Vic Flick's Guitar (used for the original James Bond Theme) Up For Auction

Guitarist Vic Flick with his 1939 Clifford Essex Paragon De Luxe

(photograph Wikipedia Commons).

The original James Bond theme (composed by Monty Norman and arranged by John Barry) was performed by Vic Flick. The U.K. session guitarist played the famous theme on a Clifford Essex Paragon De Luxe acoustic guitar (c1939) via a De Armond pick-up.

Flick shared his experience of the memorable recording session :

" The Paragon’s sound was perfect for the riff. The combination of the way I played, the type of strings I used, the Vox 15 amplifier, the microphone and the studio set up all helped to give the guitar, on that particular session, an identity that has maintained its popularity for 50 years. Although no film was shown during the session there was a feeling of excitement at the music being for a spy film."

Vic Flick used the Paragon guitar in June and July 1962 for two original recordings of The James Bond Theme. The first recording took place at CTS Studios, Bayswater, London, and could be heard as the opening theme and throughout the first Bond film, Dr. No. The second recording was made at Abbey Road Studios, London, for a commercial release on EMI's Columbia label. The latter recording became a big hit for The John Barry Seven Orchestra.

The guitar, bought by Flick in 1958, is up for auction today and is expected to fetch between $30,000 - $50,000.

A link to an interesting NPR Audio Clip which includes an interview with Vic Flick :

The Sound Of James Bond : Vic Flick's Surf Guitar