“Bought by Bernie Marsden in New York at the end of the ill-fated Whitesnake, Judas Priest and Iron Maiden USA tour in 1981”: The rescheduled Marsden guitar auction offers insight into the journey of the famed collector
The auction will now take place on June 14, and showcases the enormous variety of the late guitarist’s collection
(Image credit: Rob Monk/Future)
Prior to Bernie Marsden’s passing in August 2023, the Whitesnake guitar icon was engaged in selling off significant parts of his immense guitar collection, with sales via UK dealer ATB Guitars and an auction with Gardiner-Houlgate.
Following news of his death, the latter sale was postponed as a mark of respect. Now, a date for the guitar auction – which looks set to include over 100 items from Marsden’s extensive collection – has been announced: June 14.
This sale still has more than a hint of star power to it, though – with a 1968 Gretsch Streamliner that spent time on loan to Marsden’s friend Peter Green set to go under the hammer.
“Bought by Bernie Marsden in New York at the end of the ill-fated Whitesnake, Judas Priest and Iron Maiden USA tour in 1981,” reads the description.
“Bernie loaned the guitar to his friend and guitar hero Peter Green in the 1990s as he enjoyed playing it.”
Elsewhere there’s a Marshall Guv’Nor pedal gifted to Marsden by the late Gary Moore, plus a Rodenberg Electronic GAS808 pedal gifted to Marsden at a Joe Bonamassa and Joe Satriani show in 2014.
Get The Pick Newsletter
All the latest guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, deals and more, direct to your inbox!
In addition, 11 of the guitars in the sale saw service during Marsden’s Whitesnake era, including a host of lesser-spotted Gibson builds from the late-’70s and early-’80s, among them a Flying V2, Explorer E2, Firebrand 335-S, and RD Artist.
Indeed, browsing the catalog offers a revealing insight into the late Marsden’s love for guitars of all shapes, sizes and brands.
The likes of custom mods from vintage restoration expert Clive Brown rub against Japanese and Korean Squiers, while pre-war Gibson acoustics sit next to ’90s Washburns.
Then there’s a wealth of PRS models from the late-’00s/early 2010s, ’80s Greco copies, and US catalog guitars from Stella and Silvertone. Hell there’s even this weird Strat with a Tele neck experiment that we suspect is not 100% official.
The prices look thoroughly attainable, too – with something for all budgets – with lot estimates across the catalog priced from around $25 to $6,250.
As we saw with the Mark Knopfler guitar auction, estimates do have a habit of being surpassed when it comes to celebrity collection sales, but it does look like there’s plenty to pick from.
Matt is Features Editor for GuitarWorld.com. Before that he spent 10 years as a freelance music journalist, interviewing artists for the likes of Total Guitar, Guitarist, Guitar World, MusicRadar, NME.com, DJ Mag and Electronic Sound. In 2020, he launched CreativeMoney.co.uk, which aims to share the ideas that make creative lifestyles more sustainable. He plays guitar, but should not be allowed near your delay pedals.