Giant Cobain-inspired guitar marks Seattle's new Hard Rock Cafe

In Miami 1993 at the Bayfront Amphitheater Kurt pointed out to a green giant Stratocaster on top of the Hard Rock Cafe and said "Hey after the show let's all go over there and throw rocks at that stupid fucking neon rock and roll guitar over there".

Now the Hard Rock has mounted a giant guitar in Seattle. It's modeled after his Competition Mustang.

Full article here.

Fernandes Stratocaster

Fernandes Stratocaster

Smashed by Dave Grohl at the 1992 Reading Festival. Currently owned by The Hard Rock Cafe. Over the years this guitar has made it's rounds across different Hard Rock Cafes across the globe. It was also lent to be displayed at the Reading Museum during the 2004 Reading Festival. At one point the frame and placement within the frame were changed. The photo above is it's former frame. I personally like this old frame arrangement better because you can see ghostly remains of the guitar's structure. See links below to see it in it's current frame.

The smashed Fernandes Stratocaster has been on display at the Hard Rock in Orlando, FL, London, UK, and as of 2007 Boston, MA.

Related Links

1. Article on the 04 Reading Festival Exhibit

2. Photo of Dave Grohl throwing guitar @ 92 Reading Festival

3. Video of Dave Grohl smashing guitar (@ 9:36)

4. Photo of Fernandes Strat in it's new case #1

5. Photo of Fernandes Strat in it's new case #2

6. Article on Hard Rock Cafe Boston mentioning this guitar

Sources

BBC

Hard Rock Cafe

Two Mustangs @ Hard Rock - NOT KURTS

Two Lake Placid Blue (LPB) Competition Mustangs

Melbourne, Australia - Hard Rock Cafe

Oslo, Norway - Hard Rock Cafe

These are not the more well-known Smells Like Teen Spirit (SLTS) video Mustang but sure look similar. Furthermore the Oslo HR Mustang is right handed and autographed. Kurt was left handed and did not autograph his own guitars (at least not with his own name).

Perhaps these were fan submitted guitars or another Courtney Love - Hard Rock transaction.

Earnie Bailey, the most qualified expert on Nirvana's gear, has confirmed that neither of these guitars were ever played or owned by Kurt.

Kurt's REAL SLTS Competition Mustang is owned by a private owner and it is currently on loan to the Seattle Experience Music Project. My guess is that it's owned by a friend of the Cobain family (Mark Arm, King Buzzo, someone like that).

From kurtsequipment.com;

"The Australian Hard Rock Cafe claims they have this guitar, but Earnie Bailey says he saw a photo of the guitar they had and it was right-handed. "The photo said that it had come from Courtney. Either she or Eric had a right-handed one exactly like Kurt's, I'm not sure whose it was, but this is mostly likely that guitar." He goes on to say, "The Hard Rock Cafe does not own Kurt's competition blue Mustang. I recently worked on the real one and its present owner allowed me to photograph it in detail. Courtney gave it to him a month after Kurt's death, and it is eaxctly as I remember it, ever nick, ding, and solder joint".

I'd really like to get a copy of the photographs Earnie is talking about!

- UPDATE - GOT EM!!

I'm working on a post regarding Courtney Love's transactions with the Hard Rock. It appears that she sold the Hard Rock curators a boat load of guitars and possessions of both Hole and Nirvana. Some legit and some not. Any leads appreciated. Thanks !

Special thanks to Mike J for the Melbourne HR photo above.

Epiphone ET270

There is an Epiphone ET270 on display at a Hard Rock.

It probably wasn't Kurt's but it does have have his autograph on the body. Kurt used an ET270 in the Sub Pop era In Bloom video and on the recording of Bleach. Also used for shows in the 1989 and 1990.

Update:

Kurt smashed his ET-270 at the Pyramid Club in New York.

Photographs depicting the event can be found here.

Thanks you Brian from livenirvana.com for the clarification.

Source

http://www.kurtsequipment.com/

Bass Smashed In SMLTS Video

This is the bass that Kurt smashed at the end of the Smells Like Teen Spirit video. It's been on display at the Hard Rock in New York. However when I went to go see it I couldn't find it. I asked the staff at the Hard Rock and they said they didn't know anything about it. According to a member of livenirvana.com it was indeed on display as of December 2008.

Can someone get a better screen grab of the video? Thanks!

Not really Kurt's Jazzmaster

Courtney Love sold off some of Kurt's belongings to the Hard Rock.

Supposedly this was Kurt Cobain's Jazzmaster, but according to Ernie Bailey Kurt never owned a Jazzmaster.

From kurtsquiptment.com

"The Hard Rock Cafe's collection of guitars mistakenly claims Kurt's "trademark" Fender Jazzmaster which is autographed. Kurt has told Earnie Bailey on several occasions that he never used a Jazzmaster. Earnie chased down a lefty Jazzmaster for Kurt once but he and Krist decided it was too expensive, as it was going to be purchased as a surprise."

Source; Kerrang and kurtsequiptment.com

No Name Guitar and Mustang

Guitar #1 - No name

Apparently the Hard Rock Cafe found it "appropriate" to alter Kurt's writing on one of his guitars. Rather disturbing that they would do that. Regardless out of the two on display here, this one is the most likely to have belonged to Kurt. Besides Kurt's graffiti on the guitar, the modifications done on the guitar are typically of Cobain's. The tremolo was replaced with a fixed bridge, and the arrangement of the strings has been flipped to accommodate a left handed player.

From article;

"Cobain in the wake of the Gulf War had written out an obscenity on the guitar: "Fuck Our Troops." Any Nirvana fan familiar with Cobain's journals, his music, and the culture he came out of would not be surprised by what he wrote. But obviously with a nation at war this is not an appropriate way to greet guests at a casino. And the Hard Rock rulers are business guys more than music fans. The guitar now reads "Our Troops" with the offending word permanently removed."

Guitar #2 right handed Fender Competition Mustang

I've never seen any photos of Kurt playing this. Perhaps this is another Courtney Love - Hard Rock scam (see post about Jazzmaster @ HR) It could also simply be on display not as one of Kurt's guitars, but an autographed guitar. The guitar is signed by all members of the band and it has a Nirvana backstage pass adhered to the body.

Anyone have any photographs of Kurt playing either of these guitars?

Full article here.

Video clip of the guitar on display in Las Vegas here.

Known locations of display; Las Vegas (1990s) and Seattle (2000s).