Indeed, by now Mojo was setting new standards in the sheer class and luxury of its illustrations - an article about the Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles includes this ravishing photograph of ravishing Deborah Harry at the Whisky A Go Go in 1977
Elsewhere, there is a huge and in-depth 18 page feature on the Band, illustrated by many elegaic photographs including this one of the group in the studio
Nick Hornby reviews a Steely Dan compilation. Charles Shaar Murray reviews live recordings by inter alia Hendrix, Marley and Coltrane. All the Smiths albums are re-assessed.
There are major reviews of half a dozen Bert Jansch/Pentangle albums, as well as the second 9-CD Complete Stax/Volt Singles mega-box. An obituary for Albert Collins and a 2 page article on Rick Wakeman are amongst the other highlights.
The photographs of the Blues players are wonderful, though.
Here is Son House, enjoying a cigarette, pictured in 1967, when he was 65 years old.
After the Dylan/Lennon technicolour cover of edition 1, Mojo went all Beatles White Album for the cover of edition 2 - featuring the monochrome image of country chanteuse k.d.
lang astride a double bass.
As well as an interview with lang, the magazine featured a look at Elvis Presley at Prestwick Airport 1960 (the King s only visit to British soil), an article on another King, Blues Boy B.B.
King, a lengthy interview with Loudon Wainwright III, Rat Scabies remembers, more in-depth stuff on Phil Lynott (Leslie Crowther s son-in-law), Squeeze, Captain Beefheart (now plain Don Van Vliet) interviewed in the Mojave desert and subjected to 16 pages of scrutiny and dissection.
Live reviews of Simon and Garfunkel, Steve Miller, Bert Jansch and John Cale, and glory of glories - a review of Dylan s new album World Gone Wrong written by Robert Wyatt!!
! ( World Gone Wrong is a beautiful record by a beautiful man ). Elsewhere Andy Kershaw reviews re-issues of great Elvis Costello albums (My Aim Is True, This Year s Model, Armed Forces, El Mocambo).
Also reviewed is a record by William S Burroughs and the Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy, and new albums by Ringo Starr, Charlie Watts, Jackson Browne, Jimmy Webb, Laura Nyro and Tom Waits.
The book reviews include reviews of Alan Lomax s masterwork The Land Where the Blues Began , and a biography of Miles Davis, while the video (remember that?) review is of the Stones Altamont disaster but compelling film Gimme Shelter .
In short - all of this is right up my particular street.
Amongst all the bloody rubbish (copywrite - my wife) in our attic is every single edition of Mojo magazine.
Edition 1 was published in November 1993, and as you can see from the front cover, it featured Dylan and Lennon and was therefore an obvious magnet for me.
Amongst other things, that edition featured a load of stuff about Dylan and the Beatles, 1966 style - including lots of fabness and a transcript of the conversation betwen Bob and John as they drove around Hyde Park, stoned, at 7am of a morning - and a lengthy article on Dr Feelgood and the Canvey Island scene , 15 pages of goodness about Van Morrison, and reviews of albums such as Tougher Than Tough (a 4 CD reggae compilation), the Essential 60 s Masters (a 5 CD Elvis compilation), a 2 CD Moby Grape compilation, Nirvana s album In Utero , a live Nick Cave offering, and the Great British Psychedelic Trip Volume 3 . It also featured an obituary of zydeco/cajun musician Rockin Dopsie, and reviews of books about Leadbelly and Radio 1 recording sessions (mainly John Peel).
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