Kurt Cobain's guitar is worth $800,000?

Cobain's guitar is going up for auction and is speculated to be worth $800,000.

Kurt Cobain's Fender Jaguar auction, which you can learn more about here and here, is said to be worth $800K on the high end.

Ridiculous? Yes. Totally ridiculous. But somebody with a very large bank account who loved the '90s very deeply will buy this guitar. It won't be known until after the auction if this guitar actually hits the $800K price later in May, but it will be interesting to see what it sells for.

Cobain's Jag is a 1969 model in Lake Placid Blue with matching headcap, a competition stripe, and is a lefty. However, this is not the only guitar Kurt played. Fender does sell two new Artist series models which can obviously be bought for way less than $800,000.

Before getting into that, it should be noted that if you really, really want a Cobain style '69 Jag that looks exactly like his does, the Fender Custom Shop can build one for you. If you can't afford the giant price tag for the actual Cobain '69 Jag, just call Fender and have them make you one.

But let's say you can't afford the Fender Custom Shop price tag. What's left after that? This is where the Artist models come in that you can buy today.

First is the twin humbucker Fender Kurt Cobain Jaguar in lefty. A right-handed model is also there on that same page.

Second is the Fender Kurt Cobain Jag-Stang, also in lefty with a right handed version available as well.

Both guitars are suitable for high-distortion grunge style music and no guitar upgrades are required, meaning you don't need to do any pickup swaps or anything like that.

On a final note, you might see the Fender Vintera '60s Jaguar Modified HH in Sonic Blue (right handed only) and think yeah, maybe get that? Don't be so quick with that decision, because while a good guitar, it's not exactly a bargain. The Cobain Jag-Stang is lower in price than the Vintera, and the Cobain Jaguar is only $70 more.

In other words, if you're going to get a Kurt Cobain style guitar, specifically get a Kurt Cobain Artist model, because you're not really saving anything getting the non-Cobain model that has similar hardware.

Published 2022 Apr 28