Sir Paul McCartney guitar: International seek for Beatles star’s lacking ‘£10m’ bass

A world search is underneath approach to discover Sir Paul McCartney’s lacking bass guitar which he purchased for £30 and will reportedly now be value greater than £10m.

The instrument “powered Beatlemania and shaped the sound of the modern world”, in line with these behind the Lost Bass challenge.

The Hofner 500/1 electrical bass was bought by Beatles star McCartney from a store in Hamburg in 1961 and it was reportedly his “favourite”.

The musician performed it on the Top Ten Club within the German metropolis that very same yr, at Liverpool’s Cavern Club, and on the Beatles‘ first recordings on the well-known Abbey Road studios.

He performed it on the Beatles hits Love Me Do, She Loves You, and Twist And Shout.

McCartney then put it to at least one facet for a number of years, however in early 1969 he picked it up once more whereas the band have been in London recording the Get Back/Let It Be periods.

The instrument is also seen in Get Back, the Peter Jackson documentary which was launched in 2021.

It was across the time of the periods in January 1969 that the guitar went lacking, a yr earlier than the band cut up up.

Speaking in a 1966 Beat Instrumental interview, McCartney mentioned: “I have had a Hofner ever since I started. I’ve got three models but the ancient one is still my favourite. It has seen so much work that some of it is held with sellotape!”

There are numerous rumours about what occurred to it, together with {that a} thief took the bass from a closet at Abbey Road, or that it went lacking from the basement of the Beatles’ Savile Row workplaces.

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Those behind the brand new challenge say they’re looking for “the most important bass in history” and so they name its disappearance “the greatest mystery in rock and roll”.

According to Hofner, McCartney saved his first violin bass till it went lacking, utilizing it as a back-up in the course of the Beatles’ world excursions and taking part in it once more within the Revolution promo video and in the course of the filming of Let It Be.

‘No different 500/1 bass appears to be like like this’

The firm mentioned on its web site: “The bass was in need of repairs and so it was sent to a firm in London, early in 1964, who carried these out. They resprayed the bass a darker three-part sunburst and fitted new knobs.

“Most considerably they custom-made an uncommon single pickup body to carry each pickups. It was very distinctive, no different 500/1 bass appears to be like like this.”

‘Paul can be so glad if this bass might get again to him’

One of the individuals concerned within the hunt is Nick Wass, a bass professional and Hofner government, who mentioned the guitar “was played in Hamburg, at The Cavern Club, at Abbey Road. Isn’t that enough alone to get this bass back?”

“I know, because I talked with him about it, that Paul would be so happy – thrilled – if this bass could get back to him”.

The most expensive guitar ever sold was singer Kurt Cobain’s Martin D-18B which was purchased at public sale in Los Angeles in 2020 for $6m (£4.77m).

It was used throughout Nirvana’s well-known MTV Unplugged set – a gig which was televised and universally lauded.