News, shoes and hullabaloos! A brief round-up of what’s happening and coming up in Shindigworld… BILL MUMY
Do you remember the ’60s sci-fi classic Lost In Space? Of course, you do. And that odd little boy? PHIL SUGGITT tracks him down to see what’s new.
ALAN ALDRIDGE – THE MAN WITH KALEIDOSCOPE EYES
When considering the art of the ’60s psychedelic movement the names that come to mind are most likely to be Nigel Weymouth, Michael English and Martin Sharp, whose distinctive and fantastical op-art nouveau adorned the concert posters and album sleeves of bands such as Cream, Donovan and Pink Floyd. It’s therefore surprising to realise that by far the most successful and influential artist of the period (and beyond) was Alan Aldridge, who not only provided the feast of images for The Beatles Illustrated Lyrics but also produced artwork for the likes of The Who’s Sell Out and Elton John’s Captain Fantastic And The Dirt Brown Cowboy. Wading further out into the mainstream, his most celebrated work, the lavish illustrated poem The Butterfly Ball, also became one of the most well known children’s books of the ’70s, inspiring two recorded albums. It’s hardly surprising then that The Design Museum invited Alan to exhibit his work at their building – hidden away in the back streets of London alongside Tower Bridge. Shindig! was invited to the opening and initial impressions evoked the colourful and explosive Tropicalia exhibition at the Barbican a few years back. Large surreal exhibits dominate smaller displays with everything as multi-hued and wildly psychedelic as you could possibly hope to imagine. The airbrushed multi-dimensional paintings are pop art in a typical ’70s style and the main part of the exhibition is dedicated to Alan’s work in magazines, books and on album covers. Another whole section is devoted to The Butterfly Ball book with huge insects
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arranged in room, that’s akin to walking into a giant green foil Christmas decoration from 1974. The latter part of the exhibition features more recent creations and includes a modern take on his ’60s psychedelic mini – which is parked near the exit, and an engrossing animated video collage that brings together snippets of his canon to create an “Alan Aldridge Lightshow”. An excited Julian Cope seemed to be enjoying immensely the surreal images and it was gratifying to see the emperor of “punk psychedelia” paying homage to a past master.
Concurrently with the exhibition
(which ends 25th of January 2009) Thames& Hudson have issued a wonderful book The Man With Kaleidoscope Eyes which features many of the exhibits and also a riveting commentary by Alan Aldridge who reveals a fascinating rock’n’roll lifestyle resplendent with Oliver Reed drinking anecdotes, amongst other humorous episodes. Other Aldridge related memorabilia to hit the shelves included are a re-print of the famous Butterfly Ball book. Perfect for adults and children alike, as well as a limitedCDreissue of the original companion album (not the Roger Glover release). With music recorded by Rod Edwards and Roger Hand (Piccadilly Line/Edwards Hand) this recording of the poem from ’76 features Judi Dench and Michael Hordern as well as original music very much in the style of Edwards and Hand’s earlier work. It’s exclusively available at
www.wizardspresents.co.uk in a miniature gatefold card sleeve. Richard Allen
It is difficult to achieve success in any one creative field, and even harder to make your mark in several. Bill Mumy however, is the kind of guy who can. As a child actor he was Will Robinson in the fondly remembered ’60s science fiction series Lost In Space. As an adult he has made numerous appearances in films and TV shows, notably Babylon 5. He is also a regular “voice actor” for ads and cartoons, and the author of a successful children’s’ animated TV series. A long time comic fan, he has produced scripts for Marvel characters like Spider Man and The Hulk although amazingly he still makes the time to write, play and produce and record music; recently releasing his eighth album, Circular (Global Recording,
www.gragroup.com). He has played and written songs with the band America for two decades, although his own tunes aren’t stylistically similar. Bill also leaves his comic book and science fiction influences at home when making music. Circular is melodic, slightly rootsy mid-tempo guitar pop, his strength being the unassuming folkier tunes that sneak up on you after several plays.
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