Text

John Lennon Lyrics Up For Auction

Sotheby’s are selling John Lennon’s original hand-written lyrics for “A Day In The Life” in New York on 18 June, 2010. It looks like they are being included in a Books and Manuscripts auction and the estimate is $500,000-700,000. I would expect them to make within that estimate and no more, “A Day In The Life” is a great song, typical Lennon, but nowhere near as iconic as “Give Peace A Chance”, the lyrics sold at Christie’s in 2008 for $834,000.

However, the sale of these lyrics is a perfect illustration of what a great investment Memorabilia can be. These lyrics originally sold at auction in 1992 as part of the Mal Evans collection for $66,000 so if they make $700,000, that works out at a return of 14% over 18 years. Not bad!

UPDATE The lyrics for “A Day In The Life” made a record-breaking price of $1.2 Million at Sotheby’s in June. An incredible price which yet again underlines the strength of the market, great news.

Tags: John Lennon Beatles Memorabilia
May 04, 2010
1 note
Text

Collecting Nirvana - Top Five Prices for Kurt Cobain Memorabilia

In 2006, Kurt Cobain leapfrogged over Elvis Presley and John Lennon to become Forbes magazine’s Top Earning Dead Celebrity. On the memorabilia market, Kurt Cobain and Nirvana are relative newcomers and buyers are just beginning to understand their potential importance and worth.

Read More

Tags: Kurt Cobain
April 26, 2010
5 notes
Text

LL Cool J

I recently consulted for Phillips auction house on their inaugural Music sale and this photograph of LL Cool J by Lawrence Watson was offered for sale. A great image, I love it.

Tags: llcoolj
April 19, 2010
Photo
Beatles Memorabilia I recently discovered a rare signed Beatles programme in mint condition. The programme was for the 1963 Beatles and Roy Orbison Tour and was additionally signed by Roy Orbison . The owner obtained the signatures himself backstage at Sheffield City Hall on 25 May, 1963, he worked for the booking agent Wilson Peck and sold the programmes before many of the big concerts at the time. The programme had been kept in mint condition, with exceptionally clear signatures. The programme has been sold to a private U.S. collector but we are always looking to buy similar pieces. If you would like a valuation of your memorabilia, please feel free to e-mail me.

Beatles Memorabilia

I recently discovered a rare signed Beatles programme in mint condition. The programme was for the 1963 Beatles and Roy Orbison Tour and was additionally signed by Roy Orbison . The owner obtained the signatures himself backstage at Sheffield City Hall on 25 May, 1963, he worked for the booking agent Wilson Peck and sold the programmes before many of the big concerts at the time. The programme had been kept in mint condition, with exceptionally clear signatures.

The programme has been sold to a private U.S. collector but we are always looking to buy similar pieces. If you would like a valuation of your memorabilia, please feel free to e-mail me.

Tags: beatles
May 21, 2009
Photo
This highly rare concert poster was produced for the first Sex Pistols concert outside of the U.K. at the Chalet Du Lac Club, Paris on 3rd September, 1976. The artwork was designed by Malcolm McLaren and is typically controversial, depicting a naked adolescent boy smoking a cigarette. It is thought that fewer than 100 of these posters were printed in the U.K. and sent to the concert promoter in Paris and few have survived. I recently sold one of these posters which was in absolute mint condition, the promoter having held on to a handful of copies in the original packaging ever since 1976. Just one more of these is available so please feel free to contact me if interested in purchasing.

This highly rare concert poster was produced for the first Sex Pistols concert outside of the U.K. at the Chalet Du Lac Club, Paris on 3rd September, 1976. The artwork was designed by Malcolm McLaren and is typically controversial, depicting a naked adolescent boy smoking a cigarette. It is thought that fewer than 100 of these posters were printed in the U.K. and sent to the concert promoter in Paris and few have survived.

I recently sold one of these posters which was in absolute mint condition, the promoter having held on to a handful of copies in the original packaging ever since 1976. Just one more of these is available so please feel free to contact me if interested in purchasing.

Tags: sex pistols
March 01, 2009
3 notes
Text

Helen Hall Brokers Sale Of Kurt Cobain Guitar For $100,000

A smashed guitar from the late grunge rocker Kurt Cobain has been sold to an unidentified private collector for $100,000.

Helen Hall, a broker in England, says it’s the second-highest known price for an item of Kurt Cobain memorabilia. The seller was punk rocker Sluggo of The Grannies and Hullabaloo.

The sale was confirmed Tuesday by Jacob McMurray, senior curator at the Experience Music Project in Seattle, where the taped-up Fender Mustang guitar in sunburst finish was displayed for a time.

“It’s a really cool-looking guitar because it’s smashed and held together with duct tape and Kurt Cobain wrote on it,” McMurray said.

Sluggo said he traded a working guitar for the smashed one during the first U.S. tour of Cobain’s band, Nirvana.

McMurray said Nirvana, living hand-to-mouth, was on a tour in New Jersey when Cobain smashed the guitar on stage and went looking for one to play at his next gig.

The swap was made while Cobain was staying at the apartment of Sluggo, who goes only by that name, and Sluggo’s girlfriend, McMurray said.

He said he hoped the buyer would allow the instrument to return to Seattle for a Cobain exhibit he is preparing for 2010.

“There’s not a huge amount of broken Nirvana guitars out there,” McMurray said, adding that most amount to “little slivers and fragments.”

A news release from Hall said the highest price paid for a piece of Cobain memorabilia was $131,000 at a 2006 auction for his Mosrite Gospel Mark IV guitar.

Tags: Kurt Cobain
December 19, 2008

About

portrait

People I follow

  • terrysdiary
  • staff