Jeff Beck: The Guitar Collection
Private & Iconic Collections
Jeff Beck: The Guitar Collection
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Event date 22 JANUARY 2025 -
Event location London
Jeff Beck playing Day on the Green, Oakland Coliseum, CA, 6 June 1976 © Robert Knight
A celebration of the ultimate guitarist’s guitar hero, Christie’s is honoured to present Jeff Beck: The Guitar Collection, a live auction on 22 January 2025, in London. Spanning his almost six-decades-long career, from joining the Yardbirds in 1965 to his last tour in 2022, this unique auction presents over 130 guitars, amps, pedals, cases and ‘tools-of-the-trade’ used by the late, great guitar legend Jeff Beck (1944–2023).
A multi-Grammy award-winning artist – twice inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame – his inimitable sound led to collaborations with countless internationally renowned musicians and friends including: Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix, Ronnie Wood, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Billy Gibbons, Jan Hammer, Eric Clapton, David Gilmour, Tina Turner, Nile Rodgers, Mick Jagger, BB King, Buddy Guy, Carlos Santana, Imelda May and Johnny Depp, amongst many others.
From the outset, Jeff Beck was a sonic innovator; a maverick and mercurial virtuoso who blazed the trail for musical genres as diverse as Psychedelia, Heavy Metal and Jazz-Rock Fusion, and who embraced a wide range of influences from the Blues, Rockabilly and Rock ‘n’ Roll to Indian sitar music, Bulgarian Folk, Techno, and Opera. A maestro of his trade, Jeff could make just about any sound possible with a guitar and an amp. His playing style could not be defined and part of his magic lay in the balance between the fluidity and aggression of his playing and his technical brilliance, which could swing from furious attack one moment to sheer ethereal beauty in the next.
A multi-Grammy award-winning artist – twice inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame – his inimitable sound led to collaborations with countless internationally renowned musicians and friends including: Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix, Ronnie Wood, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Billy Gibbons, Jan Hammer, Eric Clapton, David Gilmour, Tina Turner, Nile Rodgers, Mick Jagger, BB King, Buddy Guy, Carlos Santana, Imelda May and Johnny Depp, amongst many others.
From the outset, Jeff Beck was a sonic innovator; a maverick and mercurial virtuoso who blazed the trail for musical genres as diverse as Psychedelia, Heavy Metal and Jazz-Rock Fusion, and who embraced a wide range of influences from the Blues, Rockabilly and Rock ‘n’ Roll to Indian sitar music, Bulgarian Folk, Techno, and Opera. A maestro of his trade, Jeff could make just about any sound possible with a guitar and an amp. His playing style could not be defined and part of his magic lay in the balance between the fluidity and aggression of his playing and his technical brilliance, which could swing from furious attack one moment to sheer ethereal beauty in the next.
Jeff Beck at the Auditorium Theatre, May 1975 © Jim Summaria
All the guitars he played tell a story and bear the unmistakable signs of his hands, from the Gibson Les Pauls – the ‘Yardburst’ he bought in London in 1966 and the iconic ‘Oxblood’ depicted on the cover of Blow By Blow – to the Gretsches inspired by Cliff Gallup of The Blue Caps, and the Fender Teles and Strats which were his ‘workhorses’, describing the latter with which his playing became synonymous as: “My Strat is another arm, it’s part of me. It doesn’t feel like a guitar at all. It’s an implement which is my voice.”
The ultimate guitarist’s guitarist, Jeff Beck was a rock pioneer whose influence on his peers was unmatched. Now Christie’s presents his instruments to the world – the guitars through which he shared his emotion and voice – paying tribute to his enduring legacy.
The ultimate guitarist’s guitarist, Jeff Beck was a rock pioneer whose influence on his peers was unmatched. Now Christie’s presents his instruments to the world – the guitars through which he shared his emotion and voice – paying tribute to his enduring legacy.
I don’t care about the rules. In fact, if I don’t break the rules at least 10 times in every song then I’m not doing my job properly.—Jeff Beck
How to watch the livestream
Jeff Beck: The Guitar Collection
22 January 2025
1:00pm GMT
Join us live on Wednesday, 22 January at 1pm GMT for the auction livestream of Jeff Beck: The Guitar Collection. Follow the action as it happens as the guitars, amps and other ‘tools-of-the-trade’ used by the late, great guitar legend go under the hammer. Highlights include the iconic Gibson Les Paul ‘Oxblood’ depicted on the cover of Blow By Blow, the Fender Teles and Strats which were Beck’s ‘workhorses’, the Gretsches inspired by Cliff Gallup of The Blue Caps, and many more. This must-see event is a true celebration of the ultimate guitarist’s guitar hero.
We’re expecting a high volume of online traffic on the day of the auction. If you’re registered to bid, you can watch and bid in real time on Christie’s LIVE™. Alternatively, you can join as a spectator on our YouTube channel.
Please note that seating in the auction itself will be prioritised for registered bidders. To register a room paddle please contact ukbids@christies.com.
FAQs
Highlights
My Strat is another arm, it’s part of me. It doesn’t feel like a guitar at all. It’s an implement which is my voice.—Jeff Beck
Exhibition
Location
Christie’s London
8 King St., St. James’s
London, SW1Y 6QT
Viewing*
15 January 2025, 10am – 5pm
16 January 2025, 10am – 5pm
17 January 2025, 10am – 5pm
18 January 2025, 12pm – 5pm
19 January 2025, 12pm – 5pm
20 January 2025, 10am – 8pm
21 January 2025, 10am – 5pm
22 January 2025, 10am – 1pm
*Entry is free and open to the public.
The immersive sound experience throughout the exhibition is delivered by Dolby and Neumann.
Contact
+44 (0) 20 7839 9060
info@christies.com
Limited-edition catalogue
SPECIAL PRINT PUBLICATION
To celebrate this landmark occasion, a limited-edition catalogue will be published to accompany the auction.
Order your copy of the catalogue now.
ORDER NOW
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MAIN IMAGES: Left © Barrie Wentzell, Centre © Robert Knight, Right © Robert Knight Jeff Beck at The Auditorium Theater in Chicago, 19 February 1977 © Jim Summaria