This postcard’s over-amped application of colour (despite the “natural” tag on the back) contrasts deeply with the dowdiness of the buildings and the appearances of the inhabitants of the Swinging London über strasse on a summer’s day in 1966.
The disconnect – between projected lifestyle and everyday reality – sums up the 60s.
Promo News is a favourite site, and not just because it is run by pal o’mine Dave Knight; day-in, day-out he delivers the full span of fresh work in the field of music promos, and occasionally one tickles my fancy.
Like this. Directed by Vidya Sharma & Rajesh Thomas, this animated clip is for Non-Stop Radio, the Cornershop track featuring Celeste.
Cornershop featuring Celeste – Non-Stop Radio from rocketscience on Vimeo.
Read all about it here. And subscribe to Promo’s daily bulletins here.
These images are from the private view for The Lightbox gallery’s exhibition Snap Crackle & Pop (about British pop art and it’s influence on culture); I contributed exhibits and advice after being approached by BBC TV’s Katherine Higgins (who sure knows her stuff).
This excellent show was opened on Friday by Peter Blake. Among the attendees were John and Molly Dove, Lloyd Johnson, Mike Ross of Ritva and Paul Weller (the subject of the gallery’s current companion exhibition of photographs by Lawrence Watson).
Continue reading Pictures from an exhibition: Snap Crackle & Pop at The Lightbox
1990 was a highpoint year for British pop as dance infiltrated almost every musical genre.
And BBC2’s Dance Energy was fabulous pop TV, taking the format from Soul Train and showcasing the audience as the stars.
Here dance diva Eve Gallagher – dressed to the pervy nines + signed to George O’Dowd’s sorely-underrated label More Protein – provides an opportunity for the Dance Energy crowd to demonstrate the full range of moves and styles from that great year: Funki Dredds, B-Boys and Daisy Agers shift a gear amid an array of Raiders garms, Po’ Boy caps, knapsacks, pendants, Baggy tops + jeans, leotards, MA-1-style jackets, dungarees, blunt-cut fringes, etc.
These are the only pair of Bongos, a crepe-soled, corduroy sample shoe manufactured by George Cox for Lloyd Johnson in the late 90s.
These unusual elastic-vented slip-ons were intended for Johnson’s Beatnik range, sold through his three London shops, at 406 King’s Road, in Kensington Market and at 293 Portobello Road.
In the event the design didn’t make it into production.
Continue reading Favourite shoes: My corduroy + crepe-soled Bongos
This segment of Laura Ashley wallpaper has a repeat print of David Bowie’s portrait of Lucian Freud.
It was included in Antennae #1, the limited edition box made available at the War Child fashion event Pagan Fun Wear, which was held at London’s Saatchi Gallery – then in St John’s Wood – on Midsummer’s Eve 1995.
Here is Brian Eno’s introduction to Antennae with instructions as to what to do with the wallpaper and the rest of the contents of the box:
Australia’s Daddy Cool scored a big home hit in 1971 with sub-Stones strut Eagle Rock, which soon became a wedding party staple.
Four years later when they headlined The Australian Concert For Bangladesh at Melbourne’s Myer Music Bowl Daddy Cool were about to be consigned to the oldies bin by the band which was sixth on the bill that day, AC/DC.
AC/DC had been propelled locally by teenage Sharpie fans, a group of whom are seen here stepping out with a mickey-taking version of the Eagle Rock boogie which mutates into their dance, The Melbourne Shuffle.
Happiness is, it seems, the arrival in the post of a new Telnayashka – a Russian military top.
Telnayashka means “body shirt”. In single knitted cotton with Breton neck, long sleeves and body, these are the simplest and most comfortable of garments. I particularly like the paper sizing label stitched bottom left onto the front hem .
I’ve collected t-shirts for 30-odd years; this is one of my favourites.
Continue reading T-shirts: MC5 – Kick out the jams motherfucker!
Psychedelics – in the form of art, design, drugs, literature, music and the counter-culture – dominate the latest catalogue from BeatBooks.