McCartney Times

On Dec. 10, Sotheby’s will bring to the auction block some of the most historically important artifacts of rock history. The New York auction will include lyric manuscripts, instruments, photographs, posters and personal items that belonged to John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Lou Reed and other rock icons. The memorabilia will be on exhibit as Rock and Roll Anthology: From Folk to Fury in New York, through Dec. 9. Richard Austin, head of Sotheby’s Books and Manuscripts department, tells us some of the stories behind these one-of-a-kind collectibles.What are a few of the items that rock fans will be most excited to see?I think the Led Zeppelin manuscript of the lyrics for “Kashmir” is really exciting. There’s just nothing of Led Zeppelin that’s out there of importance that’s available. There are a lot of Velvet Underground manuscripts, including the manuscript for an early version of “Heroin,” “Venus in Furs” and “Black Angel’s Death Song.” They were probably the most influential underground rock band of all time. And there’s almost nothing that survives from the early days of the Velvet Underground. And anybody that knows about Lou Reed’s life – after that it’s hard to imagine anything surviving the way that he was living.

Source: An Insider’s Guide to Sotheby’s ‘Rock and Roll Anthology’ Auction: Exclusive Interview