In Pete Smith's own wprds, " It was mid sixties London. I was a young art student and part time roady with Alexis Korner when his friend John Mayall asked, “Pete, you’ve got a camera, come and shoot our record sleeve”. The Album was “Crusade”; my first job as a music photographer. A few months later I worked with John again. This time on “Bare Wires”.
My passion for music and photography lead to a string of album and touring assignments. Through the following decades I shot dozens of album covers many of which I also designed and art directed. Some of the earlier ones are still to be seen as reissues on CD and vinyl. I was born and educated in Norfolk. After a short spell at art school in Norwich I found a place studying painting and print making at The City and Guilds School of Art in Kennington, London. By the mid 60s camera and darkroom replaced pencil and paints, record sleeves become the canvas, music festivals my domain.
An overland journey to India in the early 1970s led to an exhibition at The Photographers Gallery London. Music and then theatre remained the core input to my photography and portraiture. Film was added through a long association with The NFT covering The Guardian Lectures, events and film festivals. The 90s saw a resurgence of my music photography; stage sets of The Stones during the Steele Wheels tour, and The Wall in Berlin.
The National Portrait Gallery have acquired a few of my pictures. My portrait of Angus McBean accompanied the recent retrospective of that photographer at The NPG. From the start of my photographic career I was encouraged and inspired by my friend and photographic mentor Lewis Morley, creator of the iconic Christine Keeler/Chair photograph.
I heard The Rolling Stones were doing a gig at the Roundhouse. I didn’t have ticket or pass. Waving my camera I blagged my way in
The Jimi Hendrix Experience performing at the Woburn Music Festival in July 1968
Cream onstage at the Windsor Jazz & Blues Festival in the Summer, 1967
Florence Welch performing onstage at the Latitude Festival in July 2010
Frank Zappa captured in a hotel in Sussex in June 1970, holding the artwork for the latest Mothers of Invention album
I heard The Rolling Stones were doing a gig at the Roundhouse. I didn’t have ticket or pass. Waving my camera I blagged my way in
I heard The Rolling Stones were doing a gig at the Roundhouse. I didn’t have ticket or pass. Waving my camera I blagged my way in
Jarvis Cocker performing one of his signature moves with Pulp on The Park Stage during the 2011 Glastonbury Festival
Exclusive David Bowie print specially created by The Postman for Rockarchive, based on a photograph taken by Dave Hogan at Live Aid in 1985
U2 on top of a hotel roof in Cork, Ireland on a cold February morning in 1980
Oasis was an English rock music band formed in Manchester in 1991, to date the band has sold over 70 million records worldwide.
Blondie is a American rock band founded by Debbie Harry & Chris Stein that pioneered the New York new wave & punk scenes of the 1970s.
Amy Winehouse was an English singer and songwriter known for her deep expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres.
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band who were in the vanguard of the British music Invasion that became popular in the US in 1964–65.
Here are the very latest prints we have added to our collection. We hope you love them as much as we do.
Album covers can define a band almost as much as the music itself. Now you can put this great art on your wall as well as your turntable
Artist Morgan Howell's paintings of record sleeves have become cult classics. We are delighted to introduce a range of his affordable prints
During his 30 year career Jake Chessum has shot defining images of musicians such as Amy Winehouse, Jay Z, The Beastie Boys & David Bowie.
