Philip Kamin – Not Your Average Rock Photographer

Philip Kamin, one of the world’s leading rock photographers, entered the music scene like so many of his peers, because of his passion for the music. It is with this passion that he amassed the largest single fully copyrighted collection of its kind. 

Unlike most of his peers, Kamin kept most of his collection from the public and copyrighted the images. Some of these he provided to the stars he toured with, others went into 35 music titles his publishing company produced. But thousands of amazing rock and roll images stayed archived in his personal collection. 

Kamin picked up his first camera decades ago and his natural talent was readily evident, and in short landed him the coveted gig as tour photographer for the band Genesis. His artistry met instant success, and Kamin became one of the most in-demand music photographers on the United Kingdom’s rock ‘n’ roll circuit. 

Jim Morrison

Over the years, Kamin also has worked with Paul McCartney and Wings, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Bob Dylan, Phil Collins, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel, Yes, Mick Jagger, The Clash, AC/DC, Rush, Queen, King Crimson, Van Halen, Motorhead, Roxy Music, Bill Bruford, Black Sabbath, The Cars, Madonna and John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd’s Blues Brothers, but who's name dropping here? 

There are over 100 auction lots featuring original classic rock negatives and slides, including 1964 Yardbirds with Eric Clapton, 1965 Yardbirds with Jeff Beck and a stunning 1965 Rolling Stones in Paris. Equally impressive are never before seen images of The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie, Genesis, Grateful Dead, Boston and Dire Straits, just to name a few. "Kamin's photographs are collectively rare and unique glimpses of days past. It is truly an honor to represent such an amazing collection of photographs, negatives and slides which capture a front row view of rock and roll history," says Jacques van Gool, founder and president of Backstage Auctions.

Jimi Hendrix

But there’s more to the “wow” factor of these iconic images that sets them apart. They’ve never been sold to newspapers, magazines or photo agencies, and both the photos and their original rights have remained in Kamin’s possession for decades. Kamin only sold his photographs to the bands he toured with, the band’s manager, their public relations firms, record companies, or the band’s merchandisers. As a result, these photographs and their original rights have remained in Kamin’s possession for decades. “I have had a lot of time to enjoy these images and I want to make sure they end up in the hands of individuals who will cherish them as much as I have,” said Kamin. “Bringing them to avid collectors seems to make the most sense.”

Kamin's collection, which will be featured in the Rock 'n Pop Summer Auction at Backstage Auctions, is being offered with both images and copyrights. The real value of the images is priceless. Whether purchased as art or an investment – the potential is enormous.

Yardbirds - Jeff Beck

The Rock 'n Pop Summer 2011 auction goes live on June 4^th and will run for one week, coming to a close on June 12^th. To receive your VIP All Access Pass for the auction please register at www.backstageauctions.com.

Philip Kamin:  is one of the world's leading rock photographers .Philip has also published over 90 books, including 40 in music, plus novels, non fiction, trade paperbacks and coffee table books in a variety of subjects.

DVD Review: Eric Clapton "The 1960s Review"

DVD Review: Eric Clapton "The 1960s Review" 
Sexy Intellectual
All Access Review:  B-

The deification of Eric Clapton didn’t happen overnight. Hours and hours of obsessively studying the blues – at the expense of everything else - as a merely mortal teenager gave him an encyclopedic knowledge of the subject. Just about every note the greats ever put to record, Clapton could replicate.

Building off that self-taught education, Clapton grew increasingly more fluid as a guitarist and his phrasing was so authentic and so uniquely brilliant at the same time that a discipleship was forming, even as he toiled in relative obscurity with acts like The Roosters, his first band, and then the sort of goofy Casey Jones & the Engineers, an outfit that, according to a new Clapton documentary titled “The 1960s Review,” used to jump on a trampoline on stage.

It wasn’t long before “Clapton is God” graffiti could be found on industrial ruins and railroad overpasses everywhere. And “The 1960s Review” explains, in great detail, how Clapton became divine. Long-winded and lacking any real excitement, with the exception of some rare and classic live performance footage, although much of it isn’t exactly fresh or new –that familiar clip of Cream playing “Strange Brew” that everyone has seen a thousand times is rolled out once again – “The 1960s Review” does just what the title indicates. It traces Clapton’s activities throughout the decade, following his work with bands like The Yardbirds, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Cream and Blind Faith and detailing how and why Clapton joined and then left each of them.

Deeply analytical and following a linear timeline, “The 1960s Review” looks at the ‘60s British blues boom and explains Clapton’s role in igniting it. It’s an impressive historical accounting of Clapton’s most creative era, with plenty of discussion of his growth as a player and how his deep understanding of the blues carried over into his own work. A good deal of attention is paid to how Clapton embraced psychedelia and his time with Cream, while probing interviews with people like Mayall, the Yardbirds’ Chris Dreja and Top Topham, Cream producer Bill Halvorson, Neil Innes and other British ‘60s rock luminaries paint a complex picture of an artist grappling with his duty to blues and his desire for innovation.

Dry and academic, what “The 1960s Review” lacks in cinematic ingenuity and thrilling new footage, it more than makes up for it by telling the Clapton story with vintage interview material from the man himself and newer talks with those who either played with him or closely watched his ascent. There’s a lot to digest in the more than two hours it takes to tell this tale, but to those wanting to drink in everything they can about Clapton and his messianic drive to stay true to his belief in the blues and become the kind of guitarist Robert Johnson would admire, this film is treasure trove of information and insight.

- Peter Lindblad

Eric Clapton Fan Club Magazine: Click Here (great site)

Search the Backstage Auctions Store for Eric Clapton memorabilia.

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