A Beatle’s desperate quest for a guitar

I wish I could see him play that bass guitar once more.

AHN CHAK-HEEThe author is the head of the global cooperation team at the JoongAng Ilbo. Have you ever seen this guitar? It’s a violin-shaped bass guitar called “Höfner 500/1.” It was released by the German manufacturer in the 1950s, and it has become the one of the most famous bass guitars in the world because of its owner.

The owner of this guitar is none other than Paul McCartney of the Beatles. It was his first bass guitar that he bought for only 30 pounds (about $40) at an instrument dealer in Hamburg, Germany, in 1961 in the early days of the Beatles’ career.

The light weight and symmetrical structure resembling a violin was a perfect guitar for left-handed McCartney. Although he was interested in the 100-pound Fender model, he didn’t have enough money at the time.

This guitar was used to record the Fab Four’s hit songs like “Love Me Do,” “Twist and Shout,” and “She Loves You.” The bass guitar was praised as a key instrument in creating the sounds that became the foundation of the Beatles’ music. It stayed with McCartney during broadcasts and for performances, which made fans go wild.

The problem is that the whereabouts of this instrument have been a mystery since 1969. After the guitar was believed to have been stolen from the Abbey Road studio half a century ago, interest in the guitar is heating up again.

A worldwide campaign to find the instrument before it’s too late has even kicked off. If it was destroyed and does not exist anymore, McCartney is still desperate to know what happened to the guitar. The 81-year-old musician is attached to his first love.

The Höfner website has a notice posted about the guitar. Along with the exact specifications, the company states that the identity of informants will be kept confidential, and no liability or legal actions will be taken.

Tips are coming in from all over the world. Some predict that if the guitar resurfaces, its value could reach as much as 16 billion won ($12 million). It won’t be so easy to retrieve the instrument, given the apparently complicated negotiation process.

In one interview, McCartney described his wishes about his guitar. He said it would be nice if he was invited to a castle in the forest in Barbaria, Germany, one day and the host asks him to follow him upstairs and shows the Höfner guitar hanging above a fireplace in a small room. I hope that day will come. I wish I could see him play that bass guitar once more.