DR MABUSE BOX SET

DR MABUSE BOX SET
Eureka's Masters of Cinema series will release an exciting box set on October 19th - The Complete Fritz Lang/Dr Mabuse films! For Mabuse fans in the US with multi-region players (set is PAL format), this means a long-awaited restored print of Lang's 1960 cult classic The 1,000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse. Set details are as follows:


From the early stages of his career across five decades to his final film, Fritz Lang built a trilogy of paranoiac thrillers focused on an entity who began as a criminal mastermind, and progressed into something more amorphous: fear itself, embodied only by a name – Dr. Mabuse.

For the first time on home video, all three of Fritz Lang's Mabuse films have been collected for one package, in their complete and restored forms.

Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler. [Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler.] (1922)
Lang's two-part, nearly 5-hour silent epic detailing the rise and fall of Dr. Mabuse in Weimar-era Berlin.

Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse [The Testament of Dr. Mabuse] (1933)
A tour-de-force thriller rife with supernatural elements, all converging around an attempt by the now-institutionalised Mabuse (or someone acting under his name... and possibly his will) to organise an "Empire of Crime".

Die 1000 Augen des Dr. Mabuse [The 1000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse] (1960)
Fritz Lang's final film, in which hypnosis, clairvoyance, surveillance, and machine-guns come together for a whiplash climax that answers the question: Who's channelling Mabuse's methods in the Cold War era?

The Complete Fritz Lang Mabuse will be released as a special 4-disc DVD box set on 19th October 2009 by Eureka as part of the Masters of Cinema series at the RRP of £49.99. Special features will include:

• Original German language intertitles for Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler., along with newly translated English subtitles for each film;
• Newly recorded feature length commentaries on all three films by film scholar and Fritz Lang expert David Kalat;
• Three video featurettes totalling 90 minutes in length on:
  • The score of Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler.;
  • The creation of Norbert Jacques' 'Mabuse' character;
  • The motifs running throughout the works.
• 2002 video interview with Wolfgang Preiss, the star of Die 100 Augen des Dr. Mabuse;
• An alternative ending to Die 100 Augen des Dr. Mabuse taken from the French print of the film;
• Optional English language dub track for Die 100 Augen des Dr. Mabuse;
• Three lengthy booklets containing a new translation of Fritz Lang's 1924 lecture on 'Sensation Culture', an essay by critic David Cairns, extracts from period interviews with Fritz Lang, an abundance of production stills, illustrations and marketing collateral, and more!

AVENGERS LEATHER IN COLOR

AVENGERS LEATHER IN COLOR
Start your week off with the fabulous John Steed and Emma Peel in this 1966 color short promo. The Avengers Forever website offers some interesting trivia from behind the scenes, including one tidbit that will "appeal" to fashion Spy Vibers: although Mrs Peel is well-remembered for her zippered black leather jumpsuit, the outfit didn't make the transition from monochrome to color with the rest of the show for the 1967 season. This is the only color film of Rigg in her iconic catsuit. Check out Avengers Forever for more. I've always loved this clip because it captures so much of the wit, wisdom, and wardrobe that made The Avengers an eternal fave.

MID-CENTURY MODERNIST

MID-CENTURY MODERNIST
If you haven't visited the Mid-Century Modernist website recently by writer/graphic designer Stephen Coles, stop in for a sweet dose of inspired design. His recent posts include photos of a gorgeous record player by Dieter Rams (good timing as I'm currently fantasizing about buying the new remastered Kraftwerk albums on vinyl), and Eames chair collections.

BOND SALE TODAY!

BOND SALE TODAY!

James Bond blu-ray sets are in Amazon's gold box sale today!

WHITON GOES NEHRU AGAIN!

WHITON GOES NEHRU AGAIN!
My students and I had a blast editing images today. One of the portraits from my Nehru article went through some fun revisions. Here are a few versions to share with fellow Spy Vibers. I see a self-portrait photo contest in our future!

GET FLINT- WINNERS!

GET FLINT -WINNERS!
Thank you to all of the many Spy Vibers who entered the FLINT contest! All entries were put into a hat and two winners were pulled in a random drawing. Congratulations to Cameron Kilgore (Our Man Flint) and Brad Wrolstad (In Like Flint)! Find out more about Flint and the contest here. Stay tuned for future Spy Vibe prizes.

ROLLING STONES BLU

ROLLING STONES BLU
Spy Vibers are used to seeing Beatles news here, but this Maysles/Stones-related announcement from Blu-ray caught my eye: The Criterion Collection has set December 1 as the release date for the Blu-ray edition of 'Gimme Shelter', the landmark documentary that follows the Rolling Stones on their notorious 1969 US tour. The BD will feature a new high-definition transfer of the uncensored 30th Anniversary version, remastered and restored from the camera original, in 1.33:1 1080p video, accompanied by stereo LPCM and multichannel DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks.

Special features include:

• Never-before-seen performances of the Rolling Stones at Madison Square Garden in 1969, including "Little Queenie," "Oh Carol," and "Prodigal Son," plus backstage outtakes
• Audio commentary by directors Albert Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin, and collaborator Stanley Goldstein
• Excerpts from KSAN Radio's Altamont wrap-up, recorded December 7, 1969, with new introductions by then-DJ, Stefan Ponek
• Altamont stills gallery, featuring the work of renowned photographers Bill Owens and Beth Sunflower
• Original and re-release theatrical trailers, plus trailers for Maysles Films' classics Grey Gardens and Salesman
• Filmographies for Maysles Films and Charlotte Zwerin
• Restoration demonstration
• "The Rolling Stones, Altamont, and GIMME SHELTER": A 44-page booklet with essays by Jagger's former assistant Georgia Bergman, music writers Michael Lydon and Stanley Booth, ex-Oakland Hell's Angels chapter head Sonny Barger, and film critics Amy Taubin and Godfrey Cheshire

DANCING RAUMPATROUILLE ORION-STYLE

DANCING RAUMPATROUILLE ORION-STYLE
I thank our Spy Vibe community for introducing me to the German TV show Raumpatrouille Orion, a gem I hope to track down on DVD someday. There are some fantastic clips on Youtube, mostly in the campy-cool area, but this scene of the characters chatting it up in a night club as contemporaries from the future hit the dance floor is just absolutely amazing and a must-see moment if you are in need of a dose of sudden giggles.

THE PRISONER BLU-RAY

THE PRISONER BLU-RAY
Juan Calonge at the Blu-ray website posted an update regarding the upcoming release of The Prisoner. I've been waiting for this edition for a long time and look forward to seeing McGoohan in Hi-def (not to mention the Peter Wyngarde tribute sketch!). The set hits stores October 27th and Amazon currently has a 49% off pre-order price of $50.49.


From Blu-ray: Our friends at TV Shows on DVD have the release details for the US Blu-ray edition of the classic British series 'The Prisoner', which will hit store shelves on October 27, released by A&E Home Entertainment, in conjunction with Network DVD. The series will come in five discs, featuring a complete high-definition restoration and 5.1 Dolby Digital audio. Special features include:

• "Don't Knock Yourself Out": this exclusive, feature-length documentary is the definitive look at the production of THE PRISONER, told by those involved in its creation. It includes a combination of archive and newly-filmed interviews with nearly 400 people, including Amette Andre, Bernard Williams, David Tomblin, Derren Nesbitt, Peter Wyngarde, Anton Rodgers, Michael Grade, George Baker and Peter Bowles.
• Additional featurettes:
  • "The Pink Prisoner:": Peter Wyngarde pays tribute to the series in this unique cross between an interview and comedy sketch
  • "You Make Sure it Fits": music editor Eric Mival discusses his role behind the scenes in making 'The Prisoner' and provides a unique look at the Music Bible for the show
• Newly restored original edit of "Arrival" with an optional music-only soundtrack featuring Wilfred Josephs' complete and abandoned score
• Original edit of the episode "The Chimes of Big Ben"
• Production crew audio commentaries on seven episodes
• Image Archive: individual galleries of over 1,200 stills are featured throughout this set, including episodic shots, generic/PR Photos, coverage of the original press conference in 1967 and Jack Shampan's designs.
• Archive material, including textless titles with clean themes by Ron Grainer, Wilfred Josephs, and Robert Farnon, as well as material from Rover, Foreign 'Filing Cabinet' title footage and the McGoohan photo montage from "Arrival."
• Production Paperwork Archive: original scripts for each episode, along with other rarely-seen production documentation, press releases, call sheets and other memorabilia. This unique collection is sourced from the personal archives of Tony Sloman, Steven Ricks, and Simon Coward and is reproduced here with their permission and assistance. (DVD-ROM Feature)
• Exposure strips gallery
• Commercial break bumpers
• Trailers for all episodes
• Preview of AMC's 'The Prisoner' mini-series remake

SWINGING LONDON

SWINGING LONDON
A fantastic collection of mid-1960s fashion footage, including Mary Quant, the Mini Skirt, PVC boots and raincoats, and Our Man Patrick Macnee from The Avengers!

GET FLINT

GET FLINT
A reminder that the deadline for the FLINT movie give-away contest is Sept 20th. We have one copy each of the original Flint films starring James Coburn to send to two Spy Vibers. Find out more about Flint and the contest here.

BIRTH OF COOL

BIRTH OF COOL
Spy Vibers with an eye for mid-century modern and the culture of modernism will want to check out The Birth Of Cool -a lushly illustrated and researched coffee table book. Flipping through the pages is like club-hopping to visit the movers and shakers of the era. Major designers and milestone designs are covered from architecture, furniture, record sleeve design, movie set and title production, mass media, etc. There's even some space for Hugh Hefner as they discuss the revolutionary notion of being a cool guy. Other Spy Vibe faves are mentioned, including Hitchcock North By Northwest. Additional information below from Amazon:

Product Description
Miles Davis's seminal recording, known as "Birth of the Cool", is the starting point for this colorful, multi-disciplinary journey through 1950s West Coast America. 1950s West Coast style exuded "cool": from the smooth, hypnotic strains of a Miles Davis riff through Richard Neutra's elegant, modernist residences to the hard-edged paintings of Helen Lundeberg and Karl Benjamin. This richly illustrated volume casts a fresh eye on Fifties West Coast style with illuminating commentary from a variety of perspectives. Designed to echo the period it celebrates, this catalog explores modernist innovations in art, architecture, design, film and music. Prominent cultural critics write on an array of topics: Thomas Hine about the culture of cool; Elizabeth Smith on domestic aspects of the period's architecture; Francis Colpitt on hard-edged abstract painting; Dave Hickey on jazz, and Bruce Jenkins on the crossover between animation and experimental film. The result is a multi-faceted exploration of the 1950s West Coast.


Review
In Elizabeth Armstrong's BIRTH OF THE COOL: California Art, Design, and Culture at Midcentury every facet of popular art, from architecture to furniture, with a generous dose of graphic design, is examined for how it expressed California's cultural aura. The title of this book the catalog for a traveling show that is now [ended] at the Oakland Museum of California is borrowed from the 1957 album by Miles Davis, who in this telling is the standard bearer of West Coast cool, in stark contrast to the East Coast hipster style. "His lyrical playing and pure, vibrato free tone seemed to define a postwar concept of cool," Thomas Hine writes in "Cold War Cool," one of the book's nine essays.

Complementing Miles's sounds, the startling minimalist furniture design of Charles and Ray Eames and the space age architecture of Richard Neutra and Rudolph M. Schindler added to the unmistakable West Coast aesthetic. While modern graphic design did not begin in California, for various transplants from New York (like the film title designer Saul Bass) and Europe (like the poster artist Herbert Matter), as well as for the Angeleno and book jacket maestro Alvin Lustig, it was a hotbed of graphic experimentation. The magazine Arts & Architecture was the wellspring of graphic progressivism. "Covers by Ray Eames, Alvin Lustig and John Follis all utilize the technique of building an idea through a freewheeling juxtaposition of photographic and handmade elements," the book designer Lorraine Wild writes in her essay "Formal, Cool, Dense: Graphic Design in Los Angeles at Midcentury," "though each did this in her or his own very specific way." Not every aspect of California cool is uniquely Californian. But as Bruce Jenkins writes in "Making the Scene: West Coast Modernism and the Movies," the simplified graphics that characterized United Productions of America, the studio behind the Oscar winning animated short "Gerald McBoing Boing" (in addition to Mr. Magoo), defined the post Disney West Coast aesthetic. UPA cartoons "referenced not only a visual style emerging within the larger arena of the fine arts but also a design aesthetic that was fast becoming a distinctive style within California residential and commercial architecture the cool."

In the current international culture, where regional and national styles are fast falling victim to global branding, this integrated and consistent history shows that design is a function of not just commerce, technology and politics, but also location, location, location. Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company --The New York Times, 5/31/2008

THE SILENCERS

THE SILENCERS
No actual silencers, but a fantastic video clip of the Dean Martin film, The Silencers, theme song over at the Spy-Fi Channel. Christopher writes: "Continuing my efforts to find rare spy-fi-related clips: buxom Joi Lansing performs the theme from the Dean Martin Matt Helm film The Silencers in this burlesque-inspired musical short for scopitone "video jukeboxes" of the Sixties."

SPY VIBE BRIEF: SILENCERS

SPY VIBE BRIEF: SILENCERS
Out of the many elements that define the 60s spy vibe, the silencer itself is an important addition to spy fashion and an essential extension of the overall sneaky, thrilling action of the stories. The image of Mrs. Peel in the credits of The Avengers and the ritualistic assembling of the U.N.C.L.E. gun in The Man From U.N.C.L.E. are both prime examples of the silencer as stylish symbol. Then of course, there is the sound! That strange, sudden burst of tire-pump squeal, the target slumps, and the assassin slips away undetected. It's pretty morbid actually, but in the fictional world of spy adventure, the silencer remains a cool accessory. Video clips below of those iconic moments, plus a memorable moment in 007 history when Bond shoots Dent in Dr. No. After the villain unloads his gun into a bed fixed up with pillows, Bond fires a number of shots after his famous line, "That's a Smith and Wesson. And you've had your six." (see time 5:30). Did you ever wonder how silencers really work? Here's a brief explanation on the How Stuff Works website.

REMASTERS?

Spy Vibers, have you heard the new Beatles mono or stereo remasters? How are they?

BEATLES DAY

BEATLES DAY
The Beatles catalog has now been released in fantastic stereo and mono mixes. Every song, every album. Beatles day has begun! And for those into gaming, you can now also join the Fabs on-stage in Rock Band. One of the unexpected joys of this historic 090909 launch (John had a thing for the number 9) is the incredible new content and community features on The Beatles website. Not only can you create profile pages with Beatles images and your own reviews, you can access virtually every song from every album (even alternate albums/tracks), and make your own interactive playlist of song clips. It's great, especially for someone wanting to flip through records and check out tracks. Not enough? You can also access and make playlists of videos as well as archives of memorabilia, images, etc. It's quite a Beatles treasure trove (including a cool animated Op Art-influenced video I'd never seen). In the memorabilia section, I spotted a great Italian record sleeve from '65 with trademark mid-60s Italian Futura typeface, thin suits, and a cool-green color scheme. Once you are a member in this virtual Beatles world, you can leave reviews and comments for all content and you can interact with other fans. Go forth and be Fab :)


No iTunes news for those waiting to download songs. Dhani Harrison has mentioned that they are interested in making their own download site, which would not surprise me given the steps they've already taken with media content on the official Beatles site. Also, check out the podcast on Amazon's Beatles store page for interviews with the Abbey Road team that work on the remastering and for song clips.

GET FLINT

GET FLINT
A Labor Day weekend give-away event at Spy Vibe! We have one DVD copy each of Our Man Flint and In Like Flint, two of the most GROOVY 60s spy films of all time. For Spy Vibers who need to add Flint to their collection, send an email to jason@spyvibe.com with IN LIKE FLINT or OUR MAN FLINT as the subject heading by Sept 20th. One DVD per winner. Increase your chances by putting your name in for both random drawings. DVDs are NTSC region 1 (anamorphic widescreen, 2002, optional subtitles). Winners will be announced Sept 20th. Start your weekend off with swingin' spy Flint, who made it to #3 in our top-ten best spy movie set countdown:


SPY VIBE SET COUNTDOWN #3
Our Man Flint (1966) In Like Flint (1967). Art Director/Jack Martin Smith (Planet of the Apes, Valley of the Dolls), Set Decorator/Raphael Bretton (Poseidon Adventure), Set Decorator/Walter Scott (Fantastic Voyage, Hello Dolly), Art Director/Dale Hennesy (Logan’s Run, Sleeper, Dirty Harry, Fantastic Voyage). Out of the elevator and into a thinking man’s penthouse apartment. The sets for the two Flint films offer much to discuss the attitudes of the times. Actress Jean Hale and historian Mary Corey called Coburn’s character the first metrosexual- a man who excels as an intellectual, artist, lover, foodie, sportsman, inventor, adventurer, scientist, and who, most importantly, can satisfy his companions emotionally. With his harem of female friends, he is a Spy Vibe version of Hugh Hefner. Flint embodies Hef’s credo that a Playboy be a “man who must see life not as a vale of tears, but as a happy time; he must take joy in his work, without regarding it as the end and all of living; he must be an alert man, an aware man, a man of taste, a man sensitive to pleasure, a man who- without acquiring the stigma of the voluptuary or dilettante- can live life to the hilt.” Though Hale and Corey see the pro-feminism elements in the Flint films, they point out that the movies had not quite caught up with the feminism movement. But Flint tries- breaking the hypnotic spell that holds his partners in sexual slavery by uttering the magic mantra, "You are not a pleasure unit!" The entrance to the pleasure quarters is a wonderful nod to the Mondrian Day Dress by Yves Saint Laurent, which saw its debut one year earlier in 1965.

Flint’s penthouse pad is a conglomeration of Playboy's apartment illustrations and has design schemes to fit different moods- all immediately changeable at the flick of a switch. Erotic paintings and sculptures revolve into the wall to be replaced with modern décor and canvases by Modern masters. The rooms are eclectic: futuristic gadgetry, military traditional, neo-classical- all shades of the male fantasy. An aperture monitors the front door to a clear security panel that rises electronically from a clear coffee table (shades of Lucas’ private screening room). The library area is like an editor's office, filled with books (that Flint wrote), and the patio sports a dolphin tank where Flint conducts his research for a Dolphin dictionary. He is the modern man!

The bad guys have it even better! Their vast evil lairs embody male fantasy and freedom that predates the Playboy Mansion (sorry, Hef!), which didn't start its Shangri-La renovations until 1971. The movie has ultra-stylized sets, including beauty salons, hot tub spas, a disco with go-go dancers, ancient Roman bacchanalia, a drive-in theater for backseat necking, cryogenic chambers, and an array of Space Aged labs, control rooms, and corridors. This pair of cult-classic spy adventures was produced with wit, care, and quintessential Spy Vibe cool.

Spy Vibers looking to delve deeper into the world of Derek Flint should pick up the incredible soundtrack collection by Jerry Goldsmith. Goldsmith established a wonderful theme for the films, which he circulates throughout the soundtracks successfully by altering the mood and context through changes in interpretation and instrumentation. The pallet carries the listener through a Cold War auditory journey from snowy Moscow to outer space. I often put it on repeat and let it bring a fun Spy Vibe to the day.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GEORGE LAZENBY

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GEORGE LAZENBY
Spy Vibe wishes a happy birthday to George Lazenby! For years, I counted On Her Majesty's Secret Service as my fave 007 film (I now accept that there are shifting moods that can even put Moonraker right up there!). I still love the film and really enjoy his performance alongside Diana Rigg and Telly Savalas. From what I've read, Lazenby put in a great effort to make the sudden transition from modeling to acting. He jumped into the franchise during a film that required more range from its leading man, but ultimately I think it came together well. The script was so exciting and touching. I wonder how he might have developed had he stayed on for more films?

DESIGN WITHIN REACH SALE

DESIGN WITHIN REACH SALE
Design Within Reach is currently running a mix-and-match 15% off sale (plus free shipping!). Launched in 1999, Design Within Reach is a fantastic source of classic modern furniture that was traditionally only available through designers and viewable to collectors and MOMA visitors. Here you will find collections with names like Eames and Frank Lloyd Wright. Their shopping experience is like a mini-course in design history. So if you're finally building that bachelor pad or evil lair and need that special ellipse table or artichoke lamp, these guys will take care of your Spy Vibe needs. Some readers may recall that Our Man Tony at Design Within Reach identified a number of pieces in James Bond sets during our set countdown, including the Arne Jacobsen chair in Tanaka's office in You Only Live Twice. Browsing through their on-line catalog, I spied a beautiful Jacobsen Egg chair that looks quite nice in "cloud blue." I suggest that you visit their shops in person if possible because it's so fun to see the pieces and try them out. Store locations here. The 15% sale ends September 14th. Store Blog.

BEATLES ON RECORD BBC DOC

BEATLES ON RECORD BBC DOC

A new BBC documentary will air previously-unheard audio footage of The Beatles at their recording sessions at Abbey Road Studios. The film charts The Beatles' extraordinary journey from Please Please Me to Abbey Road and reflects how they developed as musicians, matured as songwriters and created a body of work that sounds as fresh now as the time it was recorded. Here is an exclusive first look at some of that documentary on the BBC website. "The Beatles: On Record" - BBC 2, Saturday September 5th at 2035.

ENCOURAGING WORDS FROM YOKO

Because Yoko was a supportive force behind the scenes for some of my students in the past, I wrote and asked her if she had any words of encouragement for my new art students. Her answer: "The vibrations sent out by us artists, cover the Earth planet with wisdom and love, create world peace, and send good vibration to the Universe. Be true to yourself. You are beautiful." -Yoko Ono


New Plastic Ono Band album out this month! Congratulations to Yoko, Sean, Yuka, and the band from Spy Vibe! Gigs are scheduled in Japan. Hopefully a US tour will follow. Paul Simon mentioned in the Graceland documentary that even a strong message or spirit needs the right form or vessel to communicate that to an audience. After a number of dance re-mix projects, I would say that Yoko has now found a form that allows her concepts, improvisations, and messages to shine. From the clips I've heard so far, I think the new album will be one of her greatest collections of work. In related news, Spy Vibers may also be interested in the Beatles catalog releases next week, as well as CD re-releases from Julian Lennon and an upcoming soundtrack album from Sean Lennon.

PLASTIC ONO BAND
From August: For Spy Vibers with a taste for experimental grooves and 60s artists working today, there is a new album coming out on Sept 21st by the new Plastic Ono Band, which includes Yoko and Sean, Yuka Honda, and Cornelius. I gather that they formed, as is the tradition with this band, for a group of recent shows and an interesting batch of recordings were the result. You can hear a sample on Yoko's Imagine Peace website, where you can also learn about her Smiling Face Film project, exhibits, and other news. Regardless of whether Yoko is your cup of tea as an artist, she is undeniably a fascinating and creative force whose Buddhist-like subtle conceptions and offerings should not go unnoticed behind the media and hype that follows her. If you would like to look into her artwork further, I suggest the book Y E S, and the upcoming book Yoko Ono (Modern Artists Series). Here is the album cover- great photograph! In youtube footage of the concerts, Yoko was stylishly Mod in a jersey with striped sleeves and short-brimmed white cap. She's industrious and, in her own eccentric way, very cool. All the best wishes to Yoko, Sean, Yuka, and the band from Jason at Spy Vibe.

CONNERY BY TASCHEN

CONNERY BY TASCHEN
Sean Connery is the focus of a new edition in Taschen's movie icon series. Famous for illustrated books, Taschen does a great job laying out a filmography with some behind-the-scenes info. I have the Truffaut and Woody Allen books and find that I enjoy browsing through them to get reaquainted with various projects from their careers. I'm sure that fans of Connery and of 007 will enjoy the new entry in the publisher's small-bound editions. From Amazon: Why is the only non-American winner of the AFI's prestigious Life Achievement Award a Scotsman? Perhaps because Sean Connery's career, though international in scope and global in appeal, made him a "genuine movie star" without any pretensions or pandering to fashion. Indisputably, Connery's incarnation of James Bond catapulted him to stardom and lay the foundation for the most successful franchise in motion picture history. Together Bond and Connery became larger-than-life; but it was Connery, not Bond, whose powerful presence went on to permeate scores of other roles. Connery can be as cool and charismatic as Steve McQueen, as elegant as Cary Grant, or as generous as Frank Sinatra. Said Audrey Hepburn: "There are only two great stars in my recollection who have not been changed by massive success: Lassie and Sean Connery."

MOD FASHION BY LIAM

MOD FASHION BY LIAM
Amidst the news that Oasis has (at least temporarily) split, is the recent spring launch of a fun creative project by Liam Gallagher in the form of a new fashion line for men called Pretty Green. The current front page item on the website is a cool Mod parka (limited run of 350) sporting Liam's logo patch and the copy: "Liam's got #1. Paul Weller's got #2. Which number will you get?" From Pretty Green: Pretty Green is an up-front, straight talking, classic clothing range owned, founded and designed by Liam Gallagher. The Pretty Green team is made up of key industry professionals. The clothing range, which is entirely 'limited edition', will include classic designs across footwear, denim, knitwear, jackets, trench coats, parkas, t-shirts, hats, scarves and accessories; all subject to Liam's final approval. "Clothes and music are my passion. I'm not here to rip anyone off and I'm not doing it for the money either. I'm doing it cuz there's a lack of stuff out there of the things I would wear." -Liam Gallagher 2009

In the short promo films below, Liam talks about his passion for clothes and about the Mod movement and the Who film Quadraphenia as inspirations. As we reported earlier this summer, Paul Weller has also gone into clothing design. It's not a new phenomenon for musicians to cross over into fashion. A notable example is the Beatles' launch of their Apple boutique, which was in part set up as an enterprise to diversify and invest their income in response to the heavy 90% tax they were under at the time. The boutique quickly lost money and was shut down in an event where the public was actually invited to take away remaining inventory for free. Spy Vibe is a big fan of Mod style and of Liam and we wish him the best in his new project. Hopefully he'll have great fun and success working on future collections as well as success as the fantastic songwriter he's proven to be in the last seven or eight years.