54 COVER STAR P surname) wasinLondon born in1948,one Rey,Del Kate Moss and Father John Misty. demand; recent subjects have included Lana The 70s’, he remains relevant in- and highly Despite dubbed being Man ‘The Who Shot retrospective of his David photos. Bowie returned from Mexico City for amuseum got fire the inside. Whenhe’s we speak, just reflective. An avid yoga practitioner, he’s still but is devoid of pretence and remains self- but over also 100album sleeves. Michael David (yes, Rock it’s his real alarger-than-life possesses Rock personality He documented the , working with some of the most famous artists on the planet, including , Bob Marley, Queen and the . Pistols. Sex portraits of countless musicians, He’s not only shot seminal music for nearly acentury. half images have dominated pop hotographer Mick Rock’s searing Teri Saccone MICK ROCK under chemical influence. photography quite accidentally, he was while languagesmodern and literature, Mick began have affordedthat education”), studying on ascholarship (“my parents couldn’t Attendingservant. Cambridge University of three children. His father, David, was acivil a photographer. It moved into my life, up set progressed organically. “I wasn’t looking to be Kerouac,Beats: Ginsberg…” Rock’s career Byron, Shelley, Keats and American the and French Romantics: Rimbaud, Baudelaire, Iwas enamoured poets the with, English the ’n’ rollers were modern-day the equivalent of I clicked,” he says. He that: realised “Rock also intensityadded and explosions it made as I picked up afriend’s camera and loved the “I was tripping on LSD with ayoung lady. COVER STAR meets legendary photographer legendary meets Mick Rock is what pumped my desire to pursue this. afashionbeing or photographer. news Music developed as alensman. Ihad no interest in pushedto be to achieve result the required. from that how many stops it would need meter, would clip-test film, the and judge creativelyto be positive! Ibarely alight used And oftenthe mistakes I made turned out knowledge,” he says. “I learnt as Iwent along. despite never studying it. and an instinctual knack for photography, and had atalent for spotting burgeoning stars, centre of and glam the both punk movements, latea career inthe trajectory 60s.” shop and took over. This wasn’treally much of “Without rock ’n’ roll, Iwould not have “I wasn’t constrained by much too technical Serendipitously, found Rock himself at the

in acareer. Iwanted adventures.” just about anything Iwas then. not interested fomented.freedom they And Iwas game for onstage, unpredictable their nature, the I loved rockers, the power the projected they Rock withSydBarrettin1971 Lou or Iggy. They were strictly ‘underground’ not then, Back many much people knew of youthings when shoot inavarietyof ways. shots. You how learn to dolots of different Transformer performance photographer. The covers of anymore, but day, back inthe Iwas awicked encompass sides. “I both don’t doit much with a gritty, raw His vibe. sleeves morethe studio stylised, shots and those Rock’s work into divided can be two spheres: STARDUST MEMORIES ONSTAGE, THEIR ONSTAGE, THEIR UNPREDICTABLE UNPREDICTABLE a greatre-shoot!” amusedbyitallandwedid was very the filmwrongwayround.Buthe time usingaHasselbladandIloaded Thin Lizzyalbums.Butitwasmyfirst appeared onthebackcoversofthree him. We well.Myphotos gotonvery “Phil Lynott, 1973.I’djustmet PHOTOSHOOT? NIGHTMARE WHAT PUMPED WHAT PUMPED ROCKERS, THE ROCKERS, THE MY DESIRE TO DESIRE TO MY POWER THEY POWER THEY PURSUE THIS. PURSUE THIS. I LOVED THE I LOVEDTHE PROJECTED PROJECTED “MUSIC IS “MUSIC IS NATURE” and and Raw are live both

havethe images defined both of forever.” Somehow,figures. two those shots seemed to With LouReedin1975 Rock andPopinNewYork in1999 then, so the timing the didn’t so then, hurt.” toliked stirthings up interms of his sexuality offstage, he asked me: ‘Did you get it?’. David gesture would garner attention. As he came go down’. David immediately that knew this way Mick swung his guitar that forced me to and biting,’ David explained. ‘But it was the as many presumed. “‘At first, Iwas standing ‘bite’ Ronson’s guitar, not simulate oral sex told shot the Rock was to merely himtrying Stardust aboutbook Ziggy the singer era,the were they when collaborating on first their fellatio’ picture. Many years later, in2002, – what’s come known to be as ‘guitar the kneelingBowie before guitarist asback then, he was eager to get publicity.” himout, to seek decided wasn’t which difficult his innovative hairdo and outfits wild I and music, I’d some pictures seen of David, with summer the inthe ofvideo 1973.Besides I loved ahit,be although it was starting to percolate. me acopy of Bowie’s meteoric “Somebody rise. had given in1972–andBowie he went on to document was his fatefulReed decision to photograph One notorious image shot Rock depicts What eventually to Pop Rock both led and Life Mars? On Hunky , for Imade which the , which had yet to had, which yet to Mick andJoanJettin 1982 inthe80s With arelaxedFreddieMercury With Bowiein1973 55 COVER STAR MICK ROCK 56 COVER STAR MICK ROCK Kinks, Ozzy Osbourne, Rory Gallagher,Kinks, Ozzy Osbourne, Rory the 70s, including Marley, Bob Jimmy Cliff, The But Ialways talent.” their respected an outsider. Many of my became them friends. I looked like them,” he “I recalls. never felt like around musicians and it maybehelped that him access to comfortable “I them. was very photographers came swarming!” own crazypublicity late inthe the 70s.Then Johnny Rotten and punks the stirred their were no other photographers around until pictures of that era,and it’s only there because Rebel, amongand Cockney others. shooting New the York Roxy Dolls, Music photographer on at scene glam the time, the more shoots. was pretty Rock much lone the reconvening with himinlater years for Stardustpictures of as Ziggy Bowie alone, and saxophone’ photo. He took over 5,000 in1973,resultingBowie famous inthe ‘suit beautiful-looking duo inmusic ever”. and Ronson made “the them most fabulously COMFORTABLE COMFORTABLE Rock resembledRock his subjects, afforded which “People ask me why Ihave best the all Rock’s first wasstudio shooting experience Furthermore, onstage the pairing of Bowie He shot artists varied throughout the THEM. AND I HELPED

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visuals. Then, Freddie normally got his way.” were except it when ademocracy came to the Stardust!’,Ziggy They deal. the sealed which album, Isaid: ‘Wow, meets Zeppelin Led music,their but played they when me their then thatthen he first shotDebbie Harry, a muse he decamped permanently to . It was By 1982,his firstwife had divorced him and New York sucked me in,” he remembers. cocaine,girls, in theandscene. energy “The where he shot nascent the underground punk “favourite cities, New York and ”, people at the Museum.” my surprise… There housefull was a of 400 In Mexico City, 300people showed up, to mostly about my work, stills over all world. the Ace Frehley lectures, 80s.Idothese inthe fordid videos The Kinks, and McCartney Not videos. Bowie the my photographs! Ialso lectured at Brooklyn the Museum on directing as some of Rock’s photos. still “I recently timeless classics and have become as revered Oddity Space suchvideos as Bowie’s Rocky Horror Picture Show was chief the photographer on of set the magazines, and record labels, Rock In addition to music photography for PICTURE THIS of lauded Europe ’72tour. GarciaLizzy Thin and Dead’sthe during Jerry Banshees, Tina Turner, Peter Genesis, Gabriel, Pistols,Sex Aerosmith, Siouxsie And The New York in2002 With Bowiein goodfriendofhis.Thenhewasreadytoshoot.” out tobeavery a double-pagespreadofTommy LeefromMötleyCrüe,whoturned “Deadmau5, untilIshowedhimacopyofmybook RELUCTANT SUBJECT? One of Rock’s most beloved shots is the In 1977, Rock lived between his two In lived his two 1977,Rock between . These videos videos are. These now lauded as

Queen II The JeanGenie . “I didn’t really know and directed iconic and and The The

a very special high!” special a very It’s biggest the still buzz Ihave. It gives me honesty, he which himself engenders. his subjects are portrayed with an implicit throughout Rock’s work, it’s perhaps that a moment, Ithought a lyricist.” Icould be ambitions,literary Iwanted For apoet. to be no musical talent, for starters. But Ididhave ambitions to emulate “Not them? really. Ihad mythical creatures, didhe harbour so for another look.” something that keeps drawing you back A great photo should like ahit be single, want something as strong as music. the than just apretty picture,” he replies. “You defines acompelling shot. “You want more connection planted which that seed.” were fans of my work. It was Bowie the approached me, Iwas aback, taken but they year.this “Gucci are super-hip. When they to shoot campaign latest, their earlier edgy massages instead of chemicals.” me up. Now yoga, Iuse meditation and was an interesting and experience it cleaned featured 2016documentary inthe underwent aquadruple bypass heart in1996, caughtdebauchery up with himand he (“I snorted of half Bolivia”). However, the modern-day Marilyn Monroe.” you couldn’t photo abad take of her. Truly the and long-time “She friend. photogenic, was so “For me, photography therapeutic. is very If there’s asingular thread running When he out, started rock stars were We ask what Rock it is, inhis view, that His fame enticed high-fashion labelGucci makesRock no secretof his former excesses Exposed with ● SHOT!

. “It “It .

was a genius lyricist from the first album, which was ageniuslyricistfromthefirst album,which they couldn’t giveawayatthetime.Isawhim longer to break out… Those were both shot a longer tobreakout…Thosewere bothshota with the naked lady in the background, but we (myself and Syd) with thenakedladyinbackground,butwe(myselfandSyd) week apart at Kings Cross Cinema [now the atKingsCrossCinema[nowthe week apart “Ididn’t knowwhatIwasdoingandtheresultisgrainy, which as the Baudelaire of music. Iggy took a little as theBaudelaireofmusic.Iggy took alittle "Iggy and Lou were subterranean, positively "Iggy andLouweresubterranean,positively underground, when I found them. I saw Lou underground, whenIfoundthem. IsawLou ] inLondon. The I’d photographed musicians before, but this was different. Syd Syd I’d photographedmusiciansbefore, butthiswasdifferent. was very charismaticandhehadtheauraofa was very wrong technically and it fell out of focus in wrong technically anditfelloutoffocusin which made him the perfect subject for me. This was my first subjectforme.Thiswasmyfirst which madehimtheperfect made itlookpainterly, reflective. We wantedtousetheshot were notinchargeofthat. We werefriendsforyears,took LSD together. thelooksandtalent. Sydhadeverything: THE MADCAPLAUGHS TRANSFORMER Transformer important shoot.” important shot was shot was MICK ROCK poète maudit

orange hue came from pushing the processing orange huecamefrompushingthe processing I didn’t thinkabout whatIwasdoing.justdid button and using the wrong film. Both are live button andusingthewrongfilm. Botharelive Power but there’s somethingaboutthisimage. Power CLASSIC COVERS CLASSIC the printing.We papers, usedfive different shots, both takeninbetweensinging. its release… Thing is, both covers illustrate its release…Thing is,bothcovers illustrate didn’t risetopopularityuntilyearsafter was shot using daylight film, and the wasshotusingdaylightfilm,and the

,

inside or on the back. It took time to set up those shots and I used inside orontheback.IttooktimetosetupthoseshotsandIused “This was actually inspired by a photograph of Marlene Dietrich “This wasactuallyinspiredbyaphotographofMarleneDietrich was the arm-twister inthatband.Hewantedtogofortheblack- was thearm-twister background shot, and so did I. Freddie had gone to art college college background shot,andsodidI.Freddiehadgonetoart Freddie, hegotwhereIwascomingfromrightaway. We also a ladder to shoot from above, which was quite a feat. Freddie a laddertoshootfromabove,whichwasquitefeat.Freddie from thefilm shot it with an alternate white background, which ended up whitebackground,whichendedup shot itwithanalternate Raw Raw Raw Raw and itreallyshowedthroughouthiscareer.” IGGY AND IGGY ANDTHESTOOGES

Shanghai Express cover wasmadeinNewYork whileIwason had no hand in selecting. But I had done an had nohandinselecting.ButI donean including David -- were these chimeras: part including David -- werethesechimeras:part them. InthecaseofIggy, thatchoiceforthe the Bowie tour at the time. The Lou one, he the Bowietourattime.TheLou one,he interview withhimfor interview human, part animals, very exoticbeings.” animals, very human, part he picked the shot. These two musicians -- he pickedtheshot.Thesetwomusicians -- RAW POWER RAW POWER the time. I showed the prints to Lou and the time.IshowedprintstoLou and QUEEN II QUEEN . When I explained the idea to . WhenIexplainedtheideato

Rolling Stone around around

57 COVER STAR MICK ROCK CLASSIC COVERS MICK ROCK

RAMONES & THE BLACKHEARTS I LOVE ROCK ’N ROLL “The red background was a change for the band, who “They (Joan and her entourage) arrived at my studio, at that fancied grittier street shots for most of their promo pics. I was time in Midtown Manhattan, around midnight, and we got a the third choice of photographer. They hated photographers lot out of that shoot. I played around with backgrounds and and didn’t like photos of themselves. They were difficult to we got a lot of photos. We eventually got the cover photo

MICK ROCK shoot. Very stiff. Didn’t move a lot. But this worked for them.” about 3am. Her manager was pushing the cuter side of her and I was pushing the darker side. This has got an Elvis 58 Presley/rockabilly vibe with her expression, the hair, jacket… I designed the cover itself, too.” COVER STAR COVER

TALKING HEADS IAN HUNTER WITH MICK RONSON : 77 YUI AORTA “This was their first album and it was not the shot I would’ve “I shot it in my then-studio on Mercer Street in New York’s chosen for the back cover, as this was not among my SoHo district in 1989. They were both friends of mine… favourites from the session. Interesting music and people, but I saw them as two sides of the same coin. They’d been very I do remember the proceedings and dealing with them being close friends since Mick had done the on All The very civilised. They were , yet incredibly low key. Young Dudes… I wanted to reflect that closeness in the photos. But then they are ex-art-school people.” So I shot them together, but also individually. The resultant album shot was a fusion of two of the solo images… Although not as high profile as many of my other sleeves, it ranks as one of my favourites that I’ve shot.” ●