A remarkable collection of memorabilia from the early career of music icon Prince is heading to auction this month with Nate D. Sanders.
The dedicated online sale will offer a number of demo tapes, handwritten lyrics and musical instruments and from Prince’s formative years as a musician, along with a large number of stage-worn costumes, jewelry and even pieces of his personalized wedding china.
Amongst the standout lots is a unique demo cassette tape dating from 1978 featuring six tracks, comprising unreleased songs and early versions of later classics such as ‘Sometimes it Snows in April”. The tape, valued at $20,000+, comes directly from the collection of guitarist Dez Dickerson, the original guitarist with Prince’s band The Revolution, who writes:
"Prince originally gave me the cassette in late 1978 because he wanted me to listen to a record he had recorded on side A (a female-fronted funk band whose name I don’t remember now). Sometime during the next year or so, I used the A side to record some scratch bass and guitar parts for songs I was going to be recording… On side B, Prince had his work versions of 6 songs, which I left intact for, at that time, unknown reasons (obviously, we now know it preserved a piece of musical history)."
The sale’s top musical lot is a 1959 vintage Gibson L-series 6-string acoustic guitar, used by Prince to write songs and record demos during the 1970s, which is expected to sell for more than $60,000.
Another leading litem is a set of complete handwritten lyrics to Prince’s song ‘In Love’, which featured on his 1978 debut album ‘For You’. Dated circa 1977,the manuscript is valued at more than $7,500.
By far the most personal piece of Prince memorabilia up for sale is the diamond engagement ring and handwritten marriage proposal given to his first wife, dancer Mayte Garcia, who he married in 1996. Together, the five heart-shaped notes and the large diamnond rings are valued at $100,000+.
A large selection of Prince’s striking outfits is led by a three-piece electric blue ensemble, worn on the cover of his 1999 album Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic, estimated at $30,000+.
Further highlights include a red outfit worn on the sleeve art for his Newpower Soul album, numerous stage-worn outfits featuring his famous personal ‘love’ symbol, and even a diamond necklace worn during a meeting with Prince Charles.
Bidding on Nate D.Sanders’ sale of Prince memorabilia closes on Thursday March 17.
