Photographer Brad Elterman’s roster of subjects is enough to make anyone jealous–Dylan, Bowie, Iggy, Debbie Harry, Lennon and Ringo to name a few. Elterman spent the 1970s photographing everyone who was anyone on the LA party scene and his work has appeared in magazines around the world. Vice has an early look at some of the pictures and stories from his book, Like It Was Yesterday, which comes out this summer.
Mark Mothersbaugh at the Starwood: This was the nightly scene backstage at the Starwood. There would be some famous Rock Star in the dressing room hanging out with their friends and there would be a bevy of beauties in the hallway demanding entrance. This is Mark Mothersbaugh from Devo at the peak of their career trying to look cool as Karen from the band The Little Girls tries to get his attention.
Stiv Exposes Himself...Again 1978: The Dead Boys were from Ohio and made several trips to Los Angeles. The lead singer, Stiv Bators, was just about the ugliest guy in punk, but had the most beautiful girlfriends. He had this thing about exposing himself during photo sessions. Not too sure where that came from, but it was a real shocker the first time I photographed him. Years went by after this photo was taken and I met up with him at his apartment in Paris. I also met and came to know his parents, who were staying there. A few weeks after I had visited Stiv in Paris he was hit by a car and killed.
Debbie Harry at The Whisky A Go Go 1977: I was hired by Private Stock records to photograph Blondie's very first Los Angeles concert -- a really big deal. We had read about Debbie in Rock Scene and of course knew all of her records. I had all access to the event and I invited my pal Ron Galella to do backstage photos. Debbie and Chris got a real kick out of this.
Elvis: RIP 1977: I never laid eyes on Elvis, but I certainly tried. A photo of him with anyone, or even solo in his later years, was worth more than a photograph of Britney Spears in today's market. I was sent to Memphis to cover the funeral by Bunte, a weekly German magazine. It was one of my first trips out of town and certainly, looking back, one of the most important. The National Enquirer had dispatched a Swat Team to dig up dirt and to get a photo of him in the coffin. I was busy shooting the crowd of fans. It was August and just broiling with heat and humidity. The kid selling the newspaper was doing brisk business. I think the paper was originally for sale for a dime and he wanted a buck. I took two.
Rodney and Backstage Pass Backstage at the Whiskey 1977: Backstage Pass was an all girl group that was a mix of journalists and music insiders. I do not think they ever were signed to a label, but I sold photos of them to Music Life in Japan. Rodney Bingenheimer, the Mayor of the Sunset Strip, was the single person who helped me most in my career. He took me around and introduced me to everyone on the scene in the Seventies. We are still good friends today.
Iggy "No Photos" Pop 1978: This was one of the very few photos that I ever took of Iggy. I just never hung out with his crowd and we did not know each other. I took this photograph in front of The Roxy where Iggy was sitting on Rodney's Cadillac and he was not amused. At the end of the day, his resistance to being photographed gave me a very interesting photograph.
Matt Dillon in My Living Room 1980: You could never make this photograph today; it would be impossible. Today, you would need a major magazine assignment, total control of the P.R. and management, hair, makeup, dancing midgets and a full-on catering truck. The P.R. would want approval of all photos and someone would probably want a check. I received a phone call from the editor of Superteen magazine to do a photo shoot with this unknown 16-year-old actor, Matt Dillon. She asked me to call Vic Ramos, his manager, and set it up. I called and the next day they showed up at my home. Vic read a magazine and I took photos. No hair, makeup or stylist. No overproduced sets or useless publicists wasting oxygen. Most importantly, I was able to keep my syndication rights; that meant I could sell the photos wherever I wanted without restrictions. I shot this with one strobe head -- the way film stars were shot back then. I ran into Matt at Barfly about fifteen years later and he did not have a clue who I was, nor did he care. He also walked off with a girl whom I had just met that evening in the parking lot.
Joey Ramone In The Parking Lot 1978: This photo was taken after a Ramones recording session produced by the Kessel brothers, Dan and Dave, in Hollywood's Gold Star Studios, with Rodney Bingenheimer in attendance. The Ramones cut "Slug" (on "Rocket to Russia") and the Beach Boys' "Surfin' Safari." I hung out with the Ramones on several occasions, with a memorable lunch at world-famous Duke's Coffee House on Santa Monica Blvd, next to the infamous Tropicana Motor Hotel, favored by punks and other musicians. I find this photo very touching. I am honored to have been a friend of Joey's.
"You Will Never Work in This Town Again" 1978: I will never forget the time my pal and mentor Richard Creamer tipped me off to a soccer match with Robert Plant at a local park in Encino; right next door to where I was living with my parents. Led Zeppelin was playing a string of sold out shows at The Forum in Los Angeles, and there right in front of my eyes was one of the biggest pop stars glaring right into the lens of my camera. Plant was prancing around the field in his Speedos and was NOT amused! He came up to me with his surly bodyguards and demanded to know who I was. "You will never work in this town again," he screamed, but hey it was my town. You know that you have made it when a major star tells you that you will never work again.
Valley Girls 1977: Vicki Ronald was a stunningly beautiful young girl. We both attended Van Nuys High School. She was on the Sunset Strip night club scene and eventually met producer and living legend Kim Fowley. She became Vicki Razor Blade and the band was Venus And The Razor Blades. This photo was taken at Cherie Curie’s home in the San Fernando Valley in 1977 on a warm August afternoon. I introduced twin Marie into the photo, but to me Vicki was the star of this moment! It’s kind of sad that no one seems to know where she is today.
I Was A Teenage Paparazzo 1975: I wanted to take David Bowie's photo in the worst way. I had called his publicist asking for a photo pass, but I was turned down. No one knew me at the time and Bowie had a couple of photographers who did most of his coverage, but this was not going to stop me. I had a tip that he was was having a late night recording session at Cherokee Recording Studios on Fairfax Blvd in Hollywood. The tip came from a very reliable source so I cut school and got there really early in the morning and waited for Bowie to emerge. Around 6am Bowie walked out and the early morning lighting was magic. All he said to me was "good morning". Since no one was really doing Paparazzi style photography back then both Bowie and and his producer, Paul Buckmaster thought my approach was incredibly hysterical. Word got out to all of the publicists in town that I took I was bold enough to perform this sort of ambush, but since I was a teenage kid, they all found it amusing.
Joan Jett At The Tropicana Motel 1978: When I took this photograph, I remember thinking to myself that it would be a memorable photograph. All the up-and-coming bands stayed at the Tropicana Motel. It was a real dump, but they all loved it. Joan and I would meet at Duke's and devour huge sandwiches. I wanted to capture Joan in her hovel. That is John Wayne on the black and white TV.
The Pop Star & The Girl 1976: If you were in-crowd or involved in the music industry around 1976, you knew that Rod Stewart played soccer every Saturday at the Coldwater Canyon park in Beverly Hills. He was nuts about his game. I showed up there every weekend with a long lens and shot away. Rod never seemed to care and I would dash off to the color lab and then the next day to the post office to mail my color slides to the teen publications in London. They purchased them all and demanded more. Photos of Rod kicking a ball can get a bit mundane after awhile, but if you wanted to make the the real dough, you needed to get Rod with a girl. This photo is just what the London Daily Mirror wanted. Not only did they love the chick in the photo, but the icing on the cake was Rod with his pint of beer in hand!. That is what made this photo! During these magical days at the Coldwater Canyon park, not once did anyone say “no photos” or did another photographer ever appear. Today it would be total bedlam to photograph a star of Rod’s magnitude in a public park. The last time I drove by the park the soccer field was gone and the Department Of Water & Power has taken over the property.
Phil Spector At The Magic Castle 1976: Phil Spector was known as a recluse who rarely allowed his photo to be taken (his bodyguards routinely requested photographers turn film over to him). He lived in a big mansion that was formerly owned by horror film star Vincent Price. To catch him out and about was a rare find. Somehow I got invited to this press conference in the Hollywood hillside Magic Castle. Phil came with his entourage, which included the Kessel Brothers, Dan and Dave, producers/musicians who routinely worked with him on many famous releases. It was the Kessel brothers who gave the Ramones first release to Phil and brought him to see the Ramones at the Whisky, February 1977.
Polaroids: This was the scene by my pool in 1980. I had the coolest pad in the hills right off Laurel Canyon Blvd. There was always a party or a celebrity dropping by for a photo shoot. That is me on the left.
1980 Me and Margaret by my pool.
The Party Crashers 1980: I lived in the guesthouse of my friend Jerry Schneider up in the Hollywood Hills. My friends and I threw parties with loads of girls and minor celebrities there on a regular basis. You knew that your party was a hit if there were party crashers. Gene and Eddie were at every good Hollywood bash. I could never figure out how they got into everything, but if they were not there, it was probably a lousy party. We never threw them out at our parties. What I like about this photo is that you can see that they were so delighted to be the subject of my camera. Diane Arbus would have loved to photograph Gene and Eddie.
The Key To On The Rox 1976: On The Rox was the most exclusive private nightclub in Los Angeles back when this photograph was taken. It was owned by Lou Adler and Elmer Valentine. No one could get in there unless they were a major celebrity or they had incredible connections. The entrance to the club was an unmarked door at The Roxy Theatre on the Sunset Strip. The most exclusive members had a key to get into the club and if you did not have a key, then you had to resort to speaking into the intercom to beg for entrance. As you can see in this rare photograph that Ringo had that key! Not only did Ringo have the key, but he was also there with John Lennon and Yoko Ono! What I like best about this photograph is the expressions of the two dudes who can not believe their eyes that right in front of them is half of The Beatles!
Steve Jones - 999 N. Doheny 1978: My first apartment was at 999 N. Doheny, right off the Sunset Strip. It was the coolest building in town. Full of wanna-be actors, models and hookers. Everyone passed through there. Shortly after the Sex Pistols broke up, Rory Johnston, who worked with Malcolm McLaren and the Sex Pistols and was part of the local punk scene, brought Steve Jones over to my apartment for some photos. Steve stripped down to his underwear, took a swim and shocked some of the elderly women sitting by the pool. Steve loves this photograph and is my neighbor and friend today.
A Party At Norman's House 1981: Producer Norman Vane invited me to a couple of his parties in his charming house in the hills above Sunset Blvd. Norman always had an interesting crowd full of producers, models and starlets. This is Norman with one of the local beauties.
The Day I Shook The Hand Of Bob Dylan 1976: In every photographers career there will always be a photograph that will change your career and possibly life too. This was the case when I got to meet and photograph Bob Dylan in the dressing room of the Roxy in 1976. Actress/singer Ronee Blakley knew I was a huge Bob Dylan fan. She was performing a showcase at The Roxy Theatre on the Sunset Strip and tipped me that Bob may attend to her second set. Sure enough he showed up sitting in the VIP section. After the set he was escorted backstage. I hustled my way upstairs and Ronnee made the legendary introduction. Bob was incredibly friendly, remarking that I looked a bit like him! He even gave me a really limp handshake that was not all that impressive, but hey it was Dylan! Ronee grabbed him and we did this amazing set of photographs and I was in heaven. Bob set up another group shot of him with a new actor named Robert De Niro and a host of other friends that included musician David Blue, actress/singer Lanie Kazan, actresses Martine Getty and Sally Kirkland. I did not have a clue who any of these folks were, but I just shot away. The photo of Dylan and Ronee was published everywhere including People Magazine and my career was on its way.
The Orchids 1978: Legendary record producer Kim Fowely called me one day to photograph his latest sensation, The Orchids. I can still remember the phone call, “Brad Elterman I have new dogs for you to photograph!” Kim was and still is today a classic on the Sunset Strip. I took this photo of The Orchids at the pool of his apartment building. That is Laurie McAllister from the Runaways second from the right.
Bob Dylan- The Car Shot 1976: I was a real nut about getting Bob Dylan photos. I totally missed the boat with Elvis, but Dylan had exactly what I wanted in a subject: a brilliant talent and a recluse. Best of all, he lived locally in Malibu. The worldwide media was always interested in fresh photos of Dylan and unfortunately, or actually I should say fortunately, Dylan was not the kind of subject where you could just ring up his publicist for a photo shoot. Somehow I got wind that he was at a recoding studio in Santa Monica, so I played hooky from school and staked him out. Within less than an hour Dylan showed up in his Jag and I got some car shots of him arriving and then walking into the studio. The photos were not that dramatic, but they ran all over the world. Now if it was Elvis instead of Dylan that would have been "retirement for a solid year" paycheck.
Blondie At The Grammys 1977: This could have been one incredible photograph and I fucked it up. That is Debbie Harry from Blondie at some awards show at The Hollywood Palladium in 1977. I wanted to make a photo of Debbie surrounded by the sea of photographers. To make a great photograph, she really needed to be closer to the dog pack and what really pisses me off is that I chopped off her feet.
On The Way to Orange County 1977: Ah, 1977 was the year to be young and single with a camera. I still adore this photograph of legendary music producer Kim Fowely and his chick entourage. Kim was producing some of the first all girl bands including The Runaways. He actually hand picked Joan Jett for the band. Kim adored having beautiful young blondes around him 24/7. This photo was done in the back of his limo on the way to one of his boy bands, The Popsicles, at an Orange County gig. Can you imagine what the O.C. thought when they took one look at Kim?
