New this month: 'Return'; a soldier's story, 'God Save The Queen; Art, Squat, Punk', anarchic goings-on in The Netherlands, 'Lloyd Johnson: The Modern Outfitter', a fashion retrospective, materialises in Pimlico, the V&A's extensive 'Postmodernism: Style & Subversion 1970-1990', The Avengers 50th Anniversary Show at The Barbican. Still showing: Andy Warhol retrospective at the De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-on-Sea, Neil Innes' work is celebrated at the NFT with the great man himself in attendance and 'Gurney Slade' returns to confuse another generation of viewers. A rare screening of 'I Start Counting' a tense thriller with Jenny Agutter, Proud Gallery's stunning '20th Century Icons' exhibition, a site-specific showing of Kubrick's notorious film, 'A Clockwork Orange', the reappearance of 'Ritual' by David Pinner, the inspiration behind 'The Wicker Man', 1970's 'Deep End', 'The Day of the Peacock'; Style for Men 1963-1973, 'Or Glory: 21st Century Rockers, a stunning collection of photos by Horst A. Friedrichs. As part of my regular R.A.M. (Random Access Memory) feature, I revisit my own punk past in ‘Punk in Hartlepool’, which was printed in the Mail Hartlepool. You're welcome to take a peek... ...and don't forget to scroll to the bottom to 'Scenester's Incomplete Record'

Scenester’s Incomplete Record

An otherwise dull post-Christmas Saturday afternoon in the King’s Road was considerably enlivened by a visit to Proud Chelsea’s ‘Screen Sirens & Rock Rebels’ exhibition. If the window shot of Twiggy, all 30s bob and downturned mouth doesn’t get you through the door, nothing will. The classic Terry O’Neill archive seems totally at home in Proud’s King’s Road HQ, but he isn’t the only photographer represented here. Shots of Bardot looking tall and imperious contrast with Catherine Deneuve, Grecian haired, gazing at herself in a decorated hand mirror. Audrey Hepurn, demure and with downcast eyes in one shot, is frolicking naked in a pool in stunning colour in another. The basement gallery offers action shots of Jimmy Page in his velvet finery, taking a violin bow to his famous Gibson. The young Rolling Stones, looking moody and dangerous in their college-boy jackets and pinch collars, are a world away from the alien, Aladdin Sane-era David Bowie. Duffy’s contact sheet-like shots show many angles of the outrageously made-up face, with only one possible image for the LP cover-eyes closed, head down, like a votive idol. Would a visit to this exhibition be complete without adoring the Marianne Faithfull ‘pub’ shot? It runs to 22nd January, so hurry!

The appearance of a previously unheard Nick Drake track, nearly forty years after his tragic death, is enough of an event to capture Scenester’s interest, and so it was a trip east across to the Idea Generation gallery in Shoreditch to catch ‘The Strange Face Project’. Michael Burdett had the good fortune to run across a reel to reel tape of a previously unheard version of ‘Cello Song’ and decided to play a CD copy to various people, young and old, famous and not so, to photograph and record their reactions to it. Framed by a set of headphones, each face shows an individual take on the music we can only imagine. Ross Noble’s usual wildly nodding head is lowered pensively as he takes in the track. A Beethoven-like face with a wavy Brahmin’s beard shows knitted brows as he listens; a young black girl shows a surprising, laughter lightened smile at this lugubrious piece. An academic’s hawkish features worry over the tune, and a lady in a heavy coat sits astride a bronze tortoise as she listens. This exhibition runs to 12th February, so get down, leave your details at the desk and you might be lucky enough to be drawn to hear the lost ‘Cello Song’ yourself.

To the Soho Society for an informal exhibition of Derek Ridgers’ rock n roll photos from the late 20th Century. Standouts were the youthful Nick Cave, when he looked less lie Doc Holliday and more like a sulking King Charles Spaniel; Siouxsie Sioux, all short, wavy hair, like a newsreader in the 1980s, but with fearful makeup, screaming into her bulbous microphone; Tom Waits, looking like a sailor on shore leave, lying in wait by a church crypt for Lord knows what purpose; Debbie Harry, slim as a blade, In an off the shoulder dress, just to say hanging on to her svelte frame. Space may be at a premium here, but it’s the content that makes the visit, and in this case, it’s definitely worth it.

Scenester couldn’t make it to the great unveiling the day before, ably covered by ‘Primitive London’ (see link below) but took a stroll down Heddon Street to see the commemorative plaque in honour of the ‘Ziggy Stardust’ LP cover shot that did so much to enhance, amplify on, and even divert from the music within. On seeing the modest little disk high on the wall, I was instantly transported back to the early 1970’s, a time when heavy rock bands in evil-smelling denim and starry creatures in lurex and rhinestones roamed the earth. The great and the good have been remembered in this way for years, but an LP sleeve? A first, surely? Visitors to this site should note that it is no longer an anonymous back street, but a smart mews, packed with swanky restaurants who will not appreciate your ‘I Luv David’ graffiti, so leave the magic marker at home. I saved myself a hundred or so sovs by taking dinner in Soho instead.

A meandering walk through Soho led Scenester to Simon Barker’s ‘Punk’s Dead’ exhibition, at the Soho Society’s Ingestre Place premises, a sort of Old Curiosity Shop of popular British culture. Barker’s tie-in book contains vivid and revealing ‘family snap’ type colour pictures of such luminaries as Poly Styrene, Siouxsie Sioux, Billy Idol and Adam Ant from the late, great 70’s, all in their punk finery. Adam, in leather and make up, plays a stereotyped rent boy, and clearly did not find himself until the Dandy Highwayman look took hold, but Siouxsie seemed to be born fully formed, here applying her demonic makeup in lurid red and black. The statuesque Jordan, face painted like a Mondrian, gaunt cheeked and a long, elegant nose, looks like a blade in human form. Standing staring at these pre-digital images, it did not feel to me like thirty-five years since these images were captured.

Remembering a Hendrix exhibition at the Snap Gallery in the Piccadilly Arcade some 18 months ago, I was delighted to run across a retrospective of Gered Mankowitz in this same gallery on an otherwise wet and dreary Saturday afternoon. Housing a special collection of photos from all parts of his illustrious career, this will be of interest to all who love great pop music. The shots of the Rolling Stones at the peak of their powers never fail to fascinate. They look, variously, bored, uncomfortable, moody or aloof. Jagger, pictured with Keith Richards look like two sides of a coin, though possibly not the same coin. Jagger, sitting on the edge of an open car boot, as if awaiting his own kidnapping, is an interesting take on the successful pop star shot, possibly pre-figuring his abduction in the final scene of Performance?

Stunning shots of Marianne Faithfull command your attention, partly because of her fragile beauty, partly her vulnerability and the troubles she was living through. The immortal ‘pub’ shot is here, which would have made the trip worthwhile on its own for me. A humorous shot of her with Mick, headphones over her hippy hat, add a moment of levity.

The ‘garret’ shot of Richard Thompson, with Linda pictured on the wall, is a true standout, Linda’s stark beauty shines out in what is otherwise a grim scenario, with a possible hint of the divorce to come. The Doctors of Madness ‘cliffhanger’ shot is another striking image from the 70’s, of a band curiously and wrongly ignored.

The young, apparently gilded Kim Wilde glances over her toned shoulder at us from the safe distance of the 80’s, whilst Wah! Provide a moment of humour, with their cop/suspect interrogation scene. Grab your A-Z of London and get down there.

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