The “All-Beatles” Auction of the Century Featuring 300 Items of Never-Before-Seen Memorabilia

Handwritten lyrics of the Beatles’ iconic hit Hey Jude, John Lennon’s corduroy trousers, and a wooden stage that the British band performed on – these are just a few of the highlights that went under the hammer in New York on April 10.

Titled “All Beatles“, the sale by Julien’s Auctions marked the 50th anniversary of the Beatles’ dissolution. It featured some 300 items of never-before-seen memorabilia spanning the Fab Four’s 30-year career, including instruments, autographed items, rare vinyls, obscure licensed material and other collectible artefacts.

Among them was a wooden stage of the Liverpool venue where Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and former bandmate Stuart Sutcliffe performed as The Silver Beetles in May 1960. The stage was later removed from Liverpool’s Lathom Hall, where the Beatles performed on ten more occasions without Ringo Starr on drums until February 1961. This historical memorabilia is hitting the auction for the first time at Julien’s Auctions, where it is expected to sell for between US$10,000 and US$20,000 (320,000 THB and 640,000 THB).

“This stage of the Fab Four’s first performance is not only one of the most extraordinary artefacts ever to come to market from Beatles history, but all of music history. “We’re thrilled to offer this remarkable and unique piece that set the stage for the auspicious start of the greatest Rock ‘N’ Roll band of all time as well as these other incredible and significant items that celebrate the magic of Beatlemania,” Martin Nolan, Executive Director of Julien’s Auctions, said in a statement.

Also on offer is an original of McCartney’s handwritten lyrics to the Beatles’ classic Hey Jude which were used in a recording session at Trident Studios, London in July 1968.

This much sought-after item is estimated to fetch between US$160,000 and US$180,000 (5.1 million baht and 5.7 million baht) – an asking price far from the astounding US$1.2 million (38 million baht) achieved by John Lennon’s handwritten lyrics to Day in the Life in 2010 at Sotheby’s New York.

Other coveted items include a Spalding baseball signed by the Fab Four during their final US concert at the now-demolished Candlestick Park in San Francisco (estimated between US$80,000 and US$100,000, or 2.5 million baht and 3.2 million baht ); an annotated shooting page of the band’s 1967 video for Hello, Goodbye (estimated between US$70,000 and US$90,000, or 2.2 million baht and 2.9 million baht); as well as a pair of beige corduroy trousers worn by Lennon on the Magical Mystery Tour (estimated between US$20,000 and US$30,000, or 640,000 THB and 960,000 THB).

The “All Beatles” sale will take place on April 10 online and at the Hard Rock Cafe in New York City, where highlights will be on public view from April 7 until the auction day.

(Featured image: The Beatles/ Apple Corps Ltd.)