It's said one reason that Lennon liked a Rick was he saw Toot's T. playing one (though not the same model.)

When Cheap Trick hit it big, me and my friends thought Robin Zander was playing a Rick (not a 325) because Lennon had played one.

Influence seems to go beyond specific models to a brand, eh?

And if I could add, how many of us ultimately would have ultimately even seen Ric on our radars if it hadn't been for John Lennon orginally and the the massive rock in the pond ripple effect he caused?

Remember, up until that point in 1963 when the Beatles finally broke big in Britian, Rickenbacker was more or less a nearly invisible niche brand instrument in a world then so completely dominated by the prolific Gibsons and Fenders.

According to the fabs, there weren't that many American guitars period in the UK in the late 50s.

Definitely not in Liverpool. London probably saw a few American made guitars in the late fifties, but in Liverpool they were all European made.

Except for George's Gretsch,brought to Liverpool by a sailor,or merchant seaman.CERTAINLY I bought a 325 because JWL played one!I love my little "Lennonized" (1964 style,second model) Jetglo 325,with vintage knobs,toaster pickups,and Ac'cent vibrato...and flatwound strings,of course! Plug it into a warmed-up VOX AC-15,and it sounds just like 1964!BUT: it isn't a one trick pony...it's great clean or dirty (vox tonebender fuzz),very surfy when played with reverb,and a BLAST to play lead on.There are some things that I can ONLY play on the 325.I have pretty big hands; I can reach 5-7 frets easily...to make chords that would be impossible to make on a full-scale guitar.And,when I take it to a gig,EVERYBODY wants to play it!The 325 sure gets my vote as one of the most unique guitars Electro-String/Rickenbacker (or anyone else) ever built.

Yes, indeed. In fact, to bolster the domestic economy after WWII, Parliament actually passed embargoes and limits on certain imports into the UK in the 50's & 60's. This included American musical instruments. Remember that JL got his 325 in Germany.

But, also according to the fabs, US records were easier to get in Liverpool than London.

So, that may have been for guitars as well? The fabs were able to get their J160s from their local dealer.

With Liverpool being a major port for importation, there would be a greater quantity of goods being brought back both privately like George's Duo-Jet and also on a corporate level, like the records being imported.

Don't kid yourselves.

Fenders and Gibsons were very available in Europe during that late 1950's-early 1960s time frame.

Big problem was that they were way over-priced, once they reached the other side of the pond.

You can thank custom duties and confiscatory European tariff policies of those times for that. Protectionism at it's worst!

Remember The Shawdows in Britain played Fender.

McCartney even has admited his first bass of choice was a Fender bass, but the pricing was way out of his league at that pre-fame time.

George Harrison badly wanted a Fender Strat, but settled on a Futurama simply because of price considerations.

Lennon lucked out and found his 325 in Hamburg at a decent price where the German music dealer had it inventoried for nearly two years!
(the somewhat novel, provocative widely misunderstood under- appreciated 3/4 scale made it a "white elephant" to most guitarists of the day).

This isn't an either/or situation. Yes, American instruments were available in Europe on the continent and in the UK, but in extremely limited numbers, due to the embargoes and tariffs that were charged on the import. For people such as merchant marines, it was cheaper to buy something in a port of call and pay only the personal customs duties to bring it home than to purchase it at imported retail cost including the excise or customs.