This 1967 Guild Starfire V was used only once by Jimi Hendrix, on May 19, 1968, at the Wreck Bar within the Castaways Hotel in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida, after the Miami Pop Festival.
The Miami Pop Festival was originally planned as a two-day event, but the second day was canceled due to a thunderstorm. This led the performers to gather at the Castaways Hotel, where they took refuge from the rain and started a jam session.
There is only one known photograph of Jimi using this guitar that night. It’s unclear whether Jimi had the guitar prior to this or if he acquired it that evening. The story behind the stickers covering the front of the guitar also remains a mystery.
Regardless, the Guild eventually ended up with Jimi’s father, Al Hendrix, where it stayed until his passing in 2002. After that, it presumably remained with the family until 2017, when it was auctioned with a starting bid of $140,000.
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The date for the Jam at The Castaways Wreck Bar using the Guild has been stated as May 20th 1968, but also the 19th. Frank Zappa and Arthur Brown were there too.
Well…according to an article in Univibes Magazine (one of the best fan mags around)…Jimi was given this guitar to use for the one night he jammed there—the owner of the Wreck Bar apparently let Jimi keep it…not too sure…BTW, there is actually TWO photos of Jimi using the guitar that night…How Al Hendrix acquired this guitar is mysterious, but it is likely that he bought it from the owner, early on…He did indeed sell it years later….I would say that the owner had just lent the guitar to Jimi, since there are no photos of him using it elsewhere.