Posted on 06/23/2019 6:35:53 AM PDT by Drew68
The minds of a lot of Dads, worldwide, must be boggling right about now. Not only is there a new record for the most expensive guitar ever sold at auction, it’s
A. An item deeply connected to the legacy of Pink Floyd, and
B. contributing almost $4 million to charity in the process.
Regardless of your opinion of a media mogul like Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Isray, the guitar’s new owner, that is still one heck of an impressive figure. And David Gilmour’s legendary “Black Strat” wasn’t even the only item that Isray picked up at the Thursday auction from the David Gilmour Guitar Collection at Christie’s New York. All in all, he got the following:
— A 1969 black Fender Stratocaster, The Black Strat,” for $3.975 million.
— A 1969 Martin D-35 acoustic guitar, for $1.095 million.
— A travel case used for “The Black Strat,” for $175,000.
All in all, that’s a tiny little $5.245 million expenditure that heads in Gilmour’s direction, who announced on Wednesday that he would donate all proceeds from the auction to ClientEarth, an environmental law charity that will use the funds to help in the fight against climate change. In total, the auction raised an astounding $21.491 million from more than 120 guitars and amplifiers. We’re not surprised, per se, that Gilmour has more than $20 million in guitars to get rid of on any given day, but still—damn.
“The Black Strat” is as valuable as it is due to the recordings Gilmour used it on, including the albums The Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, Animals and The Wall. The Martin D-35 acoustic, on the other hand, features prominently in the title track of “Wish You Were Here,” which is one of the more iconic guitar tunes of all time.
The previous record for the most expensive guitar was a Stratocaster sold in 2005 for $2.7 million, to benefit tsunami relief in Asia. That guitar had been signed by a bevy of rock superstars, including Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend, Jeff Beck, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jimmy Page and Gilmour as well. But it was presumably the real-life history of “The Black Strat” that pushed its value into totally uncharted territory.
Isray, understandably, was pretty chipper about his new purchase. Hopefully he’ll feel the same way after waking up tomorrow morning and remembering he spent $4 million on it.
So he wants the Ice age to return. Oh well...
I doubt very much the lawyers who are getting paid here are socialists.
If you love guitar, you might be aware of my ex-brother in law, his name was Stephen Michael King and he was the world free finger champion 3 or 4 times. Here’s some info on him:
https://www.guitarbystevenking.net/
At some point he has worked for a number of the different big name guitar companies touring and performing with their instruments. Haven’t seen or heard from him for about 10 years when he and my sister divorced.
rwood
OK... socialist CAUSES! better?
Well Gilmour isn’t a shredder by any means but he’s has a monster guitar sound. Another guy like that is Billy Gibbons. Their sounds are instantly recognizable.
I have a Strat that sounds like that one.
Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates pickups.
I have 6 Strats and the one I’m talking about is actually a Squire Affinaty.
All the hardware is upgraded. Indonesian rosewood neck.
I think it might be plywood.
I love the neck on it, it’s a player with terrific resonation.
I can’t resist any Meth head pawned Squire with full thickness body.
Socialist Suckers.
That really bites.
But, I love Pink Floyd.
yup, Dark Side of the Moon one of the best concerts i ever saw... Tampa stadium 1973
I saw him play on one of those guitar tours many years ago....He is very, very good.He was a personable guy....enjoyed his clinic.
He was, shall we say, different. His religion was middle eastern and he lived it to the blue print. Had some strange ideas about life and how to live it. We were never really close. But I have to give it to him he was very good at his music. I sat in with him and his band in L.A. a few times and that language is universal. He asked me to go on tour with the band and I had to turn it down as I was in the military at that time and I didn’t want to change my lifestyle.
rwood
I’ve had friends tell me it is well worth visiting, just haven’t made the time yet. The Rock & Roll Museum (or whatever they call it) in Seattle was... well, some parts were neat, others were predictably “Seattle”... I could take or leave that.
I love that the MIM is focused on instrument history. Now I’ve got to schedule a visit! Thanks, KC!
I do want to stress that you not put off the visit for too long as I don’t know how long the special Electric Guitar exhibition will be there. They have great exhibits on all sorts of string instruments and wind instruments of every era as the normal 75% of the space but the Guitar Exhibit is something that they put together for only a year or so — I saw it at New Years week.
I have some family near Kalamazoo and with the history of amps and Gibson, Kalamazoo items play a great role in the history.
I had a Jimmie Vaughn Strat until very recently.
People rave about them.
As a Baltimore Colts fan, I agree.
People rave about them.
They're great guitars. I almost bought one and then I bought a Highway 1 instead with at the time was Fender's entry-level American-made guitar. It wasn't a particularly well-crafted instrument and I never really bonded with it. The Mexican-made Jimmy Vaughan is far better in fit and finish. The mid-level MIM Fenders are great guitars. I have two MIM Classic Series Telecasters that are superb. My #1 Strat however is a MIA '54 "thin skin nitro" that was a special run for Wildwood Music in Colorado. It's basically a '54 reissue with a modern neck and a thin nitro finish. It's awesome!
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