The glory days of British rock is set to roll into the Victoria and Albert museum.
Picture the scene. It’s New Year’s day 1964, the echos of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s I Have A Dream speech are still resounding throughout the world, The Beatles’ second album With the Beatles has just been released, U.S. President John F. Kennedy has been assassinated little over a month ago and the Top of the Pops has just been launched by the BBC. As the Rolling Stones kick things off on the opening night, photographer Harry Goodwin waits in the wings with his camera at the ready.
This was the start of a remarkable era in music throughout the 60s and 70s, an era that is yet to be seen since. Harry went on to photograph much of it and 200 of his most iconic and unforgettable photographs will go on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum’s Theatre and Performance section from 30th April to 24th October 2010.
With free admission, My generation: The glory days of British rock will include snaps of a startled Bob Dylan (surprised by Harry’s flash) and a dramatic shot of Jimi Hendrix playing his guitar with his teeth like the rock and roll legend that he was.
Capturing the counterculture of the 60s and 70s music scene, and the artists that made it what it was, the exhibition celebrates the lives achievements of those that made it what it was.
Harry Goodwin was the show’s resident photographer from 1964 to 1973 and not much passed his lens without being framed for the rest of us to marvel at. With few modern artists coming close to the greats of the past, the exhibition is a chance to look back on what was the defining period in the history of music in the 20th Century.
