Johnny Marr's 'This Charming Man' guitar up for auction in London
80 guitars up for grabs
Fancy owning a piece of music history? Christie’s is holding a London auction later this year that will see many of Johnny Marr’s guitars sold.
It’s catchily titled Marr’s Guitars: The Johnny Marr Collection and one of the top items in the auction is the 1982 Rickenbacker 330 Jetglo Marr used on classic The Smiths singles including This Charming Man and What Difference Does It Make?.
Marr has owned the guitar since 1983, and it’s estimated to sell for £60,000-80,000.
It’s not the guitar expected to go for the most money, though. That accolade goes to Marr’s 1960 Cherry Red Gibson ES-355, which was apparently bought for Marr by record company exec Seymour Stein as a sweetener for signing to the Sire Records label in 1984.
Christie’s has put a £100,000 - £150,000 estimate on the guitar.
Marr’s Guitars: The Johnny Marr Collection is made up of 95 lots including around 80 guitars. It’s an absolute whopper of an auction.
And, ever a good egg, Marr will donate a chunk of the money to charity.
“Johnny Marr will donate 100% of the hammer price of 10 lots to benefit The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association and The National Autistic Society,” says Christie’s — although we don’t know how high-value those lots are.
Other guitars up for grabs include a 1984 Gibson Les Paul Standard used on Meat is Murder, expected to go for up to £120,000, and a custom Telecaster shape guitar made by luthier Roger Griffin, as seen on a Top of the Pops performance by The Smiths. Its upper estimate is £30,000.
Several guitars used as part of the recording process for Marr’s upcoming The Age of Everything are up for auction too. It was announced last week and is due out on 2nd October.
Marr’s Guitars: The Johnny Marr Collection is going on tour — that’s right, the guitar collection, not the man himself — to New York, where it will be displayed from 25th June to 1st July at Christie’s in the city.
It will come to London, for a public viewing at Christie’s from 9th to 16th September, ahead of the auction itself on 17th September at 2pm.
“Writing Marr’s Guitars in 2023 gave me the perfect excuse to bring all of these instruments together, to tell their stories, revisit the songs, shows and unforgettable moments they’ve brought me, and that I’ve shared with remarkable people in studios and on stages around the world,” says Marr.
“It’s bittersweet to be parting with these guitars but I want them to go to new homes and new people who will love them as much as I have. I hope they bring as much joy, inspiration and fun – and new songs – as they have given me.”
We expect to see the the full catalogue of items published on the Christie’s website within the coming weeks.
Marr’s own live tour begins at the end of this week, kicking off with a gig at Middenvijver Park in Belgium on Sunday. It’s capped off with a concert at Ovo Arena in Wembley on 24th October, the largest of his solo career to date.
Skip the search — follow Shortlist on Google News to get our best lists, news, features and reviews at the top of your feeds!
