Another of Kurt Cobain's iconic instruments will head to auction. After the acoustic guitar from Nirvana's MTV Unplugged session successfully sold for $6 million USD, the guitar played by the late frontman in the band's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" music video will go under the hammer.
Like that aforementioned acoustic instrument, Cobain's left-handed 1969 Fender Mustang guitar — finished in Competition Lake Placid blue with a matching headstock — will go to a deep-pocketed bidder in May via Julien's Auctions, as part of their 2022 Music Icons event.
The auction house lists a "conservative starting estimate" for the instrument between $600,000 and $800,000 USD. By comparison, the starting estimate for the MTV Unplugged guitar — which still stands as the most expensive guitar ever sold at auction — was $1 million USD.
Cobain's "Teen Spirit" Mustang has spent the last 12 years on display at Seattle's Museum of Pop Culture (formerly Experience Music Project). Julien's points to the artist's final interview with Guitar World, in which he shares of the axe, "I'm left-handed, and it's not very easy to find reasonably priced, high-quality left-handed guitars. But out of all the guitars in the whole world, the Fender Mustang is my favourite. I've only owned two of them."
The Mustang guitar headlines a number of Cobain items headed to auction this May, including his 1965 Dodge Dart 170 sedan, a custom 1985 Iron Maiden Killers skateboard deck he illustrated, his all-access pass from Nirvana's 1993 tour behind In Utero and more. This time around, smelly cardigans and strands of hair aren't up for grabs.
The three-day Music Icons auction takes place May 20, 21 and 22 live at the Hard Rock Café: New York and online at juliensauctions.com.
It was recently reported that Cobain's final days will be dramatized in a new opera. Additionally, his influence on The Batman landed Nirvana another Hot 100 debut.
This week, members of Nirvana and fellow PNW rockers Pearl Jam and Soundgarden launched a new supergroup.
Like that aforementioned acoustic instrument, Cobain's left-handed 1969 Fender Mustang guitar — finished in Competition Lake Placid blue with a matching headstock — will go to a deep-pocketed bidder in May via Julien's Auctions, as part of their 2022 Music Icons event.
The auction house lists a "conservative starting estimate" for the instrument between $600,000 and $800,000 USD. By comparison, the starting estimate for the MTV Unplugged guitar — which still stands as the most expensive guitar ever sold at auction — was $1 million USD.
Cobain's "Teen Spirit" Mustang has spent the last 12 years on display at Seattle's Museum of Pop Culture (formerly Experience Music Project). Julien's points to the artist's final interview with Guitar World, in which he shares of the axe, "I'm left-handed, and it's not very easy to find reasonably priced, high-quality left-handed guitars. But out of all the guitars in the whole world, the Fender Mustang is my favourite. I've only owned two of them."
The Mustang guitar headlines a number of Cobain items headed to auction this May, including his 1965 Dodge Dart 170 sedan, a custom 1985 Iron Maiden Killers skateboard deck he illustrated, his all-access pass from Nirvana's 1993 tour behind In Utero and more. This time around, smelly cardigans and strands of hair aren't up for grabs.
The three-day Music Icons auction takes place May 20, 21 and 22 live at the Hard Rock Café: New York and online at juliensauctions.com.
It was recently reported that Cobain's final days will be dramatized in a new opera. Additionally, his influence on The Batman landed Nirvana another Hot 100 debut.
This week, members of Nirvana and fellow PNW rockers Pearl Jam and Soundgarden launched a new supergroup.
