A lefty black Fender Stratocaster electric guitar smashed by Kurt Cobain, during Nirvana’s seminal Nevermind era made an astounding $595,000 – nearly ten times its original estimate of $60,000 – at Julien’s Music Icons sale at the Hard Rock Cafe in New York. The reassembled but unplayable guitar signed by all three members of Nirvana, Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic, and Dave Grohl, with additional inscriptions to Mark Lanegan (of Screaming Trees) by Cobain that read: “Hell-o Mark! Love, Your Pal, Kurdt Kobain / Washed up rockstar” as well as the inscription Boddah Lives engraved to the neck plate (referring to Cobain’s childhood imaginary friend) is housed in a black hard case with “Abort Christ” written on the top in white block letters and includes a white Ernie Ball guitar strap.
Bono’s 2002 Gretsch Irish Falcon electric guitar made $238,125. The guitar signed by all four members of U2 was donated by Bono when he was honored as the MusiCares Person of the Year in 2003. A devotee of the Gretsch 6196 Country Club, Bono commissioned ten Irish Falcon electric guitars from Gretsch in 2000. Over 1,200 pieces of music history from rock royalty owned and used by stars like Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Eddie Van Halen, Alex Lifeson, Freddie Mercury, Led Zeppelin, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, KISS, Mötley Crüe, Tom Petty, Lenny Kravitz, and more with special collections from Amy Winehouse, Bill Wyman, Bette Midler and Julian Lennon, sold in front of a live audience and online with thousands of bidders, fans and collectors from around the world participating at julienslive.com The three-day sale will close on today (May 21) with property from Janet Jackson.
