Christie's also auctioned off a famous racehorse's saddle and the lyrics sheet from a beloved song.

These famous guitar riffs built up blues rock as a genre during its formative years, and they still inspire guitarists today.

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Quentin Singer is music journalist who covers rock and heavy music. Guitar music is a ubiquitous feature of popular music, ...

There's strength in numbers — if you need proof, just look at our picks for the top five '80s hard rock guitar duos. But not every hard rock band from the '80s wanted or needed a singular guitar hero.