'Rolling Stone' magazine's July issue, on sale June 7,
is a special collectors' edition celebrating a one-off event, the 1000th
issue of the most iconic magazine in rock history.
As the longest-standing international edition of 'Rolling Stone', Australia
has shared the majority of this illustrious history. So 'Rolling Stone'
Australia presents 40 of the best 'Rolling Stone' covers seen in the
Australian edition.
Kicking off with a unique photomontage cover (spot the 150+ stars in
Michael Elins' 'Ultimate Rock Party') the issue offers an insight into
the magazine, and its place in pop culture and the lives of the stars
it covers. We revisit the Top 40 Covers via exclusive new interviews
with Mick Jagger, Britney Spears, Yoko Ono, Drew Barrymore, Red Hot
Chili Peppers, Beck, David Bowie, Cindy Crawford, Janet Jackson, Bono,
Marilyn Manson and more.
And we offer insider pieces from special contributors: 'Almost Famous'
writer Cameron Crowe, founder-editor Jann Wenner, and writers like David
Fricke and Greil Marcus.
Rolling Stone helped redefine the art of the cover since it launched
in 1967. From the immortal image of a naked John Lennon embracing Yoko
Ono (voted in 2005 as the best cover of the last 40 years by the American
Society of Magazine Editors) to the Nirvana cover shot outside Melbourne
as the band broke worldwide, these covers are controversial, iconic
and at times fantastic. The covers, like the magazine itself are legendary.
Australian 'Rolling Stone' is the longest running 'Rolling Stone' magazine
outside of the United States. Phillip Keir took over the publication
in Australia in early 1987 and has never looked back as the magazine's
popularity and reputation as Australia's music bible has continued to
grow.
THE STORIES BEHIND TEN OF THE GREATEST ROLLING STONE
COVERS…
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1. Famed gonzo illustrator Ralph Steadman writes about
his partner in crime Hunter S Thompson's legendary 'Fear and Loathing
in Las Vegas' cover. "All I had was the clothes I was wearing and
my passport and my ticket home in one pocket," he recalls of one
trip. "Hunter had my shoes"
2. David Cassidy speaks of how he went behind his management's
back to shoot his groundbreaking 'nude' cover, almost destroying his
career in the process.
3. 'Almost Famous' writer Cameron Crowe, on his year-long
stalking of David Bowie during the Thin White Duke's drug-driven 'lost
in L.A.' phase, which culminated in a ground breaking cover story.
4. Legendary photographer Annie Leibovitz who shot many
covers including those from the days when photographers were expected
to arrive to sessions with a coke rider (Leibovitz ruined Fleetwood
Mac's "rehabbed" status during her iconic 'Rumours' "band
in bed" covershoot).
5. Billy Idol recalls appearing in little more than briefs
and leather belts, while despite being at the height of his career in
1985 he lived hand to mouth due to poor business decisions. "The
great truth about this cover is that me being naked is a metaphor,"
he says. "Because I had virtually nothing."
6. Photographer Mark Seliger recalls almost missing the
crucial Nirvana shot, when power went down out on an Australian shoot.
"I was freaking out. This assistant from Melbourne somehow connected
the fuse with a piece of foil."
7. Courtney Love looks back on the cover-story in which
she first dealt with the death of husband Cobain, eventually breaking
down in tears on the shoot. "I didn't like the circumstance,"
she says. "Hole were a good f**king band. Why did my husband have
to go and die on me? One hopes one's next 'Rolling Stone' cover will
be better. I'm not down for the count, man."
8. Marilyn Manson contributes an essay on the personal
meaning of his 1997 cover, and recalls its arrival on his birthday.
"We sang Dr. Hook, we snorted drugs off my glossy newsstand forehead,"
he says. "But I knew this was not exactly a gift. It was an obligation."
9. Matt Groening recalls the ideas that didn't make the
cut as part of the triple cover 'The Simpsons' special issue, where
classic album covers were re-created with Simpsons characters (we missed
out on Millhouse as the angel of Van Halen's '1984', and Homer and drinking
buddies as the Ramones circa 1976). Not to mention Bart's "impressive
wang" on the 'Nevermind' cover parody.
10. Bono writes about his 2005 cover, the fruit of exhaustive
interviews by founder-editor Jann Wenner. "This interview forced
me to do something I never do: stop and tidy my room," says Bono.
"It was quite a grilling…he took the side of my father…he
said 'I think you owe your father an apology.' 'I was like, what?' He
said 'He was a poor man. Your mother was dead. He was trying to keep
the thing together, but you were precocious.' By the way Jann is completely
right.
The special collectors' edition of Rolling Stone magazine
is on sale now.
