The 47.5 meter long (156 foot) Va Bene yacht, which the “Layla” singer and guitarist bought in 2005 and refurbished extensively three years later, is expected to fetch $7 million-$10 million at the Nov. 28 sale in Los Angeles, auction house GWS Auctions said on Thursday. (Reuters)
Clapton’s representatives declined to comment on the decision to place the yacht for auction at the “Artifacts of Hollywood and Music” event.
The yacht, which was built in 1992 and has accommodation for 14 guests in six staterooms, was previously listed for sale in 2018 on a marine brokers’ website when it carried an asking price of around $12 million.
It is being sold along with 300 other items including Elvis Presley memorabilia and an Eric Clapton prototype guitar dating from 1983 that was never manufactured. The guitar is expected to sell for $40,000 - $50,000, GWS Auctions said.
Recently Eric Clapton has shown support for Van Morrison's campaign to save live music.
Van Morrison kicked off the campaign earlier this month in somewhat controversial circumstances, confirming plans for three anti lockdown singles.
Alongside this, Van the Man completed three nights at London's Palladium, part of his efforts to ease the restrictions around live music.
Now Eric Clapton is on board. The legendary English blues musician offers his support, commenting:
“It is deeply upsetting to see how few gigs are going ahead because of the lockdown restrictions. There are many of us who support Van and his endeavours to save live music, he is an inspiration! We must stand up and be counted because we need to find a way out of this mess. The alternative is not worth thinking about. Live music might never recover.”