Julien’s Auctions, known for selling iconic music memorabilia, recently announced at a press conference at the London Piccadilly Circus Hard Rock Cafe® that one of the most important guitars in rock music history, a long-lost Framus 12-string Hootenanny acoustic guitar belonging to John Lennon of The Beatles, has been found and will be the highlight of the MUSIC ICONS auction on May 29th and 30th!
Framus 12-string Hootenanny acoustic guitar makes its first appearance
from The Beatles’ earliest records to the Beatlemania of the 1960s.
This guitar was used in the recording of The Beatles’ “Help!” album and film, as well as many of the band’s popular works in the 1960s. Therefore, the guitars and instruments they used became legendary, just like their music.
This guitar first gained widespread recognition after appearing in The Beatles’ movie “Help!” and was also featured in photos taken by Sean O’Mahoney, the publisher of The Beatles’ fan club magazine.
Later, during the filming of “Help!” in 1965, songs like “Help!”, “You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away”, “It’s Only Love”, and “I’ve Just Seen A Face” were recorded with this guitar. The Framus Hootenanny 12-string instrument also appeared in The Beatles’ recording of “Girl” from the Rubber Soul album, as well as in the rhythmic tracks played by George Harrison in “Norwegian Wood”.
By the mid-1960s, this famous Framus guitar fell into the hands of Gordon Waller of Peter & Gordon, who later gave their Hootenanny 12-string guitar to their tour manager.
Finally, this guitar was discovered in the attic of a rural household in England. The homeowner found this guitar during the moving process and contacted Julien’s Auctions. Darren Julien and Martin Nolan, Executive Director and Founder of Julien’s Auctions, immediately traveled to England and quickly realized that this was indeed the legendary Help! guitar. They also found the original Australian-made Maton guitar case by Framus in the onsite trash heap, which had appeared in photos of The Beatles in 1965.
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This extraordinary guitar, from being forgotten, lost, and then found again, can be considered a true case of lost and found. Darren Julien, co-founder and CEO of Julien’s Auctions, said: “The discovery of John Lennon’s thought-to-be-lost Help! guitar is absolutely the greatest Beatles guitar find since Paul McCartney lost his Höfner bass guitar in 1961. Finding this precious instrument is like discovering a lost Rembrandt or Picasso painting. After being stored in an attic for half a century, its appearance and playability are still like a dream. Waking up this sleeping beauty is a sacred honor, and a great moment in the music industry, Julien’s Auctions, the Beatles, and auction history.”
However, Julien’s Auctions also brought this precious Rickenbacker guitar to its former teammate Starr, reestablishing a connection between the two and igniting memories of The Beatles’ glorious era. Starr said, “After so many years, I am happy to see this guitar again. Thanks to Julien’s friends for a little ‘Help’.”
This auction will take place simultaneously at the Hard Rock Cafe in New York and juliensauctions.com. It is considered the most important guitar in auction history, with an expected selling price surpassing the pre-sale estimate of US$600,000-$800,000/ HK$4,680,000 – 6,240,000, and setting a new world auction record for a guitar owned by The Beatles.
