Lita Ford Set To Auction Historic Collection of Guitars and Stage Worn Clothing

Lita Ford

You can call her the Queen of Noise, you can call her the Queen of Metal. Heck, she will even refer to herself as ‘The Bitch with the Hot Guitar’. But whatever the name, Lita Ford is one of the all-time premier female rock stars!

With a career that started 40 years ago as the lead guitarist for The Runaways, Lita Ford has maintained herself on the basis of a strong recording catalog, relentless touring and a loyal, world-wide fan base. She is easily one of the hardest working female rockers in the business and there is no break in sight anytime soon.

To celebrate those four decades of being a highly visible musician, Lita is opening her cramped closets to share a great selection of treasures with her fans. Partnering with Backstage Auctions, she has personally put together nearly 100 lots that include guitars, road cases and laminated backstage passes, all the way to stage worn clothing and even a selection of historic wear from her years with The Runaways.

The Runaways 70s black cat suit

Among the highlights are her famous The Runaways black cat suit that dates back to 1976. Also from those ‘Cherry Bomb’ days is an impressive selection of stage worn t-shirts, as well as several great pieces from the legendary 1977 Japan Tour, including an exceptionally rare tour jacket and promoter shirt.

From the 1980s all the way through current day, Lita has put together a jaw-dropping array of recognizable and iconic clothing items that were worn in videos, album covers, promotional events and on stage. From dresses, jackets, pants, tops and shirts, all the way to shoes, boots, belts, bracelets and bras! It would be unfair to highlight just one or two of them, but the ‘Wicked Wonderland’ wedding dress is as intimidating as it is visually stunning.

And if guitars are your thing – there are no less than 10 great models to pick and choose from, including Lita’s famous red B.C. Rich. Only two of these were ever made – and Lita is breaking up the twins exclusively for this event! Equally great are her famous Alvarez guitars from the early 1990s or her ‘Vixens’ from more recent years. The auction also features several road cases, a phenomenal amp, and a fine selection of Lita’s own laminated ‘Artist’ backstage passes.

Lita Ford's famous red B.C. Rich guitar

All items have been personally signed by Lita and will also include a separately signed Certificate of Authenticity. This is a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ opportunity to own not only a personal item from the Queen of Noise, but a piece that has played a role in music history!

The Rock Gods & Metal Monsters Auction will be live from June 20th – 28th with a special VIP Preview that starts June 13th. If you are not registered for your All Access Auction Pass, rock on over and sign up today – it takes just a minute and there is no fee to sign up.
Link: All Access Registration

Follow Backstage Auctions on Twitter and Facebook for auction highlights before, during and after the event. 

#RGMM2015

CD Review: Lita Ford – The Bitch is Back Live

Lita Ford – The Bitch is Back Live

Steamhammer/SPV

All Access Review: B+

Lita Ford - The Bitch is Back ... Live 2013

Polite society may not approve of today's liberal usage of the word “bitch.” Lita Ford has lived her life in a different kind of world, one where sticks and stones are occasionally used to break bones, but names couldn't ever hurt her.

On her last studio record, Ford wrote of coming to the realization that she'd been living like a runaway her whole life. And, of course, the title, Living like a Runaway, had a lot to do with the hard-luck story of the teenage punk rock girl group The Runaways she was a part of in the 1970s, but there's more to it than that.

Away from the stage, Ford has endured great tumult in her personal life, especially in recent years. Getting through it requires the kind of resilience one gets from being as independent or brave enough to escape a troubled home. In other words, being a bitch is sometimes necessary for one's survival. Making 2012’s intensely personal Living like a Runaway was not only therapeutic for Ford, as she opened up about a lot of stuff, but it also served notice that those who'd written her off as a relic of the ‘80s were dead wrong. The bitch was back, having penned and recorded some of the most affecting and edgy rock ‘n’ roll of her career, and the crowd who welcomed her to the Canyon Club in Agoura Hills, Calif., in early October of 2012 was glad she hadn't burned out or faded away just yet.

How appropriate then that she should kick off her latest concert album, The Bitch is Back Live, with the defiant Elton John song of the same name. A ballsy rocker dripping with attitude, Ford's version is unrepentant and has a thick skin, not veering far from the raucous spirit of the original, even if the choruses are delivered in a surprisingly tame and reserved voice. She must have been saving her strength.

The rest of The Bitch is Back Live holds nothing back. "Hungry," off 1990's Stiletto LP, sounds even more lewd and lascivious than it did back then, as Ford and her band, featuring Mitch Perry on guitar, Bobby Rock on drums and Marty O'Brien on bass, make its hot grooves perspire and its sinful melody slither and slide in the most seductive manner possible. Sex is not the only thing on Ford’s mind, however. In bringing out the heavy artillery of "Devil in My Head," "Relentless" and "Hate" off Living like a Runaway, Ford and company couch darker, more disturbing lyrical themes of temptation and violence in meaty, mauling riff grinds that plow these evils under as if they were sites of some horrific tragedy.

Still, this is a party, with an undeniably communal vibe, and Ford raises hell on "Kiss Me Deadly," hitting all of its confetti-strewn, sugary pop notes to close out the night. Ford expresses her love for the "roaring guitars" of "Hungry" and the dueling guitar "dive-bombs" of the sinister and melodic “Back to the Cave,” before begging all in attendance to check out the powerful words to “Hate.” And when Ford gets to “Can’t Catch Me,” the little ball of thrash-metal fury she wrote with Motorhead hellion Lemmy Kilmister while on a bender, nobody’s the least bit surprised that its ramshackle rumblings and blitzkrieg riffage has shaken the Canyon Club’s foundations.

As intimate as live recordings get, with plenty of audience reaction captured in pristine clarity, The Bitch is Back Live sees Ford playing with the reckless swagger and raw energy of a teenager who doesn't know what life's about yet. Trading well-executed licks with Perry, Ford causes her guitar to scream its orgasms, but when she sings, she's part little girl lost in the world and part worldly madame who's seen it all and then some. Her voice can be soft and alluring when it has to be, but when she wants it to scratch and claw like a wildcat, it's certainly capable of turning feral or moody, as it does in the hit “Close My Eyes Forever,” which loses some of its Gothic romance here while gaining more emotional heft.

Some of Ford’s songs have always had parts that flat-lined, and in the harsh glare of a live performance, these flaws are magnified. The flaccid “run baby, run” chorus of the song “Living like a Runaway” is a prime example, but Ford is also capable of exhibiting toughness and heart in songwriting that is always accessible and easy to relate to, just like that of her old partner Joan Jett. Ford, though, is metal’s queen, and as such, she demands a sound that’s thick and crushing, but also tuneful. She’s ready to take back her throne. http://www.spv.de/

-         –  Peter Lindblad