Framus Vintage Hootenanny 12-String Acoustic In Vintage Natural Nitro High Polish
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The store is open 10am - 6pm Monday to Saturday and 11am - 5pm Sunday and bank holidays.
The stock information shows the quantity of units that are available to purchase at the Guildford store and the quantity of units that are available at our off-site Guildford warehouse. These stock levels are updated in real time.
Our Click and Collect service is available at our Guildford store from 10am - 6pm Monday to Saturday, and 11am - 5pm on Sunday. You can either choose click and collect as your delivery option online or, during store opening hours, call our sales team at 01483 456777 to place a 10% deposit.
If you have placed your order online, you will receive a confirmation email of your order and a separate follow-up text or email to confirm when your item is ready for collection.
Please do not come to the store before you have received the follow-up message, as your order may not yet be ready at the store.
If the only available stock is in our off-site warehouse it can be brought to the store location for you to try - you just need to contact the store within opening hours. Please note any requests received after 3.30pm will not arrive at the store until the following morning.
Please be aware that, unless you have paid a deposit to reserve the item, it will continue to be free, both online and in-store, for another customer to buy. Therefore we would advise you to place a 10% deposit by either using the on-line click and collect service or calling us 01483 456777.
SKU: HOOTENANNY-12-VN
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Product Description
Framus turn back time with a vintage-style Hootenanny 12-string acoustic, famously used by John Lennon in the early '60s. With a solid Sapele & Sitka Spruce construction and an alluring Vintage Natural Nitro polished finish, this beautiful strummer looks every bit as glorious as it would've done when Lennon first picked it up.
The full story
Sometimes the stars align. In 1964, after their great success in Europe, the Beatles had taken off in the USA and Beatlemania reached its first peak. A folk and country/western music scene had developed in the USA in the early 1960s. This did not go unnoticed by the German manufacturer Framus, which was on its way to becoming the largest guitar manufacturer in Europe. My grandfather, Fred Wilfer, recognized this and developed new acoustic guitars that combined elements of the highly successful Framus jazz guitars with the important features of Framus concert guitars. The Framus Hootenanny Series was born, with six and twelve-string models in natural and sunburst finishes: the famous 5/024 model.
John Lennon met Bob Dylan on tour in the USA and also recognized the folk trend. Upon his return to London, Lennon purchased an acoustic Framus Hootennanny 12-string. He used it to compose the Dylan-influenced song “You've Got To Hide Your Love Away.” During the recording sessions of the album Help, the guitar was brought to the studio and was used not only for the Dylan-inspired song, but also used by John Lennon and George Harrison for the songs “Help,” “It's Only Love” and “I've Just Seen a Face.” In the movie Help, John Lennon used this guitar for the filming of “You've Got to Hide Your Love Away.” On the following album, Rubber Soul, the Hootenanny is also played during the recordings of “Norwegian Wood” and “Girl.”
In late 1965, John Lennon gave the guitar to Gordon Waller of Peter & Gordon, a duo produced by Lennon and McCartney. From there it went to the band's manager and disappeared in an attic for over 60 years. It was rediscovered in early 2024 and positively identified by Beatles gear expert Andy Babiuk. On May 29th, 2024, this model was sold by Julien's Auctions in California for a record price of approximately $2.85 million.
As the heirs of Framus, we knew we had to make this unique instrument available to other musicians and collectors. We have an identical 12-string Hootenanny in our Framus Vintage Museum, and with the help of old documents, we reconstructed the 6- and 12-string models to the exact specifications of the original. We contacted Lennon's estate and received its cooperation in releasing this guitar.
We are very proud to bring this unique instrument back to life. We are convinced that we will inspire many Beatles fans all over the world with this beautiful acoustic guitar. The ingenious blend of jazz and classical guitars gives this guitar an exceptional look and sound. The trapeze tailpiece and sliding, height-adjustable bridge combine with the compact body, classic bracing, and set-in neck to create a unique sound: warm and surprisingly loud. It's the sound you recognize when you hear 'You've Got To Hide Your Love Away'.
Specifications
Body
- Version: Dreadnought "roundshoulder"
- Top: Solid Spruce Sitka "A"
- Rosette: Hootenanny Wooden
- Sides: Solid Mahogany (Sapele)
- Back: Solid Mahogany (Sapele)
- Top Binding: Ivory/Black
- Back Binding: Ivory
- Bracing: Spruce
- Pickguard: Black
- Bridge: Rosewood, Oil Finish
- Tailpiece: Trapez, Nickel
Neck
- Headform: Hootenanny
- Logo: "Framus" Brass 0.2 mm
- Neck: Mahogany 1 Piece solid Mahogany Wood with shafted Headstock, Set Neck, Dovetail, separate Neckblock, Neck joins body at 12th Fret
- Nut: Bone
- Nut Width 6-String Version: 44 mm
- Nut Width 12-String Version: 50 mm
- Machinehead: Kluson Type, Nickel, Ivory Knob
- Neck Width 6-String Version: 0F 44 mm, 12F 54 mm, 19F 57 mm
- Neck Width 12-String Version: 0F 50 mm, 12F 61 mm, 19F 64.5 mm
Fingerboard
- Fingerboard Material: Rosewood
- Fingerboard Surface: Oil Finish
- Fingerboard Radius: Flat (no Radius)
- Frets: 19 Middle Silver Nickel Frets, Zero Fret
- Fret Surface: Slightly rounded, polished
- Side Dots: 3 mm Ivory Dots at 5, 7, 9, 12
Misc
- Strings 6-String Version: D’Addario XTAPB1253 (012–053 Gauge)
- Strings 12-String Version: D’Addario XTAPB1047-12 (010–047 Gauge)
- Case: Hootenanny Hard Case