D’arcy Wretzky playing in various Smashing Pumpkins’ shows during 1991-1994
Babes, bonnie butler brown
From Bob Dylan to Prince, from Lipps, Inc of “Funkytown” fame to the Suburbs, Suicide Commandos, the Replacements, Husker Du, Babes in Toyland, Semisonic, Soul Asylum, the Jayhawks, and so many more, Minnesota has been home to legions of musicians and bands, many of national and international renown. Since the 1960s, the Twin Cities has nurtured vital and influential musical scenes with periodic flashes that sent sparks across the country—and sometimes around the world. The local scene has taken some cues from national and international acts, and Minnesota musicians also have influenced other performers far and wide. Major stars as well as up-and-coming new groups from outside Minnesota have performed in the Twin Towns’s many small clubs—the legendary Longhorn, Rifle Sport, First Avenue and 7th Street Entry, Turf Club—in theaters from the Guthrie to the Orpheum, in arenas at Roy Wilkins, Target, and Xcel, and even in the old Metropolitan Stadium. The Twin Cities, here dubbed “Musicapolis,” has been a crossroads for music, bringing the local and the global together. Like such other cities as Memphis and Seattle, the Twin Cities enjoys a reputation as one of the country’s creative music centers outside of New York and Los Angeles.
Not so well known are the photographers who have documented these musical events over several decades. Musicapolis: Scene and Seen 1965-2005 will rectify this oversight by presenting the first major show of Minnesota’s photography of its rock and roll history at Minnesota Center for Photography in summer 2005. Over 200 photographs by eighteen photographers will offer a visual history of our musical talents, experiences, obsessions, and heroes. Famous musicians and equally beloved though less famous performers alike will be featured.
Musicapolis photographers range from those in the music scene who used their photography skills to document friends or favorite groups to those who made it their profession, selling work to newspapers, music publications, and record companies. From small stages to large, these photographers have grappled with the often impossible challenge of trying to capture the magic moments of a concert. They’ve shot in near darkness without a flash. They’ve been bumped and jostled by fans, frustrated by frenetic or hostile performers—all in search of that one shot that reveals the heart of a performer and the essence of live musical experiences.
Musicapolis focuses most on photography of concert performances, exploring the intersections of photography and live music. Yet portraiture and other off-stage photography are also included as an important aspect of how the visual art form is intertwined with musical forms. The work of many Minnesota photographers has been used for album and CD covers or sleeves and many will be featured in this exhibition.
Highlights of Musicapolis include photographs of The Beatles in their 1965 appearance in the Twin Cities taken by Bill Carlson; Bob Dylan “going electric” in photographs by Daniel Kramer of the recording session for Bringing it All Back Home and one of his first electrified concerts, held in Forest Hills, New York in 1965. (It will be the 40th anniversary of these events when Musicapolis is on view in summer 2005.) Other photographs feature the very young James Taylor, Jackson Browne, and Bonnie Raitt at the Guthrie Theater in the early 1970s by Tom Berthiaume; Prince’s first studio shots for his first three albums by Allen Beaulieu; Greg Helgeson’s photo of Sting at the Longhorn Bar in 1980; James Brown at the Cabooze in the 1970s; Bob Marley at the State Theatre in the 1970s; The Replacements at the 7th Street Entry; Curtiss A’s Halloween show in the late 70s; Tony Nelson’s documentation of Semisonic’s recording session for their hit “Closing Time”; Bonnie Butler Brown’s photos of Soul Asylum; images documenting the emerging hip hop scene in the Twin Cities by Yvette Griffea-Gray; and many more.
Taylor Swift ain’t got nothing on Gwen Stefani until she writes a full album about a break up and then forces the guy to play bass on every song and then tour with her
While she finds a new man, who happens to be a sexy Brit with his own band…
Anonymous
