Obituaries
Not Fade Away
Fondly remembered this month…
Mick Rock with his portraits of David Bowie and John Lydon, 2005
J. VESPA/GETTY IMAGES
MICK ROCK
Glam’s in-house photographer
1948 2021
BIRMINGHAM Town Hall in March 1972, early in the Ziggy Stardust Tour. Commissioned by Men Only, Rock had pitched an interview after hearing “Life On Mars”. “David wasn’t very well known at the time, but I was completely fascinated with him,” Rock told Uncut in 2009. “We bonded immediately. All that happened afterwards came in the wake of that relationship. It changed my life.”
Rock became his official photographer, documenting Ziggy’s meteoric rise, sealed by Melody Maker’s infamous shot of Bowie simulating fellatio on Mick Ronson’s guitar. He also served as his videographer, directing striking promos for “The Jean Genie”, “John, I’m Only Dancing”, “Space Oddity” and “Life On Mars”.
The summer of ’72 brought Rock into contact with Lou Reed at London’s King’s Cross Cinema, his overexposed live portrait adorning the cover of Transformer. His shot of a half-naked Iggy Pop, taken the following night at the same venue, graced Raw Power. Attracted by the decadent glam sensibility of his work, Queen hired Rock to shoot the sleeve of Queen II. Taking inspiration from a moody still of Marlene Dietrich in Shanghai Express, he devised an unforgettable image that the band recreated for the “Bohemian Rhapsody” video. This was emblematic of Rock’s singular approach. Revealing a subject’s hidden nature didn’t interest him; it was all about amplifying their mystique. Or, as he wrote in his diary, “freezing shadows and bottling auras”.
Rock had initially taken up photography while studying languages at Cambridge University, leading to a friendship with local resident Syd Barrett, with whom he dropped acid. One of his earliest assignments was the sleeve of Barrett’s The Madcap Laughs. In more recent years, Rock was much in demand from the likes of Lady Gaga, Snoop Dogg, Janelle Monáe, Nas and The Black Keys. Barnaby Clay’s 2016 documentary, Shot! The Psycho-Spiritual Mantra Of Rock, shored up Rock’s legendary status, as did a series of books showcasing his vast catalogue. “I suppose I just got lucky,” Rock said of his role in shaping the look of a decade. “I think I was just very attuned to the times. It was all about the here and now.”