Unseen Photos Of Music Icons In Their Prime
Our favorite artists have given us our most sentimental records. We’ve memorized every single note and line down to the very inflection they use while belting our favorite lyrics. We may know their albums inside and out, but we don’t know their lives. These rare photos of iconic artists paint a different picture, one where rock stars masquerade as normal people or fall down a dark path of fame.
From U2 band members who just want to play in the snow to the Spice Girls moments before being catapulted into international fame, here’s a look at your favorite musicians like you’ve never seen them before.
Steven Tyler Shares A Kiss With Sandy Farina At The ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ Premier
It’s unclear whether or not singer-songwriter Sandy Farina and famed Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler ever had an official relationship, but this 1978 snap shows them sneaking a kiss at the Sgt. Pepper’ Lonely Hearts Club Band premier. Farina starred in the film and Aerosmith had a cameo. The band covered the Beatles song “Come Together” for the soundtrack, which became the band’s last Top 40 hit for almost a decade.
Liam Gallagher And Evan Dando Hangout At Glastonbury Festival In 1995
In 1995, Liam Gallagher and Evan Dando were on top the world. Gallagher was fronting the band Oasis with his brother Noel and Dando was fronting the cult alternative band the Lemonheads. Both bands scored a coveted spot on the famed Glastonbury festival in 1995, which Metro hailed as “the most ’90s thing ever.”
Metro wasn’t wrong – 1995 Glastonbury basically sums up the entire decade. Pulp replaced the Stone Roses, who pulled out at the last minute. The band was forced to rough it in tents with the 80,000 person crowd because it was such short notice and they couldn’t score proper accommodations. It was also the second year the event was televised. Oh, and Evan Dando got boo-ed off stage because he turned up late for his set in the Acoustic Tent.
David Bowie’s Wife Bids Him Farewell In 1973
In 1973, David Bowie was reeling off his first-ever No. 1 album Aladdin Sane. The album may have topped the UK charts, but it was inspired by traveling across the United States. Bowie admitted that he wrote the songs on the Ziggy tour while they were caravanning across America before shipping off to Japan.
The album art for Aladdin Sane featured Bowie’s iconic lightning bolt makeup – the makeup that launched thousands of Halloween costumes and pop culture parodies. In this snap, his first wife Andie Bowie is seeing him off just days after he announced the abrupt retirement of his Ziggy character on stage at Hammersmith Odeon.
Madonna Shoots A Video For “The Power Of Good-Bye”
By the time Madonna dropped her seventh studio album, Ray of Light in 1988, she had already been a pop icon for over a decade. This rare photo gives a behind-the-scenes look at the singer’s music video shoot for her single “The Power of Good-Bye.”
The song was so successful that it cracked the top 10 of charts in nine different countries. In the United States, it only reached No. 11 making it Madonna’s 37th top 20 hit. It was her seventh highest debut – not the best, but nothing to scoff at.
Jim Morrison Sits Alone Circa 1970
In 1968, the Doors recorded and released their third album Waiting for the Sun, which peaked at No. 1 in the U.S. and No. 16 on the UK album charts. It marked the band’s first and only number one album in America and their first hit album in the U.K.
With their newfound success abroad, the band toured Europe and this photo of Jim Morrison was snapped in Frankfurt, Germany three months after their album was released. Though this album was a massive success, the band struggled with recording as Morrison’s alcohol and drug addiction reached new, scary highs.
Britney Spears And *NSync Rehearsing For The 1999 MTV Video Music Awards
Britney Spears admitted that she forgot her debut performance at the MTV Video Music Awards in 1999. Though she admitted a faint recollection of performing with the massive boyband *NSync, she told radio show host Elvis Duran, “You know what, I don’t remember at all. I have no recollection. I couldn’t tell you anything about it.”
Thankfully, there was photo and video evidence of this iconic performance. This photo snapped by Kevin Mazur shows Spears and co. hanging out backstage after tirelessly rehearsing for the TV spot. Little did she know that fresh-faced Justin Timberlake in the corner would be her very first love.
Connie Stevens Singing To Troop During Bob Hopes’ 1969 Christmas Tour
Connie Stevens was an iconic actress and singer who rose to fame in the late ’50s. She was best known for her work Hawaii Eye, where she played Cricket Blake on the series from 1959 to 1963. At the height of her fame, she was also her most charitable.
Stevens performed at Bob Hope’s annual Christmas Tour, which became a mainstay for Americans during the holiday season. In 1969, the tour traveled to Vietnam after stopping off in Washington for a brief dinner with President Richard Nixon. The show starred The Golddiggers from The Dean Martin Show, astronaut Neil Armstrong, and Stevens, who sang for 20,000 troops stationed about 10 miles north of Saigon.
A Cloud Of White Powder at a 1969 Rolling Stones Concert
There are few bands with a career as lasting as the Rolling Stones. At the height of their growing legacy in 1969, the band performed a concert at the Lyceum in London in support of Let It Bleed where someone drenched the crowd in white powder. The icons rolled through some of their biggest hits like “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” and “Sympathy for the Devil.”
During this time, fans were still reeling from the death of Brian Jones, who drowned in a swimming pool earlier that July. He had left the band a month prior because he was struggling with drug addiction.
The Aftermath at Altamont Speedway
A couple of weeks before The Rolling Stones played the Lyceum in London, they performed a free concert at Altamont Speedway in northern California. The concert was a disaster that led to massive property damage, three accidental deaths, one murder, and numerous thefts and injuries. Two of the deaths were caused by a hit-and-run car accident, the second was an LSD-fueled drowning in an irrigation canal, the third was the murder of Meredith Hunter who was stabbed after pulling out a gun and getting into a scuffle with the Hells Angels, who were hired as stage security.
This photo depicts the aftermath of the show, with garbage and empty bottles littered around the property. About 300,000 were in attendance the day prior.
A Crowd Of Teen Girls Rush To Get A Glimpse Of The Beatles Outside Of Buckingham Palace
On October 26, 1965, the Beatles paid a visit to Buckingham Palace where they received Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire medals from Queen Elizabeth. These medals were to honor their musical contribution to the country, which helped launch the British Invasion of rock in the United States.
At the time, it was controversial for a rock band to receive the high honor and several people who were given the same award returned their medals in protest. Col. Frederick Wagg ended up sending back the 12 medals he earned fighting in WWI and WWII. In this photo, police hold back a swarm of teenage girls hoping to get a glimpse of the band as they arrive at the palace gates.
Iggy Pop Performs On The Sunset Strip In 1973
This image was snapped fresh off the release of The Stooges’ 1973 album Raw Power. The band performed at the iconic Sunset Strip club Whisky A Go-Go to support their release.
Both of Raw Power’s predecessors, The Stooges and Fun House, saw little commercial success but Iggy Pop was paving his way as a punk rock icon. At this time, the band was a mess – they broke up after Dave Alexander appeared to be losing his fight with alcoholism and Iggy Pop’s heroin addiction saw new highs. They briefly reconvened and Raw Power was released under the moniker Iggy and the Stooges. They broke up again in 1974 and continued their on-and-off relationship for a number of years.
The Spice Girls Take A Trip To Cannes Before Releasing “Wannabe”
Though the Spice Girls formed in 1994, they didn’t release their debut single until 1996. “Wannabe” launched the girls into fame and their debut album Spice sold over 31 million copies making them one of the best-selling female groups of all time.
In this snap, the girls took a trip to Cannes. It was just a year before their debut single was released and they would be subject to the kind of fame that rivaled the Beatles. You can tell from the image, they were poised for success from the start. Posh has always been (and will forever will be) the queen of fierce poses.
Elvis Presley Walks Past A Cadillac On A Movie Set
Elvis Presley may have been a famed singer and movie star, but the same year this photo was snapped on what was likely the set of King Creole, he was sent to war. Presley got his draft notice on December 20, 1957, and was meant to report for duty on January 20. The artist ended up getting a deferment in order to film King Creole, which was in preproduction at the time. In March of that year, his deferment was over and he was inducted into the army.
Presley received his famous haircut while spending three days at Fort Chaffee. He was then sent to Texas for basic training and eventually shipped off to a unit in Friedberg, Germany. He was discharged in 1960 and resumed his career as a star.
Cyndi Lauper Celebrates The Release Of True Colors In Hawaii
This photo is a rare glimpse of a natural and relaxed Cyndi Lauper in Hawaii celebrating the release of her second album True Colors. It’s practically a selfie before selfies existed (though it was shot in a series by photographer Michael Putland).
The 1986 album produced two top 5 hits for Lauper. “True Colors,” “Change of Heart” and “What’s Going On” all cracked the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100. The album itself peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 chart and garnered Lauper two Grammy nominations. It has since been certified double platinum by the RIAA.
Bob Dylan Performing With Joan Baez At The 1963 Newport Folk Festival
Throughout his career, Bob Dylan became a mainstay the Newport Folk Festival. This was his first performance at the event, where he shared the stage with Joan Baez. The pair performed together multiple times that year including in August 1963 at the March on Washington.
Dylan’s performance at the folk festival came a couple months after he caused major controversy on The Ed Sullivan Show. In a May 1963 appearance on the program, Dylan walked out after CBS told the singer that “Talkin’ John Birch Paranoid Blues” was libelous to the John Birch Society. Dylan was less than thrilled with the censorship and refused to appear.
The Smiths Hang Out After Signing Their First Record Deal
The Smiths formed in 1982 after guitarist Johnny Marr decided he wanted to start a new band and showed up on Morrissey’s doorstep to ask if he’d be the singer. Eventually, after rehearsing in Marr’s attic bedroom for a couple of months, they performed for the very first time at The Ritz in Manchester.
Shortly after recording some demos in the winter of 1982, the group approached EMI but was rejected. During a visit to London, Morrissey handed a cassette to A&R Geoff Travis, and he signed the band to Rough Trade Records. The rest is history and the band went on to be dubbed one of the most influential bands of all time by NME.
The Edge Poses With A Snowman In 1980
U2 rose to fame quickly after signing to Island Records and releasing their debut album Boy in October 1980. The debut peaked at No. 52 in the UK and No. 63 in the US, but it was still a far cry from the success of their follow-up album War which produced the single “Sunday Bloody Sunday.”
In this photo, the Edge (also known as David Howell Evans) poses by a snowman. He has yet to see the worldwide success of The Joshua Tree and remains a budding rock star at the very start of his decades-long career.
Courtney Love Hanging Out With Drew Barrymore In 1990
Courtney Love launched her project Hole at the end of 1988 after teaching herself how to play guitar. By the time 1990 rolled around, she was opening for bands like Sonic Youth. In the late ’80s, Love was hardly a rock star. She was working at strip clubs while saving up to buy backline equipment and a touring van. Her rehearsal space was lent to her by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and she didn’t yet have a whole lot to show for her work.
It wasn’t until 1990, the same year she snapped this photo with wild child Drew Barrymore, that Love released Hole’s first single.
Jimi Hendrix Noodles On His Flying V In 1968
The year 1968 saw the end of the Jimi Hendrix Experience. The artist released his third and final studio album Electric Ladyland which reached No. 1 in the U.S. His final album was his most commercially successful and was at the absolute height of his career. Rolling Stone dubbed him Performer of the Year, Melody Maker voted him Pop Musician of the Year and Guitar Player hailed him the Rock Guitarist of the Year.
In this snap, Hendrix practices a riff on his famous Gibson Flying V guitar, just two years before his tragic passing.
