Jump to content

Original 70s tshirts?


JohnM

Recommended Posts

Hi

first time i've posted - so hello...

Does anyone know if there is a guide anywhere on the net to official 1970s Led Zep Tshirts? I've been doing a bit of browsing though vintage tshirts sellers and many of the tshirts (going for a lot of cash) appear to be bootlegs... or was the distinction not that clear in the 70s with local promoters doing their own shirts for big gigs as opposed to the modern official merchandise companies?

Any assistance most welcome!

cheers

John

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You know, I don't remember there actually being any "official" T-shirts inside the Forum when I saw Zep. There were programs, and that's it. Guys were outside selling shirts, but those were all bootleg. So, maybe the best you can do is a "70's-era bootleg shirt". Anyone recall differently?. Because I would definitely have bought one, if there were any.

I passed on the boot shirts outside because they were real cheap and thin

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the replies - I was too young to see Led Zep at the time (my first gig was 81 when I was 13) - but do remember people wearing the "official" Knebworth tshirts and seeing ads in the music papers for US import 1977 tour (the ubiquitous B&W silhouette Swan Song design) and colour Swan Song tshirts. If anyone out there remembers any more "official" 70s tshirts - I'd be very interested.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wish I could help you there. I remember a friend at the time buying THE MOST EXCELLENT ZEP T-SHIRT ever from the 1975 Tour. Was probably illegal, but whoever designed it did an excellent job. It was a black tee that had gold glitter on it, and the band coming out of the LZ II cover's clouds.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi

first time i've posted - so hello...

Does anyone know if there is a guide anywhere on the net to official 1970s Led Zep Tshirts? I've been doing a bit of browsing though vintage tshirts sellers and many of the tshirts (going for a lot of cash) appear to be bootlegs... or was the distinction not that clear in the 70s with local promoters doing their own shirts for big gigs as opposed to the modern official merchandise companies?

Any assistance most welcome!

cheers

John

It's a great question for Richard Cole next time around. If memory serves correct there were no official t-shirts sold to fans on tours until 1975, and very few in '77 and '80. There are of course the Showco and promotional t-shirs. I'm not aware of an online guide but I'd be happy to lend an opinion when and if you provide a specific link.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is a good example - a shirt from the tampa in 1977 - its very shoddy - but would this just have been knocked off by touts outside - or would local promoters have printed their own shirts?

http://cgi.ebay.com/...#ht_4411wt_1026

Generally speaking local promoters/vendors were not permitted to sell unlicensed merchandise so anything like the shirt presented in the link was bootleg merchandise sold outside the venue by touts. Promoters/organizers did occasionally produce venue security/staff-type t-shirts but when they did they almost always included a specific reference to the promoter/organizer/sponsor.

There is an example of what is reputed to be a Tampa '77 security t-shirt in the Warming Up With Robert Plant thread. Perhaps Steve Cowert or Donnie Vick can confirm if they saw this shirt being sold outside the venue that day.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I suppose hindsight is a wonderful thing - but it seems strange that bands (or their management to be more precise) never really got into the merchandise side of things until the mid/late 70s - its amazing no one really cottoned (pardon the pun) onto the money making potential before then.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I suppose hindsight is a wonderful thing - but it seems strange that bands (or their management to be more precise) never really got into the merchandise side of things until the mid/late 70s - its amazing no one really cottoned (pardon the pun) onto the money making potential before then.

Depends on the band. Some, like Kiss, were more aggressive if not savvy than others, like Led Zeppelin, when it came to merchandising.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...