U2’s The Edge has announced the Icons of Music Auction to benefit Music Rising–the post-Hurricanes Katrina and Rita initiative to help gulf coast musicians–is scheduled for Saturday, April 21st at the Hard Rock Cafe New York in Times Square at 5:00 pm.

The auction, live and online, will by hosted by Julien’s Auctions (www.juliensauctions.com), offering about 200 pieces of music memorabilia, including The Edge’s own 1975 Cream Gibson Les Paul (est. value: $60,000-$80,000. “I wanted that Steve Jones ‘Never Mind the Bollocks’ sound, so I got the same guitar right down to the color,” he said. “I never could get that sound, but I found a bunch of songs in this instrument, and have used it extensively ever since–on tour and in the studio.”

Other items will include John Lennon-worn sunglasses (est. $4,000-$6,000), a Janis Joplin seven-page handwritten love letter to her boyfriend (est. $1,000-$2,000), a Jimi Hendrix guitar (est. $60,000-$80,000), Bruce Springsteen hand-written lyrics (est. $2,000-$4,000), Elvis Presley’s early recording contract (est. $3,000-$5,000) Kurt Cobain’s MTV Video Music Award for Nirvana (est. $4,000-$6,000), a Paul McCartney hand-painted Epiphone Texan Guitar (est. $6,000-$8,000), a President Bill Clinton-signed saxophone personalized to winning bidder (est. $2,000-$4000) and a Rolling Stones signed Gibson Les Paul Music Rising Guitar (est. $20,000-$30,000).

U2 items donated by band members include a pair of Emporia Armani (Project Red) concert-worn sunglasses (est. $2,000-$4,000) donated by Bono, a Tom Tom drum (est. $8,000-$10,000) donated by Larry Mullen, and a concert and studio-played bass guitar (est. $20,000-$30,000) donated by Adam Clayton.

Other memorabilia from Madonna, Ray Charles, KISS, James Brown, Coldplay, Led Zeppelin, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, The Beatles, Jim Morrison, Cher, The Grateful Dead and much more will also be up for auction.

Catalogs will be available for sale and can be purchased directly from the Julien’s Auctions website. A limited number of tickets will be sold to the Music Rising auction event in New York at Hard Rock Times Square. Details of the ticket sales will be announced by March 30th on various websites, including Musicrising.org, U2.com, Gibsonfoundation.org, Gibson.com, Juliensauctions.com and Hardrock.com. In addition to the live auction event, Grammy winner Aaron Neville will perform as a tribute to his native New Orleans. The performance will follow the auction.

Highlights from the Icons of Music auction will be previewed in special exhibits in the following cities:

Los Angeles: (March 27-29 - The Beverly Hilton)

Dublin, Ireland: (April 3-6 - The Clarence Hotel)

London: (April 11-13 - The Hard Rock Cafe)

New York: (April 16-20 - The Hard Rock Café)

Registration is required to bid in this auction and can be done in person at any one of the exhibitions or by visiting www.juliensauctions.com any time before the sale, or by calling (310) 816-1818.

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