Andy Warhol's Velvet Underground 1968 San Diego, CA Concert Poster (AOR-3.98). ...

Description

Andy Warhol's Velvet Underground 1968 San Diego, CA Concert Poster (AOR-3.98). An original first-printing paper advertising poster for Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground appearing at the Hippodrome Ballroom in San Diego, California on Friday and Saturday nights, June 14-15, 1968. This pretty, fun psychedelic poster was created by Rebecca Galdeano. Features a totally symmetrical design handsomely utilizing purple, green and orange. A very rare poster of which less than five are known to be in collector's hands.

This is the year the VU released their legendary Verve album White Light/White Heat. And June of '68 marks just three months before founding member John Cale left the band, giving this poster tremendous cache. It's interesting how the VU is billed as "Andy Warhol's Velvet Underground," because they had severed their relationship with the pop-art guru by this point. It's also funny how the poster refers twice to "Trans-Love Airways"; that's a refrain from the Donovan song "The Fat Angel" he released in 1966, and was performed live by the Jefferson Airplane.

Measures 17 1/4" x 22 1/4" and grades to restored Very Good Plus condition. Repair work by Chameleon Restoration, COA from Heritage Auctions.

Literature: See Grushkin, Paul, The Art of Rock: Posters from Presley to Punk, Abbeville Press, New York, 1987, p.286 (illus.).

More Information: The VU played the Hippodrome twice. First there was this engagement in June '68, about which very little is known but at least the local press gave it good reviews. The Velvets then returned the next month billed with Quicksilver Messenger Service, and there's lot of info about those shows on the internet – but no poster anywhere near as cool as this one. With Cale still in the band, many fans consider this era of VU to have been their creative live peak.

Opening act Clover, from Mill Valley, CA, had a fascinating future in front of them. Remarkably, they were Elvis Costello's back-up band for his immensely important debut album, My Aim Is True. In the early 70's they would count Huey Lewis as a member before he formed The News, and other members of Clover went on to greener pastures with the Doobie Brothers, Toto and Lucinda Williams.

Condition details: Poster was once damaged with creasing, crinkling, tears and grime. Chameleon worked its magic and the poster is now super-presentable with only light visible traces of the previous damage. One of the best resto jobs to a poster that we've seen in recent years.


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