LONDON (AP) Paul McCartney no longer gently weeps for his original bass guitar.

A five-year search by the manufacturer of the instrument that was aided by a husband-and-wife team of journalists helped reunite The Beatles star with the distinctive violin-shaped 1961 electric Hfner that went missing a half-century ago and is estimated to be worth 10 million pounds ($12.6 million).

McCartney had asked Hfner to help find the missing instrument that helped launch Beatlemania across the universe, Scott Jones, a journalist who teamed up with Hfner executive Nick Wass to track it down, said Friday.

Paul said to me, Hey, because youre from Hfner, couldnt you help find my bass? Wass said. And thats what sparked this great hunt. Sitting there, seeing what the lost bass means to Paul, I was determined to solve the mystery.