A Fender Deluxe with a written John Lennon provenance sold on Facebook Marketplace for under £3,000.
Certificate of Authenticity. Make: Fender de luxe Amplifier
My friend MAL EVANS, who was the Beatles roadie and general factotum for many years, and was also a personal friend of mine, initially loaned me the amplifier for recording purposes. He advised me that this Amp was Johns. In 1971 I was invited to play on John Lennons 'Imagine' album. Following the recording sessions, I was with John and I mentioned that I had been loaned the Fender Amplifier by Mal Evans, as I required a smaller amplifier than the ones I owned at that time. I asked John if I should bring the Amplifier to his home, or return it to the 'Apple' store. He responded: "No, thanks very much for all the work you've done on the sessions, don't worry about bringing it back, you can keep it. It's yours." I said, "You're kidding me!"
Rod Lynton played acoustic guitar on John Lennon's Imagine, recorded in 1971 at Ascot Sound Studios, the studio at Lennon's house.
James Taylor, who collects amps and works in the hi-fi industry in Brighton, found this amp on Facebook marketplace, listed for under $4,000 with a hand-written certificate of authenticity. Taylor told SWNS he had heard stories about authentic pieces being sold on marketplaces but dismissed it initially. He used it extensively at band practice before looking into it's history.
The amp is estimated to have been manufactured between 1964 and 1966. According to Andy Babiuk's Beatles Gear, Fender sent the band a black-panel Deluxe, with a Deluxe Reverb and a Fender VI, before the 1968 White Album sessions, and Guitar Player puts that Deluxe in the "Hey Jude" promo film. Taylor believes this is that amp and is asking for help proving it.
He has been approach by auction houses with offers to entice him to sell the amp, some of them "£20,000 to six figures".
Lennon's Vox at auction
Lennon's 1962 Vox AC15 Twin, his first Vox with the Beatles, sold at Gardiner Houlgate in December 2023 for £16,000. It had been painted black and was not recognised.
Once identified, it sold at Propstore in November 2024 for £151,200 including the buyer's premium, against an estimate of £100,000 to £200,000. Antiques Trade Gazette called it a record for an amplifier.
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