KELLY CLARKSON - CLARKSON GUITAR STEALS THE SHOW AT DIMEBAG TRIBUTE

CLARKSON GUITAR STEALS THE SHOW AT DIMEBAG TRIBUTE

Pop star KELLY CLARKSON's artistic skills paid off at an auction in Hollywood on Thursday night (17May07) when a guitar she painted to raise cash for a children's charity raised $3,000 (GBP1,500). The Breakaway singer decorated an axe and turned the instrument into the auction's highlight - beating out bids for guitars designed by rockers Dave Navarro and Rob Zombie. But there was a very special reason behind Clarkson's offer to help raise cash for the Little Kids Rock charity - the auction was held as part of a House of Blues tribute to late rocker `Dimebag' Darrell Abbott. The pop star is a longtime fan of Abbott's bands Pantera and Damageplan, and once waited on the tragic guitarist when she worked in a restaurant he frequented. Clarkson wasn't able to make it to the tribute concert, which featured stars like Navarro, Anthrax's Scott Ian, Chester Bennington from Linkin Park and Alice In Chains guitarist Jerry Cantrell. Abbott was shot dead by a crazed fan during a show in Ohio in December, 2004. Thursday was a very special day for Abbott's family - before the concert, the guitarist was posthumously inducted into the Hollywood Rock Walk on Sunset Boulevard.