Prince’s Cloud Guitar takes top dollar at Gardiner Houlgate’s December guitar auction
Other guitars sold include Rory Gallagher’s Gibson L6 and Richie Sambora’s double-neck PRS.
Image: Gardiner Houlgate
Gardiner Houlgate’s December guitar auction has concluded with one of Prince’s Cloud guitars scoring top bid.
The Andy Beech-crafted Cloud guitar sold for £18,500 alongside a strap bearing a “strong smell of Prince’s cologne”, according to the auction house.
Other instruments that went under the hammer include a modified Gibson L6 owned and played by Rory Gallagher (£10,000) and a double-neck PRS custom-built for Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora (£9,100). All lots were subject to a buyer’s premium of 27 per cent.
The event coincided with a special auction dedicated to the collection of former Whitesnake guitarist Bernie Marsden. Over 70 sets of backline equipment from Marsden’s collection went under the hammer.
The Marshall half-stack Marsden used to record Whitesnake’s 1982 hit song Here I Go Again went for £2,100. It comprises a Marshall ‘59 Super Lead MKII head and a Marshall 1960A 4×12 with Celestion Greenback speakers.
Marsden, in a statement announcing the auction, explained how he came to a decision to part with his storied gear.
“Being a professional musician for over 50 years now has led me to acquire all kinds of music gear and memorabilia. But, there comes a time in life when you need to properly assess and re-evaluate those items,” he said in a statement. “In the strange year that has been 2020, I have had the time to realise that I have a lot of now completely unused quality equipment.”
Learn more at gardinerhoulgate.co.uk
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