( CNN ) The crusade to find a home for a sacred electric guitar is reverberating like a thundering encore through the music business as innovator Les Paul 's Black Beauty from the '50s is going up for auction . The Gibson-made instrument , called the Holy Grail of Guitars by some , is being sold by Tom Doyle , the late Paul 's longtime friend , engineer , co-inventor and guitar tech . `` This happens to be the first prototype of what we call the Black Beauty . It was sent to Les in 1953 , 1954 , '' Doyle told CNN , holding the instrument with shiny pearly inlays on the guitar neck glinting back overhead lights . `` This is the beginning of the proper Les Paul guitar. `` Doyle explains virtuoso Paul would hold notes on the guitar , sustaining a beautiful ringing that seemed to model in part a melodic Bell Telephone tone of the early 1950s . `` And that 's what the kids loved , '' Doyle said and ran off some Les Paul guitar converts . `` Neil Young was one of course . Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin , Slash , Jeff Beck , Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top . `` So many people love that bell-like sound , the sustain , that thickness of notes . They could turn this into a jazz guitar , a country guitar , a heavy rock guitar as well . '' Doyle , sitting on a wooden stool at the massive National Association of Music Merchants Convention in Anaheim , California , began picking away on the black guitar , a fluid sound that lured buzzing attendees to stop and listen . Salesmen in $ 2,000 suits stood next to male rockers in $ 10 black T-shirts and eyeliner and mouthed over the music `` that 's so bleepin ' cool . '' `` Les brought this to me many times to be reworked , '' Doyle said . `` And the last time he brought it to me he said , 'My God you should have this guitar . ' `` Paul , who is credited with many recording innovations , died in 2009 . Doyle is 72 , retiring and said because of its historical significance , he would like to see the guitar end up in a museum , such as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland or Experience Music Project in Seattle . Guernsey 's will sell Black Beauty and other instruments on February 19 at the Arader Galleries on Madison Avenue in New York City , also accepting bids on line and by telephone . Doyle explains the guitar became showcased in the 1950s on 170 television shows , `` Listerine Presents : Les Paul and Mary Ford . '' Black and white video clips show singer Mary Ford and her husband doing classic songs such as `` Alabamy '' or their signature `` Vaya Con Dios . '' `` The guitar was great for television , very very showy , '' Doyle said . `` And you could see Les ' hands fly all over this neck because of the black background . '' In music business lore , a great guitar tech is like a superstar mechanic for a race car driver . Doyle and other guitar techs are often handed the beat up , broken , out-of-tune instruments and begged to get the old classic and running again by celebrity musicians . `` When it came to difficulties where this guitar was n't coming back to well , he ( Les Paul ) would say 'Bring it back Tom , do what you got to do to make it play , ' `` Doyle laughed . `` When I was doing this work for him it was a great honor . Here is my idol asking me to do work on his guitars . ''
The Black Beauty is being sold by Tom Doyle , the late Paul 's longtime friend and engineer . He hopes it ends up a good music museum , perhaps in Cleveland or Seattle .