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Wondering about the gear used on this tune. What's the opening guitar riff played on - amp and guitar. Effects?

Probably played over Fender amps. And guitar-wise I guess I won't be far off to guess that Lennon used his Epiphone casino and Harrison his Fender All rosewood telecaster.

Tremolo?

Harrison was also playing his Les Paul and a 50s strat in addition to the tele in those days.

90% sure that the opening riff is John - Casino into Twin Reverb, most likely. There were some Ampegs floating around during LIB. The tremolo would have come from the Twin.

For a long time, I have considered this tune to contain the best Lennon middle 8 bar none.

GOnna go against the grain and say the opening Riff, including all it's repetitions, are George playing the Rosewood Tele into the Fender amp.

Listening to bootlegs, you can hear John playing before/after the actual takes, and his guitar tone is FAR from what the Don't Let Me Down opening riff tone is.

John sounds more (and looks, based on the film) like he's strumming his E and F#m throughout.

Glenn,

Harrison's "50's" Strat? Do you mean "Rocky", that's a'61, I believe?

Actually, Kevin, I thought it was a strat but it's probably a Bass VI (there's a photo of George playing it in the Let It Be Album gatefold, but you can only see it from behind. It looks like a strat but since Macca's on keys, it's probably the Bass VI.)

Not that he was playing the riff on a Bass VI, of course, just that I thought he had a different strat there but it was not a strat after all. It would be easy to mistake it for a strat in that picture, though.

Just watched the rooftop performance, the opening riff is George on the Tele.

I believe a Bass VI was utilized in those sessions as you can see in the Long and Winding Road and Let It Be videos. Lennon is playing the bass. George on the Rosewood Tele.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COMsKPeWAsw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPp8nieMHmk

Ah, that would be the Bass VI that George is playing in the Hey Jude vid too.

Double post.

It looks like John, George and Billy used Twins on the rooftop, and Paul played through the Bassman 2x15 but was recorded DI. Not that that's necessarily how they did it in the studio, of course.

I would guess its George with the Rosewood Tele through the Fender Twin Reverb amp and also Billy Preston playing the Rhodes piano on the riff too. Haven't heard it in a bit, but maybe Paul follows the riff on the Hofner bass?