Rare Bob Dylan guitar used for Blonde On Blonde album goes under the hammer
Bids for twelve-string Fender Electric XII guitar being sold by Heritage Auctions have already reached more than £113K
Francine Wolfisz is the Features Editor for Jewish News.
Bob Dylan’s 1965 Fender electric guitar, which he played while recording his critically-acclaimed Blonde on Blonde album, is set to go under the hammer this weekend.
The twelve-string Fender Electric XII already has bids for £113,000 ($150,000), but is set to more than surpass this when bids close on Saturday with Heritage Auctions.
Aficionados consider Dylan’s Blonde on Blonde as “rock’s first great double album” and two songs from the sessions are included on Rolling Stone Magazine’s prestigious “500 Greatest Songs of All Time.”
The 1966 masterpiece achieved double-platinum status, and due to its combination of grand, driving music and poetic lyrics with a modernist literary slant, Blonde on Blonde is often cited as one of the greatest – and most important – albums in the history of popular music.
Described as “an incredibly rare specimen” by Garry Shrum, director of music memorabilia at Heritage Auctions, Dylan’s guitar was used during the initial writing and recording sessions that took place in New York during October 1965 after Dylan’s first electric tour.
As this particular guitar was designed in 1965 with folk and rock artists in mind, naturally the Fender Company personally gave one to Dylan.
It features a combination of the sunburst finish with original pearloid guard and amplifier-style knobs.
Only a handful of these specific instruments were ever produced due to the pickguard being quickly changed to the common tortoiseshell pickguard.
Featuring a pearloid guard and amplifier-style knobs, the guitar is made with an alder body, rosewood fingerboard, no neck stamp and includes the original black tolex case with a green paint stencil across the top reading “Property of Ashes & Sand Inc.” – the name of Dylan’s original touring company.
The American-Jewish singer-songwriter can be seen holding the guitar in several photos from the period.
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