John Lennon's psychedelic Rolls-Royce
Artist Steve Weaver embellished the car with elaborate, bright swirls and floral motifs in the psychedelic style associated with the Beatles in that era, and the vehicle became a sensation.
[2] "Traditional amenities" included "the 6.23-litre V8 engine, black leather upholstery, cocktail cabinet with fine wood trim, writing table, reading lamps, a seven-piece his-and-hers black-hide luggage set, and a Perdio portable television."
While in Spain, Lennon frequently spent extended periods of spare time sitting in the back of the car, smoking marijuana and working on the song that became the hit single "Strawberry Fields Forever".
[2] The structural damage was repaired quickly, but Lennon devoted more time to planning the repainting, which was inspired in part by the artwork associated with Sgt.
Accounts differ as to who gave Lennon the idea, with some crediting Ringo Starr and others Dutch designer of psychedelic art, Marijke Koger.
[4] Koger and her associates in the design collective "The Fool" had previously repainted a gypsy caravan that Lennon purchased as a birthday gift for his young son Julian.
Weaver charged £290 (equivalent to £6,649 in 2023) for the job, and the car was ready to be picked up on 25 May, the day before the release of the widely acclaimed album, Sgt.
[2] The car's inaugural voyage was on 28 May, when Lennon and eight friends were driven to an album release and housewarming party at the new home of Brian Epstein, where the Sgt.
Pepper's album was played interspersed with Procol Harum and their hit single "A Whiter Shade of Pale",[2] which had been released two weeks earlier.
[2][4] The car appeared at Lennon's 31st birthday party in Syracuse, New York, in October 1971, and was loaned out to other musicians including Elton John[7] and Bob Dylan and members of bands such as the Rolling Stones and the Moody Blues.
[2] Rolling Stone described the design as a "lurid Romany floral/zodiac hybrid", adding that the design consisted of "red, orange, green and blue art nouveau swirls, floral side panels and Lennon's astrological symbol, Libra, on the roof" painted on a background that the Daily Mail described as "shrieking yellow".
"[4] British GQ called its base "a shade of not-so-mellow yellow" and finished with "a combo of Romany swirls, floral motifs and a zodiac sign for good measure.
"[6] Montecristo magazine in Vancouver described "its bright chrome yellow body and floral side panels of dahlias and delphiniums", adding "Its bonnet and boot are decorated with colourful curlicue scrollwork, and its roof sports a stylized symbol of Libra, the zodiac sign of its first owner.
[9] In December 1977, Lennon and Ono donated the limousine to the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, a Manhattan branch of the Smithsonian Institution, for a $250,000 tax credit.
[10] As late as 1987, Ono and the estate of John Lennon were disputing the size of the tax credit with the Internal Revenue Service, which repeatedly claimed that the car was worth no more than $100,000 when it was donated.
[11] In June 1985, the Cooper-Hewitt Museum decided to sell the car, which was auctioned by Sotheby's in New York, and it was purchased by Canadian businessman Jim Pattison for US$2,299,000.
[4] In July and August 2017, Lennon's psychedelic limousine was part of "The Great Eight Phantoms", an exhibition of Rolls-Royces at Bonhams in London.
