Guitar of the Day: 1964 Gibson J-160E | Norman's Rare Guitars

[@greg7656]

John & George both had one of these, purchased for them by Brian Epstein. At some point they likely switched with one another for some reason, possibly by accident. In any case, George's remains in Dhani's possession, while John's disappeared for decades and was found a couple years ago in the possession of a California man who had bought it, unaware of its history, in 1969 or thereabouts for $150. He auctioned it for millions a few years ago. I wrote a story about this for Guitar World a few years back, did my best to track down the guitar's "missing years" between the time it was lifted backstage at a Beatles early '60s concert (Mal Evans took the blame) and when it was acquired unawares in '69. Had no luck solving the mystery. Hope Michael, Jen and the rest of the Norm's gang is keeping healthy and sane. Thanks for providing some joy for these days...

[@kswannie]

@@GoIdenApple Poor ol' Mal. The story is shit runs downhill: He was lowest on the payroll. It was stolen during the two-week run of The Beatles' Xmas shows in 1964 where there were dozens of people backstage. They didn't even know it was gone for weeks. Most probably a member of one bands on the bill nicked it and took it to California in 65.

[@lptomtom]

@@GoIdenApple Mal didn't steal the guitar, he took the blame for losing it IIRC

[@greg7656]

@@GoIdenApple Mal did not steal it - sorry if I was unclear - he was merely responsible for the gear, and, if I remember correctly, he postponed breaking the news to John hoping the guitar would show up. A few weeks later when John asked for the guitar, Mal broke the news to him and an angry Lennon threatened to fire him (which was a very common threat, apparently). Of course nothing ever came of the threat...

[@jamqc24]

What guitar was used in Lennon’s protest in bed “Bed Peace Hair Peace” it looked like a Natural Finished J160e?

[@greg7656]

@@jamqc24 That was a J160E (1964 I think, maybe '65) that originally had a sunburst finish, then Lennon had the artist group The Fool (who painted the Apple store) do a psychedelic paint job on it. Later, he had that sanded off to the natural wood, and drew the John & yoko caricatures on it himself, which it has to this day

[@TorToroPorco]

Lovely interpretation of “And I Love Her”. Lemmo has soul.

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

It sounds great on this Guitar.

[@justinpeterich3441]

We happen to have a 1966 Gibson J160-E at home. It’s in just about the same condition as this one, and I never understood how great it was until I plugged it into my 65 Super Reverb. Absolutely love seeing another one!

[@demoleramera]

I would love to just randomly stumble upon a 1966 Gibson J160-E when I clean the apartment. Sadly, best I found so far is a no brand 2000s something acoustic from a local department store with broken strings

[@c.a.t.732]

This made my day. I can still remember hearing "I Feel Fine" when it first came out, back in junior high school, and how magical it was. Thanks!

[@warmonger9100]

Always in the mood, for a little Beatles. The flashback caught me off guard but it was perfect.

[@kengibbens5059]

Who wouldn't want that in their collection??? Awesome

[@efsedita]

The Beatles had an eye for guitars as much as they had an ear for them. All their gear looked cool, which I know sounds superficial or whatever, but they were very conscious of their image and fashion sense. This one is a beaut. Nicely played, Lemming! ;)

[@knucklechuckle2079]

The image came down to Brian Epstein, Brian focused on the image. When The Beatles asked for Strats, Brian bought them matching Sonic Blue Strats.

[@glenkepic3208]

Shed a tear when I saw this. "I Feel Fine", first recorded use of controlled feed back. PLUS, fingerboard is extended. I dig it.

[@danielbrown8556]

Johnny Watson says hi re feedback

[@promerops]

As far as I know, the feedback was inadvertently generated from Paul's bass and the group decided to make it a feature of the record, leaving it in.

[@luthravin4774]

promerops Actually there’s a video by a Beatles expert who breaks their songs down note for note.. and he shows exactly how Lennon achieves this..he is using the J-160 plugged into a Vox AC-30 then hits the open A string and it feeds back as he turns facing and leans into the amp then pulls back and continues into the song which he plays J-160 throughout...

[@promerops]

@@luthravin4774 Oh, OK! Thanks for the information. Regards.

[@w13rdguy]

Pretty good, and so glad to see "Mister Authentic" appreciated, here. Never was mad at you, Marc. Keep chugging!

[@claudionerone]

oh how do I miss history, knowledge and sheer passion for beautiful old guitars transmitted by Marc. Nevermind though, as long as the community here is enjoying Lemmo Demmo it's all good I guess. Keep on rocking ans stay safe everybody

[@MezzMcGillicuddy1]

Yep, George had one too. George also had a Casino in Royal Tan sunburst with a bigsby, and he sanded the finish off around the same time as John. Everybody forgets about George these days, and I don't know why... Paul did not have a J-160E, but he had an Epiphone Texan (still does!).

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

It's a beautiful Acoustic-Electric that's been a big hit known for that Beatles sound.

[@sturusk3620]

One of the most beautiful guitars I've ever heard.

[@ArizonaKelly]

I like the throw backs at the end nice edit Jenn

[@promerops]

Agreed. Perhaps this could be made a regular feature, from time to time.

[@hiddenguitarlessonstutoria8085]

The P90 sound is good...but it would be interesting to also have an acoustic demo of these J-160E...their pure acoustic sound is most of the time considered as "thin"...because of the laminated construction, but it's the very nice "little" sound you can hear on most beatles records

[@ardiris2715]

Love the flashbacks at the end! Nice touch.

[@billyrossi4661]

RIP John LENNON my favorite Beatle ...

[@thevidguy11]

Thanks for playing I feel fine lemmo! Love the Beatles episodes.

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

The sound of this Guitar when plugged into an amp is a good halfway point between an Arch top Electric Guitar & an Amplified Acoustic Guitar w/ a Piezoelectric Pickup.

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

It's a special sound that you can't get out of other instruments

[@rohkwaho]

Took me back to the 1960s

[@chadhutsell8847]

Exceptional episode and two exceptional players!

[@skyking228]

Frank would like this guitar... Fun to watch, thanks!

[@skeetschuler1859]

Brought me back to 64. Thanks

[@tomblaze2]

That guitar looks like it is a dream to play - instant songwriting guitar

[@tinman8518]

Excellent GOTD. Thanks for the flashbacks too!

[@coachdewalls9355]

Damn! I thought it was Friday for a second...you guys gotta quit messing with my head! This "social distance" and school closure mess has me jacked up enough already.

[@bstewartexecutivecarcare6953]

Very nice. Thanks for cheering up my day 👍✌️😁

[@tosinmcboy]

Michael he is a really good guitar player

[@dr.feather123]

Your videos keep me motivated to play my guitar since these times got me feeling sad. Good job guys, like always!

[@martinandersson5833]

What a beautiful guitar. Sounds great too. Good job Lemmo 👍👏

[@stevehornshaw4478]

Agree with u Michael. A favourite of mine. The look and the P90 and knobs just unique. To top it off we have u on top form as always Michael. Again perfect songs for each guitar u use. Thnx. u stunned Jen into silence haha

[@toddflowers8052]

Love that model ! Good job as always Lemmo ! Thanks for the great video Jen ! Be safe all !

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

1:41 The P90 Pickup sound is actually in between an Acoustic Guitar & almost like an Archtop Jazz Guitar.

[@pierheadjump]

⚓️ Thanks Jen 🌈 Mike 🎶

[@kevinl6111]

Very Cool! Thanks Mr. Lemmo!!!!

[@jonlennon3348]

Stay well everyone.

[@stevefaure415]

To my ears this sounds a whole universe better than absolutely any piezo pickup system. I just can't stand the sound of a piezo and don't understand why anyone other than a nylon string player would opt for that instead of a magnetic pickup. So there.

[@murphyebass7837]

Lemmo does love that reverb. Lovely playing as always though.

[@ec7876]

Bro love the show. Could you tone down the verb every once and a while so we can here the raw instrument. Love ya!

[@painting7359]

I owned one in 1960 it came with a plastic bridge which I had replaced by Victor and Hugo in Stockbridge n Edinburgh. 19807 took it to be refurbished to a company in Birmingham . The place went on fire and I never saw my guitar again they saved the hardware which I still have to this day.

[@greenwave792]

ya, I could here the tank wash out a few times. wrong amp

[@absolving]

@@painting7359 were you reimbursed at least?

[@blakemcnamara9105]

This guitar was actually used more on early Beatles records than you would think. 90% of Please Please Me was played exclusively on this as were famous tracks like All My Loving, I Feel Fine, etc.

[@josephbelcher2568]

I'd have liked to hear it unplugged .

[@stevemurray2737]

Nice work on "And I Love Her".. Great Playing..

[@radar468]

John Fogerty just played bad moon rising on one of these guitars yesterday.👍🏼👍🏼

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

I think it works better if you use D'addario EJ20 Jazz Extra Light Gauge Electric Strings, it's basically an Electric Guitar version of an Acoustic Guitar extra light set that you know makes your Acoustic feel like an Electric w/ easier action for the fretting hand.

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

5:23 And I love her by the Beatles

[@gonzo5912]

i liked how you threw a few extras of the guitar in this gitfiddle infomercial

[@bgmckddy]

Love the add ons at the end!! Very cool!!

[@TheMataleon06]

sr. lemmo...bella esa guitara! excepcional….sonido via pickup con tonos vivos y llenos….belleza

[@JeffinLowerAlabama]

Great video Jen, flashing back plus showing the cleaner tones, smart editing, Best to Mark too, Jeff in LA USA

[@es355lucille4]

I hope you guys are doing well Michael! Great episode!

[@randyfrieberg1706]

Love the flat tops ...any and all .... Hope u guys r well .... Stay strong ...

[@kirkrollins5591]

awesome sounding wtg

[@duffduff4948]

I love watching these 'guitar of the day' videos for the sheer range of strange mmm noises etc the girl behind the camera makes when the guitar is revealed :) wonderful (sorry I don't know the girls name) … some cool guitars also. Stay safe, keep well and be kind from sunny Scotland much love to all.

[@promerops]

Jen. Great cinematographer and the sexiest voice on the internet.

[@iainfreeman5112]

Both George & John had them. 62s They were so similar & the Beatles weren’t fussy, so mixed up the guitars. Johns (but actually George’s) was stolen and John bought the 64 later on.

[@MrJohnr47]

Always wanted this beatle guitar

[@akiouchiyama]

Well played!

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

I think all the Beatles sounds sound great on an Archtop Acoustic-Electric Guitar.

[@Smagledorf]

Great to see you bringing a special Flattop Wednesday! Awesome playing Lemmo! However! Gotta do a Maton!

[@lordjs9726]

Lemmo, you're right that both John and George had one of these, but Paul did not.

[@mtacoustic1]

Some great tunes! (Don't think the Beatles were into that much reverb, though)

[@kevinbates7161]

Very cool, playing

[@LoLinForU]

Geez guys! I got scared because I thought it was Flatop Friday and went "Wait?! Isnt it Wednesday!?" This quarantine has me tripping everywhere

[@johnneal2441]

very well done

[@DjMcNG]

Same day last year the Guitar of The Day was a 1969 J-160 E

[@vernonhoover1387]

Great 160e!!!

[@marlinrando-t8d]

his 62 was stolen which turned out to be George's It sold recently for $265,000

[@martinleicht5911]

Good job lemmo! 😷 👍

[@firmamentofficial]

Sick!!

[@TheRockyhockey007]

just wondering , if the store is closed , why are there always people milling about in the background and voices , you can't get 5 minutes alone in a closed store ? , anyway , great guitar , should have played one song acoustic and one electric to show the difference , but again I digress , very cool axe , luv the Beatles , two great songs , very well played Mr. Lemmo , thanks guys.

[@mikepannell7338]

Rob M I remember them saying they were going to record a backlog before they closed...

[@DavidMorales008]

Amazing

[@michaelloveland1330]

Y'all could also hawk ... er, FEATURE string packs, picks, cleaning cloths - folks are actually going to pull the ol' git-fiddle out the back of the closet and the strings are circa 1993 and that just won't do! Sumpin' to do.

[@promerops]

How did you know that is exactly my situation?!

[@cruisepix]

Nice job #JensLens!!!!

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

You could also play Imagine by John Lennon on this Guitar.

[@Hothorseraddish]

News flash! You can play it on every guitar

[@jsullivan2112]

Nope, Paul had a Texan.

[@wanderingsurf2842]

Fender: 102 Gibson: 82 Martin: 27 Gretsch: 8 Rickenbacker: 7 Epiphone: 7 Guild: 2 Hofner: 2 Don Musser: 2 Silvertone: 2 National: 2 Stromberg: 1 Taylor: 1 Vox: 1 Ovation: 1 Paul Reed Smith: 1 Zemaitis: 1 Mosrite: 1 Harmony: 1 Whitehead: 1 James Trussart: 1 Music Man: 1 Modulus: 1 Bill Nash: 1 GOTD Cancelled: 1

[@brad6420]

Does anyone know if these had a sticker inside the body visible through the sound hole? Like with serial numbers etc..? I'm not certain of the year but my grandfather left his gibson j160e to my dad and he was trying to find out more info. Thanks!

[@vincenzo6162]

That’s a beaut~

[@Jdflana1]

Do you have any cd’s I can buy. I find in the middle of all that’s going on I like your sound best.

[@joebodynobody764]

Laminate is the technical guitar term for plywood.

[@1106Winter]

No sir, that's incorrect. Plywood is a laminate. But 3 sheets of hard maple is also a laminate, but definitely not plywood.

[@joebodynobody764]

@@1106Winter fancy plywood.

[@guitarocd9984]

Yeah Gibson got away with murder on this one. Whether it's plywood or laminated the top is dead.

[@rauschi3863]

Didn't sounds bad. And she loves her...

[@mosuelososom9779]

Anybody else feels like lemmo is sad lately? ARE YOU SAD LEMMO? NOOOOOOO

[@xHGB44x]

whats the name of the second song?

[@GuitarlosCarlos]

HEY THIS IS COOL MANG!! I HAVE THE EXACT VERY SAME 1964 GIBSON J-160 E MINE CAME WITH AN OLDER CALI GIRL CASE IN 10 OF 10 IN THE COOL PINK INTERIOR MY J-160 E IS 9+ OF 10 COND. I LOVE THESE GIBSON BOXES MICHAEL DIDN'T MENTION THAT THE BRACING THESE GUITARS SPORT IS HEAVIER WITH THESE GUITARS YOU'VE GOTTA PLAY @THE CORRECT ANGLE TO THE AMP TO CUT OUT THE BUZZ/HUM CRAP IT'S A P 90 P UP AFTER ALL OR YOU COULD HAVE A DUMMY PICK UP INSTALLED TO GET RID OF THAT HUM THESE COOL GUITARS CAN PRODUCE WONDERFUL FULL CLEAR & OPEN BELL TONES JOHN & GEORGE EACH HAD 2 OF THESE GREAT GIBSONS, YOU CAN HEAR THEM ON "THINGS WE SAID TODAY" TO THE POOPY COUCH NOW THE BEATLES USED THESE GUITARS SPARINGLY BUT TO GREAT EFFECT FOR SURE HEY! MICHAEL CORRECTLY GOT THE MAJOR CHORD THIS TIME AT THE END OF... "AND I LOVE HER" I LOVE THE GIBSON J-160 E GREAT CHOICE FOR GOTD carlosguitarlosmusic.com CARLOS GUITARLOS 90042 HERE'S A BEATLES STYLE "A REAL LOVE" on SING AN HONEST SONG' www.carlosguitarlosmusic.com/carlos/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/10-A-Real-Love.mp3

[@jonnybeck6723]

HEY CARLOS... THAT WUZ COOL. LUV THE 12 STRING SOLO... WHO WUZZIT HARMONIZING W/ YOU? ANOTHER GREAT TUNE THANX MATE

[@GuitarlosCarlos]

Jonny Beck A GUY NAMED VINCE HE PLAYS SAX DRUMS FLUTE AND HARMONICA AS WELL HE READS MUSIC SO I WROTE OUT THE VOCAL PART FOR HIM & IT WAS A BREEZE IT'S ANOTHER TRUE STORY CARLOS GUITARLOS 90042

[@guitarocd9984]

The best thing I could say about this guitar is that it is a quirky guitar. And I can totally understand why you would like it. It does its own thing like you. For me it's kind of a guitar that you would own if you have some extra money. Not as your only or first guitar. Change my opinion. I am not kind to these guitars.

[@GuitarlosCarlos]

Guitar Ocd 5 YEARS AGO I BOUGHT A 1964 GIBSON J 160 E MINE IS THE SAME COLOR BUT MINE CAME WITH AN MINTY OLD CALI GIRL CASE THE LIGHT BROWN LEATHER WITH A PINK INTERIOR AND THE PINK SHROUD COVER MIKE IS RIGHT IT CAN GET THE SOUND OF AN EARLY 50s ES 175 D OR AN OLD JAZZ BOX LIKE AN EPIPHONE SOUNDS GOOD IN A TRACK IT FITS ON MOST ANYTHING I GOT MINE FOR $2500 THEY GO FOR $3000/$4000 I'M SATISFIED WITH IT CARLOS GUITARLOS 90042

[@GuitarlosCarlos]

Guitar Ocd HERE'S A SONG I FOUND ON THE INTERNET OF MY SONG "DRINKING AGAIN" AT THE MAUI SUGAR MILL SALOON WITH MIKE HIGHTOWER ON MY ALL MAHOGANY MARITN BASS OPENING FOR MY PAL JOHN DOE OF 'X' I'M ON THE GIBSON J-160 E WITH MY CALIFORNIA BLOND IT'S AN EARLIER SWR AMP IN THE ROOM IT RANG OUT WITH SONE DECENT TONE USE HEADPHONES CARLOS GUITARLOS 90042 "DRINKING AGAIN" kzbin.info/www/bejne/pGSwgKlsrdODg6c

[@mrtambourineman6107]

How much do we reckon this will sell for? 20 grand?

[@plumiegirl47]

Yeah Beatle guitar! It is heavy though

[@danielleonard7816]

The lemmo and Lennon favourite 😂

[@jamesmagana315]

Why is norm open and not guitar center

[@mrtambourineman6107]

Should of played some Nirvana unplugged

[@rhaskett476]

Home made invisibility shield

[@joshuaross4644]

When I get back to LA I’ll teach you how to play all those Beatles songs properly 😉

[@YogsenForfoth]

Don’t these guitar have P100 pickups instead of P90’s?

[@stevescontriano860]

The sad part is that guitar sounds like shit without an amplifier. It has no resonance because of the plywood Spruce top and ladder bracing. I bought a 2000 Yoko Ono approved Gibson J160E. For $3000. I sent it back to The Music Zoo. Ended up losing 25%. Terrible. Don’t buy this guitar without playing it first. I went to the guitar center and bought an Epiphone EJ160 E for about $450.000. Lol sounds way better without an amplifier. The spruce top on the Gibson kept it from feeding back through the amplifier. I bought a Gibson J 45 studio. Great guitar

[@jamesthe-doctor8981]

Good God! Would it hurt to roll the tone knob on the second songs you play on single pickup guitars?!? I guess it's only important to just prove that the electronics work.

[@edwarddalton4626]

You should play a Maton

[@peterfusco8461]

John's 62 s stolen. He replaced it with the 64. A couple of years ago the 62 ws found and auctioned for over $2 million dollars.

[@tubetime345]

I think you have to ignore the visuals and pretend youre blind and treat it like a hollowbody

[@voxsupreme]

Is this a Joke? "I Feel Fine" as a muted Bompa-Bompa exercise. No strumming of this Strummer, and no Acoustic demo of this Acoustic guitar. Also - Tune the guitar before playing it. Ouch!

[@lptomtom]

Have the guys in the back heard of social distancing ? We're in the midst of a global pandemic and they're just chatting face to face in a guitar store...

[@stevecoggs5256]

"I Feel Fine"

[@Qarttercz]

Those are for sure videos recorded before virus and they are just uploading them now

[@corriedebeer799]

a business should not have its business email trough gmail. get googling and get pro google email with your own name on it. It is embarrassing to have a business do it like that.

[@TheVinylBeatles]

That guitar HAS to be strummed, leave the palm muting for another item

[@um9272]

I dearly hope that this chubby check fumbler will find marks class !