Just thought this link would be of interest......two ex-skinheads from the '69 and '77 scenes respectively doing a bit of bantering on the subject. Originals vs copyists and all that......

I rate those people both, Bomber and Hoxton Tom that is...... so here goes :

http://www.modculture.co.uk/forum2/index.php?topic=3109.8

Oh, and those pics are worth having a butcher's too :

http://groups.msn.com/LondonSkinheads1970sand80s/originalskinheadstheroots.msnw?Page=3

Last edited by Alex Roest (2007-06-20 07:58:01)

Admittedly it's not the best example of what Bomber has to say..... I basically agree with Tom on this particular thread.....

IMHO Bomb is at his best when he's just passionately telling his story about the various subcultures he was involved in, rather than slagging off those who were just as passionately at it really.....it's a bit pointless, but he's a good bloke of course, be it a stubborn one.....

Anyway, I can still remember reading an NME or Sounds interview with some original Skins in the spring of 1980 where they said they had to travel all across London just to have a drink with fellow Skins, there were so little left around '75.....

Also, the Skinhead begat East End Mod revival interview at the end of '79, featuring Tom McCourt, interested me deeply at the time..... I learned later he used to be an early Punk too. In fact he's on the cover of the "Clash City Rockers" 45....

Many of those people would be Casuals later of course...... in some way it proves some of Bomber's points really : people moving on, taking the attitude with them where ever they might go...... I like that. The pride and the passion involved I think is very real with those two, no matter what...

Funny that both their sons have a Mod/Suedehead thing going on.....

Last edited by Alex Roest (2007-06-21 02:37:33)

Things are quiet at work at the moment so when I'd read the thread within the link I posted I was looking for the "Skins-more for the mix" thread Terry had started to post it on at first.
This was the first semi-related topic I came across though, so I thought I take my chances as for a semi off-topic post..... ;-)

Anyway, why this stuff has interested me since my early youth should be obvious to most who've followed what I did previously on Modculture etc.

It's very clear there's something about those looks, or there has to be at least.......i.e. young people keep being influenced by the first waves of youth style and less so by later ones, if at all I'd say.

One explanation has to be the image is fairly precise and classic at that. There have been so many styles that never made a lasting impression after all ( think Soul Boy for that matter as opposed to certain Footy Casual and B-Boy styles ).

There are so many ideas to be found there and IMHO it'd be a shame to overlook those styles no matter the somewhat childish connotations they may carry to some.

If you do mix and match just never lose sight of the classic element and it'll work for sure, throw in a little fashionable item or two and you've arrived..... it can all be so simple really and it'll never stop to fascinate me...... ( my core 'message' if you like ).

Promise I'll work out the idea for a piece on sportswear and it merits, could be the working title too.....

Alex

Last edited by Alex Roest (2007-06-21 04:35:08)