Hofner Violin Bass selling for £12,995.00

This Hofner Violin Bass has quite a hefty price tag on it, and you'd be correct in thinking there may be a McCartney connection but as a righty you can guess it's not one that he's owned.

However the bass has had its fair share of muso owners, among them Marco Nelson (The Style Council), Damon Minchella (Ocean Colour Scene) and Paul Weller, and it has appeared on quite a few recorded works by each of those artists including Weller's first two solo albums. As well as all this history, the bass has been signed by the world's best known exponent of this style of bass guitar, Sir Paul McCartney himself.

If interested and you've got the cash, snap it up now, because if it doesn't sell on eBay it's going to be auctioned at Christie's.

Thanks to David Brown for bringing this item to my attention.

Thicket to Ride

The Fab Four reformed (as shrubs) in the capital of culture. Yes, it's true, The Beatles have returned to their hometown of Liverpool in privet form. Now, who would have expected that? (Errrmmm... isn't the neck of George's guitar a bit too long? Looks more like a bass scale length. Someone take the secateurs to it, please!)

I also like to take this opportunity once again to recommend Fab Guitars of The Beatles which features just about every guitar they ever used.

Cliff Richard blasts The Beatles' guitar solos: Sir Cliff Richard has slated The Beatles' guitar solos as "horrific".

The 60s pop icon told Q Magazine: "Some of the guitar is so out of tune it's unbelievable. I couldn't believe that here they were in this hi-tech age and they couldn't go back and do it with a tuned guitar."

Sir Cliff, 67, then claimed he was the ultimate pop star, saying: "I've sold more singles than... everybody."

Yeah, Cliff, name all those you actually WROTE!

McCartney Refused to be the "Loser Bassist": Paul McCartney was unhappy with his role as bassist when he joined The Beatles because he feared he would be less famous than his bandmates. (So it says here. But surely Stuart Sutcliffe was the bassist when he first joined? Sounds like bad journalism to me.)

Dougherty inspired by dad's old Beatles guitar: Nick Dougherty, the first-round U.S. Open leader with a 2-under-par 68 at Oakmont Country Club (I think this means he's a Golfer - sorry, I don't do sport), grew up in Liverpool and tells the story of the time his father traded in a guitar once owned by the Beatles' Paul McCartney to get his son a flute!

Rare Guitar Signed By All Four Beatles Added to April 1st Auction

Alvin Stardust's £600,000 guitar! Over the years it's been signed by The Beatles, Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly amongst others.

Eric Griffiths, RIP: Eric Griffiths, guitarist and founding member of The Quarrymen, the band that became The Beatles, died on Saturday following a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 64.

Beatles' guitar sold for £294,000

Beatles guitar up for grabs: The Gibson SG as played by both George Harrison and John Lennon is expected to fetch more than half a million dollars when it goes under the hammer at Christie's later today.

Beatles' "jinxed" guitar set to beat auction record: but is the guitar really cursed?

Six String Arts, the art of the guitar in stunning miniature reproductions: check out these ultra-detailed models of guitars as owned by Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Beatles, Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Kurt Cobain and many others.

NAMM: Beatles guitars from Gretsch: Gretsch launch new versions of George Harrison guitars

Uke Beatles! Play these famous Beatles tunes on your jumping flea! Great interactive site.

This seems like an opportune time to re-list this link: Fab Guitars of The Beatles - a superb website.

George Harrison's legendary rosewood Telecaster for sale
A guitar played by George Harrison at the final Beatles gig is expected to fetch $250,000 (£156,900) at auction. The instrument was also used by the late musician during the filming of the Beatles' movie Let it Be. The custom-made Fender Rosewood Telecaster is being sold in Los Angeles during a pop memorabilia sale on Saturday and Sunday. It previously went on sale in London in 1999 but failed to meet the asking price and was withdrawn.  More...

Hendrix tops guitar album poll

Jimi Hendrix's pioneering classic Are You Experienced has been named the greatest guitar album of all time more than 30 years since its release. The 1967 release, which spawned classics such as Foxy Lady and Fire, was chosen by a panel of music writers and experts.

The Beatles failed to make even the top 20 although the writers thought their 1966 effort Revolver, with its backward guitar snatches on Tomorrow Never Knows, deserved a place in the list of the 100 greatest guitar albums. The Who were runners-up with 1965's My Generation and a self-titled 1962 compilation by bluesman Howlin' Wolf completed the top three.

Left-handed musician Hendrix made it to number two in the UK charts with his debut album Are You Experienced, continuing the promise shown on earlier singles Hey Joe and Purple Haze. He had perfected his incendiary style in the clubs of Greenwich village in New York, but found fame after being brought to the UK by former Animals bass player Chas Chandler.

Are You Experienced showcased his incredible talent as well as his range of innovative guitar sounds using an array of electronic boxes. Music writer Ritchie Unterberger said: "It's impossible to cram all the innovative ways of playing an electric guitar that Hendrix pioneered on his first album into one paragraph.

"Foremost among them were his use of controlled feedback coaxing both oceanic waves and subtle flutters; his mastery of a huge range of high volume distorted tones and his piercing, clear lightning-quick blues runs."

Two albums from the Nineties make it into the top ten - Loveless by My Bloody Valentine and Radiohead's The Bends. Only one album since Radiohead's 1995 release is thought to be worthy of the top 100 - Elephant by The White Stripes which was released this year.

Although hardly high on technical merit The Ramones debut album with its straightforward three-chord romps is included for its primitive excitement.

The top ten are:

1. Are You Experienced - Jimi Hendrix Experience.

2. My Generation - The Who.

3. Howlin' Wolf - Howlin' Wolf.

4. Maggot Brain - Funkadelic.

5. Loveless - My Bloody Valentine.

6. The Bends - Radiohead.

7. Ramones - Ramones.

8. Genius Of The Electric Guitar - Charlie Christian.

9. New Orleans Street Singer - Snooks Eaglin.

10. The Rock'N'Roll Trio - Johnny Burnette And The Rock'N'Roll Trio.

A Fairly Complete List of the Fab Guitars of The Beatles by John F Crowley - everything you ever wanted to know about the guitars of the world's most famous band.