Chuck Boyd (1942–1991) was a professional

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

photographer based in Los Angeles, California. Boyd took over 30,000 photographs of rock and roll performers from the 1960s and 1970s. After he died in 1991, his photographs were lost for nearly twenty years. Between 1964 and 1979, Boyd photographed artists and musicians including

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

, and

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

. After their discovery, the images were being made available for the public in 2010.

Early life

Chuck Boyd's love affair with photography began when his mother gave him a camera as a gift when he was 13 years old. He quickly found his artistic voice, and at the age of 16, he went to work for Los Angeles radio station KRLA, covering special artist promotional functions.

Career

Beginnings

Shortly after beginning his work at the station, Boyd began working for ''

Tiger Beat ''Tiger Beat'' is an American internet teen fan magazine originally published by The Laufer Company, and marketed primarily to adolescent girls. The magazine had a paper edition that was sold at stores until December 2018. History and profile ' ...

'', shooting rock-and-roll acts for the influential teen culture and music magazine. In 1967, Buck Munger, an independent record producer and the national promotion director for Sunn Amplifiers, hired Boyd as Sunn's official photographer. While working with Munger, Boyd had the opportunity to photograph

Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

KISS A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

, and dozens of other artists throughout the 1960s and '70s. Since he was often shooting photos for Sunn, Boyd always had unlimited stage access. His photographs represent both his talent and his incredible access to rock-and-roll stars both on and off the stage.

References

External links

chuckboydgalleries.com

/commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chuck_Boyd_Photography.jpg
* https://web.archive.org/web/20110224071500/http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/News/lost-rockstar-photos-1220/ 20th-century American photographers 1991 deaths 1942 births {{US-photographer-stub