Lennon lyrics fetch $1.2m at NYC auction
NEW YORK (AP) — John Lennon’s handwritten lyrics to the final song on the classic Beatles album, Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band were purchased by an American collector on Friday for $1.2 million.
The winning bid for A Day in the Life was placed by phone at Sotheby’s auction house, which declined to identify the collector further.
The price exceeded the pre-sale estimates of $500,000 and $800,000.
The double-sided sheet of paper features Lennon’s edits and corrections in his own hand — in black felt marker and blue ball point pen, with a few annotations in red ink.
Rolling Stone magazine listed A Day in the Life at No 26 in its compilation of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and Sgt Pepper won four Grammy awards in 1968.
The lyrics, which begin with “I read the news today, oh boy,” stirred controversy when the Beatles released the album in 1967. The song was banned by the BBC because it twice features the line, “I’d love to turn you on,” which was interpreted as supporting illegal drug use.