''ZigZag'' was a British

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

magazine. It was started by

Pete Frame Peter Frame (born 10 November 1942 in Luton, Bedfordshire, England) is an English music journalist and historian of rock music. He has produced outlines of the history of rock bands for various magazines, such as ''Sounds'', ''NME'', '' Melody ...

and the first edition was published on 16 April 1969. The magazine was noted for its interviews, articles, innovative "rock family trees" by Frame, and support for American songwriters such as

Michael Nesmith Robert Michael Nesmith or Mike Nesmith, (December 30, 1942 – December 10, 2021) was an American musician, songwriter, and actor. He was best known as a member of the pop rock band the Monkees and co-star of the TV series ''The Monkees'' (1966� ...

Mickey Newbury Milton Sims "Mickey" Newbury Jr. (May 19, 1940 – September 29, 2002) was an American songwriter, recording artist, and a member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Early life and career Newbury was born in Houston, Texas, on May 19, ...

Gene Clark Harold Eugene Clark (November 17, 1944 – May 24, 1991) was an American singer-songwriter and founding member of the folk rock band the Byrds. He was the Byrds' principal songwriter between 1964 and early 1966, writing most of the band's best ...

, etc. It lasted in various forms through 1986.

History

It was edited by Pete Frame for the first 29 issues, up to February 1973. Frame later said: "None of the English music papers wrote about the music I liked. They all concentrated on popular acts, but I was interested in the

Underground Underground most commonly refers to: * Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth Underground may also refer to: Places * The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston * The Underground ...

scene. So I decided to start a magazine for people who liked the same kind of music I did. I called it Zigzag after the

Captain Beefheart Don Van Vliet (; born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist best known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. Conducting a rotating ensemble known as Th ...

track " Zigzag Wanderer" and also the

cigarette papers Rolling paper is a specialty paper used for making cigarettes (commercially manufactured filter cigarettes and individually made roll-your-own cigarettes). Rolling papers are packs of several cigarette-size sheets, often folded inside a cardbo ...

, which were used for rolling

joints A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw- ...

." Pete Frame's "rock family trees" first appeared in ''ZigZag''. Very basic examples appeared in issue #14

The Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...

(August 1970) and issue #17

John Mayall John Mayall, OBE (born 29 November 1933) is an English blues singer, musician and songwriter, whose musical career spans over sixty years. In the 1960s, he was the founder of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band that has counted among it ...

(Dec 1970 – Jan 1971). The first "rock family tree" to be presented in the format that Frame would become well known for was in issue #21

Al Kooper Al Kooper (born Alan Peter Kuperschmidt; February 5, 1944) is a retired American songwriter, record producer and musician, known for organizing Blood, Sweat & Tears, although he did not stay with the group long enough to share its popularity. ...

(July 1971).

John Tobler John Hugen Tobler (born 9 May 1943) is a British rock music journalist, writer, occasional broadcaster, and record company executive. With Pete Frame, he was one of the founders of ZigZag magazine in April 1969. The magazine focused on the " un ...

joined immediately after the start-up and wrote for ZigZag from issue #2 onwards under the name John HT (his full name being John Hugen-Tobler). He wrote under the name John Tobler from issue #16 (October 1970) onwards. After dying a first time, the magazine was taken over by

Tony Stratton-Smith Tony Stratton-Smith (29 October 1933 – 19 March 1987) was an English rock music manager, and entrepreneur. He founded the London-based record label Charisma Records in 1969 and managed rock groups such as the Nice, Van der Graaf Generator and ...

, founder of

Charisma Records Charisma Records (also known as The Famous Charisma Label) was a British record label founded in 1969 by former journalist Tony Stratton-Smith. He had previously acted as manager for rock bands such as The Nice, the Bonzo Dog Band and Van der ...

,CD booklet to

The Amazing ZigZag Concert The Amazing Zig Zag Concert was a rock concert held at The Roundhouse on April 28, 1974 to celebrate the fifth anniversary of Zig Zag Magazine. Described as "one of the gigs of the decade", the concert "has taken on legendary proportions over the ...

- Notes by Pete Frame and became a regular monthly from January 1974 with even some colour inside. Stratton-Smith also financed

on 28 April 1974, to celebrate the magazine's fifth birthday. Issues #30 (March 1973) to #40 (April 1974) were edited by Connor McKnight, with Andy Childs becoming editor from issue #42 (June 1974) for about 18 months. Andy Childs originally had his own fanzine, ''Fat Angel''.

Punk rock years

Mid 70s ''ZigZag'' was marked by more musical British influence such as pub rock and early punk rock band ( Dr. Feelgood,

The Stranglers The Stranglers are an English rock band who emerged via the punk rock scene. Scoring 23 UK top 40 singles and 19 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are one of the longest-surviving bands to have origina ...

Western Mail (Cardiff, Wales)
– The Stranglers.(News)). Pete Frame became editor again from issue #58 (March 1976) to issue #74 (July 1977) – with the exception of three of those issues where Paul Kendall was editor. Appointed as editor in August 1977, a major revolution was led by

Kris Needs Kris Needs (born 3 July 1954) is a British journalist and author, known for writings on music from the 1970s onwards. He became editor of proto-punk and early punk rock ''ZigZag'' magazine in August 1977 at 23 and has since written biographi ...

which saw ''ZigZag'' going through a third period where the magazine was totally devoted to punk. Around this time Pete Frame distanced himself and published the first book of his famous series of 'rock trees' tracing changing personnel line-ups in the rock music world. Late 70s, ''ZigZag'' poll introduced

Ian Dury Ian Robins Dury (12 May 1942 27 March 2000) was a British singer, songwriter and actor who rose to fame during the late 1970s, during the punk and new wave era of rock music. He was the lead singer and lyricist of Ian Dury and the Blockheads an ...

, Buzzcocks,

Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...

, The Clash, Blondie, and minor artists such as Patrick Fitzgerald and Gruppo Sportivo. ''ZigZag'' continued to be published in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and edited by Needs until the end of 1981 when

Mick Mercer Mick Mercer (born Bichael Bercer, 2 June 1957) is a journalist and author best known for his books, photos and reviews of the goth, punk and indie music scenes. Life and work Mercer is primarily a writer focused on the gothic scene and its m ...

took over editorial duties. In April 1982, the ZigZag Club live music venue was opened at 22-24 Great Western Road, London W9. By the end of the year it had closed. The magazine ceased publication for a period during 1983 and was then re-launched for a fourth period, in October 1983, with Mick Mercer as editor, covering

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

and early

goth A Goth is a member of the Goths, a group of East Germanic tribes. Two major political entities of the Goths were: *Visigoths, prominent in Spanish history *Ostrogoths, prominent in Italian history Goth or Goths may also refer to: * Goth (surname) ...

. It ceased publication with its final issue in January 1986, having published approximately 140 issues. There was a failed attempt to relaunch the magazine in June 1990, with just one issue being published. ''ZigZag'' was purchased in July 1988 from Northern & Shell, who had amalgamated it with music equipment title "one two testing". Jim Maguire, who had been business manager of ''ZigZag'' in the 1970s, persuaded Richard Desmond (Northern & Shell) to sell him the title. Jim Maguire had a sound publishing deal with EMAP. But EMAP closed ''ZigZag'' after just one issue (May 1990) and then produced ''

Mojo Mojo may refer to: * Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * MOJO HD, an American television network * ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film * ' ...

'', a new rock monthly, some months later.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Terrascope - ZigZag: A 40th Birthday Tribute to the Magazine That Changed Our Lives! by Nigel Cross
1969 establishments in the United Kingdom 1986 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Defunct magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines established in 1969 Magazines disestablished in 1986 Magazines published in London Monthly magazines published in the United Kingdom Music magazines published in the United Kingdom