In the autumn of 1987 George Michael’s first solo album was ready for release and a video shoot was scheduled to promote the single Faith. Breaking away from Wham!’s wholesome boy band image and reinventing himself as a solo artist meant that George needed a new look.
By the late ’80s, New Wave and the New Romantics had come and gone, and the damply dark joys of Twin Peaks had yet to usher in the grunge era.
Whimsical Levi’s adverts and blockbuster movies like Back To The Future typified the airbrushed and colour-saturated 1950s nostalgia then pervading popular culture. George’s plans to revamp his image with torn stonewashed jeans, a black leather biker jacket, aviator shades and a Wurlitzer jukebox made sense – but one vital ingredient was missing.
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Shortly before the video shoot George was exploring the Melrose district of Los Angeles when he wandered into a pawn shop and noticed a Gretsch Synchromatic archtop hanging on the wall.
Although best known as a singer and songwriter, George could play guitar and bass, but he really bought the Gretsch because he knew it would look perfect in the video.
Sync’ing Up
Gretsch launched its line of Synchromatic models around 1939, highlighting “seven points of supremacy”, but Synchromatics never achieved the same kudos as Gibsons, Epiphones, Strombergs or D’Angelicos. All across the range the styling was eye-catching, with a 17-inch wide body, cat’s eye soundholes and a distinctive floating bridge with ‘stairstep’ extensions.
The Synchromatic models also had an asymmetrical neck profile and a 26-inch scale length. The four iterations to choose from were the 400, 300, 200 and bottom of the range 160. George’s Synchromatic is a Model 160 with pearl block inlays on a Brazilian rosewood fretboard, with single-ply celluloid binding and chrome-plated hardware.
Gretsch made the Model 160 in two batches with the first running between 1939 and 1943, and the second from 1947 to 1951. The second-generation 160s had a flat-sided headstock shape, rather than the earlier ‘lightbulb’ profile, and gold hardware. Although we can’t pinpoint the exact year, we can say that George’s Gretsch came from the first run.
Put To The Sword
In October 2026 George’s Gretsch is due to be auctioned by Sworders as part of Faith & Fame: A Personal George Michael Collection. Chairman and head of Art & Antiques, Guy Schooling, describes how Sworders became involved:
“The vendors had contacted a leading London auction room and spoken to them about the guitar,” he says, “but when a serial number couldn’t be found, they said they weren’t interested. [Our contact] went to meet the vendors and when she saw the guitar she was completely blown away and asked if we could help.”
George had gifted the Gretsch to his personal assistant, Siobhan Bailey, who worked with him for over 20 years and who died suddenly from natural causes in 2014.
Guy explains how the Gretsch ended up looking a bit sorry for itself: “Following [Siobhan’s] untimely and unfortunate death, [her partner] was quite traumatised and he put the guitar and all the memorabilia that comprises our forthcoming sale into his garage. [He was later] persuaded that these things couldn’t stay in the garage forever because they would have deteriorated.”
It is known that George owned at least two other Gretsch Synchromatic models, and they were used as stage props when he played live. We asked Guy how Sworders was able to establish that this guitar is the actual one featured in the Faith video.
“The vendors had always believed it to be the instrument that was in the video. The fact that it had belonged to Siobhan was a great starting point. We then looked at the condition and idiosyncrasies of this guitar and they exactly match those in the video.
“Some of the plastic trim around the body was missing in the video and is still missing. We were also able to match up marks and cracks in the body, and that’s why it was so important not to over-restore the guitar.
“It’s taken about three years to get to this point,” Guy adds, “but there’s no question in our mind that it’s the actual guitar, and since George’s family agrees, it won’t ever be contested. You could say it is now a popular music icon, and because George’s leather jacket sold earlier this year for £176,400, our auction estimate is £60,000 to £120,000.”
- This guitar is set to be auctioned on 29 October as part of Faith & Fame: A Personal George Michael Collection at Sworders London
- This article first appeared in Guitarist. Subscribe and save.
