The Beatles have some time off in Los Angeles

During their stay at Benedict Canyon, The Beatles were visited by Francis Hall and his son John, from the string instrument manufacturer Rickenbacker.

In February 1964, during The Beatles’ first visit to the United States, Rickenbacker presented Paul McCartney with a right-handed Rickenbacker 4001S bass. As a left-handed player, Paul showed little interest in the instrument.

A year later, Francis and John Hall returned with a left-handed Rickenbacker 4001S bass. It was one of the first left-handed basses produced by the company, although its serial number, DA23, oddly suggests that its manufacture had begun as early as January 1964. This time, Paul was delighted with the gift.

Paul began using the Rickenbacker 4001S during the sessions for “Rubber Soul“, first playing it in the studio on October 12, 1965, the album’s opening recording session.

Paul continued to use this Rickenbacker bass throughout his career, with The Beatles, with Wings in the 1970s and again during the 1980s. Its last documented appearance dates from the “Driving Rain” sessions in 2001.

I believe it was Burt Lancaster’s home that they had rented. We only brought the left-handed bass. Neil Aspinall had asked to have it. Paul had a little tiny Vox amplifier, just an itty-bitty thing there in the house. He plugged in the bass and was playing away. He really liked it – he didn’t want to put it down. He was definitely enthusiastic about it.

Don Randall – Manager of Fender – Interview with Andy Babiuk, November 1995 – From “Beatles Gear” by Andy Babiuk, 2000

I believe you got your Rickenbacker bass on a Beatles U.S. tour in summer ’65.

We were getting quite famous — obviously once we got to America we were quite famous — and Mr. Rickenbacker [sic] kind of arrived and said, Paul, we have a bass. Oh, great! Freebie. Thank you very much.

That’s just about how I remember it, about as slimly as that. […] I just remember them giving it to me. They invited us down to the factory, which I never made — I never got down there — it was a little bit out of LA, I think.

But I liked the instrument a lot, and the main thing for me was just playing it, that’s my thing. I’m not technical. I like getting hold of them, and my attention was on that, not on what serial number it is or who gave me it or when.

I put it all into the instrument. I became fond of that instrument and then used to use either of them, just to vary it a little bit, and round about the time of Sgt. Pepper, I definitely was using the Rickenbacker quite a lot. […]

Did you have to adapt to get used to the Rick? Presumably it felt quite large compared to the Hofner.

Quite heavy, yeah. I’m a tough guy [laughs], a rough tough cream-puff. It was heavier, yeah, but not that heavy. So you just got used to it. It was a slightly different style, and it stayed in tune better—that was the great thing. Because that had been a major problem with the Hofner. I liked everything about it, but it was embarrassing if you weren’t quite in tune for something, you know? You could have such an effect over the whole group. Normally you were sort of buried in mixes. It wasn’t until later that the bass and drums came up in the mix.

Paul McCartney – Interview with Tony Bacon, November 1994

Derek Taylor, the ex-assistant of Brian Epstein, who moved to LA, visited them. He reported that George and Paul visited a session of The Byrds.

This album was as long in the making as a President. But, as Jim McGuinn trusted it would, everything’s worked out all right. Personally, I think it’s a beautiful piece of work, and maybe The Byrds were right to linger over it. After all, a great record album is to the 1960’s what a piece of sculpture was to the Middle Ages. Isn’t it?

The Byrds think it should be, and I agree with them because I agree with them on most things.

So do the Beatles, by the way. They’re Byrd-watchers. Two of the Fab Four came to the recording sessions at Columbia’s Hollywood studios when they could have been sprawling beside their Bel Air pool gazing at Joan Baez.

Some choice.

Anyway, down from the hills rode George and Paul because they’d liked The Byrds’ ‘Mr Tambourine Man’, and they know that a record like that doesn’t happen by accident. (‘Ho,’ John had said, ‘The Byrds have something,’ and the others had nodded.) So there they were, at Columbia – bachelor Beatle twosome, denims and fringes and so much experience, heads bent to pick up the sound-subtleties of the Los Angeles Byrds, whom The Beatles publicly named as their fab gear fave rave American group.

Well, that was one glamorous night. […]

Derek Taylor – From the liner notes to The Byrds’ “Turn! Turn! Turn! album”

Going further

The Beatles Diary Volume 1: The Beatles Years

With greatly expanded text, this is the most revealing and frank personal 30-year chronicle of the group ever written. Insider Barry Miles covers the Beatles story from childhood to the break-up of the group.

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