat headstock and 14-fret neck. Three years earlier, and these came with open headstock and 12-fret neck. But for that look, that sound, and the experience of playing an absolute icon, this one's hard to beat. A nickel on brass classic!
1964 Harmony Rocket H59, Cherry Sunburst, faded to Honey, as made famous by Billie Joe Armstrong
Hardly in the minority, there were more Harmonys produced in the 60s than Gibsons and Fenders. Now a favourite of indie explorers seeking retro mojo - and Billie Joe Armstrong's choice for Green Day crowd-pleaser Minority: "Without a doubt, singled out, the only way I know."
1966 Vox V251 Guitar Organ,
White,
as made famous by John Lennon
A rare piece of space-age technical genius, the Vox V251 Guitar Organ, a prototype handed to John Lennon, and famous more for its 2014 $305K auction price than him ever playing it. Makes the $87.5K that David Gilmour's sold for in 2019 seem like a snip at the price...
1972 Fender Precision Bass,
Classic Sunburst,
as made famous by everyone!
The first ever electric bass, and still #1 today. If we were trying to be specific, we'd say "as made famous by Roger Waters". But what's the point? This one is really "as made famous by pretty much any bassist". Solid-gold classic!
1974 Martin D-28,
Natural,
as made famous by Jimmy Page
Such an iconic guitar, it's really as made famous by 100s of guitar gods. But Jimmy Page gets the laurels here. A D-28, "Going To California", and Led Zeppelin's 5-date run at Earl's Court in 1975. Legendary!
1962 Fender Duo-Sonic,
Olympic White,
as made famous by Jimi Hendrix
Not only a fabled Pre-CBS Fender, but the first Fender that a stage-named Jimmy James, aka Jimi Hendrix, is pictured with. A shorter scale guitar marketed for the "student", not a bad place to start if you're on the way to rock legend status.
1964 Hofner President Bass,
Brunette Sunburst,
as made famous by Stuart Sutcliffe
If, that is, Stuart Sutcliffe had lived to see the meteoric rise of The Beatles. A beautifully aged semi-acoustic bass, with all original features bar a nut replacement & pick-up rewire to restore full range of tone.
1969 Gibson EB-3 Bass,
Translucent Cherry,
as made famous by Jack Bruce
Famous in the hands of Jack Bruce during the height (and Goodbye) of the Cream years, and favoured by any of the big name bass players of the sixties, a hugely versatile and iconic classic. Bask in the Sunshine Of Your Love.
1972-75 Epiphone EA-250, Cherry,
as made famous by
Robert Smith and Noel Gallagher
From the original run of Epiphone Supernovas, this guitar screams "Britpop". Noel Gallagher's original is now a museum piece, so it's models like these that keep the glory days alive.
1976 Fender Jazz Bass,
Olympic White,
as made famous by Flea
Fender's second bass, and its most versatile. An absolute beauty from 1976, Olympic White naturally faded to Ivory . . . OK, it's not shell pink, but get it in the right light, strip off your top, and you're centre-stage in Stadium Arcadium.
1963 Gibson J-160E,
Sunburst, as made famous by
John Lennon & George Harrison
Gibson's J-160E, famous in the hands of both John Lennon and George Harrison - and the ambidextrous Paul McCartney. The acoustic behind so many of those early Beatles hits. An absolute original, and a beauty to behold and play.
1966 Fender Mustang,
Red,
as made famous by Kurt Cobain
OK, Kurt's is a lefty, with an untypical combination of white pick-ups and switches on a tortoiseshell scratchplate, but this 66 Mustang kicks as hard as any of Kurt's. Brilliant player. All you need to do is come as you are.
1970 Gibson ES-355TD-SV,
Cherry,
as made famous by Bernard Butler
Loves this guitar so much, he even named his studio after it. And he's not the only one - Chuck Berry, B B King, Johnny Marr, Noel Gallagher, to name only a few, put this right up there among their own gods.
1974 Gibson Ripper L9-S Bass,
Natural,
as made famous by Krist Novoselic
Come As You Are. The utterly iconic Gibson Ripper bass, as made famous by Krist Novoselic, and the indie rock family tree of close relatives and distant cousins that followed... Queens Of The Stone Age, Foo Fighters, Green Day, and many more.
1976 Guild S-100 Standard,
Aged White,
as made famous by Gary Kemp
In truth, my first grown-up guitar - but also a favourite of Gary Kemp of Spandau Ballet, on their first album, before the big ballads took over. Check out "Musclebound" on TOTP in 1981.