It\u2019s a bid that would leave most bank accounts \u201cComfortably Numb.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour\u2019s legendary 1969 \u201cBlack Strat\u201d shattered the record for the most expensive guitar ever sold at auction, as it went for $14.5 million Thursday night at a New York City auction house, The Post has learned.<\/p>\n
The sale was made as part of Christie\u2019s Jim Irsay Collection auction: a multi-day auction of music, movie and pop-culture memorabilia that once belonged to the late Indianapolis Colts owner.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour\u2019s legendary 1969 \u201cBlack Strat\u201d shattered the record for the most expensive guitar ever sold at auction at a New York City auction house Thursday night. Future via Getty Images<\/p>\n
The \u201cMoney\u201d guitarist\u2019s axe fetched more than twice the previous record \u2014 which was set by Kurt Cobain\u2019s Martin D-18E from Nirvana\u2019s MTV Unplugged set, sold for $6.1 million in 2020.<\/p>\n
A separate guitar played by Cobain in the \u201cSmells Like Teen Spirit\u201d music video<\/a> \u2014 a 1969 Fender Mustang\u00a0\u2014 was also auctioned by Christie\u2019s Thursday and went for $6.9 million, the most shelled out for any of the late grunge king\u2019s instruments.<\/p>\n Gilmour\u2019s record-setting guitar was snatched up by an anonymous buyer after a 21-minute bidding war. The rock legend played it on the recording of seminal albums like \u201cThe Dark Side of the Moon\u201d (1793) and \u201cThe Wall\u201d (1979).<\/p>\n \u201cThis was like the Super Bowl for this market,\u201d auction attendee Thomas Scriven, 45, told The Post, \u201cthis is the biggest auction for music memorabilia.\u201d<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with all you need to know\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \u201cI came here initially to watch a friend of mine bid, but I\u2019m a big guitar and music enthusiast,\u201d added fellow attendee Shawn, 35, \u201cand I think these are just icons and relics of an era that I hope I\u2019ll see again \u2014 but maybe won\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n Gilmour purchased the guitar right across the street from Christie\u2019s Rockefeller Plaza auction house at Manny\u2019s Music in 1970, reps said.<\/p>\n The iconic guitar stayed with Gilmour throughout his entire career, appearing on every Pink Floyd album from 1970 to 1983 and all four of his solo records. AP<\/p>\n Pink Floyd was on tour in the US at the time when the band was robbed of all its instruments in New Orleans \u2013 effectively canceling the tour and sending other members back across the pond.\u00a0<\/p>\n Gilmour, however, stayed in New York and bought this guitar, which stayed with him throughout his entire career, appearing on every Pink Floyd album from 1970 to 1983 and all four of his solo records.<\/p>\n \u201cIt became my main guitar, the one I used pretty much on everything unless there was a reason to want a different sound,\u201d the guitarist told Louder in 2019.<\/a><\/p>\n Gilmour\u2019s guitar also broke records Thursday for the most expensive Stratocaster sold at an auction and for a David Gilmour object sold at an auction.<\/p>\n Gilmour\u2019s guitar also broke records for the most expensive Stratocaster sold at an auction and for a David Gilmour object sold at an auction. AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n The first night of the auction on Thursday sold over 44 items valued at over $89 million and set 22 records, reps said.<\/p>\n \u201cLot after lot, we felt like we were making history,\u201d Christie\u2019s Americas president Julien Pradels said in a statement.<\/p>\n Christie\u2019s longtime auctioneer Tash Perrin told the Post afterwards it was \u201cthe thrill of a lifetime to know that the guitars, that all of these sales, are gonna go to the next generation, and the next custodians \u2013 to people that love these phenomenal objects.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The Jim Irsay Collection will continue with in-person and online auctions through March 17.<\/p>\n \u201cLot after lot we felt like we were making history,\u201d Christie\u2019s Americas president Julien Pradels said in a statement. Marie Pohl<\/p>\n