Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielsen will sell more than 300 lots from his personal collection through Julien’s Auctions in Nashville beginning October 24 at 8 a.m. PT, according to Rock Cellar Magazine.
The auction features vintage and one-of-a-kind electric guitars, amplifiers, handwritten lyrics, concert posters, stage props and other memorabilia accumulated over 60-plus years. Nielsen told Rock Cellar Magazine he still owns roughly 800 guitars and called the auction lots a small portion of his holdings.
Headline instruments include a stage-played 1975 Hamer Standard estimated at $200,000 to $300,000 and a custom 2004 Hamer five-neck korina electric guitar estimated at $175,000 to $200,000. A 1984 Gibson Les Paul XPL in sunburst carries an estimate of $15,000 to $20,000. Nielsen acquired his first Les Paul, a 1955 Gibson Gold Top, in 1965 for $65 at a used bookstore in Rockford, Illinois, Rock Cellar Magazine reported.
Nielsen said family members initially contacted Julien’s, whose president Darren Julian visited the house to review the collection. The auction also includes non-music items such as a 1955 Ford Thunderbird estimated at $60,000 to $80,000 and a custom John Deere tractor with snowplow estimated at $20,000 to $30,000.
For more information, visit rockcellarmagazine.com.
