Elvis Presley's 24K Gold Piano Set for Julien's Auctions

Julien's Auctions, auction house to the stars, has announced two extraordinary pieces of iconic rock n' roll memorabilia to be auctioned at the famed Beverly Hills auction house's November Icons & Idols: Rock n' Roll Auction event.

Anyone who grew up in the 1960s can likely remember The Ed Sullivan Show and the infamous line the host always used to describe that hour of primetime variety fun and entertainment - "A Really Big|Brave Show." But no one could have expected the onslaught of excitement and sheer pandemonium when on February 9, 1964, with 73 million viewers tuned in, The Beatles made their live American television debut. As the CBS cameras cut to the group after Ed Sullivan's introduction, viewers could not help but notice the iconic Beatles drop-T logo that adorned the skin affixed to Ringo Starr's drum kit. For most, it was the first thing they saw during the live performance from the long-haired group from Liverpool, England. With the group's hit song "I Want To Hold Your Hand" riding high atop the American charts, the Beatles kicked off the show with "All My Loving" which would become an indelible pop culture moment in music history. It was the image of the famous logo drum head that identified The Beatles and instantly created an image on screen that one never forgot.

On November 7, 2015, the most famous of the seven known Beatles drop-T logo drum heads - the Ed Sullivan drum head - will be auctioned by Julien's Auctions for only the second time in its 51 year history, providing the most discerning of Beatles fans the rare opportunity to own one of the most important and iconic pieces of rock history ever offered for public sale.

This remarkable drum head was hand-painted in January 1964 by London sign painter Edwin Stokes specifically for use during The Beatles' upcoming first visit to the United States. Stokes - who had painted the Beatles' first drop-T logo drum head the previous summer and who, in fact, would paint five of the seven drop-T heads - worked his magic. The completed skin was delivered to the office of Beatles manager Brian Epstein a week ahead of the group's February 7th departure for America. In order to travel light on their maiden trip to the States, John, Paul and George only packed their guitars while Ringo made the trip with no more than his snare drum, cymbals and this drum head. Two days later, just prior to the February 9th afternoon taping of the third Ed Sullivan Show, the head was fitted onto a new kit purchased at Manny's Music Shop in Manhattan. The drum head was used for the duration of the Beatles' first American visit, not only for the three Ed Sullivan appearances, but also their first American concert at the Washington Coliseum and two shows at New York City's famed Carnegie Hall. Upon the group's return to England, the drum head was retired to Abbey Road Studios and not publicly seen again until its first sale at auction in 1984.

Aside from its status as the most celebrated of the seven drop-T logo drum skins, the Ed Sullivan Show head (also known as drum head #2) is the only one that was ever featured on a Beatles album jacket. It appeared on the front covers of the Capitol LPs The Beatles' Second Album and Something New as well as on the interior gatefolds of Capitol's The Beatles' Story and Parlophone's Beatles For Sale.

With most Beatles owned and used instruments still in the possession of the individual Beatles or their estates, very few ever make their way into private hands. For the two weeks the Beatles were in America in February 1964, it was at the epicenter of every performance and, to this day, is a certifiable cultural and emotional touchstone for a generation.

Rock n' roll history was made by yet another artist who would also go on to change the industry forever - Elvis Presley. When Elvis appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, he was watched by 83% of the nationwide viewing audience and was paid the highest fee ever to appear on the network variety program. But beyond that show's performance of "Don't Be Cruel" and the generation of viewers who danced and screamed as if they had never seen anyone like it before, Elvis Presley went on to become a rock n' roll icon, the King of Rock and to millions of fans a hip twisting, guitar playing amazing entertainer who made women swoon and men desire to be him.

Elvis Presley 24K Gold Leaf Grand PianoLong after that iconic appearance on the Sullivan show and since Elvis Presley's untimely death in 1977, Graceland has proven to be a mecca of sorts for Elvis Presley fans.

Fans and collectors will now have the opportunity to bid on the most important piano in Elvis Presley history, his personal 24K Gold Leaf Grand Piano.

The Elvis Presley 24K Gold Lead Grand Piano was played by Elvis Presley while in the music room of his Graceland home in Memphis, Tennessee. The piano's original finish was walnut and was once housed in the Dixon Myers Auditorium, now the Cook Convention Center in Memphis. Presley purchased the piano for his mother in 1955 when the city sold it and had it moved to his new home on Audobon Street when it would not fit into their apartment. The piano was later delivered to Graceland and kept in the music room where an Organo system was installed so that Presley could have back up music while he played it. The piano was placed into storage after Presley's mother's death until Priscilla Presley decided to adorn the piano in 24K gold-leaf finish as a gift for the couple's first wedding anniversary. The piano was then placed back into the music room at Graceland.

The piano is currently on exhibition at The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee and will be accompanied by a signed letter from C.B. Coltharp who has played a part in the servicing, tuning and moving of the piano and a signed letter from Thomas A. Hames from Hames and Sons Piano Craftsman who tuned and installed new hammers and dampers in the piano. It will also be accompanied by numerous bills of sale and images of the piano at Graceland. It will be sold with a matching piano bench (Estimate: $500,000-$700,000).

Registering to Bid
Registration is required to bid in this live auction and can be done in person at the exhibition and auction, or online before the sale at the JuliensAuctions.com Registration page to bid by phone, proxy or in person, or online at JuliensLive.com/signup/ to bid live online, or by calling (310) 836-1818.

Placing Bids
There are five ways to bid in this sale:

1. Bid through Julien's Auctions Online Live in Real Time at JuliensLive.com.
2. Place bids in the room by attending the auction.
3. Bid over the telephone through an auction house representative, who sits in the room and conveys the bid to the auctioneer.
4. Enter Absentee bids. Absentee bid forms are printed in the back of each catalogue, and are also available by calling Julien's Auctions at (310) 836-1818 or online at our Register to Bid page.
5. Download the Julien's Auctions app in the iTunes store to bid in real time over your mobile phone.

About Julien's Auctions
With expertise specializing in entertainment memorabilia, Julien's Auctions has quickly established itself as the premier auction house in high profile celebrity sports and entertainment auctions. Julien's Auctions presents exciting, professionally managed and extremely successful auctions with full color high quality auction catalogues unlike any other auction company. Previous auctions include the collections of Cher, Michael Jackson, U2, Barbara Streisand, the estate of Marilyn Monroe, Bob Hope, Les Paul and many more. Official website is www.juliensauctions.com.

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