falsepriest The Most Iconic Gig Posters – A Primer

.blog_entity_review h3 { font-size: 32px; padding-left: 0px !important; margin-top:0px !important;}.blog_entity_review h4 { font-size: 20px;}ul { list-style-type: none;}.blog_entity_review p { padding-bottom: 0px;}

What’s iconic and what’s not is highly subjective, but at least on these eight gig posters we can all agree, have a special place in the gig poster canon. These posters all have that thing that will see them remembered for decades (hey, maybe even centuries) to come.

It’s impossible to talk iconic posters without giving at least a passing reference to Bill Graham, the famous San Francisco gig promoter responsible for most of the psychedelic posters you’ll likely be able to recall from memory. Here we also tried to sneak a few most modern(-ish) classics on the list, from artists like Frank Kozik, EMEK, and Ames Bros.

These images really only serve as a preview – click through and check out the full images on Posterogs, and dig further into these artists’ catalogs. We kept this list brief to save you time for browsing more… you’re gonna need that time once you get stuck into the Posterogs Database.

Soundgarden Houston 1992 (also known as Green Lady) – Frank Kozik

First printing is known as the “Green Lady”. Second printing was a signed and numbered run of 2000 with an alternate coloring known as the “Pink Lady”. Art was reused for Kozik’s ‘Man’s Ruin – Hammer of the Gods’ print. A magazine foldout version with grey borders and information about ArtRock gallery exists.

Jimi Hendrix Experience with John Mayall And The Bluesbreakers San Francisco 1968 – Rick Griffin

This poster advertising the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s four night stand at the Fillmore and Winterland in San Francisco in 1968 has fetched over $7,000 in the past few years.

Tool Berlin 2001 – EMEK

Screen print Tool’s 2001 concert at Columbiahalle in Berlin by poster masters, EMEK.

The Rolling Stones San Francisco 1972 – David Singer

At least 4 known printings of this poster exist.
1st edition prior to the show measures 21-7/8″ x 27-13/16″
2nd edition printed after the shows measuring 21-7/8″ x 27-13/16″ (there is a small printing difference between the 1st and 2nd editions which allows for determining which is which)
3rd edition printed in 2006 in a run of 1000 measuring 16-1/2″ x 22-3/8″
4th edition printed in 2006 in a run of 1000 measuring 24″ x 32-1/2″