
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
The mixing board formerly housed at the legendary Abbey Road Studios in London and used to make records for artists as diverse as Pink Floyd, Kate Bush, and three out of four Beatles was sold at auction on Monday for $1.8 million, Rolling Stone reported yesterday.
The sale—part of a larger collaborative event at auction house Bonhams titled “TCM Presents… Rock and Roll Through the Lense”—far surpassed the house’s initial estimate of $700,000. The buyer is unknown.
The desk was used at the studios between 1973 and 1981 and in addition to the aforementioned artists was also deployed on Faith, the third album by British band The Cure. In addition to the console, the lucky buyer will also receive letters of provenance, a documented history of the board, instructions, and even a copy of Dark Side of the Moon, which was recorded using the machine.
The Bonhams rock auction also had up for sale a pair of platform shoes worn by Cher in the 1970s. These two-tone, rhinestone-studded beauties fetched a mere $562, which is a long ways from $1.8 million and a true bargain.