Daisy's Letter From London: May 2013

It's warm, it's cold...Not sure what the weather's doing. I've just put a shepherd's pie in the oven to heat the house. Gary's bouncing about because the Stone Roses MADE OF STONE movie premiere, live from Manchester, is being beamed into the legendary Screen on the Green later. He's had his ticket booked for weeks. He went to that reunion gig in Manchester last year. He bought me a hat:

Arrived into Heathrow last week and went to Chancery Lane where I looked after Bo The Cat. I got a four-paw foot massage every morning (lovely) and walked up Charterhouse Street to the City to meet some friends at Host Cafe on Watling Street (in a church!) - actually the oldest church to St Mary - St Mary Alderymary - opposite Mansion House Tube Station. We had a lovely cup of free-trade coffee (£1) and there were pastries for not very expensive, too. There were sofas (and restrooms). At 8:15am they had meditation (til 8:50) and drop-in yoga. It was a quiet, soothing place to have a catch-up chat, high ceilings and stained glass and gentle whispering barristers before heading over to St Paul's Cathedral. (Continued after the jump.)

Movie of the Week - Punk: Attitude (2005)

To round out the weekend, following two reggae documentaries, here we have what is pretty much the last word in punk rock documentaries...this one made by a British black man of Jamaican descent (see what I did there?). If you're so inclined, you can pick it up on DVD here.

Daily Travels: Mother New York

Dougherty, Letts, Gruen at a Mother NYC event for Don Letts' Fred Perry subculture films

Fred Perry Subculture Films by Don Letts

Its easy to get cynical about marketing & corporate pandering to specific demographics, but once in a while it gets done right. Fred Perry recently commissioned Don Letts for a series of six short films about the mostly Fred Perry-friendly UK youth subculture(s) of the last 60 years. In other words, while including teds, there are no goths or psychobillies...Not only are they entertaining, they're educational! Check out the entire program here: fredperrysubculture.com and watch the films below (Continued after the jump):

Movie of the Week - The Punk Rock Movie (1978)

Featured here back in 2010, its always worth another look, don't you think? Hat tip to Ripped & Torn.

Strummer of Love in August

 Strummer of Love, August 17-19, 2012

Rock N Roll Exposed: The Photography of Bob Gruen

Bob Gruen must be feeling pretty good about things these days. Not only has the wonderful book, Bob Gruen: Rock Seen, recently been published, but a select group of folks were treated to a theatrical showing of a recent Don Letts directed documentary on the man & his work tonight at City Cinemas East on 2nd Avenue & 12th Street.

Bob Gruen feeling good.

Originally a four part series shown this past March on Sky TV overseas, Rock N Roll Exposed: The Photography of Bob Gruen is, for the most part, excellent. Perhaps in need of a little bit of editing, there is no arguing that Gruen's work is the pinnacle of rock photography. For rock 'n' roll fans and history buffs, you can't help but be moved and astounded by the quality, depth & breadth of the work.

Featured interviews include Iggy Pop, Debbie Harry, Alice Cooper, Yoko Ono, Sean Lennon, Billie Joe Armstrong, Tommy Ramone, Jesse Malin, Legs McNeil, and Lenny Kaye.


I have no idea if the film will see release as a single DVD, but I'd highly suggest keeping an eye out for a copy - legal or otherwise. No one can tell a visual rock 'n' roll story quite like Bob Gruen. Congratulations, Bob! 


Here are a couple of excerpts:

The Punk Rock Movie by Don Letts

Here's one of those something-specials that pops up every once in a while on YouTube or Google Video: the full version of The Punk Rock Movie by Don Letts. Shot, for the most part, in and around the Roxy in London in 1977, the film features live footage of The Clash, the Sex Pistols, Wayne County & the Electric Chairs, Generation X, Slaughter and the Dogs, The Slits, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Eater, Subway Sect, X-Ray Spex, Alternative TV and Johnny Thunders and The Heartbreakers, as well as some backstage footage of Generation X, The Slits and Siouxsie and the Banshees. Of course it's not the greatest movie in the world, but it's priceless for one main reason - this is the way it was, and Letts was smart enough to make a record of what was happening. Thank god.

On a personal note, this film is notable for one thing - my friend Daisy was 16 at the time, and her boyfriend was Mark Perry, lead singer of Alternative Television. You can see her in the scene with ATV recording.

Superstonic Sound: The Rebel Dread Documentary

Film maker, DJ, pal of the Clash, and member of Big Audio Dynamite, Don Letts, should be no stranger to readers of Stupefaction. There's a new documentary about him called Superstonic Sound: The Rebel Dread Documentary, and it will be premiering in New York on August 19. All of the info you need is here on Facebook. Visit the film's website here.

New York City International Film Festival
Abingdon Theater
312 West 36th Street, NY
New York, NY

Strummerville - The Movie

In the wake of Joe Strummer's tragic & very untimely death in December 2002, the Strummerville organization was born in order to support & help musicians and young bands. Long time filmmaker, and friend of the Clash, Don Letts, has made a documentary about the organization, and it sees DVD release on May 31. The DVD will be available exclusively through the Strummerville website, and will wholly benefit them. Visit them here for more information. Good stuff!


Thanks to Steve at Strummerville for the video embed code.

Don Letts documentary

Don Letts has long known about the DIY aesthetic. He worked at Acme Attractions on the Kings Road in London, and was the first, and main, DJ at the Roxy Club in London (where he cemented the connection between UK punk & Jamaican reggae). Around the same time he shot "The Punk Rock Movie." He then went on in the 80's to be a main member of Big Audio Dynamite with the Clash's Mick Jones, has shot countless music videos, DJ'd some more, and produced some more cool films...and all of it was pretty much self taught & instinctive. No history of the Clash, or UK punk, is complete without him. My kind of guy. And in the "it's a small world" department, he ended up marrying a woman named Grace who I hung out with in the 80's when she lived in NYC.

Here's a trailer on a somewhat new film about him. Visit the film's official website here.