Johnny Cash, Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks, 4/24/1968, Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco; 11" x 14" this is the version featuring a bearded cowboy on a carousel, turquoise, yellow, and green; VG/VG-; no pinholes but some paper age and a couple of light creases, decent overall, asking $75.
Steve Miller Band, James & Bobby Purify, Sons of Champlin, 4/26-28/1968, Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco; for illustration, see The Art of Rock, pl. 2.168. 1 very nice NM copy, $130; another copy almost as nice, with minor tape removal marks on reverse (do not show through). $110. (*)
Thelonious Monk, Dr. John the Night Tripper, The Charlatans, 5/3-5/1968, Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco, great 11 x 14 image by Rick Shubb, in the Lee Conklin style with a black background, center image with grotesque characters in blue, yellow, two shades of green, and black. For illustration, see The Art of Rock, pl. 2.167. Three copies available; copy #1 & 2VG+ with minor storage wrinkles, $85; copy #3 has more prominent condition issues; 4 staple pulls, fairly prominent but fortunately there does not appear to be any missing paper, plus some tape pulls on the reverse, and a diagonal corner crease in the lower LH corner, in the black outside of the image. Could be cleaned up if desired, otherwise a decent filler copy, $65. (*)
"Firedance" version 2 poster, Charlatans, Steve Miller Band, Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks, originally included Jefferson Airplane, 6/12/68, Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco; classic Kelley/Mouse poster with sea monster in the center and silver-gray Mouse lettering against a black background; size approx. 17" x 28.5". A great poster! Originally the gig was set to include the Airplane and was slated for May 8 but it was rescheduled for June 12 w/o the Airplane, so the version 2 poster was overprinted in dull silver with the new date and the Airplane blocked out (but you can still read the name easily on the poster). As far as I know, the version 1 poster exists only on uncut sheets, although it would certainly be possible to trim one down to create version 1 posters and cards, but I have personally never seen this done. In any case, every poster collector who's a fan of Kelley & Mouse should have a copy of this one. This copy is VG+ overall, very clean. It has a few minor storage wrinkles and 2 margin tears, approx 3/4", which appear on the reverse side to have been repaired. All in all it is a nice copy and should please any collector. Asking $600.
Tuesday Night Jam, circa 6/68, Carousel Ballroom, San Francisco; odd, highly psychedelic airbrushed image by Stanley Mouse wherein a very weird psychedelic pig with an orange polka- dot yellow blue tie graces the label of a fuzzy jar ("Jam") with a blue & gray background. Nice copy, very solid VG+., close to NM but has little «" bends in a couple of the corners from poor storage. Asking $180 for this one. Also have a second copy that grades at the lower end of VG+ with multiple pinholes or staple holes in corners and other minor age; colors good and overall appearance is decent. $127.50. (*)
Neon Rose #1(2), Junior Wells, 12/25/66-1/8/67, Matrix, SF; classic image by Victor Moscoso, with brilliant orange background and op-art lettering in bright blue with reverse-image photo of Junior Wells in bright psychedelic green. One of Moscoso's finest early images. First printings of this one are not easy to find and have gotten quite expensive; offered here is a gorgeous NM second printing (with the small white margin dot per Eric King), asking $225.
Neon Rose #B-2 (also known as Neon Rose #21), Poster Show, beginning 10/2/1967, Nieman-Marcus Exhibition Hall, Dallas, TX, oversize show poster, approx 22" x 28"; artwork by Victor Moscoso, purple background with yin/yang globe in the center (like the moon) and flat landscape at the bottom, all in pink, orange & green op-art colors typical of Moscoso's work. Not a rare poster but an attractive item for fans of Moscoso's work. 3 copies available, mostly in the NM- range with very minor storage age, $50. (*)
Human Be-In, 1/14/1967, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco; ORIGINAL RICK GRIFFIN version for this important early event that featured all the SF rock bands and poets; again, this is the original printing with the wide top and bottom margins. VG+ overall; a rather nice copy of this important poster, with minor noticeable wear but still very presentable. Asking $2,300. Copies of this poster have sold at auction for several times this amount, so if you have been looking for a nice copy to grace your collection, this is your chance.
Country Joe & the Fish, Steve Miller Blues Band, S.F. Mime Troupe, 2/19/67, California Hall, S.F., Port Chicago Vigil Benefit poster by Stanley Mouse, classic early Mouse style in contrasting red and blue with shadow image of nude woman in center and border with peace signs, scroll lettering, etc. Not a particularly well known poster and not illustrated in AOR, but a necessity for any collector of vintage Stanley Mouse posters; first copy I have had in quite a few years. For illustration, see click here. PERSONALLY SIGNED BY STANLEY MOUSE with large pencilled signature; a nice copy all the way around, condition NM-; clean and no pinholes $425.
T-Bone Walker, Sr. & Jr., "battle of the blues," Hembra Helena (exotic dancers), 12/28/1961, Navy City Elks Club, Vallejo; classic boxing style poster dark blue on white cardboard poster stock, very cool photo of T-Bone Walker playing his guitar behind his head, while doing the splits, labeled a "Dance and loor Show (typo on the "F"). Printed by Horwinski Printing Co, Oakland. (This is a 100+ year old company that still exists and apparently is beginning to reissue some of its older stuff, but this clearly is an original poster the age to the cardboard alone would be almost impossible to fake.) It also is a 2-sided poster, with a gig for a local club in San Pablo, CA featuring local acts on the other side. Condition is really nice for an old boxing poster. No pinholes or significant dings or folds; as noted the corners have the browning that typcially occurs on old boxing posters, and slight overall cardboard age to the whole poster. The reverse has a couple of tape scuffs or pulls, but who cares given the condition of the T-Bone Walker side. This may well be the only surviving copy of this poster if you have seen another, please let me know it is a great old vintage boxing poster for one of the legends of the blues. Formerly on hold, but buyer wasn't able to complete the transaction, now available to everyone once again. Asking $2,500. This is really an auction-type item.
The Mystery Trend, the Great Society, 1/23/1966, Gate Theatre, Sausalito; approx 11.5" x 15" "tweener" size poster; B & W on thin paper stock with photo of both bands including Grace Slick and very simple typeset lettering. For illustration, see the The Art of Rock, pl. 2.301. This is an important early poster and one of the earliest photos of Grace Slick on any concert poster, many months before she joined the Jefferson Airplane. This is a rather rare poster; the copy offered here is my former collection copy, 40 years later...it has a good overall appearance; some folds that show on the back but are not a big deal, and I had two torn 1" diagonals in the upper corners repaired. Looks really good now. Asking $550 for it or a trade for a similar item of comparable value.
"Super Ball," 4/3/1968, Winterland, San Francisco, celebration of Radio KMPX first birthday; no bands are listed on poster but performers supposedly were the Grateful Dead, Mother Earth, Youngbloods, and the Electric Flag; must've been quite a show! Poster by San Andreas Fault, yellow background with red and pink images and photo of what looks like a couple making love; bottom half is typical SAF lettering. Decent poster, not well known as a Dead poster because no bands listed; looks like the 5 in the $5.00 ticket price in the lower corner was overletterd by hand to 3; all of those I've seen have been similarly relettered. Nice NM/NM $225.
Country Joe & the Fish, 1966, poster for the third pressing of their self-produced EP record; design by Tom Weller with dark yellow image of gramaphone and slate blue lettering on white stock. For illustration, see the The Art of Rock, pl. 2.287. I have always been a fan of this particular image. While not super-rare, it is nevertheless an attractive early East Bay item. This copy would be NM but for a tape pull at the bopttom that exends about 3/4" into the image. Still a nice poster, $135.
Sparrow, Wildflower, Living Children, Immediate Family, 2/10/67, Leamington Hotel, Oakland, CA; tongue in cheek caption"Psychedelic Happenings Are Here, The New World Has Hit Oakland," colorful image by Stanley Mouse with center collage of an old-timey band and orange-red to yellow split fountain background; classic early Mouse style; for illustration, see the The Art of Rock, pl. 2.261. Although never regarded as a rare poster, it is becoming more difficult to find. This copy is VG/VG+; tack holes in margin in each corner; tack hole in center upper margin with minor tack tear; tape pulls on the back that don't show through; overall appearance still pretty good; asking $160.
Charles Lloyd Quartet, Big Brother & the Holding Co., The Wildflower, 4/23/67, California Hall, SF; attractive poster from the Ramlala/Green Joynt Project series; yellow background with black and red accents; very psychedelic; for illustration, see the The Art of Rock, pl. 2.151. This one is a bit harder to find than some others in the series, beautiful NM/NM- copy, $225.
Moby Grape, American Dream, New Tweedy Brothers, Lee Michaels, 11/4/1966(? could be either 66 or 67 based on the bands, but it has the look of a late- 66 item to me), California Hall, San Francisco; sorta looks like a vintage Family Dog poster, but uglier green background, pink center photos of a guru; upside down and topside up, crude psychedelic style lettering. Not particularly attractive, but does have that vintage early psychedelic look. VG+/VG copy, corner staple holes and general age, decent condition overall, my former collection copy, $175.
Blue Cheer, The Other Half, The Wildflower, 10/20-21/66, Western Front, San Francisco; approx. 14.25 x 22.5"; red and blue image on white stock by Jack Hatfield; typical style of this artist with angular line lettering; this poster was semi-common at one time; harder to find now, nice NM copy, asking $160.
Charlatans, Frumious Bandersnatch, AAA; 10/27-28/1966, Western Front Dance Academy, San Francisco; Mouse;s "Fat Lady" poster with the image of what looks like a fat midget lady in silver-gray and black and classic early Mouse psychedelic lettering around the border. For illustration, see The Art of Rock, pl. 2.200; this is the version on off-white stock, the more common of the two; in the old days the version on brick red stock was often thought to be the printing but I have no clear picture of the printing history of this poster, or whether Bindweed simply printed it on two different stocks from the get-go. In any case, this is a beautiful NM copy PERSONALLY SIGNED IN PENCIL BY STANLEY MOUSE, $275.
Traffic, Quicksilver, Crumbs, 3/29-30/1968, Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles (Pinnacle Productions); 18.5" x 25" multicolor poster by John Van Hammersveld, a classic. For illustration, see The Art of Rock, pl. 3.67. Some of the Pinnacle posters were printed multiple times but I am informed that this one was printed only once. Nice VG+ overall, minor paper age and a small scuff mark at top center; nice overall. $175.
Canned Heat, "Pogo" (early incarnation of Poco), Ace of Cup, 4/10/1968, UCSB, Santa Barbara, California, approximately 17.5" x 23" on thin off-white/light beige stock, featuring Albrecht Durer engraving of Jesus with medieval-style lettering on right listing gigs, and typeset lettering below; for illustration of the image, click here. Uncommon poster; shows some age and edge wrinkling but decent overall. Only the second of these I have come across, asking $175.
Howlin' Wolf, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Jesse Fuller, John Fahey, Sam Hinton, Mirch Greenhill, Congress of Wonders, Andrews Sisters, Joan Baez, lots of other folk artists, 6/4- 7/1968, University of California, Berkeley; Berkeley Folk Music Festival; approximately 12.25" 20"; black and red typeset lettering in horizontal format on cardboard stock with yellow background; almost qualifies as a "boxing poster." Collage photos of the performers to the left and right sides of the lettering. NM, beautiful condition; $275 each.
Love, P. J. Proby, Moby Grape, Young Giants, Carousels, 5/19-20/67 (I think...could be possibly '66), Winterland, S.F.; 13.5" x 19"; primarily orange and green and a little bit of yellow with weird image of woman sort of like a woodblock cut print. Psychedelic but a bit crude. VG+; no pinholes; minor hard to see tape residue in upper corners. Very nice NM copy, $100.
Quicksilver, Big Brother & the Holding Co. (Post-Janis), Clover, Yogi Phlegm (Sons of Champlin), 11/24/1971, Marin Vetetrans Aud., San Rafael, CA; Marin Open House benefit; large 18" x 28" poster; black and blue-gray with typeset lettering and well-executed cartoon drawing of hippie types standing around doing hippie-type things. Nice vintage Marin County benefit poster, $160.
Quicksilver Messenger Service, Youngbloods, H.P Lovecraft, 6/28-29/1968, Sound Factory, Sacramento, grand opening poster for this short-lived but interesting venue; black background with round gear-like circles in magenta and light green, containing the show info. Somewhat crude and not particularly well printed, this poster is nevertheless the first in the series and is somewhat harder to find than most of the other ones. This copy, my former collection copy, is pretty tattered with a lot of edge wrinkles and tears, general storage wear and the like; colors are strong; VG- at best overall, but not easy to find, and will fill a hole for collectors who run this series. Asking $135.
Chambers Brothers, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Sons of Champlin, Creedence Clearwater Revival; 7/28/1968, Frost Amphitheater, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA; fabulous lineup for this "Stanford Summer Rock Concert"; standard-sized poster with a bright green background and the center line-drawing image of a dove on the wing with a flower in its mouth; fairly nice poster, not well known. Two copies available; copy #1 is basically NM/NM-, $140; copy #2 is VG+, no pinholes but light rippling at the bottom; light water stain on reverse but almost invisible on front, $75.00. (*)
The Swingin' Deacons, 8/16/1961, American Legion Hall, Mill Valley, CA, 11" x 13.5" poster with crude orange-red block lettering on white card stock. Incredibly rare and historic item since the Swingin' Deacons were one of the earliest bands of legendary guitarist John Cipollina. I was fortunate enough to get a few copies of these posters many years ago and am now putting one on my list. Conditions VG+, with general age, asking $500 or a good trade.
The Swingin' Deacons, 8/23/1961, American Legion Hall, Mill Valley, CA, 11" x 13.5" poster with crude black lettering on pink card stock. See description above. I think this is my last extra copy of this one, condition VG, OK but some wrinkles and age in the paper; amazing this exists at all! Would prefer a trade for this one since it is probably my last extra copy but I might be talked out of it if the price is right...
The Swingin' Deacons, 8/30/1961, American Legion Hall, Mill Valley, CA, 11" x 13.5" poster with crude blue block lettering on light yellow card stock. Incredibly rare and historic item since the Swingin' Deacons were one of the earliest bands of legendary guitarist John Cipollina. I have 2 copies of this available at this time; one is basically NM-/VG+; the other is more or less VG+ with a little foxing in the margins. Asking $500 each for these, earliest buyer gets the best copy. (*)
Quicksilver Messenger Service, Eric Burdon & War, Moby Grape, John Lee Hooker, Michael McClure's "Beard," Richard Pryor, others, 5/13-23/1971, Brooks Hall (Civic Center Plaza Underground), San Francisco; approx 14.5" x 22.5"; "Arts & Industry" show; fairly odd design that is a take off on a late 1800s-early 1900 announcement for a fair or exhibition with an odd collage of vintage characters mixed in with a few things (like a jet plane and an atom) that clearly don't belong there. Band names in small lettering in a "playbill" in the lower left hand part of the image. An odd poster all the way around, VG+; minor staple holes in corners and a hint of age, $175.
The Youngbloods, 12/4/1971, Berkeley Community Theater, nice 14" x 20" poster for one of my favorite bands ever; high contrast photo of the band against a blue dot matrix background with typeset gig lettering; a bit commercial but nice example of a poster for the later years of this band when they did some of their best stuff, "Hippie from Olema" and so on. Strong VG+; corner staple holes, otherwise clean. $75.00.
Country Joe, Stoneground, Sylvester, The Pointer Sisters, "Boogie for Hallinan," 6/4/1972 (see comments regarding date of show), Longshoreman's Hall, San Francisco; large 18" x 29" color poster by Victor Moscoso with green background, blue, yellow, and orange center with images of flowers, hippie women, scales of justice and Vincent Hallinan; fairly typical Moscoso art. The event was a benefit to raise money to elect famed radical San Francisco attorney Hallinan to be a superior court judge. There is some question as to the date of the event various internet sources list it as 1967 but that is not possible as the bands in question did not exist as such that early on. The date supports either 1972 or 1978 (both election years), at which point all the artists listed were active. I have attempted to research this by finding out when Hallinan ran for judge but although there is lots of information on him on the internet, I couldn't find anything on this campaign. The style of the poster and the general nature of the event support 1972, plus I was in the Bay Area by 1978 (and was collecting posters at that time) and do not recall such an event in that year. Therefore I believe that the most likely date is 6/4/72. This poster is encountered now and then but isn't all that common and I haven't seen one in many years. Condition is VG+ overall, a few minor scuffs and such but no pinholes and clean overall. Asking $250.
P.H. Phactor Jugband, 7/15-24/66, Cedar Alley Coffee House, North Beach, San Francisco; early coffee house poster; nice 13" x 20.5" poster with brown lettering on goldenrod stock, nice lettering and cross-hatched drawing of leaves and flowers in the back; very minor pinholes, strong VG+ $25.00.
"Guru" Newspaper/Calendar, 10/1/1967, Continental Ballroom, Santa Clara; newspaper- format sheet published by the Continental with information on the upcoming shows, article on the Grateful Dead bust, interesting ads and the like. Originally contained posters for the upcoming Grateful Dead and Seeds shows. A small stash of these turned up awhile back. This is my last extra copy of the newsletter (posters not included), very cool and unique, $75.
The Seeds, Kid Afrika, The Flowers, 10/21/1967, Continental Ballroom, Santa Clara; 10.75" x 14.75"; red and blue on thin white paper with background image of some indigineous-type dude with hair that looks like rope, and outline of marijuana plant in blue foreground. Art by Cannon, who did many or the other Continental posters. Cool poster, not illustrated in AOR (I think) but should have been. These posters were originally included in a newspaper-like sheet issued by the Continental (see above) and a small stash of these papers was discovered awhile back, with the posters inside intactI have 2 copies of this left, both VG+; no pinholes but minor storage age, asking $375 each. (*)
Incredible String Band, Doug Kershaw, Joy of Cooking, 11/13-14/69, Pepperland, San Rafael, CA; low contrast blue & green background with night scene and yellow moon and lettering. VG/VG+ copy, a bit of overall light wear and general age, decent copy of this poster, $45. (*)
Leon Russell, Captain Beefheart, Clover, 11/27-28/70, Pepperland, San Rafael, CA; 9.5 x 17.5" B & W poster on thin paper with great image of Leon Russell against a starry sky...VG+ copy; 1/2" diagonal; wrinkle in upper RH corner that has resulted in slight loss of ink at that spot; faint water spot in background by Leon's face; otherwise clean, $75.
Youngbloods, Sea Train, John Fahey, 1/22-23/70; Cold Blood, Boz Scaggs, Stoneground, 1/28-30/70, Pepperland, San Rafael, CA; attractive double sized poster by Mark Behrens, center collage of arctic scene with polar bear and a large gemstone; blue-gray background with a brown/brick red image and lettering. Attractive and somewhat hard to find; VG+ overall, no pinholes but a bit of storage wrinkling and one small 1/8" margin tear (out of the image) so I can't really grade it NM-; still a nice copy overall, $150.
It's A Beautiful Day, Odetta, Victoria, 3/19-20/1971, Pepperland, San Rafael, CA; light blue and dark pink on light pink stock with Disney-like caricatures of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves; nice VG+ condition with just a little overall age, $60 good price.
Yogi Phlegm (formerly the Sons of Champlin), Cottonmouth, Grimey Devine, 11/6-7/71, Solano County Fairgrounds, Vallejo; 10 x 15 B & W poster hand lettering, image of mountains in background with birds; fairly nondescript but an unusual Sons poster; first I've seen. Nice NM copy $75.
Freudian Slips, New Tweedy Bros, 10/7-8/67, the Ark, Sausalito, CA; nice early Bob Masse image. Approx 16" 21.5; red and green on yellow stock with art-nouveau/psychedelic lettering and swirling design; nice, attractive image; this copy is VG- with some white tape pulls on the yellow background; still a nice image, $75.
Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks, Asleep at the Wheel, 3/16/1973, San Jose Fox Theater, 11" x 16" on fairly thin poster stock; center photo of the band, typeset lettering against purple to blue split fountain background; 2 NM copies, $27.50 each. (*)
Country Joe McDonald, Tom Rush, 2/17/1971, Zellerbach Auditorium, U.C. Berkeley, Berkeley, CA; 14" x 19.5" green typeset lettering on thin white paper with B & W photos of the performers; not especially artistic but OK; 3 copies all grading NM-/VG+; $25 each (*)
"Benefit for the Do It Now Foundation" with Earth Fire, Good Clean Fun, Sons of the Sons (possibly Sons of Champlin related?...I honestly have no idea..I've been told probably not), Sideminders, 4/7/1971, Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, Santa Cruz, CA. Size approx. 17" x 22", printed on very thin, fragile paper; interesting green and black image with 3 chimpanzees in the "see no evil, speak no evil, hear no evil" pose; nice psychedelic lettering, art by David Singer, nice but different from his usual style; for illustration of the image, click here, and for additional illustrations showing some of the condition defects, clickhere and here and here here. This is only the second copy of this poster I have seen, PERSONALLY SIGNED BY DAVID SINGER (see the illustrations). Because the paper is so thin, it has some defects including a small missing piece in the LH margin outside the image, a stain along the top margin, a couple of minor edge tears (no missing paper other than as previously mentioned), and some light general paper age. Again, see the illustrations. A very interesting, unusual David Singer poster, asking $250.
Hoghead Cheese, California Republic, lights by Holy Magma; 4/5/??, Oroville Auditorium; well, here's a totally obscure poster; approx. 17" x 22.5"; crude black line artwork with a pink background on thin white stock; crudely drawn faces, swirly lines, looks like a high school student's doodling of something; I have never heard of either of these bands or seen them on any other posters, so this must have been extremely local, no way to tell the year for certain but the artwork definitely has a late 1960s feel; this qualifies as the oddest poster I've seen in awhile; have 3 NM copies of this one, $40 each. (*)
Grateful Dead, "Roll Over and Play Live"; circa 1970, tour blank promotional poster with space at bottom for specific show info; size approx. 15.5" x 29.5", B & W on thin paper; background has a black & gray overhead photo of the Dead playing on an outdoor stage in the middle of a street; the photo is probably from the famous Haight Street show which I think was 68(?). The top says "The Grateful Dead Roll Over and Play Live" and the side has mini-photos of all their LPs to date, including "their latest, Live Dead." Over the years, I have seen a couple of these filled in for gigs, but most of them are blank at the bottom, as is this one. This poster turns up now and and then but is not particularly common; have a nice NM- or so copy, offered here for $225.00.
Pigpen and Janis Joplin, large head shop poster produced in 1972 but featuring a 1967- vintage color photo of Pigpen and Janis standing in front of what looks to be a San Francisco hippie pad, with Pigpen's hand firmly squeezing Janis' breast, both of them smiling. Great photo obviously taken during the short time when they were an item. The poster has a damaged area in the vicinity of Pigpen's pants sort of like a scuff mark, and various other creasing and age marks in the thin paper. Overall the defects are noticeable but not particularly distracting; hard photo poster to find now, asking $60.00.
Canned Heat, plus others" 6/12/1969, Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim (Orange County), CA; this is an odd item; approximately 5.75 x 14.5", silkscreened on very thick poster board, dayglo orange background with blue block capital letters. This is about the size of a bumper sticker but most likely is a news rack poster or bus poster or something of that sort. The date verifies as accurate; supposedly the "plus others" were Kaleidoscope and possibly Steve Miller. A truly odd, unusual item; I have 3 of them available from an old stash, NM, asking $37.50 each for them. (*)
Charlie Musselwhite, 7/1/69; Earl Hooker & Sam Lay, 7/3-4/69; Magic Sam, 7/8-10/69: Earl Hooker, 7/11-12/69, The Log Cabin, Bayshore Blvd, San Francisco; "tweener" size 10" x 14" small poster, black hand-lettered on yellow cream stock. Not particularly artistic, but historic in that it features a rather amazing lineup of blues artists, some of whom, like Hooker and Magic Sam, died before their time. Scarce. Condition VG+; no pinholes but has a red stain mark in the upper corner; apparently a waterstain that carried over a small amount of color from another poster. Still a great item with this lineup; $195.
"Free Concert," Bags N' Train, 4-way Stop, Arm & Hammer, Project Soul, Benevolent Society, Shade of Id, Wynd, Bitterstone Blues Band, 7/4/70 (I'm guessing here, could also be 69 or 71, but I'm guessing 1970 because that's a Saturday), Carquinez Heights Park, Vallejo; July 4 free concert; this has got to be one of the most obscure local band lineups I have ever heard of; I don't recognize a single group on this list! However, the poster is very cool; 14" x 22" with nice Rick Griffin-inspired lettering and a center patriotic stars and bars shield copied from Griffin's FD #69. For illustration of this neat image, click here. Overall condition VG/VG+ with pinholes and typical wear; very neat item for someone who delights in obscure posters; there can't be very many of these around. Asking $175.00.
Berkeley Jazz Symposium featuring Michael White Quartet, Barbara Davis sings Ma Rainey, Inter-Galactic Music Family, Morris Atcheson Unit, 7/9-10/71, Newman Hall, Berkeley; 11 x 17 B & W poster on thin stock, with white typeset lettering over B & W photo of Michael White. VG+; clean with a hint of overall age. $40.
Blue Gravy with Nick Gravenites, Count Talent (Mike Bloomfield), 1/19/73, The Village (Columbus Ave.) , San Francisco; 8.5" x 14", black on yellow card stock; nice design by local artist Gilbert Johnson with drawing of woman holding some kind of alchemist's sign, NM copy $17; obscure Mike Bloomfield item. For illustration of the image, click here.
Elvin Bishop Band, Clover (early HUEY LEWIS), 3/31/73, Humboldt State College Gym, Arcata, CA, 11 x 14 black on goldenrod stock; nice drawn lettering, no art. two horizontal folds (possibly machine folded for distribution), otherwise clean, no pinholes. $15; nice early Huey Lewis-related item.
Elvin Bishop, Sons of Champlin, 11/23/1974, Exposition Hall, Solano County Fairgrounds, Vallejo, CA, approx. 16" 22.5" on cardboard stock, green typeset lettering in the generaal shape of a 5-dollar bill, with center photo of Elvin Bishop playing guitar; for illustration, click here. An obscure but interesting item; I have 2 copies, NM-/VG+, $75 eacch; may have to be shipped flat because of the thick cardboard. (*)
Calendar Poster for March, 1976, Longbranch Saloon, Berkeley; CA, listing numerous popular club acts of the day including Greg Kihn & the Rubinoos, Eddie Money, Little Roger & the Goosebumps, Jerry Miller Band (Ex-Moby Grape), Country Porn, The Shakers, Les Dudek, Earth Quake, Stoneground, others; sounds like some great shows here; 11 x 17 tweener size that I will list as a poster rather than a handbill, black on pale yellow thin paper stock; hand lettered calendar format, art uninspiring but a great lineup of mid-70s Bay Area club bands, NM $32.
Sons of Champlin, Mike Bloomfield with Nick Gravenites, Roger Troy & Co., 4/5/75, College of Marin Gym, Marin County, CA; 11 x 17 black typeset lettering on thin blue stock; no art; local marin show; VG; no pinholds, but has a horiz. fold and some wrinkles, $12.50.
Mose Allison, Holly Near, 11/20-25/??, Ashgrove, Los Angeles, CA. Not sure on the year here it was a Thanksgiving week show and according to internet sources the Ashgrove closed down due to fire on 11/1//1973, so it is 1972 at the latest. This is a 17.5" x 23" poster withy slate blue lettering on thin orange paper stock; all typeface lettering but nice overall appearance with old-style ornate fonts, says "Happy Thanksgiving." This is the only full size poster I've ever seen for this famous L.A. jazz/folk/blues club, though there may well be others. Poster is in excellent condition, would grade it NM-, no pinholes, couple of slight wrinkles but overall very very clean. $75.
"Looking for Your Long Lost Mind Review," 5/19-20/75 (I think...could be a year or so on either side), Stanley Mouse airbrush poster, B & W with heart in the center airbrushed over a Milky Way background and letters that look like skywriting. Interesting idea, but the B & W printing sort of takes the punch out of the image. NM $15 (*)
3d Annual Santa Cruz Poetry Festival, featuring KEN KESEY, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, my old perfesser Kenneth Rexroth, Diane DiPrima, Paul Krassner, Jerry Rubin, Ali Akhbar Khan, Charles Lloyd Quartet, and a number of others, 11/20-21/1969, Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium; 13" x 20" black on dull silver background, with an image of a bird's head in the center and drawings of the sun and moon in the corners. There aren't very many vintage Kesey posters, and this one is not very well known, only the third copy I have seen over the years. Very nice condition, basically a solid NM-; asking $250 for this piece of history.
Santana, Bad Company, 8/2/1974, Robertson Gym, University of California, Santa Barbara, approx. 15" x 23.5"; B & W poster, standard Pacific Presentations line border around the edge, with photo of Santana and their logo lettering in the center, and the rest of the info typeset at the bottom. Nice typical example of Pacific Presentations poster style, VG+; corner pinholes, otherwise clean $175.
Fleetwood Mac, Little Feat, 11/27/1974, Robertson Gym, University of California, Santa Barbara; 11.5" x 22.5"; dark slate blue on white; typical Pacific Presentations logo and design with typeset lettering and a nice photo of Fleetwood Mac in the post-Peter Green and pre-Stevie Nicks period; their most obscure time but personally my favorite period when they made some of their best, least commercial music. And Little Feat too! Nice poster, VG+ with very minor corner pinholes; otherwise clean, $ 225.00.
Alice Stuart, 1975 calendar poster, 15" x 22" poster on thin paper featuring photo of this S.F. blues singer with her name across the top and a 1975 calendar across the bottom; 3 copies NM/NM- $10 each. (*)
Stoneground, 1972, promotional poster for "Stoneground 3" album on Warner Brothers label; 18" x 36" on thin paper, art by Randy Tuten and D. Bread, nice full color portrait style paintings of the group members, art deco lettering, reminiscent of a 1920s-1930s movie poster, machine folded in 6 parts for record store distribution, very nice NM condition, hard to find poster for this local San Francisco Band, $25.
Stoneground, circa 1975-76, large 23" x 23" poster for the "Flat Out" LP with grey background and great pink and black lettering and rendering of fancy 1930s-vintage car by Randy Tuten. Attractive vintage automotive theme. Probably a record store promo poster, color on thin paper, NM- $25.00.
Kingfish, 1975, double album slick for the excellent 1975 LP featuring Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir, with the Philip Garris "Poseidon" logo used on the album cover. This is an original record slick, front and back on a single piece of thin glossy paper, nice item. NM-/VG+, clean and unused but a slight bit of margin creasing due to the thin paper--really a very attractive item. Asking $25.
Harry the Hipster, date unknown but definitely belongs with the '60's stuff-- generic tour poster for this Beat-Hip guy who was famous, more or less, for his rendition "Who Put the Benzedrine in Mrs. Miller's Ovaltine" Orange cardboard stock with graphics imitative of old n "Wanted" poster with photo of Harry looking pretty out of it. Space at side for location of gig to be filled in. Several copies available, NM $18 each; includes $3 extra shipping charge since this can't be sent rolled. Beyond cool, beyond anything...confuse your friends and enemies alike. Like a dead cat, this poster is truly a gift beyond price. (*)
Levi Strauss & Company, 12/10/1966, San Francisco; commemorative poster for the retirement of 16 employees, with artwork by the late Wes Wilson. This poster is a large 16.5" x 24" size and is done in the typical style of his Fillmore posters of the period, with classic lettering and a male face at the top, with swirling images all around it, done in pale blue, turquoise medium blue, light and dark gray, black, and silver. This is one of Wes' nicest posters (in my opinion) and is probably also HIS RAREST POSTER FROM THE FILLMORE PERIOD. Presumably the printing was very limited and it was probably given to Levi Strauss employees who attended the retirement event. It was originally illustrated in Art Eureka back in 1968 but I do not recall it being illustrated since. This poster is basically impossible to find. I bought my collection copy directly from Wes at least 20 years ago, and my recollection is that it was his last copy and I paid him a LOT for it even back them. This copy has a few minor condition issues; colors are strong and bright but there are a couple of minor but visible scuff spots in the image, possibly old tape pulls. Other than that the overall condition is quite nice. Asking $950 for this one. Unbelievably, I also have acquired a SECOND copy of this super rare poster, basically similar condition and same price. (*)
Grateful Dead, "Wake of the Flood" promotional poster, circa 1973; 17" x 23" poster by Rick Griffin showing the image of a crow holding a copy of the "Wake of the Flood" LP, with the caption "All New Stuff." These were given away in record stores as a promotional item to publicize release of the LP (I got my first copy in a record store in San Francisco). Supposedly there are 2 versions of this poster, one which has a T. Lautrec printer credit at the bottom, and a second version which is blank at the bottom and supposedly was reprinted by Rick at some point after the first one. I have 2 copies of the version without the printer credit, very nice condition; I will grade them NM- because they show the smallest hint of storage age but are still in great shape. Asking $135 each for them; essential item for Rick Griffin/Grateful Dead collectors. (*)
Lee Conklin, Santana, 1970, this is a really cool large format 22" x 32.5" version of Lee Conklin's most famous image, the Santana lion image that graced the Fillmore 134 poster and later became the iconic cover of Santana's first album. This oversize version apparently was released in 1970, officially licensed by Columbia Records (Santana's label) and presumably was either sold in head shops or used for promotional purposes. I obtained a small roll of these many years ago, and got Lee Conklin to personally sign them at one of the Golden Gate Park poster shows. I have not run across them elsewhere. Overall condition is a solid VG+; they have minor water rippling and a very light stain at the upper RH margin that you have to look carefully to see. I've included 3 illustrations of the front, the reverse, and the signature area of a typical copy; there are minor variations among the individual copies. Printed on flat stock. These are very cool looking and if I had room I'd frame one and put it up in my own house. 2 copies available, $200 each. (*)
Santana, 1970, B & W 24" x 36" promotional poster with photo of the band as they were at the time of the release of the "Abraxas" LP in 1970. These posters were folded in 12" squares (2 x 3) and included in the original releases of Abraxas and most of them probably got pinned up on walls and bulletin boards back in the day, so they're a lot harder to find than the actual album. I recently dug out a nice copy from my closet, clean as the day it was folded for the album and never posted or used; kept in an album sleeve all this time. Asking $20; nice item for the Santana fan who wants to add it to their copy of Abraxas to have a complete copy of the album as of the day it was issued.
Quicksilver, promotional poster for the "Quicksilver" LP, released 1971; 17" x 21" poster on thin paper with an oversize color; I have 4 of these available, all from an old roll, clean and no pinholes, some have a bit of corner wrinkling from storage, others little or none. Early birds get the best copies, asking $35 each (*)
National Music and Hi Fi Expo 72, 10/6-8/1972, Cow Palace, San Francisco, featuiring Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Ray Price, Donna Fargo, Lamb, Aazteca, Charlie Mingus, Joe Williams; flyer advertising this expo/trade fair, this is an UNCUT SHEET OF FOUR handbills, each about 7" x 9" give or take, printed 4-up on a 16" 22" sheet of paper; lettering by Randy Tuten, red background with dark yellow panel and typical lettering in black and red. Small color globe logo in center. This is nice as an uncut sheet, $60.
San Francisco Mime Troupe, Bertolt Brecht's Congress of Whitewashers and Robert Scheer Speaks, circa 1969, tour blank (not filled in), 17 1/16" x 22", nice hazel, black and brown tones / sepia tones colors printed on uncoated stock; has an attractive old-timey appearance; for illustration, click here. Scarce early Mime Troupe poster; 2 copies available, both beautiful NM/NM- condition, $175.00 each. (*)
San Francisco Mime Troupe, "Bertolt Brecht's "The Mother'," 9/2-3/1973, Washington Square, San Francisco; nice color 14" x 20" image of an old woman carrying a flag with some of the show lettering; for image, click here. Condition overall a solid VG+; no pinholes but has some storage wrinkles as it is printed on thin paper. Performance dates are written in sharpie, see illustration. Interesting item; first time I have offered one of these, $65.00.
San Francisco Mime Troupe, "Factwino vs. Armageddonman," circa mid-1980s tour blank with space at bottom to write in a specific gig; pale yellow background with comic blue and red comic image by famous comic artist Spain Rodriguez with image of "Factwino" character facing off against two-headed supervillian; cool and well-done image, nice item for Mime Troupe and Spain Rodriguez fans, NM $50.
San Francicsco Mime Troupe, 1992, "Social Work An Election Year Fantasy," 11" x 17" color poster advertising 30th season of free shows, July 4th to Labor Day, "call for locations," rather crude color illustration of human figure with a dagger and chainsaw, clearly an item for the Mime Troupe completist (if there are any), nice NM condition, $10.
Warren Hinckle, "Free at Last," 1985 (technically, this should go on the Recent Posters page, but I'm putting it here instead....). This is a very rare cardboard newsstand poster, the kind that fits into a newspaper rack to sell papers. Size 13.5" x 21." Hinckle was a well-known left-wing Bay Area political commentator who had lots of trouble with the law over the years. For awhile in the 1980s he had a twice-weekly column in the S.F. Examiner newspaper and this poster was created to help sell newspapers by publicizing the column. What makes this poster particularly interesting is the fact that it contains a great drawing by R. Crumb of Hinckle (and his dog) being dragged away by three beefy S.F. cops, with a drawing of the city in the background. A very well executed Crumb image in the classic style. At the top of the poster in red ink it says "Hinckle. Free at last" and at the bottom, "Tues & Thurs, only in the Examiner." For an image of this neat item, click here. 2 copies, NM-; slight paper age, $175 each. (*)
Hunter S. Thompson, circa 1977-late 1980s (probably earlier in that period), approx. 13.5" x 21" cardbord newsstand rack poster advertising Thompson as "media critic" for the now-defunct San Francisco Examiner newspaper every Monday. Shows classic photo of Thompson with his iconic sunglasses and cigarette holder. For illustration, click here. I am aware of 2 different versions of this poster; very few of which seem to have survived. This one has a small piece missing in the upper RH corner of the poster, mostly in the margins but intruding slightly into the image; would benefit from conservation/restoration. Asking $325.
Proposition 19 (Legalization of Marijuana) November 1972; original poster for the first serious (but unsuccessful) attempt to legalize marijuana here in California. These posters were approx. 17" x 23" and were printed on newspaper stock and so are very fragile and can be aged or torn and in general easily damaged, as well as being very susceptible to age. As a result, very few have survived. The image depicts a yellow sun with orange, yellow, and blue rays and cannabis plants growing up in the foreground, with the text of the law at the top and "VOTE YES ON 19" at the bottom. Very nice graphics. The paper has become somewhat brown over the years and there are staple or tack tears at the top where someone tacked it up back when. With the relatively recent legalization of marijuana in California, this poster has taken on a particularly historic significance. This is the only copy I've ever come across. Asking $200. May have to be shipped flat to avoid damage, which will run a little more in shipping cost.
David Best Ceramics Show, 6/5-7/1/73, University of Santa Clara, poster by Stanley Mouse with parody of Time Magazine Cover featuring photo of UFO in center and caption "Martians Land to See Best Show." Cool item and essential for collectors of Stanley Mouse's work. 3 copies, NM $35 each. (*)
Art Show, Concrete Foundation for the Arts, 10/13/78, Peanut Gallery, San Rafael; poster for the opening of this exhibition; neat full color large, double-sized poster with portraits of all the artists who exhibited at this show, including Kelley, Mouse, Moscoso, Dave Sheridan, Larry Noggle, Pat Ryan, and others; poster was a collaboration by all the exhibiting artists and the portraits are nice; for illustration, see The Art of Rock, pl. 4.280. Nice NM copy, $ 40; good price for this item.
Rick Griffin, "Heart and Torch," poster for the legendary 2007 Griffin exhibit at the Laguna Art Museum (southern California). This poster reproduces the image that was used on the catalog cover for the show, which had a red cover with a faint image of Rick Griffin's face in the back, and some miniature reproductions of some of his most famous images at the bottom; for illustration of the front and back of the poster, click here. This is a large size, approx. 24" x 37"; very high quality printing on thick poster stock. I purchased 3 copies of this poster at the exhibition itself; apparently this large format poster was a very limited edition and sold out quickly. I cannot find any record of sales of this large format poster online anywhere, and suspect that few have come to market over the last 17 years. If anyone has better information on this poster, let me know. For now, I'm putting one copy out and asking $250 for it.
Grateful Dead, circa late 1970s or early 1980s, "Jester" image by Kelley & Mouse, size approx. 22" x 28" with brilliant vibrant colors, for illustration of the front and back of the poster, click here. Apologies for the image reflection; it came in a cheap plexi frame and I left it in there for protection rather than removing it; image doesn't do the colors justice. It has a gold ink signature at the bottom but I think the signatures are reproduced not original (see illustration), but it does have the Mouse Studios official embossed stamp in the lower RH corner. Would look great framed! $125.
Grateful Dead, "Reckoning" LP, promotional poster for the 1981 LP; approx. 24" x 24" on thin stock with nice color art by RICK GRIFFIN, featuring a heart, skull, and crossbones motif in Griffin's unique style. Supposedly this image has been reproduced or bootlegged but these are original promo copies with the Arista logo in the lower LH corner. Nice condition, will grade this a high VG+; no pinholes but a little bit of storage wear due to the thin paper etc.; would look great framed; essential item for any Dead or Griffin collector. 2 copies, $150 each. (*)
Mickey Hart (Grateful Dead), promotional poster for his 1972 "Rolling Thunder" LP, with reproduction of the Kelley/Mouse cover art for the LP, and a listing of the guest artists below, including David Freiberg, Steven Stills John Cipollina, Jerry Garcia, etc. etc. ... all the usual suspects! Size approx. 24" x 36". Great art. These came folded in sixths for distribution to record stores, they have fold lines in the center but otherwise are NM unused; I have about 4 of these; will be sent folded as they came, in an LP record holder. Asking $50 each, very good price. (*)
Victor Moscoso, 4/4/2002, San Francisco Modern Art, poster for side show and presentation by the artist; although this is a later event, I am including it here because it is done in the style of Moscoso's Neon Rose and Avalon posters. Gorgeous very large full color oversize 24" x 36" poster, with lettering in his classic style, center with a young dancing woman in the center and flying birds at top, done in his multicolor style which will create the illusion of movement when viewed under a color wheel/strobe. For illustration of the front and back of the poster, click here and here. Printed on thin paper, machine folded in eighths for mailing distribution; otherwise NM. This is a really nice item for Moscoso fans. Since they came folded (for distribution), I will ship them flat folded in an LP mailer. I have 5 of these, $50 each. (*)
Original Artwork by famous rock and roll/psychedelic artists
Posters--Bill Graham and Miscellaneous Fillmore Auditorium
Posters--Family Dog and Related
Posters--Miscellaneous Non-California (1960's and early '70's)
Posters --More Recent Stuff (late 1970's to the present)
Handbills--Bill Graham and Miscellaneous Fillmore Auditorium
Handbills--Family Dog and Related
Handbills--Miscellaneous California (1960's and early '70's)
Handbills--Miscellaneous Non-California (1960's and early '70's)
