Hard Rock International to refurbish London Vault

Hard Rock International today announced the renovation of its legendary London Vault, filled with rare pieces of music memorabilia. From 31 March, more pieces from music history will be installed in the Hard Rock Vault, becoming permanent additions to Hard Rock’s world-famous memorabilia collection.

Joining the incredible array of memorabilia will be exciting new items from Eric Clapton and The Police – both headlining Hard Rock Calling on 28 and 29 June – the UK leg of Hard Rock’s Ambassadors of Rock Tour.

New additions to the Hard Rock Vault include Sting’s Fender Precision Bass, used in the 2001 video for the hit song “After The Rain Has Fallen,” and Eric Clapton’s silver suit worn on the cover of Cream’s final original album Goodbye Cream from 1969. Clapton’s suit will join his Red Fender Lead II guitar, which was the very first piece of memorabilia donated to Hard Rock Cafe back in 1971!

New pieces of memorabilia on display in the Hard Rock Vault include; the costume and guitar worn and used by Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash in the video for ”November Rain”; Madonna’s bustier from her 1990 Blonde Ambition tour plus one of her old credit cards; the first-ever guitar owned by Sex Pistols’ guitarist Glen Matlock – also used to come up with the riffs for the huge punk anthem “Anarchy In The UK”; a western-style shirt worn by the inimitable Keith Moon of The Who from the 1970s; and lastly, the harpsichord used by The Beatles to record “All You Need Is Love” and “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” from the 1967 album Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

The Hard Rock Vault, which opened in 2001, is located beneath Hard Rock Cafe London’s Rock Shop, formerly a Coutts Bank, which housed the Queen’s treasury, and now contains some of the most valuable pieces of music memorabilia in the world – from Jimi Hendrix’s Flying V to John Lennon’s handwritten lyrics for “Instant Karma.” In the past 18 months, artists and musicians, including Brian May, Aerosmith, Natasha Bedingfield and The Who, have all taken tours of the Hard Rock Vault.

More than 70,000 items can be found in the global archives of Hard Rock International which are displayed at Hard Rock locations throughout the world. With a vast and unrivalled collection of memorabilia, Hard Rock Cafe London alone owns such pieces as Little Richard’s boots, Freddie Mercury’s throne and guitars from Keith Richards, Bob Dylan, The Who and Aerosmith, to name a few. Visitors to the London cafe can dine amongst the items on display or visit the Hard Rock Vault which is open for free daily tours.

The Hard Rock Vault’s facelift is another step in the road to Hard Rock Calling – the two-day music event in London’s Hyde Park, which takes place 28 & 29 June and will be headlined by Eric Clapton and The Police.

Various launch events will take place from 31 March to celebrate the re-launch of the Hard Rock Vault. For more information, visit Hardrock.com.