NEW YORK, NY.- Julien’s Auctions, the world–record breaking auction house, has announced the full lineup of their two day blockbuster, music auction event of the season taking place on May 18 with the previously announced Property from the Life and Career of Prince and May 19 with Music Icons live at Hard Rock Cafe New York and online.

One of the highly anticipated items of the auction announced today is George Harrison’s first electric guitar, a Hofner Club 40 not seen since 1966. Harrison played the small blonde with black body binding single–cutaway hollow body instrument in the early days of The Beatles when they performed around Liverpool, England as The Quarrymen. The group had been transitioning from a skiffle band using acoustic instruments to a rock and roll band playing on electric instruments. John Lennon and George Harrison were the first to acquire electric guitars, which were almost identical Hofner Club 40 models. Harrison traded his big Hofner President model acoustic archtop jazz guitar for the Hofner Club 40, with Ray Ennis a member of The Swinging Blue Jeans to acquire his Club 40. Harrison played the guitar with Paul McCartney, John Lennon and Pete Best and Ken Brown, who were band members at the time, at The Casbah Coffee Club, a teenager’s social club in Hayman’s Green, West Derby.

In 1965, Harrison was asked to donate his guitar to a band competition that would help promote The Beatles’ 1966 German tour. The guitar was autographed with the Beatles’ names by their road manager, Neil Aspinall and was won by the German band Faces who later met The Beatles backstage during their concert in Hamburg to thank them for the guitar. Frank Dostal, the singer and guitarist of the band, owned the guitar until he passed away in 2017. His widow, Mary Dostal, who was a member of the Liverpool girl group The Liverbirds, offered the guitar at Julien’s Auctions. The guitar is estimated to sell between $200,000–$300,000.

"Most of the actual instruments that The Beatles used they still own but there are a few instruments still out there. One of them is George Harrison’s very first electric guitar, the Hofner Club 40," said Andy Babiuk, Author of "Beatles Gear: The Ultimate Edition." "George Harrison considered the Hofner as one of his favorite guitars which was the third guitar he ever owned. It is one of the most historically important guitars as it marks the chapter in music history when The Beatles transitioned to a rock and roll band playing electric guitars."

Harrison’s Hofner Club 40 joins an astonishing lineup of guitars that includes another previously announced historic electric guitar that Harrison also played–a 1965 Fender Telecaster owned by The Band’s Robbie Robertson. It was played by Bob Dylan on his "going electric" tour, Robbie Robertson, Eric Clapton, Levon Helm and The Beatle himself (estimate: $400,00–$600,000).

Regarded as one of the greatest guitarists of all time and as the only artist inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame three times, singer/songwriter Eric Clapton’s Epiphone Granada guitar, model E444T (1963) played while performing in the last stages of his years with The Yardbirds takes the auction stage alongside these other historic guitars (estimate: $80,000–$100,000).

A guitar from The King of Rock and Roll also joins the star studded lineup: a 1968 prototype solid rosewood Fender Telecaster electric guitar made for Elvis Presley by luthier Phil Kubicki at the Fender Custom Shop (estimate: $90,000–$100,000). It is believed that between six and nine of these prototypes were made and given to musicians, notably to George Harrison and Jimi Hendrix. But the very first prototype was sent to Elvis Presley. Other iconic Presley items offered are his collection of stunning jewelry, wardrobe and iconic ephemera including a diamond star–shaped ring (estimate: $80,000–$100,000) given by Presley to a concert–goer during a 1975 performance at the Civic Center in Asheville, North Carolina where he was giving away to the audience gifts including the jewelry he was wearing, his heavily embellished white leather belt worn in a 1972 performance in Hawaii and in his well–known jeweled "Thunderbird" ensemble, gifted to actor and friend Jack Lord (estimate: $20,000–$40,000), Presley’s blue suede jacket (estimate: $6,000–$8,000), a red Western shirt and a pair of dark blue Wrangler denim jeans worn by Elvis Presley in Stay Away, Joe (MGM, 1968) (estimate: $10,000–$12,000), a custom deerskin vest and matching pants custom made for Elvis Presley by North Beach Leather in the early to mid–1970s (estimate: $15,000–$20,000), Presley’s handwritten note and list of songs believed to be the last note written by Presley before his death (estimate: $8,000–$10,000), a ruby and diamond ring designed in 14K yellow gold, depicting a male head wearing a turban gifted by Presley to Tom Hulett (estimate: $10,000–$12,000), and more.

A standout artifact that changed the course of music history itself comes from the most influential singer–songwriter of all time: Bob Dylan. Dylan’s handwritten lyrics written on St. Regis New York hotel stationery of Bob Dylan’s 1963 classic "Blowin’ in the Wind," joins the auction set list; this original Dylan manuscript is estimated to sell between $50,000–$70,000.

John. Paul. George. Ringo. The Beatles were the foremost and most influential music band of all time that were a phenomenon the moment they arrived on the music scene and changed pop culture forever. The Fab Four’s iconography captures the magic and music of Beatlemania and tells the stories of their sonic evolution and ground–breaking experimentation such as a 1963 set list that makes its way to the Music Icons auction spotlight. This cut out sheet of paper in Paul McCartney’s handwriting and signed by John Lennon and Ringo Starr includes some of the Beatles’ most popular songs, "Standing There," "From Me To You," "All My Loving," "Hold On Me," "Don’t Bother Me," and "Wanna Be Your Man," with McCartney noting which Beatle would announce each song (estimate: $80,000–$100,000). Other Beatles treasures include a pair of gold wire rim round glasses owned by John Lennon gifted to one of his gardeners in 1969 (estimate: $20,000–$30,000); an abstract drawing of a man using mostly geometric shapes, drawn by Paul McCartney and gifted to Geoffrey Baker who was on the same course with The Beatles and Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Rishikesh, India, in February 1968 (estimate: $10,000–$20,000); a Paul McCartney signed Hofner Bass (estimate: $3,000–$5,000), signed postcards, posters, programs, awards and more.

Nirvana was one of the greatest rock and roll bands in history that launched a cultural revolution and the grunge era of the early ’90s and was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility. The Seattle based band bursts onto the auction stage with spectacular pieces including: a prototype of frontman Kurt Cobain’s first designed guitar, a Fender Jag–Stang accompanied by an original Cobain design drawing. The red guitar, a hybrid of Fender’s Jaguar and Mustang electric guitars, was being packaged to send to Cobain when news came of his death in 1994 (estimate: $40,000–$60,000); a wood and metal bench from Viretta Park in Seattle, with graffiti messages and artwork that has become a monument for Nirvana fans in Seattle (estimate: $2,000–$4,000); an Aria Pro II Cardinal Series broken guitar played by Kurt Cobain and smashed at the Motorsports International Garage Show which Nirvana headlined in Seattle on September 22, 1990 (estimate: $40,000–$60,000) and more.

A show stopping piece comes from none other than one of rock’s greatest showmen and best selling music artists in the world: Elton John. A custom–made ivory jumpsuit worn by the Rocket Man while backstage with John Lennon and Elizabeth Taylor at Madison Square Garden in New York City on November 28, 1974 is embellished with rows of colorful iridescent glass encased in metal prongs with the verso reading "Elton" spelled out in iridescent glass. Lennon joined John that night on stage toward the end of the concert, in what would be Lennon’s final live performance (estimate: $20,000–$30,000).

No Music Icons auction would be complete without an appearance by The King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson, and this year’s edition includes some exceptional pieces from the Jackson 5, one of the biggest pop groups in music history and one of Motown’s most successful acts. Items for offer include a red Honda three–wheeler, model ATC70, custom made by Honda for The Jackson 5 (estimate: $10,000–$12,000) and Michael Jackson’s custom designed Jackson 5 Victory Tour black cotton jumpsuit with embroidered name "Michael" in gold, black and red fabric accents and race car themed patches (estimate: $30,000–$40,000). Other highlights include Michael Jackson’s black rip–stop nylon long–sleeve jacket show worn as he accepted the Artist of a Generation Award at the BRIT Awards (1996) and in the Spike Lee directed video "They Don’t Care About Us" (estimate: $40,000–$60,000); a yellow long–sleeve shirt beneath a black PVC jacket and pants ensemble (estimate: $60,000–$80,000) and sterling silver and black faux leather belt with "BAD" logos and crests (estimate: $20,000–$40,000) worn by Michael Jackson while performing "Come Together" in his musical film Moonwalker (MJJ Productions, 1988) and more.

Named by Rolling Stone as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, multi–Grammy and Latin Grammy award winning rock legend Carlos Santana brings six of his finest guitars to the auction stage including his PRS McCarty single–cut sunburst highly flamed custom– made stage and in studio played guitar (estimate: $4,000–$6,000); a dark green Fender Stratocaster with a design of "The Joker" on the body (estimate: $800–$1,200); a custom–made PRS NF–3 Tobacco Burst Strat–style three–pickup guitar with two knobs, owned and played by Carlos Santana in 2015. Proceeds from the sale of this guitar will benefit the Milagro Foundation and Casa de Luz (estimate: $4,000–$6,000).

A series of signed guitars with proceeds of the sales going to the Recording Academy Musicares include a Taylor acoustic guitar model 110E signed by Ed Sheeran, a Taylor acoustic guitar model 210ce signed by Taylor Swift and a Gibson custom black guitar signed by Harry Styles (each estimate: $1,000–$2,000); a Squier Bullet Stratocaster by Fender guitar signed by Linkin Park (estimate: $4,000–$6,000) and a Gibson Les Paul 100 guitar signed by the late Tom Petty (estimate: $3,000–$5,000). Proceeds of a Gibson Les Paul Standard signed by Joe Walsh and a Gibson Les Paul Custom guitar signed by Angus Young of AC/DC (estimate: $4,000–$6,000) will go towards benefitting the Recording Academy GRAMMY Museum.

Other highlights include: Vinnie Vincent’s Jackson prototype shark fin guitar with hot pink finish used by Vincent on stage and in the studio with KISS (estimate: $20,000–$30,000); Keith Emerson’s Hammond C3 organ, used extensively on stage and in studio with Emerson, Lake & Palmer from the 1970s onward (estimate: $10,000–15,000); a Fender Custom Stratocaster owned and played by Jeff Beck as a spare guitar while on tour (estimate: $10,000–$20,000); Guns N’ Roses’ MTV Video Music Award Moonman for Best New Artist in a Video for Welcome to the Jungle in 1988 (estimate: $10,000–$15,000); a Joe Perry played and signed Danelectro ’64 guitar with cream body (estimate: $10,000–$20,000); a Hamer Korina Explorer guitar played by Brad Whitford in the Super Bowl XXXV Halftime Show with Aerosmith, ’N Sync, and Britney Spears in Tampa, Florida 2001 (estimate: $10,000–$12,000); an MTV Video Music Award Moonman for Best Direction in a Video for George Michael’s "Father Figure" (estimate: $15,000–$20,000); an original The Jimi Hendrix Experience vintage poster (1968) designed by D.W. Beeghly (estimate: $8,000–$10,000); a 2013 Gibson custom B.B. King Lucille guitar signed by the late bluesman (estimate: $4,000–$6,000); a Pacific Drums and Percussion FX series four–piece kit signed by Green Day (estimate: $6,000–$8,000); a black Gibson Les Paul Custom pyrotechnic guitar played by Kevin Jonas including in the film Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience (Walt Disney, 2009) (estimate: $2,000–$4,000); several items owned by Britney Spears from the collection of Reg Jones, her high school boyfriend, including photos taken at a Christmas Formal in 1996 and their prom, Spears’ demo cassette tapes ($800–$1,200), her Versace dress and Miu Miu heels (estimated from $600–$1,200), Spears’ handwritten lyrics from 1997–1998 to rough draft songs (estimate: $1,000–$2,000), handwritten notes and love letters by Spears to Jones and more; Whitney Houston’s jumpsuit worn on her I’m Your Baby Tonight World Tour performances in 1991 (estimate: $4,000–$6,000); a portable cassette stereo used by Lady Gaga in a photoshoot for Harper’s Bazaar ( March 2014) (estimate: $2,000–$3,000); Tupac Shakur’s handwritten poem to his pen pal and girlfriend Simi Chouhan (estimate: $2,000–$4,000) while incarcerated at Clinton Correctional Facility in New York in 1995 and his handwritten recipe for "2Pac’s BarBQ chicken"(estimate: $1,500–$3,000); several of Cher’s iconic costumes including a custom–made Bob Mackie ensemble worn while performing "Mocking Bird" with husband Sonny Bono on The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour (CBS, 1971– 1974) and on an episode of Cher (CBS, 1975–1976) (estimate: $2,000–$4,000); Jon Bon Jovi’s blue denim jeans with black leather lace–up front and black leather frayed portion below the knees to resemble boots worn extensively in 1987, on stage during the Slippery When Wet Tour and in photo shoots (estimate: $2,000–$4,000) and more.

"This year’s Music Icons event is the stuff that rock legends are made of," said Darren Julien, President/Chief Executive Officer of Julien’s Auctions. "Julien’s Auctions is proud to have assembled this auction of incomparable historic music treasures –from George Harrison’s first electric guitar to Bob Dylan’s Blowing in the Wind lyrics to show stopping items from Elvis, Nirvana, Michael Jackson, Prince and much more –that will surely be one for the record books."