The upcoming Harmonix title The Beatles: Rock Band, to be released on 9-9-09 (number nine.. number nine..), will include the option to buy three different special edition guitars, all based on well known instruments that the Beatles themselves famously played:

Rickenbacker 325 (Lennon)

Gretsch Duo Jet (Harrison)

Hofner Bass (McCartney)

The only way to get the Hofner bass is to buy the The Beatles: Rock Band Limited Edition band kit, which also includes a special Beatles themed set of Ludwig pearl-finish drums with faux kick head, microphone, and microphone stand. The other two guitars will be sold seperately:

The Rickenbacker 325 and Gretsch Duo Jet guitars are hailed as two of the signature, most celebrated instruments played by John Lennon and George Harrison throughout their careers, respectively. They will be made available for MSRP $99.99. These wireless instrument controllers join the previously announced Höfner bass controller, a large-scale replica of the bass famously used by Sir Paul McCartney, and the Ringo Starr inspired and Ludwig-branded Rock Band 2 drums, with a classic pearl finishand vintage replica Beatles kick drum head.

I’m as big a Beatles fan as the next music enthusiast, but I can’t say I find any of those guitars particularly exciting. While it’s admirable that Harmonix is going to such lengths to provide the ultimate fake plastic Beatles experience, I might bypass all the hardware and stick with The Beatles: Rock Band game only, using my existing stable of fake plastic band equipment. All my fake plastic roadies can breathe a well deserved sigh of relief.

I’m more interested in the multiple-microphone vocal harmonizing that’s rumored to be a part of the game. That makes total sense if you consider that in a lot of Beatles songs all three of the guitarists are singing!

Singing while playing guitar is, dare I say it, twice the fun — and certainly very much in the spirit of the Beatles.