Clapton Guitars in Auction

Subject: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 05 Mar 11 - 12:51 AM

Eric Clapton guitars to be auctioned for charity

Reuters 3/4/2011

NEW YORK — More than 70 guitars belonging to British music icon Eric Clapton will go on the auction block in New York next week to raise money for his drug and alcohol treatment center in the Caribbean.

The instruments, shown at a preview on Friday, include a 2005 Fender Stratocaster Signature Model, which is expected to sell for $20,000 to $30,000.

Clapton used the instrument during the Cream Reunion concerts at the Royal Albert Hall in London in May 2005 and at Madison Square Garden in New York in October of the same year.

Another guitar, also expected to fetch as much as $30,000 at the sale at Bonham's on Wednesday, is a 2006 recreation of Clapton's famed Strat "Blackie", complete with cigarette burns on the headstock. In 2004, the original "Blackie" sold for $959,000.

Proceeds of the auction will benefit the Crossroads Center in Antigua, which Clapton, a recovered alcoholic and former heroin addict, founded in 1998.

Clapton's collection of about 70 amplifiers are also for sale. One set of twin Fender amplifiers that he used in the 1980's, are expected to sell for as much as $12,000.

Another amp, a miniature Pignose from 1974, was possibly the same one used to record his song "Motherless Children".

Other items to be sold include a Versace suit worn by Clapton and a gold-records plaque given to Clapton for his album "Journeyman", which was released in 1989.

Two previous auctions have been held to benefit the Crossroads Center, in 1999 and 2004.

Clapton, 65, is widely regarded as one of the best guitarists of all time. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine named him fourth on their list of the 100 best guitarists in music history.

[Anybody near New York wanna go pick one up?)

John

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: Will Fly
Date: 05 Mar 11 - 06:52 AM

Interesting how Clapton has become inextricably associated with Fender Strats these days.

When I saw him with the Bluesbreakers and Cream in the '60s, he played nothing else but Gibsons. At the Cream concert on the Central Pier in Morecambe - must have been around '66 or '67 - he had half a dozen or so Les Pauls and SGs - some painted in psychedelic patterns - lined up on the stage in front of Baker's drums. Not a Strat in sight.

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: GUEST,jeff
Date: 05 Mar 11 - 11:11 PM

WillFly,

Was thinking the same thing myself. It may have been when he broke off from Cream, etc. and was playing w/Delaneey and Bonnie. Then onto the Derek and the Dominos/461 Ocean Blvd. phase. His sound definately changed from his earlier work around 72-74 and he's been identified w/strats ever since.

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: GUEST,Woodsie
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 04:31 AM

Yes he got the famous "woman tone" from a Gibson see him demonstrate it

here Now that SG he is using there would be a genuine historical item

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: C-flat
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 04:43 AM

I wonder what price the original Beano would bring at auction?

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: GUEST
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 05:09 AM

His Ovation Adamas has an absurdly low price
http://www.bonhams.com/cgi-bin/public.sh/WService=wslive_pub/pubweb/publicSite.r?sContinent=USA&screen=lotdetailsNoFlash&iSaleItemNo=4910042&iSaleNo=19226&iSaleSectionNo=1

They go for that price even without the Clapton connection.

http://cgi.ebay.ie/ADAMAS-GUITAR-6581-Beautiful-Guitar-/150570250582?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item230eafb156

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: GUEST
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 05:11 AM

In a way, he's overrated anyway. I know he's technically brilliant, an innovator etc. but I find his music boring, it doesn't move me.

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: C-flat
Date: 06 Mar 11 - 08:44 AM

I think he's made some pretty dreadful recordings along with a lot of stuff that, at the time, seemed in a different league to other contemporary players.
The same can be applied to Marvin, Hendrix, Kossoff, Knopfler, whoever. (maybe not Atkins and Reinhardt)
In their day, groundbreaking. Playing stuff others could only dream about. A few years on and every bedroom player can belt out the solo from Sultans Of Swing.
Being the first to take a musical style and develop it into something uniquely your own takes skill and courage even if the kids cotton on very quickly and can imitate better than the original, "more Hank than Hank!", it's a sincere form of flattery.

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: Roger the Skiffler
Date: 07 Mar 11 - 05:26 AM

I know no man canhave too many guitars...but...I assume he gets a lot of them from manufacturers for promotional purposes.

RtS
One washboard, not for sale.

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: C-flat
Date: 07 Mar 11 - 06:24 AM

Yes, I've always thought that paying a high price for a guitar because it once belonged to "whoever" is a bit daft unless it's a specific one-off. These guys often get given guitars that they might do no more than pose for a photo with for the manufacturers endorsement.
Hardly buying a piece of history...

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: Bernard
Date: 07 Mar 11 - 10:05 AM

For some people, though, just the idea that a famous person had hold of it, even for an instant, is enough to shell out silly money...

Anyone want to buy my Yamaha FG160 - I once borrowed Martin Carthy's capo and have a photo of me using it with Carthy in the background! Offers over 10,000 only...!!

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: C-flat
Date: 07 Mar 11 - 11:28 AM

Only if it's still got the same strings on that Martin Carthy's capo' actually touched!!!!

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: harmonic miner
Date: 07 Mar 11 - 11:45 AM

On the Ovation Fan Club site there'a a member who had a guitar customised with his intials 'JM' inset in the fretboard or somewhere. He was very amused to see it for sale on eBay as having belonged to Joni Mitchell, with a suitably inflated price

Q. How many guitars do you need? A. One more than you own now.

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: Bernard
Date: 07 Mar 11 - 12:12 PM

C-flat - of course it has! You just try to prove it hasn't!! In any case, my fingers touched the capo...

;o)

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 07 Mar 11 - 06:04 PM

So how much do ya want for one of yer fingers?

John

Subject: RE: Clapton Guitars in Auction
From: GUEST,999
Date: 07 Mar 11 - 06:07 PM

LOL