List of the Beatles' instruments

The Beatles started out like most other rock and roll bands, employing a standard guitars/bass/drums instrumentation. As their touring days wound down, they became a full-time studio band. Their scope of experimentation grew, as did the palette of sounds. This article attempts to list the instruments used to achieve those results.

Not listed are instruments played by the Beatles’ session players such as cello, violin, saxophone, trumpet, French horn or the 41-piece orchestra heard on "A Day in the Life".

Guitars

Both John Lennon and George Harrison used the Gibson J-160E, an acoustic guitar with an electric pickup at the base of the fretboard. The resonant character of the full acoustic body, combined with the electric pickup, meant that this guitar was susceptible to feedback, employed to great effect on the intro to "I Feel Fine". Lennon also used a Framus Hootenanny twelve-string acoustic, which can be seen in the movie Help! and heard on the title song and "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away". This twelve-string guitar accounted for audibly richer rhythm guitar parts on songs like these, in comparison to the six-string Gibsons. After Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Lennon moved on to a Martin D-28 from C. F. Martin & Company (alternating between the J-160E and the D-28 for The White Album) while Harrison upgraded to a Gibson J-200 Jumbo (which Lennon used on "Two of Us" and other acoustic tracks on Let It Be).

Lennon primarily used a Rickenbacker 325 Capri from 1960 until 1964. He purchased the guitar in Hamburg in its original natural finish and used the guitar extensively throughout the Cavern Club performances.^[1] In early 1963 he sent the guitar off to be refinished in its more popular black finish. This is the way the guitar appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show performance in February 1964. Shortly thereafter, he upgraded to a brand new Rickenbacker 325, a much-improved version of his 325 Capri. During the Rubber Soul sessions, Lennon and Harrison acquired matching 1961 Stratocasters. Lennon's was used on "Nowhere Man" and sparingly on the Sgt. Pepper album.

Harrison started off in the Cavern Club days playing a black Gretsch Duo Jet. The Duo Jet was refurbished many years later and featured on the cover and album Cloud Nine. In mid 1963 he switched to a Gretsch Country Gentleman and a Gretsch Tennessean, both of which he played until around 1965. His second Country Gentleman was given away to a friend (Harrison was an avid sharer of instruments) and is now retained by Ringo Starr, while his first Country Gentleman fell off The Beatles' van in 1965 and was crushed by a lorry. In 1964 Harrison introduced the electric twelve-string guitar into mainstream pop. His Rickenbacker 360/12 twelve-string was a prototype. Only the second twelve-string guitar Rickenbacker ever made, it was delivered specially to him during their first visit to New York City. Harrison's use of the 12-string inspired Roger McGuinn of The Byrds to start using one too. He also used a Ramirez Classical Guitar which can be heard in "And I Love Her" and seen used throughout the film "A Hard Day's Night". Harrison used a Gibson SG around 1966; these can be seen in the promotional videos for "Paperback Writer" and "Rain", in addition to film of the recording session for "Hey Bulldog". He eventually gave this guitar to Pete Ham of Badfinger. Harrison's most prominent guitar from 1967 until early 1969 was a Fender Stratocaster. Obtained and used during the Rubber Soul sessions, first used on "Nowhere Man", it was originally Sonic Blue in colour until Harrison gave it a psychedelic paint job, using, among other substances, his wife's sparkly green nail polish. This psychedelic Strat, dubbed "Rocky", is seen in the "I Am the Walrus" segment of Magical Mystery Tour, and in the "All You Need Is Love" broadcast.^[2] Around this time Harrison also used a 1957 Les Paul model, which was given to him by Eric Clapton and was once in the possession of, among other musicians, John Sebastian of The Lovin' Spoonful. Originally a "gold top" model, the guitar was refinished with a dark red stain before it got to Harrison. The guitar can be seen in the "Revolution" promo video and the Let It Be film—in addition to a rosewood Telecaster specially flown to him by Fender.

Lennon and Harrison both purchased Epiphone Casinos in 1965 after Paul McCartney acquired an Epiphone Casino. They were used extensively in the recording of the Revolver album. Although they purchased the guitars with sunburst finishes, both Harrison and Lennon later stripped the finishes off the guitars, claiming it allowed the guitars to "breathe" better. Lennon's stripped-down Casino can be seen in video footage of the famous "Rooftop Concert". Lennon used an Epiphone Casino almost exclusively from 1966 until the group's break-up and is even seen with it during the sessions for his Imagine album.

Paul McCartney's electric guitar parts (solos on "Ticket to Ride", "Another Girl", "Taxman", "Helter Skelter", "Drive My Car", "Carry That Weight" and "Good Morning Good Morning"^[3] to name a few)^[4] were chiefly performed on his own Epiphone Casino or sunburst Fender Esquire. For recordings with acoustic parts played by McCartney ("Yesterday"), he favoured a 1964 Epiphone Texan FT-79.^[5] In 1968, he started using a D-28 from C. F. Martin & Company.

Basses

McCartney custom-ordered a left-handed Höfner model 500/1 "violin" bass during one of the group's early residences in Hamburg. This model, with two pickups very close to the neck and almost touching each other, was replaced in 1963 by a newer model, whose pickups were spaced much farther apart, in a more conventional manner. McCartney continued to use his early model, although very rarely, until the Let It Be sessions, when it was stolen from Twickenham Film Studios; he continues to use his second Höfner today. In October 1965 he switched to a Rickenbacker model 4001S, during the recording of Rubber Soul (as seen in pictures from those sessions),^[6] but certainly by the recording of "Paperback Writer". It would be his principal choice for the remainder of The Beatles' career. He briefly used a left-handed Fender Jazz Bass during sessions for The Beatles (The White Album) and again for Abbey Road.^[7] He returned to the Höfner during rehearsals and recording of Let It Be and played it during the rooftop concert. He also used his original Höfner, refinished in three-tone sunburst and with upgraded electronics. It can be seen in footage from Let It Be and in the "Revolution" promo video.

George Harrison and John Lennon both played a Fender VI to back some songs on which McCartney played piano or guitar. George Harrison was photographed at Abbey Road in 1966 playing a right-handed red Burns Nu-Sonic Bass during the "Paperback Writer" and "Rain" recording sessions. Harrison also played a right-handed Fender Jazz Bass on two songs from Abbey Road.

Keyboards

Steinway grand piano (left),
Schiedmayer Celeste (right)

Hammond RT-3 organ (left),
Challen piano (right)

All four Beatles contributed keyboard parts to their catalogue, supplemented by George Martin, Mal Evans, Chris Thomas, Nicky Hopkins and Billy Preston.

• Hohner Pianet N and CH models
• Steinway Vertegrand upright piano
• Baldwin Combo harpsichord
• Baldwin Satin Ebony Grand
• Bechstein D-280 concert grand piano
• Blüthner Grand Piano
• Challen Piano
• Schiedmayer Celeste
• Mannborg Harmonium
• Moog synthesizer III
• Fender Rhodes Suitcase
• Clavioline
• Hammond RT-3 organ with Leslie Model 122 cabinet
• Hammond C-3 organ
• Lowrey DSO Heritage Deluxe organ
• Mellotron MK II^[8]
• Vox Continental organ(s?) used on "I'm Down" and others
• Unidentified harpsichord(s?) used on "All You Need Is Love", "Fixing a Hole", "Piggies"
• Unidentified clavichord used on "For No One"

Microphones

Although microphone usage varied somewhat according to the requirements of each song, the group's recordings at Abbey Road most often employed Neumann U47 or U67 microphones for electric guitars and one or more Neumann U47s (unidirectional); U48's "figure eight" (bidirectional) pickup pattern for vocals and most other instruments. The AKG C-12 was used as well, particularly on the bass (speaker) amplifier. Early in their recording career the drums usually were recorded with only two microphones: one overhead (an AKG D19 or STC 4038) and one for the bass drum (such as an AKG D20). Later, more microphones were used on the drums.

The AKG C28 is visible in the Let It Be film. Available studio documentation and interviews with their former recording engineers indicate that this microphone was not used for recording in the studio.^[9]

With the group's encouragement, recording engineer Geoff Emerick experimented with microphone placement and equalization.^[10] Many of his techniques were unusual for the time but have since become commonplace, such as "close miking" (physically placing the microphone very close to a sound source) of acoustic instruments or deliberately overloading the signal to produce distortion. For example, he obtained the biting string sound that characterises "Eleanor Rigby" by miking the instruments extremely closely—Emerick has related that the string players would instinctively back away from the microphones at the start of each take, and he would go back into the studio and move the microphones closer again.^[11] The recording of George Harrison's acoustic guitar in "Here Comes the Sun" was another incidence of close miking.

He also used a speaker as a microphone to increase the bass level whereas a microphone would overload from the air pressure.

Drums

Ringo Starr bought a set of Premier drums in 1960, but in June 1963 made the switch to a four-piece Ludwig set. The American-made drums were newly available in England, but the clincher for Starr was the Black Oyster Pearl finish of the Ludwig kit. He used four similar kits altogether, including two that he kept at Abbey Road. The first two Ludwig kits were 20", 12", 14", plus 14" snare and the second two 22",13",16", 14" snare. Ringo played a 20" kit on the Ed Sullivan Show debut in February 1964. He changed to the bigger 22" kit at the end of May 1964. For the Let It Be and Abbey Road sessions, he obtained a natural-tone, five-piece Ludwig set, used on the "rooftop concert" and in his drum solo in "The End". Starr experimented with various muffling techniques. He used Ludwig and Remo drum heads. He started his career playing Paiste cymbals, but switched to Zildjian. He has used Paiste occasionally, most likely due to their easier availability in Europe.^[12]

Instruments specific to Rubber Soul sessions

Photographs of these sessions reveal the following gear:

Lennon

• 1964 Rickenbacker 325^[13] in Black finish (given to Lennon by Rickenbacker at the Deauville Hotel, Miami Beach, Florida on 14 February 1964)^[14]
• 1964 Gibson J-160E^[13] sunburst finish acoustic-electric guitar (purchased during the September 1964 US tour.^[15] Modified for the Rubber Soul sessions by moving the pick-up to the bridge side of the sound hole^[16])
• Fender Stratocaster^[13] in Sonic Blue finish (purchased by Mal Evans during the making of the Help! album)^[17]
• 1965 Framus Hootenanny^[13] 5/024 acoustic 12 string guitar^[18]

McCartney

• 1963 Hofner 500/1 Violin Bass^[13] (purchased by McCartney in October 1963)^[19]
• 1962 Epiphone Casino ES-230TD^[13] in sunburst finish (modified for playing left-handed)^[20]
• 1964 Epiphone Texan FT-79^[13] acoustic guitar (also modified for playing left-handed)^[20]
• 1965 Rickenbacker 4001S^[13] left-handed bass guitar in fireglo (red sunburst) finish (given to McCartney by Rickenbacker at Burt Lancaster's house in Benedict Canyon, Hollywood, during the week beginning 23 August 1965)
• 1965 Tone Bender fuzz-box^[21]

Harrison

• 1962–63 Gretsch Tennessean Chet Atkins electric guitar (purchased the previous year)
• 1962 Gibson J-160E^[13] sunburst finish acoustic-electric guitar (purchased on hire purchase from Rushworths, Liverpool in June 1962. Brian Epstein settled the bill a year later^[22]). As with Lennon's J-160E, this guitar was modified for the Rubber Soul sessions by moving the pick-up to the bridge side of the sound hole)^[16]
• 1965 Rickenbacker 360/12^[13] fireglo (red sunburst) finish electric 12-string guitar (custom built and presented to Harrison on 21 August 1965 at a press conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota, by radio station WDGY in association with local music store B-Sharp Music^[23]))
• 1961 Fender Stratocaster^[13] in Sonic Blue finish (purchased by Mal Evans at the same time as Lennon's)^[17]
• Sitar (a cheap model purchased by Harrison from India Craft in London in 1965)^[24]
• 1964 Ramirez Classical Guitar

Starr

• Ludwig Super Classic drum kit^[13] in Oyster Black Pearl finish with 22-inch kick drum (presented to Starr by Ludwig in New York City on 13 August 1965)^[25]

Ringo played a Premier kit in 1963 on Please Please Me

Amplifiers

• 3 1964 Vox AC-100 amps^[13] (prototypes given to The Beatles by Vox at The Futurist Theatre, Scarborough on 9 August 1964)^[26]
• 1962 Vox AC-15 Twin amp^[27]
• 2 1963 Vox AC-30 amps^[13]
• 2 1965 Vox AC-100 guitar amps^[21]
• 1965 Vox AC-100 bass amp^[21]
• 1963/4 Fender Bassman amp^[27][28]

Keyboards^[27]

• 1965 Vox Continental Portable Organ
• 1964 Hohner Pianet C
• Steinway grand piano
• Challen upright piano
• Hammond RT-3 organ, with Leslie 145 rotating speaker cabinet and Leslie 147 power amp
• Harmonium

Miscellaneous

George Harrison owned many Indian instruments, including tambouras, a swarmandel (or Indian harp) and at least three sitars. All the Beatles kept pianos, guitars and other instruments at their homes to work on songs and demos. Most of these pieces never made their way into the studio with the well-known exception of Harrison's Moog synthesizer. John Lennon's home Mellotron was never brought into the studio, though a Mellotron was rented for use during the Sgt. Pepper sessions and an Abbey Road Studios-owned Mellotron was used for the White Album. Both George and John were given Coral electric sitars. Other instruments were recorder, harmonica, banjo, trumpet, saxophone, oboe, glockenspiel, vibraphone, accordion,^[29][30] kazoo (made out of comb and paper), and assorted percussion (congas, bongos, Arabian loose-skin bongo, African drum, timpani, anvil, package case, maracas, tambourine, zill, güiro).

Pop culture references

The "Beatle" style instruments have been used many times in pop culture. In Agent Cody Banks 2 during the fight scene, there is a display of the original instruments and Agent Banks uses Paul McCartney's violin bass to hit the villain. The instruments have also been replicated into plastic game controllers for the game The Beatles Rock Band.

The Beatles as a four-piece live and in the studio, 1961–1966

+ Ringo Starr replaced Pete Best in August 1962

The Beatles as a five-piece

+ Chas Newby (December 1960 only), deputising for Sutcliffe ++ Tommy Moore (January–June 1960), Norman Chapman (July 1960), Pete Best (August 1960)

See also

• List of Gibson players
• John Lennon's musical instruments

Notes