Frank Zappa’s Baby Snakes SG is heading to auction. The heavily modified electric guitar, which was one of the musician’s most beloved axes, is expected to fetch around $500,000.
Heritage Auctions is including the guitar in a lot that includes Pattie, an acoustic guitar formerly owned by both George Harrison and Eric Clapton. The guitar's nickname refers to Pattie Boyd, the model/photographer whom both musicians married and who was the inspiration for both the Beatles' "Something" and Derek and the Dominos' "Layla."
Although it appears to be a Gibson SG, Zappa's guitar is a knock-off created by Phoenix luthier Bart Nagel, who was just 19 and studying at Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery at the time he built it.
Nagel replaced the neck with a three-piece mahogany neck he made himself that added an extra fret, bringing the total to 23. He also bestowed its ebony fingerboard with intricate silver inlays. But it was its body that received the greatest modification, including gorgeous rosewood and ebony body detailing.
He presented it to Zappa in 1974, during a performance in Phoenix, and the guitarists snapped it up for $500.
The modifications didn’t end there. Additional changes were implemented by Rex Bogue, who had resurrected Jimi Hendrix’s charred Miami Pop Festival Stratocaster after Zappa secured from Hendrix’s roadie in 1968.
Bouge installed a custom onboard preamp that delivered an 18dB boost and included phase-switching and tone-shaping circuitry, all of which was controlled by the numerous additional knobs and switches found on the guitar's body.
Zappa used the guitar for numerous performances, including a 1976 appearance on the syndicated Mike Douglas Show. A year later, the guitar was featured in his Halloween 77 show at the NYC Palladium, and it appeared later in his Baby Snakes film, from which it got its nickname.
“The ‘Baby Snakes’ SG isn’t just a collectible,” says Heritage Auction's Aaron Piscopo. “It’s a playable piece of Zappa’s legacy, ready to inspire its next owner with the same innovative spirit.”
The auction house calls the guitar “a holy grail for Zappa fanatics and guitar nerds.” It has remained in good condition over the years and would be “ideal in the hands of a musician ambitious enough to carry on Zappa’s legacy of sonic exploration.”
Bidding at the December 5 auction is set to start at $300,000, but the guitar's prestige and condition lead Heritage to believe it will likely sell for a figure closer to half a million dollars.
Such a figure would make it by far the most expensive sale of anything from the Zappa vault, surpassing the Captain Beefheart original artwork that sold for $32,500 in 2023, far in excess of its $500-700 estimate.
Zappa's most unusual pieces of gear have remained in his family since his death in 1993. They include his futuristic $300,00 live rig, his Shut Up ’n Play Yer Guitar Les Paul Custom, and the custom Performance Strat that featured on his last tour in 1988.
The auction will take place on December 5. Head to Heritage Auctions for more.
In related stories, Frank Zappa saw one of his songs credited to John Lennon and Yoko Ono when it appeared on their album Some Time in New York City. And Eric Clapton has recalled his jam with Zappa, saying it “fucked me up completely.”
