//John Lydon. From The Face issue 8, December 1980. Photo: Sheila Rock//

//Grace Jones. From The Face issue 6, October 1980. Main photo: Jill Furmanovsky//

//Divine. From The Face issue 9, January 1981. Photo: Sheila Rock//

Here’s a selection of articles for early issues of The Face by veteran music journalist/author (and my old mucker) Chris Salewicz to mark the fact that he and I will be in conversation about my new book The Story Of The Face at leading south London independent bookshop Bookseller Crow on Tuesday evening (November 28).

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Anton Corbijn, Bookseller Crow, Carlo Manzi, Chris Salewicz, Debbie Harry, Divine, Grace Jones, Jah Wobble, Jill Furmanovsky, Joe Strummer, John Lydon, Kensington Market, Mike Laye, NME, Sheila Rock

//Sylvain in the streets of Austin last week//

On a recent trip to Austin, Texas, I enjoyed many encounters with members of the region’s creative community, not least expat British sci-fi Titan Michael Moorcock and his delightful wife Linda, transplanted Westernwear expert Jerry Ryan and his Heritage Boot emporium and, as previously noted here, the charming duo Jesse Sublett and Lois Richwine.

I also had fun with the visiting New York Doll Sylvain Sylvain Mizrahi, in town for a residency at the Hotel Vegas, on the the city’s hip eastside.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Austin, Billy Murcia, Heritage Boot Co, Hotel Vegas, Jerry Ryan, Jesse Sublette, Kensington Market, Let It Rock, Linda Moorcock, Lois Richwine, Michael Moorcock, New York Dolls, Paradise Garage, Sylvain Sylvain Mizrahi, Texas

//From The Look blog 2009//

A few years back I wrote a series of blogs about the so-called “Wild Thing” jacket worn by Iggy Pop on the cover of his and The Stooges’ album Raw Power; in 2008 I had brokered a deal for the jacket designers John and Molly Dove to reissue a t-shirt range – including a version bearing the Wild Thing’s panther head – via Topman.

Around that time I also hooked them up with the current owner of the jacket, US maverick pop culture entrepreneur and collector  “Long Gone” John Mermis (who I’d met as far back as the mid-90s at his extraordinary Long Beach mansion).

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Derek Harris, Frederic Raphael, Iggy & The Stooges, Iggy Pop, JOhn Dove, Jon Savage, Kensington Market, Kings Cross Cinema, Let It Rock, Lewis Leathers, Long Gone John, Mick Rock, Nova, Paradise Garage, Patrick Casey, Vivienne Westwood, Wild Thing

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.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 293 Portobello Road, 406 King's Road, George Cox, Kensington Market, Lloyd Johnson