Blue Cheer; Captain Beefheart& His Magic Band; Youngbloods; Glass, Tom; Hillyard, Roger; van Meter, Ben

Original Concert Poster: Blue Cheer, Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band, Youngbloods (July 27-30, 1967)

San Francisco, CA: Family Dog Productions, 1967. First Edition. Single Sheet. A poster (appx. 12&1/2" x 20&7/8") announcing a series of concerts headlined by Blue Cheer, along with Captain Beefheart (b. Don Van Vliet, 1941-2010) & His Magic Band & the Youngbloods, during July 27-30, 1967 at the Avalon Ballroom in San Francisco. The elusive American artist Tom Glass a/k/a Ned Lamont (of whom we could find no information) created the artwork & graphics reproduced here, according to King & other references we have seen, & we cannot find either of his names anywhere on recto, only a partial signature & the year of 1869 at the lower left area of the vintage engraved artwork which was appropriated for this poster (see image). Credited for "Lights" is the "North American Ibis Alchemical Company," a memorably-named incarnation of Roger Hillyard, Ben van Meter & their associates. Hillyard (b. 1942) was highly involved with the exemplary psychedelic light shows of this era, later became the proprietor of a popular coffee shop, & most recently the practicing resident of a Zen Buddhist center- all in San Francisco. Van Meter (b. 1941) was also a major light show producer & experimental filmmaker at this time, & still engages in cutting-edge creativity as of this writing. According to the Talmudic scholarship we have consulted regarding this poster, this copy is a first-&-only printing. King, FD-73-OP-1, pg. 140. King writes: "The central image is an 1869 drawing of a man holding a shield and leaning back against what appears to be a wall. He is wearing what would have been considered exotic or Asiatic attire in the 1860s. He is smiling." (pg. 140) Thus King has entitled this poster "Smiling Hun." We note that the hallucinatory orange text is shown in full at right of image, & partially at left, flanking the "Smiling Hun" & creating a dizzying, riveting effect on the viewer. An interesting, unusual & puzzling (like the Captain & his band?) relic of the high "Summer of Love" in its singularly rarest contemporary form. From the collection of Dion Wright (b. 1937), a venerable artiste & sculptor who was at the center of the scene that produced this & the many other iconic posters that symbolize a legendary time & place (see Wright's memoir, Tempus Fugitive, item No. 5008). In our alert & experienced estimation, this poster is in relatively very fine condition with only mild rubbing, light browning & occasional spotting all-but-exclusively at outer white border outside blue image border; a bit of wear & some tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners (entire recto image appears bright & substantially mint). This item is too delicate to be rolled & must be shipped flat to assure no damage, therefore extra shipping costs will be required. Very Fine. [Item #5866]

Price: $150.00