Gibson had strict product licensing arrangment that limited the number of dealers stocking Gibsons, and the Epiphone brand was a way to increase sales without breaking these deals. Read more about the 1960s Epiphone Casino. The “John Lennon Revolution Casino” is a reproduction of the “stripped” guitar featuring one coat of nitro-cellulose lacquer, gold Grover tuners and no pickguard.Įpiphone is, of course, owned by Gibson, and in the sixties guitars by both brands were very similar, and were made side by side in the factory at Kalamazoo, Michigan. The “John Lennon 1965 Casino” is a reproduction of the guitar as John originally purchased it with the sunburst finish and stock hardware.
They took measurements of the neck and body, studied the components and photographed everything, in order to create a guitar as close to Lennons original as was possible to acheive.Īs a result and in cooperation with Yoko Ono, Epiphone proudly introduced the Limited Edition John Lennon “Revolution” and “1965” Casinos. The Epiphone John Lennon Casinoįast forward to November 1997, and a team from Epiphone visit “The Dakota” in New York to examine John’s Casino.
But it was Lennon who became most associated with the instrument, most famously playing it on the infamous rooftop appearance of 1969.
In fact Paul McCartney and George Harrison both had Casinos, as did Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones. And John Lennon wasn’t the only Beatles to own one.
