LOT Old Heritage Auctions.  /  2004 April Music Memorabilia - Dallas, TX. Auct...  / 

16168

The Byrds: Roger McGuinn's 1966 Rickenbacker

Currency:USD Category:Dolls & Bears Start Price:11.00 USD Estimated At:1.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
The Byrds: Roger McGuinn's 1966 Rickenbacker
The Byrds: Roger McGuinn's 1966 Rickenbacker Model 370-12 'BYRD'. "In my opinion, the Byrds' sound would have been impossible without the invention of the Rickenbacker twelve string electric guitar." -- Roger McGuinn. This natural-finished Rickenbacker 370-12 was ordered new by Roger McGuinn with custom factory controls of his specification, commonly referred to among Rickenbacker collectors as the 'BYRD' model. This was the only Rickenbacker 12 string Roger McGuinn owned and used from June of 1966, when this instrument was completed, until early 1971. All of The Byrds' live appearances and recordings during this period bearing the signature Byrds' Rickenbacker sound and look feature this instrument. Live Events include: Monterey Pop Festival, Newport Pop Festivals (1968), Fillmore East, Fillmore West, Holland Pop Festival (featured in the concert film Stamping Ground), and all other live appearances into March, 1971. Television Appearances include: American Bandstand, Drop In, Playboy After Dark, Popside, Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, Top of The Pops, The Tonight Show, Where The Action Is, and others. Recording Appearances include: This guitar appeared on all sessions between July 28, 1966 and January 26, 1971 that feature Roger McGuinn on electric 12 string. Highlights include the singles So You Want To Be A Rock 'n' Roll Star, My Back Pages, and Chestnut Mare. LPs include Younger Than Yesterday, The Notorious Byrd Brothers, Sweetheart of the Rodeo, Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde, Ballad of Easy Rider, (Untitled), and Byrdmaniax. Roger owned the guitar another eight years following these documented uses, so it may appear on other recordings from early 1971 until 1979, although we have to date found no photographic evidence of its use after March of 1971. Roger added a mini switch to the instrument to turn on and off a Vox Treble Booster, the circuit of which he wired into the instrument. This mini switch can be seen between the two factory installed toggle switches. Roger removed the Treble Booster circuit prior to selling the guitar. Roger also changed the tuners, in what photographic evidence suggests was late 1969, from the factory installed Klusons to a set of gold Grovers, which remain on the guitar to this day. A set of original 1960s knobs, as well as the remaining two replacements Roger had on the guitar, are included. The guitar itself is in the same condition as when Roger parted with it 25 years ago. The original silver hard shell case is stenciled with the touring insignia 'BYRDS' and 'FRAGILE.' Also pictured is the case, and a photo of Roger in the studio taken in 1970. Note the 'FRAGILE' stencil on the end of the case, and the 'backward' Grover tuners. Included in this auction lot is a fragment of a 1970 Byrds set list. This list appears to have been written by road manager Jim Seiter, with corrections by McGuinn himself. There is an arrow on the back of the guitar pointing to one of the two output jacks. It was done with the same type of green marker used to write out the included set list fragment. 2004 is the 40th Anniversary of The Byrds. Roger McGuinn was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Byrds in 1991. Important notice: Heritage usually auctions material at the rate of 200-250 lots per hour. On some occasions eBay Live bid software or the Internet may not be able to keep up with the pace of the auction. We recommend placing a realistic absentee bid now as insurance to avoid disappointment. Occasionally the auctioneer may eliminate or reject an eBay Live bid, and the auctioneer may also reopen a lot after the close of the eBay live bidding (usually because we missed an audience bid), and may reject your bid even if it shows you as the winning bidder. By bidding via eBay Live, you agree that Heritage may award the lot to another bidder at its sole discretion under the circumstances described above or any other reasonable circumstances. Since eBay bids are not shown to us until we open the lot on the floor, we treat those bids just like floor bids. In most cases the floor responds before the eBay bid is presented to us, due to Internet lag time, so for consistency we have made it a policy that floor bids are always considered first over tie eBay live bids. Also please note that all Heritage lots purchased through eBay Live carry a 20% Buyer's Premium. Please make sure you read the Terms and Conditions before you bid.
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