Jun 192008
Now don’t get all sensitive and/or hung up on me: Are there artists whose images alone, at a certain point in their career, you are happy to gaze at until you snap out of it when some drool drips onto your shirt? I suspect Don’t Look Back-era Bob Dylan has this effect on more than a few of us. I’ve been known to space out watching John Lennon as well, just thinking how cool the guy was. This is an innocent question about an innocent phenomenon. Don’t get freaked out thinking that I’m questioning your sexuality, which we all know is as manly as it comes. Of course, if your sexuality comes into play, that’s fine too.
Early photos of Elvis for sure. One of the few things that I own that has survived the various disruptions in my life is a picture postcard I bought at Elvis’ birthsite in Tupelo. It’s apparently his high school graduation shot. His sideburns are just beginning to fill in. He’s not even really quite Elvis yet, but his Elvisness is already there germinating. The postcard is on my refrigerator right now, as is a very nice 8×10 studio photo of him in his prime.
Film of Elvis in the 50s doesn’t have the same effect on me, perhaps because there always seems to be a lot of clowning around, as if to disguise the full power of Elvishood. The photos are more iconic.
Photos taken after his mama died and he got out of the army don’t have the same power.
The cover of “London Calling”
For starters, there’s the pic that accompanied a similar thread: https://www.rocktownhall.com/blogs/index.php/2007/09/14/the_iconography_of_cool
Also, various photos from various Bowie eras.
And it’s always fun to find a Flickr group, like this one: http://flickr.com/groups/jarvis/
Good answers, and Oats, while I was driving over to aka music this morning it occurred to me that I kind of repeated your original post on a similar theme. Please take this unintentional repeat as a compliment. We’ll see if Townspeople can step forward this time around.
Prime-era James Brown (film only).
50s-era Elvis.
’64-’66 Lennon.
Motorhead.
Thin Lizzy.
’68-’76 Keith Richards.
Buddy Holly.
Christine Amphlett.
Anybody playing a Firebird or one of those Vox teardrop guitars.
Easybeats.
Bono, mid-diatribe
Peter Garrett singing live
and to reinforce my manliness (Did you see the Bears game last week? Hell of game, hell of a game.), to myself at least, the mesmerizing Shakira
http://youtube.com/watch?v=o4KSz71fCxY
All those pictures of Elvis wandering around doing nothing in 1956 make an impact on me, that innocent cool he had. Most of the macho icons are icons because they’re beautiful and graceful creatures. It doesn’t have to be sexual to enjoy the way a lanky young Eastwood would confidently stride across a crime scene. That Johnny Cash took a good picture too.
I can’t believe I’m responding to this.
Pete Townshend (who himself can talk about when it comes to being completely honest when talking about his sexuality) was on VH1 one day talking about great moments in rock history. He talked about the first time he saw Mick Jagger and The Stones was that it “was the first time he’d wanted to f*%! a man.”
I have to say that I have always been fascinated by Townshend himself. He’s a total rock n roll hereo for me and I could stare at him for hours on end. Needless to say, I rewound the “knee drop” scene in Kids Are Alright on VHS. Plus, the bloke likes to talk. I love to listen.
Pete Townshend is my boyfriend. If he were only a woman…
TB
Never has there been so much manliness on Rock Town Hall as today. TB, great answer! dbuskirk, likewise. Hrrundi, thanks for stepping forward and answering like a man! Long live softcore artist porn!
The Beatles, in general, and The Clash, give the best group shots for my buck.
I have to say, mod, I never realized the depths of your commitment to, and occupation with, Look. I suppose that being the possesor of no given “look” to start with left me not so interested in it in others. Obviously the early Kiss, Alice Cooper, and Heart forays all wore Look on their sleeves in different ways.
Lennon has an intensity in images, though. As does early Elvis. Beefheart gave good look in photos. Of course VU with *or* without Nico. Also for sheer topographical convolution nobody’s got a thing on early Freddie Mercury. The first record or two.
However, the whole “drool on your shirt” thing leaves me stumped. I really never got the proto-sexual thing just from “rockness.” There had to be the fleshliness of woman present to bring the salivary glands into the discussion. I think I can second Jon Stewart, in terms of just voices, when he told Al Green he’d sleep with him if he just kept singing. (My mother said similar things of Roy Orbison!)
So I think RTH needs a therapist’s couch segment, certainly for you, Mod, if no one else. I grew up Catholic, but that’s got nothing on the Northeast for creating stunted little banzai trees out of childrens’ wee emotional psyches. “Tell me more about the John Lennon images. When you came to, what’s the first thing you remember?”