harp/bob_dylans_blues_harp_1961.htm

   1 <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
   2 <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
   3 "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
   4 <html lang="en" xml:lang="en" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
   5
   6
   7 <head>
   8 <title>Bob Dylan's Blues Harp 1961</title>
   9 <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="../css/general.css" />
  10 <link href="../css/articles.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" />
  11 </head>
  12
  13 <body>
  14 <div id="content">  <p class="center">From the <a href="http://auctions.vh1.com/">VH1Auctions</a>:</p>
  15   <h1>Bob Dylan's Blues Harp, c. 1961 </h1>
  16   <p class="center first"><img src="563908-Newharp.jpg" alt="563908-Newharp.jpg (29330 bytes)" width="452" height="695" /></p>
  17   <p>Most music-related memorabilia dealers and
  18     collectors would agree that words and phrases like &quot;HISTORICALLY IMPORTANT,&quot;
  19 &quot;ICON-LEVEL&quot; AND &quot;ONE-OF-A-KIND&quot; have become so common as terms used
  20     in descriptive narrative, that the impact of their meaning has been watered down through
  21     overuse. I have been guilty myself of using them for &quot;impact&quot; rather than for
  22   the &quot;clarity of meaning.&quot;</p>
  23
  24 <p>That said, here is a piece of memorabilia that merits the use of these high-impact
  25   adjectives. Using words such as &quot;rare,&quot; or &quot;scarce,&quot; would be doing
  26   both the instrument and the reader's ability to understand the &quot;bottom-line
  27   value&quot; and nearly &quot;unparallelled desirability&quot; of this piece an injustice. </p>
  28
  29 <p><strong>The Old Hippie is very happy to be able to offer this piece through the VH1
  30 &quot;ROCK COLLECTORS&quot; AUCTION SITE</strong>. Good luck to all, but the enthusiast with
  31   the sharpest instincts/insights and the deepest pockets will be the person who can offer
  32   this baby a new home. <strong>Enough of the introduction already, let's get to the meat!!!</strong> </p>
  33
  34 <p><strong>This Hohner &quot;Blues Harp-in the key of D,&quot; is the actual instrument played
  35   by Bob Dylan during his very first paid and professional recording session as a
  36 &quot;studio musician&quot; when he accompanied Harry Belefonte on the recording of the
  37   single and title track of his album &quot;The Midnight Special,&quot;</strong> recorded in 1961
  38   and released by RCA in 1962. </p>
  39
  40 <p><strong>This harp has an unbreachable provenance</strong>, as it was a gift given to (a then 12
  41   year-old) Peter McKenzie in June of 1961. When Dylan first moved to New York City from
  42   Minneapolis, he had little money and no place to live. The McKenzies invited Dylan to live
  43   (rent-free) with them and their son Peter in a very small Greenwich Village apartment.
  44   While living with the McKenzies, Dylan wrote many songs (including &quot;Song to
  45   Woody&quot; and &quot;Talkin' New York Blues&quot;) that would soon be recorded and become
  46   the musical foundation of the singer/songwriter whose cultural impact and historical
  47   importance would be rivaled only by The Beatles. <strong>This harmonica is accompanied by a
  48   copy of the Belefonte album and a letter composed and signed by Peter McKenzie. We can
  49   offer further proof of authenticity to serious potential buyers who wish to contact us
  50   directly</strong>. </p>
  51
  52 <p>Now that you are aware of the remarkable history of this instrument, <strong>I hope you
  53   agree that it is worthy of recognition as a genuine &quot;Icon,&quot; and understand our
  54   need to &quot;separate it from the herd&quot; and stress that it is deserving of the
  55   adjectives mentioned,</strong>.</p>
  56
  57
  58 <p>The opening bid was $12,000</p>
  59 </div>
  60 </body>
  61 </html>