The Stones In The Park
by Richard Havers

Frock-rock starts here

Trivia question: When were The Rolling Stones first called “the greatest rock’n’roll band in the world?” The answer, as Richard Havers points out in this fine celebration of the group, was at Hyde Park on 5 July 1969, and the compère in question was 26-year-old Sam Cutler from Blackhill.

This is new information but the story of The Stones In The Park and its surrounding events, including drug busts, The Rock’n’Roll Circus, Brian Jones’ death, new boy Mick Taylor’s recruitment, Altamont and the filming of Ned Kelly, is well-known. Havers’ text is primarily employed as accompaniment to the wonderful photographs – often previously unpublished – from the Daily Mirror archives.

In this book, the Mirror seems celebrates the Stones but, at the time, they pictured Jagger alongside the shockhorror headline, “Where Did He Get That Frock?” Maybe their news team should have commented on the wisdom of using Hell’s Angels for security – something that would have disastrous consequences at Altamont in November. Possibly the UK variant was more benign.

As well as the Stones, there are celebrity photographs (Donovan, Paul McCartney, Marianne Faithfull) but, most intriguing of all, is the picture of performance artists Gilbert & George, smartly suited but with deliberately grubby faces, making their first public appearance as an artistic statement.

4 stars 4 stars 4 stars 4 stars

ISBN 9781844258154, 204 pages

Reviewed by Spencer Leigh
<< Back to Issue 366

You might also like:

Login Here

Free Newsletter


Subscribe to
our email newsletter by emailing:

anna.bowen@
metropolis.co.uk