(hennemusic) The highest bidder at Pink Floyd legend David Gilmour's record-setting June 20 guitar auction at Christie's in New York has been revealed.
Rolling Stone reports Jim Irsay, lifelong Pink Floyd fan and billionaire owner of the NFL's Indianapolis Colts, was the man responsible for spending a record-breaking $3,975,000 on Gilmour's famed "Black Strat," the Floyd frontman's instrument of choice on the band's iconic Seventies classics.
"I just love Pink Floyd, man, I cannot deny it," says Irsay. "I think [Roger] Waters' lyrics and Gilmour's playing and their whole story and prominence is just so profound that I cannot say enough about my excitement for this. ... David Gilmour stands by himself."
Placing his bids through a proxy, Irsay picked up another Gilmour artifact just prior to snagging the Black Strat, dropping $175,000 on the Pink Floyd-branded flight case that housed the guitar for decades.
"If I don't get the guitar, I'll look like a jackass," laughs the collector, who also owns axes originally played by Elvis Presley, John Lennon, Bob Dylan and Prince, among others. "But I love Strats, and this is the Strat. This is the one that was the signature guitar for those incredible Floyd leads."
The Christie's event also saw Irsay add a third Gilmour piece to his collection when he bid $1,095,000 for the 1969 Martin D-35 Gilmour used to record "Wish You Were Here." Read more watch a video of the auction here.
Watch David Gilmour's 'The Piper's Call' Video
Pink Floyd's David Gilmour Reveals Song From First New Album In Nine Years
Unicorn's Pink Floyd's David Gilmour Produced Album Set For Reissue
David Gilmour And Peter Green Reimagine Vintage Fleetwood Mac Classic
David Gilmour Performs Fleetwood Mac Classic 'Albatross' At Peter Green Tribute
Copyright 2023 Iconoclast Entertainment Group All rights reserved.