Mike Oldfield's Fender Telecaster, used to record the album 'Tubular Bells', F-plate with serial no. 180728,

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Lot 277
Mike Oldfield's Fender Telecaster, used to record the album 'Tubular Bells',
F-plate with serial no. 180728,
£ 8,000 - 12,000
US$ 11,000 - 16,000
Lot Details
Mike Oldfield's Fender Telecaster, used to record the album 'Tubular Bells',
Mike Oldfield's Fender Telecaster, used to record the album 'Tubular Bells', F-plate with serial no. 180728,
F-plate with serial no. 180728,
natural finish body with black/white laminated scratchplate, additional Bill Lawrence pickup, volume/tone controls and two selector switches, neck stamped NOV66B, with rosewood fingerboard and dot markers, headstock with Kluson machineheads, in Fender case

Footnotes

  • This guitar, previously owned by Marc Bolan and originally with blonde finish, was the only six-string electric used by Mike Oldfield on his debut album, 'Tubular Bells'. In an interview for Roland PowerOn magazine in June 1999, Mike confirmed that he used just ''...one electric guitar which is an old Fender Telecaster...'' Also, in his autobiography, 'Changeling' (Virgin Books, 2007, a copy of which is included in the lot) Mike states that: ''Roy (Guest, his agent) got hold of an electric guitar for me, a Fender Telecaster that used to belong to Marc Bolan. I still liked my Lawrence pick-up, so much so that I spent a whole afternoon...drilling a hole in the scratch panel and fitting the pick-up to the Telecaster.''

    Mike's original demos were recorded in his London flat, on a borrowed tape machine. He took the tape to several record companies, none of whom showed much enthusiasm for it. However, Tom Newman, in charge of Virgin's new studio at The Manor, Shipton-on-Cherwell, Oxfordshire, heard it and persuaded Richard Branson to give Mike studio time to record the album. Recorded during the autumn of 1972 and spring of 1973, the album was rejected by all of the record companies approached by Branson and so it was decided that Virgin would release it themselves. It was the very first record put out by Virgin, carrying the catalogue number V2001.

    Released on 25th May 1973, the album went to No.1 in the UK charts, becoming the most successful rock instrumental album of all time with worldwide sales exceeding 25 million copies.

    The guitar has been donated by Mike Oldfield to be sold on behalf of the mental health charity SANE.
Activities
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