LONDON — Paul McCartney no longer weeps over his original bass guitar.
A five-year search by the instrument’s manufacturer, assisted by a husband-and-wife team of journalists, helped reunite The Beatles star with the distinctive violin-shaped 1961 electric Höfner, which went missing half a century ago and is estimated to be worth 10 million pounds ($12.6 million).
McCartney had urged Höfner to assist in the search for the missing instrument that helped launch Beatlemania around the cosmos, according to Scott Jones, a journalist who worked with Höfner CEO Nick Wass to locate it.
“Paul said to me, ‘Hey, because you’re from Höfner, couldn’t you help find my bass?'” Wass stated. “That’s what triggered the great hunt. Sitting there, knowing what the lost bass meant to Paul, I was resolved to unravel the puzzle.”
Paul McCartney Reunited With Stolen Guitar ‘That Kicked Off Beatlemania’ After 50 Years
McCartney purchased the bass for approximately 30 pounds ($37) in 1961 while The Beatles were honing their skills during a period of residency in Hamburg, Germany. The instrument appeared on the Beatles’ first two LPs, including songs like “Love Me Do,” “Twist and Shout,” and “She Loves You.”
“Because I was left-handed, it looked less daft because it was symmetrical,” McCartney once explained. “I got into it. And after I purchased it, I fell in love with it.”
It was rumoured to have been stolen while The Beatles made their final album, “Let It Be,” in 1969. But no one knew when it went missing.
What began as a lengthy and winding route for Wass to find the bass gained momentum when Jones unexpectedly joined the hunt after witnessing McCartney headline the Glastonbury Festival in 2022. At one point, the stage lights appeared to spotlight nothing except McCartney’s sunburst pattern on his bass, prompting Jones to wonder if it was the same instrument he had played in the early 1960s.
When he later searched the internet, he was surprised to discover that the original bass had been lost and that there had been a search.
“I was staggered, amazed,” Jones added. “I think we live in a world where The Beatles could do almost anything and it would get a lot of attention.”
Jones, his wife, journalists, and researcher Naomi contacted Wass to share the message more widely.
Paul McCartney Reunited With Stolen Guitar ‘That Kicked Off Beatlemania’ After 50 Years
After hitting a dead end with a lead concerning a roadie for The Who, they revived The Lost Bass Project in September and were swamped with 600 emails containing the “little gems that led us to where we are today,” Jones explained.
One of those emails came from sound engineer Ian Horne, who had previously worked with McCartney’s band Wings and marked the first significant breakthrough in the search. Horne claimed the bass was stolen from the back of his truck one night in Notting Hill, London, in 1972.
The researchers released the new evidence on their website in October, adding that Horne claimed McCartney told him not to be concerned about the theft and that he continued to work for him for another six years.
“But I’ve carried the guilt all my life,” Horne explained.
After publishing that update, they received a bigger break when they were approached by someone who claimed their father had taken the bass. According to Jones, the man did not intend to steal McCartney’s guitar and became scared when he realised what he had.
The thief, who was not identified, eventually sold it to Ron Guest, the proprietor of the Admiral Blake tavern, for a few pounds and some drinks.
Word had already spread among his family as the Joneses began searching for Guest’s relatives. His daughter-in-law approached McCartney’s studio.
Cathy Guest stated that the ancient bass in her attic for years resembled the one they sought.
It had been passed down from Ron Guest to his oldest son, who died in a vehicle accident, and then to a younger son, Haydn Guest, who married Cathy and passed away in 2020.
The instrument was returned to McCartney in December, and it took around two months to authenticate it.
Paul McCartney Reunited With Stolen Guitar ‘That Kicked Off Beatlemania’ After 50 Years
The project had planned to make an announcement, but they were overshadowed by Cathy Guest’s son, Ruaidhri Guest, a 21-year-old film student who posted images of the guitar on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday, writing: “I inherited this instrument, which has been restored to Paul McCartney. Share the news. He sent a message on Friday, stating the family had received numerous interview requests and would soon tell their story.
According to Jones, the estimated worth of the instrument is based on a Gibson acoustic guitar Kurt Cobain played on MTV Unplugged, which sold for $6 million (4.7 million pounds). However, it has lost nearly all its worth during the last 50 years.
“The thief couldn’t sell it,” Jones explained. “The Guest family never attempted to sell it.” It’s a red flag because the moment you step forward, someone will say, ‘That’s Paul McCartney’s guitar.'”
It is now McCartney’s again. His official website announced its comeback, writing, “Paul is incredibly grateful to all those involved.”
SOURCE – (AP)
