Now available is the officially sanctioned psychedelic George Harrison replica Fender Stratocaster, dubbed. “Rocky.” The guitar, which sells for $1,999, is based on the exact specs of the sonic blue Strat Harrison received — along with John Lennon — in time for the Beatles' fall 1965 Rubber Soul sessions. The guitar went on to be featured on Revolver, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Magical Mystery Tour, the “White Album,” and Let It Be.
Harrison was most famously seen playing the “Rocky” Strat during the “Fab Four's” legendary 1967 worldwide televised performance of “All You Need Is Love,” the Magical Mystery Tour film, and was used extensively on stage during his sole North American solo tour in 1974.
During his solo career, Harrison re-rigged “Rocky” for exclusive use as a slide guitar.
The press release for the Harrison guitar states:
The George Harrison Rocky Stratocaster features an alder body lovingly hand-painted with a replica of Harrison's famous psychedelic brushstrokes. Every last detail is captured, from the artwork on the pickguard and plastic parts to a replica decal on the back of headstock from Grimwoods – the original music store where the guitar was purchased.
A trio of vintage-style ‘60s Stratocaster pickups sing with dynamic, crystalline tone that hearkens back to Fender's golden age. A Mid-’60s “C”- shape maple neck with a 7.25″ radius slab rosewood fingerboard and 21 vintage-style frets offers a familiar neck profile with a comfortable feel. Finally, the Rocky Strat features a vintage-style synchronized tremolo and tuners which provide the look and feel of a classic Fender instrument.
The guitar features hand-painted artwork: From “Go Cat Go” to the bright Day-Glo hues, every last detail of George’s psychedelic brushstrokes is captured.
Outside of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr, ELO's Jeff Lynne was probably George Harrison’s most intimate creative partner. Lynne recalls pulling teeth in getting George to lay down some of his signature slide work on one of his own sessions: “George, for instance, was such a wonderful slide guitar player and he was quite funny about it, really, because he’d say: ‘You do it yourself!’ I’d say, ‘No, I ca. . . You’re the best one! You do it!’ And he’d go, ‘Nah, you’re just too lazy!'(Laughs) So, I’d go, I’d manage to talk him into it eventually, but it would talk a bit of persuasion — but it was in a funny way, y’know? It was more, like, banter than real not wanting to do it.”
