Big Brother& the Holding Company; Quicksilver Messenger Service; Kelley, Alton; Mouse, Stanley

Original Concert Poster: Big Brother & the Holding Company, Quicksilver Messenger Service ("Zig-Zag," June 24-25, 1966)

San Francisco, CA: Family Dog Productions, 1966. First Edition, Third Printing. Single Sheet. A poster (appx. 13&7/8" x 19&7/8") announcing the "Zig Zag" concert with performances headlined by Big Brother & the Holding Company, along with the Quicksilver Messenger Service, during June 24-25, 1966 at the Avalon Ballroom in San Francisco. The acclaimed American artist Stanley Mouse (b. Stanley George Miller, 1940) created the artwork & graphics reproduced here, in collaboration with Alton Kelley (1940-2008, known as "Kelley"), the iconic American poster & album cover artist, working together for the first time as "Mouse Studios!," & "Poster Design: Mouse! Studios (logo)" in facsimile hand-lettering & illustration is found just below the outer line border of image, under "Lights by/ Bill Ham" (see image). Ham is among the foremost pioneers of the psychedelic light shows so exemplary of these early "acid rock" happenings, & like Mouse is still active as of this writing. According to the Talmudic scholarship we have studied regarding this poster (which is similar in its depth to our underground comix from this period), this copy is a third printing, with "14 (3)" printed at lower right margin, & omission of printer's credit. King, FD-14-RP-3, pg. 56. King writes about this particularly beloved, much-copied poster: "The central image is the Zig--Zag Man cigarette rolling papers product logo along with the Zig Zag product logo lettering. At the time most of the Hippie community smoked marijuana and, of course, used rolling papers to roll their joints (Widespread use of pipes did not begin until a while later.)...almost every Hippie was familiar with the product logo of Zig--Zag Man, and the response in the targeted community to its appropriation for use on a rock concert poster was overwhelmingly favorable. Everyone loved the poster. The other artists said to themselves, "Why didn't I think of that?" It was so obvious, but it took Mouse and Kelley working together for the first time as Mouse Studios! to come up with the idea and bring it to realization." King also notes that "Because of the popularity of this poster most of the copies of the original printing were not only tacked up on telephone polls to advertise the concert but also tacked up on the walls of Hippie crash pads, so most of the existing copies that survive today have substantial damage, tack holes, tape marks and staple holes. Even these damaged copies are very expensive...Even the reprints have become expensive." An especially significant relic of the early psychedelic era that would come to full bloom the next year during the "Summer of Love," in its third-rarest contemporary form before an overwhelming explosion of authorized & pirated copies. From the collection of Dion Wright (b. 1937), a most respected & prolific artiste & sculptor who was at the center of the scene that produced this & the many other exemplary posters that symbolize a legendary time & place. (see Wright's memoir, Tempus Fugitive, Item No. 5008) In our sharp-eyed estimation, this poster is in relatively close-to-very-fine condition (see King's comments above) with very slight rubbing & browning mostly to margins/edges with image mostly very fine; a bit of wear & a few tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners; lower right corner with loss of very slight amount of paper (again see image, if not for this last minor point we would declare this poster to be altogether very fine). Fine. [Item #5147]

Price: $200.00