(Toronto) Randy Bachman bids farewell to some of the instruments that shaped his legendary music career, including the guitar used to compose The Guess Who’s classic American Woman.
Two hundred iconic guitars from the Winnipeg-born musician will be auctioned at New York’s Hard Rock Café and online on May 29 and 30.
The instruments include the 1959 Les Paul Standard guitar that he acquired in 1968 when a performance in the basement of a church in Nanaimo, British Columbia, took an unexpected turn. The neck of his guitar then cracked, so much so that a spectator suggested that he use his own Les Paul instead.
She later inspired the famous “riff” of the song. American Woman » during a performance at a curling center.
Julien’s Auctions says the guitar now has an estimated value of between US$200,000 and US$400,000.
Other items up for auction include his 1968 Fender Hardtail Stratocaster, used for the song “Let It Ride,” and a 1957 Sunburst Harmony acoustic guitar, the first he purchased as a young violinist and which, by its design evokes the appearance of a violin.