A Chuck Berry-signed and played 1967 Gibson ES-345 is headed for auction
Berry used the Cherry Red electric at a private performance in 2002
Hot on the heels of Eric Clapton’s 1954 Sunburst Fender Strat hitting the block for $1,000,000, auction house Gotta Have Rock and Roll has announced another historic electric guitar for sale: Chuck Berry’s owned and heavily-played 1967 Gibson ES-345.
The Cherry Red instrument, serial Number 000037, comes out of Berry’s personal collection, and was used by the legendary guitarist for a private performance in Seattle on April 13, 2002.
According to Gotta Have Rock and Roll, Berry then gave the guitar to business mogul Mike Malone, and Berry signed the guitar in black felt pen, adding a drawing beneath the signature.
The ES-345 is accompanied by a copy of the William Morris Agency contract for Berry to perform at the private Seattle gig, at DMX Music, in 2002, as well as a full letter of provenance from Mike Malone and a Gotta Have Rock and Roll Certificate of Authenticity.
The 1967 Gibson ES-345 auction opens on November 25, with a minimum bid of $200,000.
For more information, head to Gotta Have Rock and Roll.
The same auction is also playing host to the 1966 Fender Jazzmaster that Chris Cornell used to record Soundgarden's Superunknown.
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Rich is the co-author of the best-selling Nöthin' But a Good Time: The Uncensored History of the '80s Hard Rock Explosion. He is also a recording and performing musician, and a former editor of Guitar World magazine and executive editor of Guitar Aficionado magazine. He has authored several additional books, among them Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, the companion to the documentary of the same name.