Celebrity provenance can add immeasurably to the value of a collector object, such as actor Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona wristwatch that sold at auction last week for a stunning $17.6 million, or any car or motorcycle ever owned by Steve McQueen.
Rock star Gregg Allman, the keyboardist, singer and songwriter for The Allman Brothers, was well-known as a rabid motorcycle enthusiast, despite his older brother and bandmate Duane having been killed while riding one in the 1970s. Another band member was killed on a motorcycle a year later.
Gregg Allman’s collection was made up primarily of custom Harley-Davidsons, and when he died in May at 69, memorials that sprouted up nationwide were punctuated by the distinctive rumble of Harley engines.
One of the motorcycles once owned by Allman, a custom-painted 2012 Harley-Davidson Screaming Eagle soft tail, will be offered November 11 during Emerald Coast Classic Car Auction’s annual sale in Panama Beach, Florida.
“It’s beautiful,” said Richard Ford, an auction house official. “He (the current owner) has the title and it has Gregg’s name on the front. I checked the VIN on the bike, and it’s all there.”
Allman, who was a Savannah, Georgia, resident, bought the bike from a Jacksonville, Florida, Harley dealership. The current owner bought the custom-painted motorcycle last year, but it apparently has lost some of its luster since the rocker’s death.
“He doesn’t want it anymore now that Gregg’s passed away,” Ford said. “He thinks it’s a good time to try to move it.”
Will the rock star provenance boost the Harley’s value? We will see. If nothing else, it will bring more attention to the motorcycle and the Emerald Coast auction. Celebrity connections tend to do that.
For more information about the Florida auction, visit the Emerald Coast website.
Never could get over the Harley engine idle sound of "po-ta-to po-ta-to-po-ta-to-po-ta-to-po-ta-to-po-ta-to-to infinity.
Now with fuel injection it’s a Harley engine on speed or meth and it’s fast paced. Also…if I were to own one…I’d want a model that leaks a lot of oil…because that’s the American quality that Harley still preaches.
The mesmerizing effect it has on people still amazes me……but low achievers wanting something akin to an Elvis on velvet poster doesn’t surprise anyone.
Nothing special about this harley other than it was owned by Greg Allman. I have the same one. Everything shown about the bike is factory. You can find them for sale ranging from 12k to 16k.
I own the same HD 2012 FLSTSSE as well. I love the bike, it’s my 3rd HD going back to an ‘85 FXWG. For what it’s worth, maybe great minds think alike. Unlike the bike, Gregg Allman was one of a kind. RIP Gregg Allman.
The 2012 FLSTSE 110" bike is from HD CVO (Custom Vehicle Operations) collection making it a legitimate custom HD. At $30K new – there wasn’t much more – if anything – HD was selling to make their bikes an more custom. So I suppose Gregg Allman was much like the bike – Gregg himself was certainly custom. A genuine rock legend (he didn’t mind being referred to) who also had excellent taste in motorcycles.