I may have mentioned this once before, as a 15-year-old boy watching The Last Waltz in a theater when it came out, the image of Joni Mitchell in all her silken, dewy womanhood in that long skirt and leotard terrified me. For some reason it was more woman on a stage with rock musicians than I could handle. Around the same time I saw Kate Bush for the first time, on Saturday Night Live. If memory serves she was wearing a leotard and those floppy socks that you see ballet dancers wear when they’re working out. Or was she wearing that Where the Wild Things Are lion suit from one of her early albums? I think she was lounging on a piano. Because this is a visual-based thread, I won’t get into that voice, but again, too much woman – or more likely, since I later woud find both Mitchell and Bush kind of hot, too much leotard or Cats costuming.
Anyhow, to this day, those are the scariest images I’ve seen in rock. What frightening rock image has been stuck in your mind all these years?
Certainly this one freaked out my younger self:
http://www.muzieklijstjes.nl/Tips/BowieDManwho.jpg
Looking around the internets for a copy of this, I found lots of other equally scary Bowie photos.
Any number of shots of this guy, and apparently, his dentures…
http://cdn2.maxim.com/blender/files/2008/02/21/snaggletoothrock/fs_worstTeethinRock_keithRichards.jpg
I’d say Paul Williams in “Phantom Of the Paradise.” I saw that movie in the theater when I was a kid, and — well, the phantom I could handle, but that Williams weirdo freaked me the hell OUT.
http://www.dvdrama.com/menus/phantom_paradise_coll_10.jpg
Before that multi-Sting video, it was probably the Lou Reed Honda Scooter commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkXxFCu7kPI
As far as imagined freak out rock images, the thought of David Crosby donating sperm to Melissa Etheridge and Lou Diamond Phillips’s ex, Julie Cypher.
polaroids of Chuck Berry naked with various girlfriends. i couldn’t find them on the web, and you guys are lucky. Chuck with no clothes and no dentures and some of the nastiest lookin naked women you could even imagine. i think i saw them in an old HUSTLER magazine.
great magazine, that HUSTLER.
That Chuck Berry video tape was one of the grisliest bits of rock and roll Babylon imaginable. It looks like Chuck had a taste for truck stop waitresses…
I don’t think I have a visual, but there were certain record stores I used to haunt as a young ‘un where I would be intimidated by the “cooler than thou” ‘tude I sensed from the people in the store, combined with the blasting of some obscure, aggressive music, usually punk or some crazy psychedelic fuzz rock. I was probably around 14 when I started frequenting these places, and it all seemed pretty alien back then.
Good stuff, so far, peeps. Glad to know I’m not the only one who’s been haunted by some rock ‘n roll imagery.
On one of my many visits to Greg Cartright’s old record store in Memphis (Legba), he pointed me in the directing of a Jerry Lee Lewis record with a curious cardboard covering. He grinned and instructed me to look behind the cardboard. There before my eyes was Jerry Lee getting his “stripper on.” There were various photos of The Killer ripping a piano up with some full frontal naked ladies dancing on top of the piano. It was pretty wild looking, overall. These ladies were also of the “truck stop” variety.
I have to see the Chuck Berry photos now. Lord knows why. I love punishment…
TB
not outwardly scary – more of a creepy thing for me was the cover of Jethro Tull’s Greatest Hits. The simple sketch of the flute player dancing a jig was a throw back to the old Pied Piper, leading all the folks who dared listen to certain death. Or maybe a woodland nymph luring you into the woods .. and the whole certain death thing again. Either way, hair raising. Thanks for bringing that back for me….grr.
http://www.parekosme.gr/images/JETHRO%20TULL.jpg
dude the inner gatefold of Aqualung bothered the shit out of me. anything with dudes with beards having white makeup on, creeps me out.
this bothered me as well:
http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=6qi4bm&s=5
and this:
http://moogie.info/music/cd/SteelyDan-theRoyalScam.jpg
and this:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_0voejU7y9bk/SZjRaCaXLgI/AAAAAAAADJs/jyi_RRoKblY/s400/captain+beefheart.jpg
and this:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3262/3222970402_3d31b0f98a.jpg
and there are plenty more.
These guys put out a series of albums with cover art that I still find disturbing. I’m sure they were probably thinking, “What’s wrong with being sexy?” when they released these gems:
http://heystupid.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/the-scorpians-virgin-killer.jpg
http://www.currychips.com/scorpions-album2.jpg
http://hardrockheavymetal.files.wordpress.com/2007/09/scorpions-animal-magnetism-1980.jpg
In regards to the Chuck Berry video: never mind what the women look like, the most disturbing aspect is what Chuck is DOING with them! I’ll just say, he seems to be a BIG fan of “water sports”, more so than the regular old “in & out”. Most memorable quotes from the video: “Oh yeah, baby; smell my farts.” & “No, I’m not going to kiss you, your lips taste like my pee.” I only WISH I could forget.
That first one is truly disturbing, bobby. I’d never seen it before. Yikes!
After all the testimonies here, I’m truly glad I’ve never seen more than a single still image from those Chuck Berry tapes. That one still was bad enough for me!