Backstage

This is generally what it looked like backstage at the Whisky A Go Go on any given night. If it looks a little dingy - well, it was a rock n roll club that saw a lot of action and a lot of traffic. I also tried not to use a flash ever - so, this is a low-light photo that I've messed around with so as to pull up the images on the film. This was backstage at a Flesheaters show in 1978.



While the Flesheaters were local superstars, bonafide bold-face names let themselves be photographed backstage at the Whisky. That's Sex Pistol Paul Cook at a Slits show and Slits guitarist Viv Albertine is on the right. In between them is Rory Johnston, the Sex Pistols US management guy.

But the one person I've photographed backstage ANYWHERE, from the Whisky A Go Go to the Masque to the Starwood and elsewhere more than anyone else is Belinda Carlisle.



When I look back at all the photos of Belinda, its easy to trace her transformation from punk rocker to international pop star.





Maybe its just me, but I have such a soft spot for Belinda's punk rocker look. She's pretty damn glamorous these days, and its really bizarre, if nothing else, that someone you knew in high school has become an international pop star.