George Harrison

It was originally purchased by Brian Epstein, the Beatles' manager, and given to George Harrison. Its original color was Sonic Blue, and was used extensively on the band's sixth album, Rubber Soul. But first used on Help.it was Georges main guitar in Beatles between 1965 to 1970. In 1967, he painted it into the way it is today. It can be seen in the music video for "I Am the Walrus". It was later used as a slide guitar when George went solo. Georges favourite guitar was the Fender Stratocaster. He wanted one in 1958. Later he was to buy one but the guitarist in Rory Storm and the Hurricanes wook up earlier and bought the guitar. He finally got his Strat in Dec 1964. From 1965 till his death the Stratocaster was his main guitar in the studio, though this one was set up for slide so he used other Strats for normal playing. It was George that convinced Eric Clapton to start using the Stratocaster in 1970. George always wanted his first electric guitar to be a Fender Stratocaster.

George Harrison is spotted at 0:22 (and throughout in this Beatles music video for "Lady Madonna") playing a Gibson SG. He used this guitar mainly from 1966 through 1968, after which he gave it to a friend of his, Eric Clapton.

Per the Gibson website, "George Harrison played his red 1964 SG Standard on many Rubber Soul/Revolver-era Beatles tracks, and Lennon played it on “The White Album.” You can see it briefly in the films for “Rain” and “Paperback Writer,” where Lennon is playing a nice Epiphone Casino. George’s SG sold at auction in 2004 for $570,000."

In a YouTube video titled "George Harrison & Eric Clapton - While My Guitar Gently Weeps Live 1987," at the 1:40 mark, the headstock of George Harrison's guitar is visible, revealing it to be a Squier Stratocaster. This guitar may be a Squier JV Stratocaster, known for its high quality between 1982 and 1986, rivaling American-made Fender Strats. It is suggested that George Harrison acquired this guitar for his son, but he found it to be superior to his recent Stratocasters. Despite his early preference for Fender Stratocasters, George initially struggled to obtain one due to availability issues in 1957 Liverpool, leading him to use a Futurama, a Czech Stratocaster copy. He later expressed dissatisfaction with certain guitars, notably the Fender Rosewood Telecaster, which he reportedly disliked.

John Lennon and George Harrison both acquired Epiphone Casinos at the end of 1965. The main difference was that Harrison's guitar had a Bigsby tailpiece while Lennon's had a trapeze tailpiece. This became Harrison's main guitar during the band's final tour in 1966, and was used heavily during the recording sessions of Sgt. Pepper the following year. Harrison would strip the finish off the guitar in 1968, at the suggestion of Donovan. Harrison claimed the guitar sounded better as a result of the finish being stripped. “I think that works on a lot of guitars,” he explained. “If you take the paint and varnish off and get the bare wood, it seems to sort of breathe.”

"It was my first real American guitar," he told Guitar Player magazine in 1987. "And I'll tell you, it was secondhand, but I polished that thing. I was so proud to own that." Indeed, Harrison had procured a truly fine guitar for himself—no small feat for an 18-year-old in Liverpool, where any good guitar was hard to come by, let alone a U.S.-made Gretsch.

This is the guitar that George Harrison played on the Ed Sullivan show.

Known as the "Bangladesh Strat", this '50s Fender Stratocaster was used by Harrison during the well known "Concert for Bangladesh" in 1971. It featured a maple fingerboard, while the body was sanded to bare wood, although a lot of people think it was white. It was used as George Harrison's main electric guitar in the Concert for Bangladesh in 1971. He later gave this guitar to Spike Milligan.

George Harrison used the Maestro Fuzz-Tone pedal during the recording sessions for the first two Beatles albums, including "With the Beatles." This information is detailed in the PMT Online article, "The Beatles Effects Pedals Guide."

In this picture, George Harrison is playing a rare acoustic version with the capo on the 2nd fret of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" in 1968 on a vintage Gibson Super Jumbo Sunburst guitar.

This Leslie speaker designed for guitars was used by Harrison on "Let It Be" and "Abbey Road". You can hear it on the guitar solo for the single version of "Let It Be" and several songs in the "Abbey Road Medley".

In a post by harrisonarchive on Instagram, George Harrison is shown with a Maestro PS-1A Phase Shifter, highlighting its use during the Extra Texture promotional period.

In this photograph, George Harrison is seen with a 1968 Fender Rosewood Telecaster. Despite its iconic appearance, he rarely used this guitar, preferring his Stratocaster instead. Harrison received the Telecaster in January 1969 and gifted it to Delaney Bramlett in December of the same year. Harrison famously described it as "the worst guitar I have ever played." It was primarily used during the recording of the "Let It Be" album. For other sessions, such as "Abbey Road," Harrison favored his Fender Rocky Stratocaster, Gibson Les Paul "Lucy," and Epiphone Casino. This information aligns with details from the Beatles Bible.

In 1993, George Harrison played a Guild Brian May Red Special Replica guitar, as shown in the accompanying image.

In picture 3 of the slideshow you can see George standing in front of four silverface Champs during Bob Dylan's set at the Concert for Bangladesh. The fact that these are Champs is backed up by the top comment on this youtube video demoing a Silverface Champ [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAXQKAE8Tbc].

To quote Youtube user JJ Slyde "George Harrison used that amp x 4 for the concert for Bangladesh. For the two weeks prior to concert, I set them up at the rehearsal warehouse in NYC. My sister ran publicity for Apple at the time. 4 silver face champ amps hooked together."

Admittedly it's difficult to verify the validity of this story, but it's the first I've heard mention of George using this particular amp and the photo does corroborate the story.

Eric Clapton gifted a 1957 Les Paul Standard to George Harrison in 1968. This guitar started as a goldtop but was refinished to cherry red, earning it the nickname "Lucy" after Lucille Ball, at the Gibson Kalamazoo factory. Harrison said, “[Eric and I] used to hang out such a lot at that period, and Eric gave me a fantastic Les Paul guitar, which is the one he plays on [“While My Guitar Gently Weeps”]. So it worked out well.”

In 1991, George Harrison played a Fender Eric Clapton Stratocaster while performing with Eric Clapton's band. This usage is supported by a user-uploaded photo.

In a video titled "GEORGE HARRISON, ERIC CLAPTON JAPANESE PRESS 1991" on YouTube, George Harrison is seen using the Roy Buchanan Bluesmaster No. 6 guitar. This custom-made guitar by Fritz Brothers from Mobile, Alabama, is notable for its versatility, capable of replicating the tones of a Fender Stratocaster, a Gibson Les Paul, and more. It features seven switches, three pickups, and a push-pull tone control, allowing for a wide range of sounds. Harrison reportedly remarked on its unique construction, describing it as unlike any guitar he had previously played.

In this photograph you can see George Harrison using a vintage Vox AC 30 which he used throughout most of his career with The Beatles.

In this photo from Abbey Road studios you can clearly see George Harrison's Vox Conqueror solid state amp and cabinet that he used extensively for its built-in fuzz effect starting with Sgt Pepper. In the background you can see John Lennon plugged into one of the 2 Dual Showman's given to the band by Fender and not George's Vox. Though gear was fluid with th Beatles, George wound up with Paul's blonde Bassman after the band broke up (it was sued for guitar more than for Paul's bass) and the Beatles constantly swapped amps and guitars in the studio.

John Lennon and George Harrison both acquired Epiphone Casinos at the end of 1965. The main difference was that Harrison's guitar had a Bigsby tailpiece while Lennon's had a trapeze tailpiece. This became Harrison's main guitar during the band's final tour in 1966, and was used heavily during the recording sessions of Sgt. Pepper the following year. Harrison would strip the finish off the guitar in 1968, at the suggestion of Donovan. Harrison claimed the guitar sounded better as a result of the finish being stripped. “I think that works on a lot of guitars,” he explained. “If you take the paint and varnish off and get the bare wood, it seems to sort of breathe.”

George Harrison used a Futurama in the Beatles early Hamburg days.

George Harrison received a Rickenbacker 360/12 12-String Hollowbody guitar from the manufacturer in 1964, following a meeting between John Lennon and Rickenbacker. This guitar was prominently featured in many Beatles songs from 1964 onwards, most notably on "A Hard Day's Night." The guitar's whereabouts after the Beatles stopped touring remain uncertain, though it is speculated to have influenced the sound in "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," specifically the bass octaver in the choruses, though this is unconfirmed. Harrison also used this style of guitar on "Handle with Care" by the Traveling Wilburys. A photograph on Guitarstorage.com verifies his association with this iconic instrument.

In this photo, we can see George Harrison playing sunburst Gibson ES-345.

George Harrison can be seen playing the Fender Bass VI most clearly at 5:50 in this TV performance of "Hey Jude."

In this photo you can see George sitting in front of a Blonde Bassman amplifier (according to Andy Babiuk, a circa 1961 to 1963 6G6B model), holding the famous "Rocky" strat. This amplifier originally belonged to Paul but was used increasingly by George in the studio throughout the 60s. When the Beatles broke up George wound up with the amp and to the best of my knowledge it currently belongs to his son, Dahni Harrison. You can see it behind Dahni Harrison in the recent "Concert for George."

In this photo, George can be seen playing through a Gibson GA-40 Amplifier at the Cavern Club

In this picture George Harrison can be seen using what was the main acoustic used by both George and John until George acquired a Gibson J200 in the late 60's.

Used during period when he worked with the group Splinter and on his Dark Horse recordings.

George Harrison pictured with his '64 Gibson SG

Used during Let it Be and Abbey Road sessions.

Silicon grey fuzz face