The value of rock and pop musical instruments: from riffs to records

What place does great collecting have in the days of Sanremo, of Bruce Springsteen's 'Streets of Minneapolis', of U2's 'Days of Ash'?

At the festival (still) little. But for a Gretsch 'Irish Falcon' by Bono Vox someone spent $260,000 (Julien's, 2024); for the Boss, on the other hand, autographed guitars could be found for less than 10,000 (also at Julien's). That of rock and pop musical instruments is a vast and multi-million dollar market, for which major thematic auctions are organised, attracting bidders from all over. Next on the calendar are Christie's four auctions (three physical and one digital) dedicated to the dispersal of the collection of entrepreneur Jim Irsay (1959-2025), grandiose in terms of its vastness and composition. More than 500 pieces of musical instruments and memorabilia from the fingers ofNirvana, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Eric Clapton, Jerry Garcia, Miles Davis, Elton John, Prince, Johnny Cash, Janis Jopling, John Coltrane and Bob Dylan, to which is added a sizeable selection of literary (e.g. Kerouac) and sporting (Muhammad Ali) memorabilia. The three physical auctions of "The Jim Irsay Collection" catalogue will be held on 12, 13, 14 March 2026 in New York, respectively in "Hall of Fame", "Icons of Pop Culture", "Icons of Music". The online sale will take place from 3 to 12 March and may offer some affordable lots, with a $100 auction base: for example a Dunlop 213 pyrex guitar slide, used byEagles guitarist Joe Walsh. Or a Beatles concert ticket, never used. The highlights, however, will be others. Namely pieces such as Ringo Starr's first Ludwig drum kit, used in hundreds of live performances and studio recordings from May 1963 to February 1964 ($1-2 million); Kurt Cobain's 1966 Fender Mustang ($2.5-5 million), paid for by Irsay at $4.55 million and now the second most expensive non-classical musical instrument ever; David Gilmour's 'Black Strat', the same one played in 'The Dark Side of the Moon', 'Wish You Were Here', 'Animals' and 'The Wall', purchased in 2019 directly from the former Pink Floyd guitarist via Christie's. At the time, it reached the top of the podium for less than a year.

Kurt Cobain: “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Fender Mustang, 1969. Fender Electric Instrument Company, Fullerton, California. Stima: $ 2.500.000–5.000.000.

But the podium is only the tip of the iceberg of a market capable of grinding out millions of dollars, as long as they are blue chip pieces that made history and the legend of 20th century music: it is only worth noting that the least expensive lot in today's top ten exceeds two million, suggesting that there are (and there are) still many more millionaire instruments to come, before arriving at the first one quoted at less than one million, namely Bob Dylan's Fender Stratocaster 'Newport Folk Festival', $965,000 at Christie's in 2013.

More than in other spheres, such as art and luxury, the legendary nature of the instrument, its having been used (and often modified) by iconic rock stars, defines the value of the asset. In the top 10, Cobain appears twice, at the top; the Beatles (John Lennon and Ringo Starr) four, Van Halen two, Dave Gilmour (Pink Floyd) one. Widening the view to the top 20, these names are repeated, with a few additions (such as that of Elvis Presley). The only lot in the top 10 explicitly sold for charity, thanks to Bryan Adams, bears the signatures of many rock stars. A curiosity:John Lennon's piano, the Steinway Model Z 'Imagine', acquired by George Michael, is still part of his legacy. It is the provenance that makes these lots blue chip, not necessarily their intrinsic value. The market is rarefied: few names are considered milestones, even fewer are collectors. Jim Irsay's name recurs three times in the top ten and even more if you expand the list: he was a fervent, obsessive collector, capable of putting together 'the largest collection of guitars on Earth' (according to Guitar World Magazine).

Dettaglio della Fender Mustang 1966 di Kurt Cobain, stimata 2,5 - 5 milioni

It was 18 November 1993 and Kurt Cobain (1967-1994) was - a few months after his controversial death - performing his legendary 'Unplugged' on the airwaves of Mtv. That guitar, a 1959 Martin D-18E, would, 27 years later (coincidence enthusiasts will note the number), sell for $6.01 million at auction in Beverly Hills at Julien's Auctions, making it not only the most expensive guitar, but the most expensive non-classical musical instrument ever (the most expensive musical instrument ever is the Stradivari Lady Blunt Stradivarius, $15.9 million in 2011 at Tarisio). Also in its original hard case, which Cobain had decorated with a flyer from the band Poison Idea, were a half-used pack of Martin guitar strings, three picks and a suede pouch. The buyer? Entrepreneur Peter Freedman (1958), founder and president of Australia's Røde Microphones. To the leader of Nirvana also belongs the second place in the current rock and pop charts: here is in fact his 1969 Fender Mustang 'Smells Like Teen Spirit', the same one played in the video of that song destined to become a generational anthem, in the album 'In Utero' and throughout 'Nevermind'. Kurt - in his own words - loved this left-handed six-string 'competition burgundy', which may soon change position in the top ten, as it will be up for auction again on 12 March at Christie's.