Monday 18 June 1956 | Liverpool, England
On his 14th birthday, Paul McCartney was given a trumpet by his father Jim McCartney β purchased at Rushworth & Draper's, one of Liverpool's leading music shops. Jim, a pianist and trumpet player himself, was keen for his son to follow him into music.
McCartney later recalled the gift β and what happened to it β in the Anthology:
"My dad bought me a trumpet for my birthday, at Rushworth & Draper's (the other music store in town), and I loved it. There was a big hero-thing at the time. There had been Harry James β The Man With The Golden Trumpet β and now, in the Fifties, it was Eddie Calvert, a big British star who played 'Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White' β all those gimmicky trumpet records. There were a lot of them around back then, so we all wanted to be trumpeters.
I persevered with the trumpet for a while. I learnt 'The Saints', which I can still play in C. I learnt my C scale, and a couple of things. Then I realised that I wasn't going to be able to sing with this thing stuck in my mouth, so I asked my dad if he'd mind if I swapped it for a guitar, which also fascinated me. He didn't, and I traded my trumpet in for an acoustic guitar, a Zenith, which I still have."
β Paul McCartney, Anthology
Rushworth & Draper's
Rushworth & Draper's was one of Liverpool's most established music retailers, located on Islington in the city centre. It was a fixture of Liverpool's musical life throughout the 1950s and into the Beatles era β the kind of shop where serious musicians and curious teenagers alike went to buy instruments, sheet music, and records. McCartney's parenthetical β "the other music store in town" β distinguishes it from NEMS (North End Music Stores), the shop run by the Epstein family that Brian Epstein would later transform into a record retail operation before becoming The Beatles' manager.
The Trumpet Heroes of the 1950s
McCartney's account places the trumpet gift squarely in its cultural moment. Harry James β the American bandleader and trumpet virtuoso who had been a major star since the swing era β was still a significant figure in the early 1950s. But by 1956, the more immediate trumpet hero for a British teenager was Eddie Calvert, whose recording of Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White had reached number one in the UK in 1955. Calvert β billed as The Man with the Golden Trumpet β was exactly the kind of popular instrumental star who made the trumpet seem glamorous and attainable to a fourteen-year-old in Liverpool.
Skiffle, however, was about to change everything. Lonnie Donegan's recording of Rock Island Line, released in late 1955, had ignited a national craze for a music that anyone could play β guitar, washboard, tea-chest bass. The trumpet, however brilliant, could not compete with the guitar's new cultural centrality. And, as McCartney identified with characteristic practicality, you could not sing while playing it.
The Framus Zenith
The guitar McCartney traded his trumpet for was a Framus Zenith β a German-made acoustic guitar, model 17, that retailed for around Β£15. It was a standard instrument for the period: not a prestige guitar, but a playable, affordable acoustic that suited the skiffle and early rock and roll repertoire McCartney was beginning to explore.
Being naturally left-handed, McCartney restrung the Zenith to play it the other way around β a solution he arrived at himself, and one that has defined his playing ever since. The guitar, as he notes, is one he still has.
The swap from trumpet to guitar was one of the small, contingent decisions that shaped music history. Within a year, McCartney would be at a church fΓͺte in Woolton, watching a skiffle group called The Quarrymen. He would be introduced to their leader, John Lennon, after the show. The Framus Zenith β and the decision to trade in the trumpet β made that meeting possible.
Key Facts: 18 June 1956
| Date | Monday 18 June 1956 |
| Event | Paul McCartney's 14th birthday; receives trumpet from Jim McCartney |
| Purchased at | Rushworth & Draper's, Liverpool |
| Trumpet heroes of the era | Harry James; Eddie Calvert (Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White, UK #1 1955) |
| Songs learned on trumpet | 'The Saints' (in C); C scale |
| Traded for | Framus Zenith acoustic guitar, c.Β£15, restrung left-handed |
| Source | The Beatles Anthology (2000) |
Rushworth & Draper's was located on Islington in Liverpool city centre β one of the city's leading music retailers throughout the 1950s and 1960s, and the shop where Jim McCartney bought Paul's 14th birthday trumpet in June 1956.
The Beatles: Please Please Me Era
The guitar that replaced the trumpet. The music that followed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Paul McCartney receive for his 14th birthday?
Paul McCartney received a trumpet from his father Jim McCartney for his 14th birthday on 18 June 1956. It was bought at Rushworth & Draper's music shop in Liverpool.
Why did Paul McCartney swap his trumpet for a guitar?
McCartney realised he could not sing while playing the trumpet. He asked his father if he could swap it for a guitar, which Jim agreed to. He traded the trumpet for a Framus Zenith acoustic guitar, which he restrung to play left-handed.
What guitar did Paul McCartney get when he traded in his trumpet?
Paul McCartney traded his trumpet for a Framus Zenith acoustic guitar, costing around Β£15. Being left-handed, he restrung it to play the other way around. He has said he still has the guitar.
What was Rushworth & Draper's?
Rushworth & Draper's was one of Liverpool's leading music retailers, located on Islington in the city centre. It was a major fixture of Liverpool's musical life in the 1950s and 1960s, distinct from NEMS, the Epstein family's music shop.
Who were the trumpet heroes Paul McCartney admired in the 1950s?
McCartney cited Harry James β the American swing-era bandleader known as The Man With The Golden Trumpet β and Eddie Calvert, the British trumpeter whose recording of Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White reached number one in the UK in 1955.
β 18 June in Beatles History
β June in Beatles History
β Paul McCartney: Beatles History, Solo Career, Songs & Legacy
β John Lennon: Beatles History, Solo Career, Songs & Legacy
β George Harrison: Beatles History, Solo Career, Songs & Legacy
β Ringo Starr: Beatles History, Solo Career, Songs & Legacy
β The Beatles Knowledge Hub
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