Thelonious Monk Concert Posters Harlem 1940s Bebop Jazz Legend

Posted on May 14, 2013 by

Today we look at two vintage, original Thelonious Monk window cards from the late 1940s in the Harlem section of New York City.

The first of these Thelonious Monk placards hails from 1948 and lists five other band members which formed Monk’s All-Stars. The other Thelonious Monk boxing-style poster is from 1949 and does away with the All-Stars in favor of “His New Sextet.”

Both of these vintage bebop jazz concert placards are quite worn out and fragile, as often is the case with paper materials so old.

That’s a common denominator about collecting old concert signs, used to sell tickets from over 50 years ago: it’s not often you find them in pristine condition.

You have to get a kick out of the ticket prices on these old jazz show placards: $1.35 and $1.50. You can’t get a bottle of water at today’s shows for that price!

Both of these 14×22-inch cardboard jazz tour placards were designed and manufactured by Prince & Maxwell Displays of New York City. I had never heard of that company before, so it’s probable that they specialized only in printing vintage jazz concert ticket posters, and not necessarily a broader range of music such as R&B.

A small handful of vintage jazz billboards from Harlem recently turned up with Macbeth the Great listed as the opening act.  It’s funny the way he’s referred to in two differing ways on these two vintage jazz window displays, since they’re only one year apart.

Taking a look now at the complete script found on both of these vintage jazz displays, starting with the 1948 one:

The San Juan Hill Assoc. Presents Thelonious Monk – “The High Priest of Bebop” – [and his] All-Stars: Art Blakey, Curley Russell, Idrees Sulieman, Ike Quebec and Danny Quebec.

[Plus] MacBeth “The Great” and his Calypsonians. April 30th, 1948, Friday Night – Golden Gate Ballroom – 142nd St. & Lenox Ave. in New York City. Tickets $1.35, or at the door, $1.50. Reservations: [I will spare you that.)

And then on the green poster, from a year later:

The San Juan Hill Assoc. Presents Thelonious Monk and His New Sextet

And Macbeth “the Great” and his Calypso Serenaders - Saturday Night, October 1st [1949], at the Rockland Palace Ballroom, 155th & 8th Ave.  Tickets $1.50 in Advance [no Door price given]. Reservations: [and once again, I won’t waste your time listing all that.]

Any vintage Thelonious Monk show poster from the pre-rock & roll era is a cool jazz collectable to acquire, because most old jazz broadsides were torn down and tossed out right after the shows.

Both of these scarce, collectible bebop jazz concert placards are enthusiastically discussed by memorabilia collector Pete Howard; hook up with me at either 805-540-0020 or pete@postercentral.com. And please keep in mind that I pay the very best prices for vintage concert window placards by any of musical heroes, in any genre.

To see some other rare jazz boxing–style concert posters (including the big band era), go ahead and bop over to this page right here on my Web site: http://www.postercentral.com/bigbandvocalists.htm

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Beatles 1964 Window Card for Closed-Circuit Concert Broadcast

Posted on May 10, 2013 by

A vintage, authentic Beatles poster advertising a closed-circuit broadcast of the Fab Four’s February 11, 1964 concert in Washington D.C., which was subsequently transmitted to movie theaters across the U.S. on March 14 and 15, 1964.

This vintage Beatles placard is, in fact, a hybrid advertising poster, because it informs the public that the event is both a tape-delayed concert on the big screen (with the Beatles, Beach Boys and Lesley Gore) and a live stage show, too (the Orlons, Tymes and Frankie Lymon, all genuine hit-makers hailing from the Philly / NY area)

The Beatles’ February 11, 1964 Washington D.C. concert is hands-down one of their finest hours, and their first show ever in North America.  However, due to their wild popularity, concert posters never had to be used to sell tickets – the boys sell out everything instantly by word-of-mouth.

So it stands to reason that a genuine Beatles boxing-style concert poster of any design is pretty unusual, which gives this particular poster its unique feeling.

Now, if this was a real Beatles show poster for their Washington, D.C. concert, it would be extremely collectible and worth a lot… but as I said, that poster doesn’t exist (except in bootleg form, of which there are actually many).

As a matter of fact, vintage Beatles tour posters were not really printed up with any sense of normalcy until the Fabs’ 1966 U.S. tour, when they started playing venues so big that they needed to enlist marketing tools to move all the tickets.

Naturally, it would have been nice if this Beatles billboard had photographs of Paul McCartney, George Harrison, John Lennon and Ringo Starr on it, but alas, no picture of the group was used. Not enough room!

All of the text found on this authentic Beatles concert placard, just as it reads from top to bottom:

Jerry Blavat (a local DJ) Presents The BEATLES – Lesley Gore – The Beach Boys – Plus – In Person – The Orlons – The Tymes – Frankie Lymon

Sat. & Sun. March 14 & 15 – Shows at 11:45 (AM) & 2:15 PM – Delaware Valley Garden – Brace & Berlin Roads – Cherry Hill, New Jersey – $2.00 Per Ticket

(And then in smaller print at the bottom) Tickets Available at: Delaware Valley Garden – Pennsauken Mart Record Dept. – Buddy’s Ticket Agency, Hammonton – Calico Kitchen Restaurants, Camden – Airport Circle & Cherry Hill Mall. (And then tiny print in lower right corner) Posters Inc., 835 Cherry St., Philadelphia

Posters Inc. was located right across the river from Cherry Hill, NJ., so it makes perfect sense that they produced this poster.

This old, original Beatles window display was taped and shown here by collector Pete Howard of San Luis Obispo, California (805-540-0020, pete@postercentral.com). As a first-generation Beatles fan and collector, I will pay TOP DOLLAR for any original 1960s Beatles concert poster that I don’t have. I once had three of my original, authentic Beatles English concert posters on display in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum for years, so I’m quite serious and sincere!

To cast your eyes upon a few other original Beatles ticket posters, just head on over to this page right here on my Web site: http://www.postercentral.com/beatles.htm

Posted in **All Posters, *Beatles | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Biggest Show Of Stars Window Card – Teen Idols Avalon, Rydell, etc.

Posted on May 6, 2013 by

An original Biggest Show of Stars concert poster for the 1960 Winter Edition of BSOS from Lansing, MI on Feb. 28, 1960.

Frankie Avalon held down the headline slot on this multi-artist, touring caravan concert poster from the 60’s.

This specific Biggest Show of Stars show placard (1960 Winter Edition) is probably one of my five favorite BSOS posters in the 10-year series, because of its striking colors.

This cardboard boxing-style poster was actually conceived as a “tour blank” that was used for a lot of shows along the tour. Each city’s unique information would be printed up above in the “venue info” area.

This specific Biggest Show of Stars show poster was most likely printed in two different sizes… jumbo, which I show here, and a smaller size.

Here is the exact wording as it reads on this Biggest Show of Stars billboard, from top to bottom:

(Blue lettering at the top): CIVIC CENTER Lansing, Michigan – Sunday February 28 ….. 1 Show – 7:00 P.M. ….. Prices: $2.75 – $2.10 – $1.75 Tax Included – Tickets On Sale: Civic Center Box Office, Paramount News

(Into the colorful portion now): GAC Super Productions Presents – The Biggest Show of Stars for 1960! Winter Edition – Starring Frankie Avalon – “Why”  and “Just Ask Your Heart”

All In Person: Clyde McPhatter “Let’s Try Again,” The Crests “A Year Ago Tonight,” Bobby Rydell “We Got Love,” Freddy Cannon “Way Down Yonder in New Orleans,” Johnny and the Hurricanes “Reveille Rock,” Sammy Turner “Always,” Linda Laurie “All Winter Long,” Isley Bros. “Shout” and The Clovers “Love Potion No. 9”

(And then the bottom row of artists): Dick Caruso. (In big orange starburst): Extra Added Attraction – England’s No. 1 Singing Sensation Cliff Richards; Harold Cromer M.C.  Paul Williams and his Show of Stars Orchestra.  (And in the small white border area): Globe Poster – Baltimore

GAC Super Productions had this Biggest Show of Stars tour poster manufactured in large quantities when the tour was being planned, and then dropped in specific information on perhaps 50-100 posters for each stop along the tour, such as Lansing.

Collectors like to say that a Biggest Show of Stars telephone-pole poster from any year between 1957-65 is a challenge to hunt down, because so many were discarded after the concerts.

Splashy Day-Glo colors of green, orange and yellow make this Biggest Show of Stars placard one of the finest-looking ever produced.  And in a really odd twist, I’ve seen this exact Biggest Show of Stars broadside (Winter ’60) with bright PINK ink instead of the orange!

Not surprisingly, Globe Poster of Baltimore designed and printed this Biggest Show of Stars concert placard, possibly even in late 1959.

This Biggest Show of Stars ticket poster is (video) blogged and discussed by well-known collector Pete Howard (contact me:  pete@postercentral.com or by phone at 805.540.0020). Pete (yes, me) pays the BEST prices anywhere for rare, collectible 1950s and 1960s concert posters, tickets and handbills.

To see a handful of other scarce, collectable multi-artist window displays for some Biggest Show of Stars tours from different years, be sure to stop by this page of my web site: http://www.postercentral.com/multi-act_1960s.htm

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Jimi Hendrix 1968 Concert Poster by John Van Hamersveld – Shrine Aud.

Posted on May 2, 2013 by

An absolute first printing of the famous Jimi Hendrix Experience concert poster by John Van Hamersveld for Jimi’s gig at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on February 10, 1968.

This authentic Pinnacle Concert poster for Jimi Hendrix at the Shrine has dimensions of about 19 by 28”. Instead of being manufactured on cardboard, this poster was printed on paper.

Van Hamersveld’s Hendrix concert poster is widely regarded as a classic in the genre, primarily due to its stunning eye appeal… it’s simply as compelling as a concert poster can get.

You might note that this first-printing Jimi Hendrix Van Hamersveld concert poster has Jimi’s face drawn on a white background which turns creamy with the passage of time. After-show printings, even those done later in the year 1968, switched to a metallic-silver background color.

The bottom blue border is also a “tell” when determining first prints of this item. The original Hendrix concert poster has only the signature “J. Van Hamersveld” down in the lower right blue border; reproductions added words in the lower left blue border, such as Personality Posters as the distributor, and so forth.

The entire text found on this Jimi Hendrix window display, all coming below Van Hamersveld’s illustration of Hendrix:

Pinnacle Concert Sat Feb 10 (no year given, but 1968 of course) – JIMI HENDRIX & The Soft Machine with The Electric Flag and Blue Cheer (all in varying letter sizes, depending on space)

(Then below the orange stripe): Shrine Auditorium 8:30 PM – Reserved Seats Now Available At All Wallich’s Music City Stores (where I used to work, by the way!) and All Mutual Agencies

(Final line): Visuals by Thomas Edison Lights & Acme Cinema

I find it fascinating that this psychedelic concert poster by Van Hamersveld states only “Jimi Hendrix” and omits “Experience” from the headliner’s name, even though he was definitely touring as the Experience at the time.

All this poster-talk is about Hendrix, of course, but I dig the fact that this original tour poster shows that Jimi Hendrix was supported by Soft Machine, Electric Flag and Blue Cheer at the Shrine Auditorium in 1968. What a collection of late-sixties free-form rock ’n’ roll!

This authentic, first-printing Jimi Hendrix show poster is displayed and explained by music-memorabilia collector Pete Howard (locate me at 805-540-0020 or pete@postercentral.com). I pay the very best prices, period, for original 1960s concert memorabilia!

If you’d like to take in several other rare 1960s psychedelic rock-concert posters, just head on over to this page found here on my Web site: http://www.postercentral.com/psychedelic.htm

Posted in **All Posters, **Psychedelic Posters Only, *Jimi Hendrix | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ruth Brown Window Card 50’s R&B Tour Poster – Wichita, Kansas

Posted on April 28, 2013 by

An authentic, original Ruth Brown concert poster advertising her performance at the Mambo Club in Wichita, Kansas on August 5, 1956.

As you can see, this item’s condition is really nice for an old cardboard telephone-pole concert poster.  The first term that comes to mind in seeing this is, “unused.”

This Ruth Brown broadside measures about 14×22” and was constructed on heavy-duty cardboard.

Vintage Mambo Club concert posters have popped up over the years for a wide assortment of R&B legends, because Wichita was an important stop on the “Chitlin circuit” in the 1950s.  This specific Mambo Club placard advertises just two artists, but others had three or four musicians on there.

On the other hand, I’ve seen a Mambo Club window card with just a single musician “carrying” the whole poster, if they’re big enough.

Ruth Brown was the biggest-selling Atlantic Records recording artist in the fifties, so that makes this vintage R&B boxing-style concert poster all the more collectible for music hounds.

Now, as I usually do, here is the entire text found on this vintage rhythm & blues billboard, as it reads from top to bottom:

(In the white space up top): Mambo Club – Sun. Nite, Aug. 5 – Wichita, Kansas – 9:PM to 1:AM – Adm. $2.50 (only one price level, that’s unusual)

(Black stripe): BIG Double Attraction – “Sweet Baby of Mine” RUTH BROWN “5-10-15 Hours”

(And below Ruth) – In Person – Billy Clark and his Orchestra

(And in the bottom white margin area): Tour Direction: Shaw Artists Corp., 565 5th Ave., N.Y.C. & 203 N. Wabash, Chicago

A vintage Ruth Brown concert placard from rock ’n’ roll’s first decade is pretty collectable because so many were discarded right after the concerts took place. Authentic R&B show posters for Ray Charles, Ruth Brown, Big Joe Turner, Lavern Baker and other Atlantic Records musicians are all pretty coveted by music freaks.

As a cute little side note, it’s odd the way this Ruth Brown window display features two song titles from the “Mama girl” and zero from the opening act, Billy Clark.

This Ruth Brown concert placard video was filmed and presented by me, Pete Howard in California, a serious music collector since 1972! (805-540-0020 or pete@postercentral.com). I pay the very best prices for almost any vintage concert poster used to sell tickets.

Additionally, I have a web site page that shows only these vintage R&B window broadsides, so to view those, just click over to this page right here on my site: http://www.postercentral.com/rhythmnblues.htm

Posted in **All Posters, Soul and R&B | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment