Pete Townshend

The guitar this fragment originates from was smashed by Pete Townshend on stage at The Who’s 19 November 1967 concert at Union Catholic High School in Scotch Plains, New Jersey.  

Fan Bart Koster of Midtown Recording received the remains of the guitar from Townshend, noting: “Pete Townshend handed me the remains of the black Coral Hornet after smashing it at the Nov. 29, 1967, Scotch Plains Catholic High concert. What I have is about ¾ of the body of the guitar. I was 13 years old at the time. The back of my head can be seen in the lower left corner of two photos from that concert. I had the electronics initially, but gave those to my friend who fended off all the people that were trying to take it away from me. I recently found him after many years. As it turns out he lost those parts over time.” 

Bob Pridden, the Who’s principal sound technician, told fans after the show that Pete had purchased several Coral Hornets on about 25 November 1967 from Manny’s Music in New York, when the group also purchased Sunn amplifiers and a Sunn PA. Pete Townshend used Coral Hornet guitars on stage in 1967 and 1968 and in his home studio until at least 1971. 

Pete Townshend is famous for smashing his guitars during live performances. The destruction of an instrument was seen as an act of defiance and was especially shocking in the 1960s. Townshend’s repeated act of destroying his guitars was elevated to an act of performance art that audiences eventually anticipated and adored.