Vintage 1977 KISS T-Shirt

file under: classic

super rare original KISS glitter iron-on t-shirt
year: 1977
tag: no company name visible
material: 100% cotton
size: large
condition: perfect vintage
value: $300
note: I've had this piece in my collection for sometime now and honestly can't remember where or how I acquired it. If my memory serves me...I got this off eBay years ago before "vintage" became so popular and you could actually find great vintage t-shirts for affordable prices. ~ This particular t-shirt in my estimate is actually very rare because I don't think too many kids were able to convince mom and dad to write a check for $12.99 and send it in to the fan club address with your order form. It's a glitter iron-on that has really held up over the years. It was basically "dead-stock" or "new old stock" if you like when i first got it, consequently the glitter iron-on is perfectly intact. it was never worn and sat untouched for 37 years! i have worn it many times and hand-washed it probably 2-3 times. thinking about it now i kinda wished i hadn't and just kept it dead-stock like it was when it first arrived in my mailbox many years ago. O' well live and learn. a collector's piece like this is always worth way more if it's in mint, never used condition. ~ In 1977 KISS were at the peak of their success and had become a world-wide phenomenon! Scroll down a bit for some killer images of that crazy, awesome period in time when KISS ruled the world! 

In the streets of New York 1977

1977's "Love Gun" album cover art  

Early days backstage circa 1975

Onstage during 1977's "Love Gun" tour

Early promo shot outtake circa 1975

Vintage 70's Hawaiian Tourist T-Shirt

file under: the 70's my favorite era

rare and hard to find original "Hawaii" tourist t-shirt
year: 1974
tag: "Crazy Shirts"
material: 100% cotton
condition: somewhat thrashed but nice distress
value: $150
*notes: just like if you were to take a typical "tourist" vacation in Hawaii today where you'd find an over abundance of "Tourist" souvenirs...back in the 70's the t-shirt seemed to be the souvenir of choice. Oddly enough it is actually quite difficult to find one that dates this far back that is in what I call "wearable" condition. This one happens to be an XL so despite it's hundreds of runs through the washer and dryer over the last 40 years it remains wearable. As I've mentioned in many previous posts the 100% cotton t-shirts shrank like crazy over the course of 4 decades rendering them mostly show pieces or one for the ladies. The screen printing job is really excellent which seems to be par for the course back then especially with "Crazy Shirts" who were responsible for printing a significant portion of these t-shirts back in the 70's. I love this era! It's probably my favorite because I was a surfer/skater kid growing up reading Surfer and Skateboarder magazine back in 1974. It's a nice  addition to my collection and I was able to pick it up from my favorite dealer a month or so back for only a few bucks which makes the find all the more sweet!

Beautiful 70's screen printing by Crazy Shirts

Not too many 40 year old cool vintage t-shirts floating around these days

Nice, colorful almost psychedelic artwork by Maier in 1974

Gerry Lopez at Pipeline in the 70's. An iconic image synonymous with this era

One fin was enough back in the day

The chosen mode of transportation in the 70's. Still looks good today!

Vintage 1979 The Cars "Candy-O" Drive America Tour T-Shirt

file under: holy grail of vintage rock tees

beyond rare original The Cars tour t-shirt
year: 1979
tag: Hanes
material: 100% cotton
condition: perfect natural distress from 34 years of wear
value: $750

Notes: This is another from my private collection that is so incredibly rare I've yet to see another for sale. The Cars were truly one of my favorite bands back in the day. I'll never forget that day in the summer of '79 when I walked into my local record store, Sound Spectrum in Laguna Beach and saw the now famous cover for Candy-O album cover painted by Alberto Vargas. As a young teenager in Southern California just getting turned onto "punk" and "new wave" in 1979 The Cars were "It"! The Candy-O album from start to finish was and is to this day a masterpiece of recorded vinyl. They were the whole package much like The Ramones. The look, the songs, the riffs and the hooks. 

This t-shirt design is the very first version used for the "Drive America" tour in support of the Candy-O album release. This version was also printed just prior to the band becoming a multi-platinum selling group. So in comparison to their 1982 tour shirt (which I also have in my collection) which was printed in the thousands, this earlier version was likely only printed in a run of 500 and after nearly 35 years, of those original 500 I'm sure more than 75% simply no longer exist (ripped to shreds, thrown out, used as rags, etc.) leaving only like maybe a little over 100 of these in existence, if even that. I feel very lucky to have this piece in my collection not only for it's rarity but even more so for the personal affinity I have for the band, that album and the summer of 1979. 

The Candy-O album cover with now iconic Vargas artwork

Great shot of the band in 1979 without Elektra's commercial polish

The 1979 Cars Publicity still from Elektra

The Cars taped live at Bremen Radio Studios in Germany 1979

Original Punk Rock Vinyl Records (1st Pressing) 7"

file under: when punk was really punk

*click on image to enlarge

A small sampling of ultra rare all original 1st pressing 7" vinyl records of the earliest days of punk rock from my personal collection.

Top row: 
999 - "Homicide" 1978 United Artists Records Ltd.
Black Flag - "Six Pack 1981 SST Records
Go-Go's - Go-Go's 1980 Stiff Records *(not even listed on Wikipedia)

Middle row:
The Clash - "Complete Control" 1977 CBS Records
Sex Pistols - "God Save the Queen" 1977 Virgin Records
X - "White Girl" 1980 Slash Records

Bottom row:
Dead Kennedys - "Holiday in Cambodia" 1980 IRS Records
Sex Pistols - "Anarchy in the U.K." 1977 Gutterbest Limited *(unauthorized pressing)
The Damned - "The Damned" (Date unknown) Scatter Brain Child Records *(Bootleg)

Vintage 1970's Superior Beer Promo T-Shirt

file under: iconic 70's

super rare original 1970's Superior Beer promotional t-shirt
year: circa 1974-75
tag: too faded to read
material: 100% cotton
condition: excellent vintage
value: $300
notes: Another favorite from my collection. I grabbed it this year at the "Inspiration" show, an annual International Vintage Expo held in Long Beach, California. I'm always searching for items from this time period in the mid 70's when skateboarding was exploding, Gerry Lopez was the Pipe Master in Hawaii and Led Zeppelin ruled the world. A time when getting stoned and having long hair was the norm, especially in California. This Superior Beer t-shirt is such an awesome example of that era. The colors and graphics are just amazing. Hard to imagine there was actually a time when almost every kid I knew had a least one beer t-shirt and wearing it to school was no big deal and I'm talking elementary school. It was a different time that's for sure. Enjoy!

Dog Town Z-Boy

The mighty Zeppelin

Mr. Pipeline - Gerry Lopez

Vintage 1977 Ski Colorado T-Shirt

file under: iconic

rare original Ski Colorado t-shirt
year: 1977
tag: unreadable
material: 50/50 cotton-polyester
condition: excellent vintage
value: $200
note: this one has been in my collection for at the last five years. i don't even remember where i got it. in excellent condition. no holes or stains. for a 35 year old t-shirt that's pretty hard to come by these days. this image and ones similar to it have been reproduced many times over but this is the original. i haven't seen another like it so it's fair to say "rare" is an appropriate term to tag it with. Enjoy!

Brigitte Bardot 70's

the popular "Daffy" freestyle move 

original 70's Vail travel agency poster

Vintage 1978 Rolling Stones Tour T-Shirt

file under: classic

super rare and original Rolling Stones "Some Girls" tour t-shirt
year: 1978
tag: unreadable
material: 100% cotton
condition: well loved
value: $500
note: acquired earlier this summer from the original owner who attended the July 6, 1978 "Some Girls" concert at the Masonic Hall in Detroit, MI. looks just like a beat up Rolling Stones vintage t-shirt from 1978 should look. worn hard with a few holes here and there but still much loved . nice, iconic addition to my collection.

on stage 1978

bootleg cover of the Detroit concert

Mick and Keith - Day On The Green Oakland Coliseum CA 1978

Vintage 1978 Foreigner World Tour T-Shirt

file under: classic rock

rare and original Foreigner World Tour t-shirt
year: 1978
tag: screen stars
material: 100% cotton
condition: excellent vintage
value: $200
note: acquired earlier this year from the original owner. condition is excellent. more than likely sat in a dresser drawer for over 30 years. as popular as Foreigner was back in the day for some reason this tee is really hard to find. size is XL so it can be worn which is always a criteria for my collection. i've spent too much money over the years buying vintage tees that don't fit and they just end up sitting on the shelf.

the band in the late 70's

one of their best "Dirty White Boy

1973 Vintage Lite Beer Promo T-Shirt

file under: iconic

rare and original Lite Beer promotional t-shirt
year: 1973
tag: too faded to read
material: 50/50 cotton-polyester 
condition: distressed
value: $300
*note: there was a time back in the 70's when all major beer labels produced promotional t-shirts like this with the iconic flower motif. this piece dates back to the original launch of Lite Beer by Miller in 1973. Most likely handed out at bars for a very limited time. a rare t-shirt for sure.

popular Lite Beer TV ad screen capture

Vintage 1970's Primo Beer Hawaii T-Shirt

file under: favorite era

ultra rare and original Primo Beer Hawaii t-shirt
year: circa 1974
tag: Hanes
material: 100% cotton
condition: faded and distressed
value: $400
note: acquired earlier this year from the original owner who was going to throw it out when she found it in her storage that hadn't seen the light of day for over 30 years. thankfully it's now a part of my collection until the day it's passed onto the next collector. Aloha!

   

Ellis Applebaum's graphics. 

Pipeline North Shore 1976

Vintage 1974 Little Feat Tour T-Shirt

file under: 70's L.A. boogie

uber rare & original Little Feat Tour t-shirt
year: 1974
tag: too faded to read
material: 50/50 cotton-polyester
condition: perfectly distressed vintage 
value: $500
note: acquired several years ago at a second-hand clothing store for a couple bucks. another case of store staff not knowing what they had. this tee is ridiculously rare and almost 40 years old. Little Feat were a Los Angeles based blues-boogie band formed out of several myths revolving around Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention. Whatever the truth is about how the band started their musical legacy is significant although somewhat underrated. besides that it's just a really cool 70's vintage rock tee which are becoming more difficult to find with each passing year.

the band in 1974

back print - supporting act on the tour Fuller/Kaz Band

1974 Little Feat - Feats Don't Fail Me Now album cover