A guitar built for and belonging to Prince, bright yellow and in the “Cloud” shape that became his signature ax style, could be yours this week for, well, a little more than a song.
Dig if you will this Prince guitar from his ‘Purple Rain’ era, yours for a not-too-low price
The yellow “Cloud” guitar, in a distinctive shape often favored by the late Minnesota music icon, is expected to fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars at auction this week.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
May 28, 2024 at 9:06PM
The so-called Cloud 3 guitar is up for auction, with bids closing at the end of May. The music legend and Minnesota native had it built in 1985 for the “Purple Rain” tour.
It became one of Prince’s go-to guitars in the mid-’80s to the early ‘90s, and was featured on several other tours including “Parade,” “Sign of the Times,” “Lovesexy” and “Diamonds and Pearls,” according to a news release from auction house Julien’s Auctions.
It’s the first time the guitar will be available for purchase in nearly 20 years. The guitar is expected to fetch as much as $600,000, the auction house said. As of Tuesday, there was a single bid of $400,000; bidding closes Thursday morning.
Several previous Prince Cloud guitars have been auctioned off to private buyers, including his “Blue Angel” Cloud 2 in 2020, and his blue teal Cloud in 2017, which sold for a record $700,000.
The Cloud 3 was verified in an interview with Dave Rusan, who built it for Prince. It comes with a certificate of authenticity from Paisley Park and remains fully playable. Prince had it with him in 1992 at the event where he signed a $100 million record contract with Warner Brothers, according to the auction house.
Other instruments, including John Lennon’s acoustic guitar from “Help!” and Bob Dylan’s 1965 Fender, will accompany the Cloud 3 at auction. The “Music Icons” auction event is in person at Hard Rock Cafe in New York and online at juliensauctions.com on May 29 and May 30.
The governor said it may be 2027 or 2028 by the time the market catches up to demand.
