I see that Bob Dylan's Bob's handwritten lyrics to 'The Times They Are Changin'' have been sold to a hedger fun manager at a Sotheby's auction for well over $300,000. The buyer also owns, it says here, the guitar John Lennon was carrying when he first met Paul McCartney:
http://tinyurl.com/3xnucgn
The weird thing about this report is that while it says these handwritten lyrics were "originally owned" by Dylan's early friend Kevin Krown, it doesn't say who owned them subsequently and sold them at the auction.
A little more about those lyrics here, including the subsequent owner. And they went for a lot more than $300,000 - I think it was $430,000.
ReplyDeleteEven more details in the catalogue entry, including full provenance.
ReplyDeleteThanks, McHenry. The first link didn't work just now, but the second one does. The seller, Peter Mackenzie, has had, allegedly, a rather sullied relationship with supposed Dylan artefacts - see, for instance, http://www.prefixmag.com/news/jeffrey-gold-dylan-memorabilia/19546/ - but this seems kosher. He's been a lucky chap.
ReplyDeleteIf you had them, Michael, would you sell them?
ReplyDeleteYes.
ReplyDelete"Yes."
ReplyDeleteActually, I think I would, too. I'd see no point in staring at them, after I'd photocopied them just to look again at the changes he may have made along the way to the song, the process of writing.
But I'm not sentimental or possesive about silly stuff like this. I'd prefer to actually listen to the song in its various versions rather than own his handwriting, which is a bizarre goal.
My latest favourite version is the Rundown Rehearsals session, with the girls and saxophone...