Judas Priest 82-83 World Vengeance Tour T-Shirt

file under: you had to be there

rare & original Judas Priest World Vengeance Tour t-shirt
year: 1982-83
tag: mens deluxe
material: 100% cotton
condition: excellent vintage
value: $300
note: extremely difficult to find this particular '82-'83 world tour t-shirt in plain black short sleeves as most of Priest's early 80's tour shirts were printed on raglan jerseys. the art for the album and subsequent tour is one of the most recognizable and iconic images of this classic metal era.

back print

Doug Johnson's iconic 1982 Screaming for Vengeance album artwork

the band early 80's

Cheap Trick

file under: forever part of rock history

rare and original Cheap Trick World Tour t-shirt
year: 1980-81
tag: Hanes
material: 100% cotton
condition: excellent vintage
value: $300
note: condition is amazing for being over 30 years old. size is XL with minimal shrinkage so it can still be worn in 2012. most of the early 100% cotton rock tees from this period are too small and are only good as collector pieces. i like to wear the tees in my collection which adds a degree of difficulty in finding these pieces. front graphic is one of the best from the era. One of all-time my favorites. 

back print

the band in 1977

70's Coors Bikini Girl

file under: iconic

rare original Coors promotional t-shirt
year: circa 1975-77
tag: too faded to read
material: 100% cotton
condition: excellent vintage
value: $175
note: picked from a bundle a while back from my favorite dealer. have not seen another one like so far. i remember in the 70's when the back print was actually preferable. now a days not so much. best vintage Coors tee in my collection hands down.

Keith Richards drinks Coors on stage in the mid-70's

Paul Newman drinks Coors at the race track in the 70's

Boston U.S. Tour

extremely rare & original 1978 Boston U.S. Tour parking lot bootleg
year: 1978
tag: random unknown paki 
material: 100% cotton
condition: excellent vintage
value: $450
note: acquired recently from a collector in Seattle Washington. Boston recorded some of the most popular and heavily played tracks of all time in the late 70's. the authorized t-shirts from this tour are rare in collector circles (see original post here) but for some reason these parking lot bootlegs are beyond rare. i've only seen this tee one other time. probably because these funky and poorly constructed bootlegs would basically become ruined after just one run through the washer and dryer, shrinking and warping to unwearable proportions and quickly being discarded or consigned to being wash rags by their owners. somehow this XL has remained intact for over 34 years and can still be rocked!

back print w/band member names

the band on tour in 1978

1978 "Don't Look Back" album cover

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God Save the Queen

rare Sex Pistols - God Save the Queen bootleg 
year: ????
tag: long gone
material: 100% cotton
condition: thrashed (or perfect as I like to call it)
value: $300
note: no provenance on this one. but judging by the holes, stains and overall condition it has seen a lot of action. now in my collection. a big thank you to all it's previous owners.

 right before the end

happier days

Maiden 87

file under: back-in-the-day

original hard-to-find Iron Maiden World Tour tee
year: 1987
tag: Springford
material: 50/50 cotton-polyester 
condition: perfect vintage
value: $300
note: one of hardest to find designs from the 1987 "Somewhere On Tour" world tour. the back graphic is as wicked as the front making this one of my favorites. acquired from collector this year even though I actually saw Maiden on this tour. as usual all my money back in those days was spent on beer.

front print

back print

proof

More Primo!

Sweet picking at my local thrift store today

rare original Primo Beer Hawaiian shirt
year: mid-70's
tag: Hawaiian Holiday Sportswear
material: 100% cotton
condition: like new
value: $150
note: what a score! this has been on my "want" list for at least 2 years. was flipping through the endless rack of second-hand, worthless Gap and Old Navy garbage when the bright colors caught the corner of  my eye a few feet away. could hardly believe it. just hanging there like the day it was new over 30 years ago. stoked!