Most valuable guitars?

english_bob

ESBlonde said:

Macca has never sold anything since he doesn't need the cash, so his stuff is likely to be rated highly. 

To be fair, I don't think Gilmour's selling stuff because he's fallen on hard times either. Clapton's recent auctions have been fundraisers for his charity.

ESBlonde said:

One thing likely to impact famous guitars is the ever ageing populous that grew up with these heroes, they have lots of cash but how many are willing to invest it now! The baby boomers are already retired or approaching that event, one day all these old guitars will go in a skip because the youths wont appreciate the association or the struggles of learning to play like your musical heros.

I've been thinking this for a while- not just about celebrity guitars at auction but about vintage guitars in general. I think if Bruce Welch wants to get what "history" says that Strat is worth he needs to flog it sooner rather than later, because the people who really rate the Shadows that highly are all knocking on a bit. 

Only I don't think all the "kids today need to get off my lawn" stuff is warranted. Guitarists will still want the instruments their heroes played, and people will always be interested in collecting the stuff they dreamed of owning when they were younger and poorer, only their heroes will be totally different to the ones the Boomers had, and the instruments they want will be different accordingly.

Kalimna

Cheap Trick's 5-necked Hamer?

Les Paul's 'Log'?

Paul Smith's first guitar? Not necessarily first production guitar, but the first one he ever built.

Hendrix's burning Strat?

Adam

crunchman

Kalimna said:

Paul Smith's first guitar? Not necessarily first production guitar, but the first one he ever built.

Not on the same level as the first one which Brian May built, and also use to record pretty much all of Queen's material, and played at an iconic event like Live Aid.

designerseye88

Kalimna said:

Hendrix's burning Strat?

Adam

Doesn't Dweezil Zappa have that one? 

Rabs

designerseye88 said:

Kalimna said:

Hendrix's burning Strat?

Adam

Doesn't Dweezil Zappa have that one? 

YES

thebreeze

Dylan's Strat ('65?) he went electric with at the Newport Folk Festival?  It kind of represents something even bigger than Dylan himself, which is saying something.  Doesn't a pilot own it?

Kalimna

designerseye88 said:

Kalimna said:

Hendrix's burning Strat?

Adam

Doesn't Dweezil Zappa have that one? 

Ahh, didn't know that....

And PRS vs Brian May - perhaps, I hadn't considered the Red Special.

Jimbro66

Larry Carlton’s 335.

Brian Setzer’s 6120 from the 1981 recordings.

Chet Atkins’ ‘59 Country Gentleman

Lemmy’s Ric bass?

None would be anywhere near the most valuable but nevertheless...

blobb

re: the burned strat - Dweezil tried to sell it for $1M and didn't get a bite, reduced it to $500k , nothing. Allegedly, he got an offer for $350k but refused. Trouble is authentication. He refurbished it so it played and gave it to his dad as a birthday present, who then left it to DZ when he passed over.

Dweezil also owns Baby Snakes and Roxy.

Gassage

You all missed two very obvious ones...

Willie Nelson's Trigger, a Martin, and also Johnny Cash's black Martin D45.

I'd go for the Red Special.

Gilmour has the first burst with a factory fitted Bigsby- 1958- I wonder if that'll be in the sale?

KKJale

Hank Williams' D-28 might be up there. Neil Young's got his '41, and the '44's in a museum somewhere. Country (or "country") is still so huge in the US that the value of a relic like that is hard to put any kind of figure on... 

Same goes for Buddy Holly's 1942 J-45, still in Maria Elena's possession.

Elvis' D-18 sold for $150,000 over 25 years ago and hasn't come up since. That would be astronomical today. As would the leather-covered D-28, but I think that one's long gone walkies. 

blobb

Here's an outsider - Didn't Roy Orbison have his Gretsch (Black Falcon with Gibson neck) of Pretty Woman / Cwying fame stolen in Japan? Wonder what that would fetch if it surfaced.

idiotwind

thebreeze said:

Dylan's Strat ('65?) he went electric with at the Newport Folk Festival?  It kind of represents something even bigger than Dylan himself, which is saying something.  Doesn't a pilot own it?

The pilot sold it a couple of years ago for $965k: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/bob-dylans-newport-guitar-sells-for-nearly-a-million-bucks-244351/

thebreeze

idiotwind said:

thebreeze said:

Dylan's Strat ('65?) he went electric with at the Newport Folk Festival?  It kind of represents something even bigger than Dylan himself, which is saying something.  Doesn't a pilot own it?

The pilot sold it a couple of years ago for $965k: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/bob-dylans-newport-guitar-sells-for-nearly-a-million-bucks-244351/

Thanks @idiotwind.  It's a wonder that we still know how to breathe with prices like that.  It'll be interesting to see if Gilmour's surpass it as the most expensive then.  

mbe

Does Tiny Tim's ukulele count?