A 2008 Yamaha LLX6 DN (Dave Navarro signature model) acoustic-electric guitar (serial #00H080147), previously owned and used by Dave Navarro and subsequently owned by Todd Newman — writer, director, and Navarro’s close friend and collaborator, known for directing Mourning Son (2015). Hand-stenciled with Navarro’s “LifeAfterDeath” street art symbol and signed by both Navarro and his longtime Jane’s Addiction guitar technician Dan Cleary. Includes original case.
Video Documentation
Both videos feature Navarro performing “Jane Says” on the Yamaha LLX6 DN model. Specific date(s) on which this particular instrument was played live are not documented.
Historical Context
Dave Navarro is the guitarist of Jane’s Addiction, one of the most influential alternative rock bands of the late 1980s and early 1990s, known for albums including Nothing’s Shocking (1988) and Ritual de lo Habitual (1990). He is also a visual artist operating under the moniker “LifeAfterDeath,” producing and exhibiting street art and stencil-based work drawing on personal themes of mortality and survival.
“Jane Says” — the acoustic-based track from Nothing’s Shocking — is among Jane’s Addiction’s most enduring songs and a live set staple. Navarro typically performs the song on an acoustic guitar, and the Yamaha LLX6 DN was his signature model for this purpose. The LLX6 DN was produced as part of Yamaha’s artist signature series and is now discontinued and difficult to source.
Dan Cleary is Navarro’s longtime guitar technician for Jane’s Addiction, with an extended history managing Navarro’s instrument inventory across the band’s touring activity. Todd Newman is a writer, director, and Navarro’s close friend and collaborator, known for directing Mourning Son (2015), the documentary chronicling Navarro’s personal history following his mother’s murder.
The guitar was confirmed as Navarro’s own instrument and he confirmed that he would play it at the home of his close collaborator and friend Todd Newman, who owned it after Navarro. The subsequent owner, a Jane’s fan, confirmed the attribution directly with Navarro in person and separately with Cleary via Instagram.
Yamaha’s LL series serial number system for instruments of this era decodes #00H080147 to August 2008 — the letter H corresponding to the year 2008 in Yamaha’s documented letter-to-year mapping, with “08” indicating August, and the trailing digits (0147) representing the sequential production number for that month. The LLX6 DN was produced from approximately 2005 to 2008/2009; this example is from the final year of the model’s main production run, manufactured in Guangzhou, China by Yamaha’s Chinese production facility — the correct origin for this series, confirmed by the interior label.
Stage & Performance Use
The LLX6 DN was Navarro’s dedicated acoustic instrument for live performances of “Jane Says.” The videos above document Navarro using this model for the song across two separate 2010 performance contexts. Specific performance dates for this individual instrument are not confirmed.
Specifications
· Manufacturer: Yamaha (Made in China / Guangzhou Yamaha)
· Model: LLX6 DN (Dave Navarro Signature)
· Serial: 00H080147 — manufactured August 2008
· Body: Gloss white with black binding; LL-body dreadnought single-cutaway acoustic-electric; solid Engelmann spruce top; laminated back and sides; black pickguard and rosette
· Headstock: Black overlay with white Yamaha logo; custom Navarro unicorn/dragon emblem — Navarro’s signature motif on this model
· Tuners: Pearl button tuners with black hardware
· Fretboard: Dark board with pearl/mother-of-pearl star inlays; side dot markers
· Bridge: Rosewood-style with white saddle; black bridge pins with pearl dot inlays
· Stencil artwork: Hand-applied “LifeAfterDeath” stencil by Dave Navarro on the lower body — skull with crossed syringe and spoon imagery, plus Navarro’s signature and glasses doodle — consistent with his documented street art and stencil practice
· Electronics: Yamaha System 45 active preamp — master volume; 3-band EQ (Low, Mid with AMF adjustable mid-frequency control, High); microphone volume/blend; phase switch; battery check LED; dual pickup system comprising under-saddle piezo transducer and gooseneck-mounted internal condenser microphone with foam windscreen (visible in soundhole); 9V battery compartment on side
Condition
Very Good. Good playing condition. Stencil artwork is clear and intact. Both signatures are present and legible. Normal handling wear consistent with use.
Provenance
Acquired privately from a longtime Jane’s Addiction collector. The guitar passed from Navarro into the possession of Todd Newman, where it remained and was the guitar Navarro consistently played when visiting. The collector acquired the guitar and subsequently met with Navarro and Newman in person; Navarro confirmed the guitar was his when shown photographs. The collector also contacted Dan Cleary — Navarro’s longtime guitar tech — via Instagram prior to the sale; Cleary acknowledged the guitar. Per the seller: “This was one of my prized Jane’s Addiction items in my collection and out of respect I thought they should both know I was letting it go.”
No formal Certificate of Authenticity accompanies this guitar. Provenance is established through the seller’s direct in-person confirmation with Navarro and Newman, the co-signature of Dan Cleary on the instrument, and the hand-stenciled “LifeAfterDeath” artwork consistent with Navarro’s documented personal art practice.
Nostalgia Bandit Letter of Provenance
This lot will be accompanied by a Nostalgia Bandit Letter of Provenance — a document printed on official Nostalgia Bandit letterhead, signed by Nostalgia Bandit’s principal, and affixed with the official Nostalgia Bandit embossed seal. The Letter of Provenance reproduces the complete final auction description for this lot in full, memorializing all provenance documentation, attribution, supporting evidence, and condition details as presented herein. It is designed to travel with the lot through all future ownership transfers as a permanent, platform-independent physical record of the item’s documented history.
Shipping & Measurements
FIRST AND THIRD PARTY SHIPPING OPTIONS AVAILABLE. Contact Nostalgia Bandit for a shipping quote: shipping@nostalgiabandit.com
» Guitar: 42 x 16 x 5″ · 5.34 lbs.
» Case: 45 x 18 x 9″ · 6.16 lbs.
