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Prince’s Iconic ‘Yellow Cloud’ Guitar Sold At LA Auction For $137,500

By Aayush Mahat
Published on: 08:44 PST, Jun 27, 2016

Prince’s iconic “Yellow Cloud” guitar has been sold at an auction Saturday for $137,500. This iconic and distinctive guitar was used throughout the 90s by the late rock legend. Winner of the seven Grammy awards, Prince was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. He passed away at the age of 57 on April 21, 2016.

Two months after his death, Prince’s Yellow Cloud guitar was up for auction and was sold for $137,500. This guitar was previously made by Minneapolis Knut-Koupee Enterprises and is a custom-built guitar consisting of gold knobs, tremolo, and tuning keys.

The guitar was purchased by Indianapolis Colts owner and avid music lover Jim Irsay at a Heritage auction on Saturday. At the same event, a lock of David Bowie’s hair was sold for $18,750.

Prince used this guitar in several of his performances, music videos, and recordings.

In a letter of authenticity, Prince’s former guitar technician from between 1988 and 1994 said, “This Yellow Cloud guitar was the Prince’s main guitar and used in most of his early videos and touring performances and album recording.”

Irsay, who spent millions of dollars to set up the entire collection of his historic instruments, has also purchased Ringo Starr’s 1963 Ludwig Oyster Black Pearl drums for $2.2 million in December. At that same event, he was the highest bidder on guitar, which John Lennon gifted to Starr during the recordings of The White Album.

Speaking with Rolling Stone in December, Irsay said, “I feel I’m just a curator of history. I’m going to pass this thing on as time goes along.”

The auction saw hundreds of unique artifacts and items being sold to the highest bidder and was held for two days. Other items included the lock of Bowie’s hair, a Fender guitar signed by George Harrison and Eric Clapton, and Whitney Houston’s 2006 California drivers license. Houston’s 1986 Emmy Award was pulled last minute from the auction after a federal judge blocked it for sale.

Prince was born on June 7, 1958, in Minneapolis. His career best came after the release of Purple Rain, which sold over 22 million copies worldwide, making it the sixth best-selling album of all time. He was a songwriter, singer, and musical genius, and his music continues to inspire younger generations even today. He was found dead at his Paisley Park compound in his hometown earlier this year.

Irsay also has other items previously owned by popular stars, including Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Jerry Garcia, and many others. The guitar was made in 1989 and was used by the Prince in his career during the 90s.

He even broke the neck of this guitar during a French TV show, and after he returned back to the USA, he repaired the neck and used it for many recordings and albums. Heritage Auctions said the neck was “expertly repaired.”

The guitar started with the opening bid of $30,000. Along with it was another piece of Prince memorabilia: an early demo tape of an unreleased song.

The Associated Press reported that the 57-year-old Irsay made the winning bid to add the guitar to his elusive collection of musical instruments. Jim Irsay, who is a son of late Robert Irsay, is an American professional football team owner. His father owned the National Football League until he died in 1997. Irsay has made several notable investments in music and memorabilia. In 2001, he purchased the original manuscript of On the Road for about $2.43 million.

Prince was an iconic music artist because of his electrifying performances and his wide vocal range. He was a musical innovator and a genius. His extravagant dress, makeup, and style made him one of all time greats. His music incorporated a wide variety of styles, including funk, rock, and pop. He sold over 100 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling artists of all time.

[Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images]

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