Orlando Museum of Art hosts The British Invasion – Bob Bonis: Photographs of the Beatles and Rolling Stones in America through Jan. 3, 2016. Check out our review here, or browse through this small selection of photos of the Stones and the Beatles recording, performing, and just generally screwing around that you can see in the show. If you’re still hungry for more, go to the galleries on BobBonis.com to see even more and get the back story on the pictures.
The Beatles In Bel Air, California, August 23-24, 1964 #7In town for their August 23 historic show at the famous Hollywood Bowl, the boys soon found out that L.A. wasn’t exactly willing to roll out the red carpet. Lockheed Airport in Burbank refused to let their plane land, and the Ambassador Hotel canceled their reservations out of fear of being inundated with crazed fans. Luckily, British actor Reginald Owen offered up his Bel Air manse for the bargain price of $1,000.Mick Jagger, Clearwater, Florida, May 7, 1965 #1According to Keith Richards, this is the day that Mick Jagger wrote the lyrics for “Satisfaction,” their breakthrough hit.Mick Jagger With Maracas, Fourth U.S. Tour, 1965 #1
Mick Jagger, wearing some hypnotizing pants, was captured at the perfect moment in this photo by Bob Bonis in mid-step on stage, shaking his maracas during a performance of the Stones’ first U.S. single, “Not Fade Away,” originally recorded by Buddy Holly and the Crickets.Mick Jagger and James Brown, Recording of T.A.M.I. Show, #1Just two dates into their second-ever U.S tour, the Rolling Stones performed in Santa Monica, California, for The T.A.M.I. Show, which stood for Teen Age Music International, although some publications called it Teenage Awards Music International. In this photograph taken October 28, 1964, on the rehearsal day of filming, Mick Jagger and James Brown – meeting for the first time – size each other up backstage. This truly rare image captures the interaction between the Stones and James Brown, and was immortalized in the James Brown biopic “Get On Up” that was produced by Mick Jagger last year.Keith Richards, Brian Jones, Clearwater, FL, May 7, 1965 #1Mick Jagger Reading Playboy Magazine, Los Angeles, California, May 1965 #1 Life on the road can get lonely and even a bit mundane after the high of a live performance. In the spring of 1965, the Rolling Stones stayed in L.A. for several concert performances, TV appearances (including Hollywood A Go Go and Shindig), and recording sessions at RCA Studios. Here Mick Jagger takes advantage of a little downtime to catch up on the June 1965 issue of Playboy magazine, perhaps reviewing the first ever nude pictorial spread of James Bond Girl Ursula Andress. Four years later, Mick went from fanboy to main man when he was profiled in the November 1969 issue. The Stones would later stay in the Playboy Mansion in Chicago – at Hugh Hefner’s personal invitation – because hotel rooms were scarce during their 1972 US tour (an invite Hefner likely regretted after Keith Richards and Bobby Keys accidentally set fire to one of his bathrooms). And in perhaps the strangest twist, 46 years to the month after reading this very issue of Playboy, Mick’s daughter Lizzy would bare all for the June 2011 issue.Mick Jagger, Hamburg, West Germany, September 13, 1965 #1Mick Jagger on a Diving Board, Savannah, Georgia, May 5, 1965 #1 (Starting to get a burn on those shoulders, Mick)Rolling Stones, New York Hotel Lobby, 1965 #1Mick Jagger and Brian Jones on Stage, In Action, 1964 #1Mick Jagger Watching TV, Chicago, IL, October, 1964 #1 (It looks to us like he’s watching a Rolling Stones performance. Check it out up close and personal at the museum and see what you think)Keith Richards, Bild Zeitung Luncheon, Hamburg, West Germany, September 13, 1965 #1 1 Per BobBonis.com: “In a wonderfully meta moment, Keith Richards relaxes at a luncheon that was thrown by West German newspaper Bild Zeitung to make up for a mistake in an article that caused the Stones to threaten to cancel the rest of the tour. The caption on a photo had misidentified Bill Wyman’s girlfriend as Chrissie Shrimpton (the younger sister of model Jean Shrimpton), who was Mick Jagger’s girlfriend, which caused manager Andrew Loog Oldham to force the paper to print a retraction. Bob Bonis accompanied the Stones on their brief, five-city tour of West Germany – and the tour was a riot-filled affair. Former Stones bassist Bill Wyman recalls ‘police dogs everywhere’ and crowds ‘estimated at between 21,000 and 23,000.’ In this photo, behind Keith is a wall plastered with German Rolling Stones posters, sponsored by Bild Zeitung’s publication BRAVO. After rioting broke out at the West Berlin show on September 15, the East and West German press reprinted descriptions from Bild Zeitung of girls throwing off their underwear in ecstasy – in an effort to censor American and British influences, just as they had done with Elvis Presley in 1956.”Mick Jagger with Bob Dylan Album, Savannah, Georgia, May 1965 #1The Rolling Stones Recording at Chess Records Studio, Chicago, IL, June 1964 #1Keith Richards, Brian Jones, Ian Stewart, RCA Studios, Hollywood, California, September 1965 #1Mick Jagger, Diving Board, Savannah, GA, May 5, 1965 #1John Lennon Backstage, Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon, August 22, 1965 #1With many of the Beatles’ second US tour dates being grueling double-headers, the boys often found strange ways to entertain themselves between shows, as this photo of John Lennon dressed as Lawrence of Arabia showcases.George Harrison, John Lennon and Paul McCartney, Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, MN, August 21, 1965 #4 George Harrison, wearing his beloved Gretsch Chet Atkins Country Gentleman model guitar, turns away from the audience toward the side of the stage and seeing tour manager Bob Bonis standing there with his trusty Leica M3 camera, gives him a hearty thumbs-up.The Beatles at Seattle-Tacoma Airport, August 22, 1964 #1Going To Minnesota, The Beatles at Midway Airport, Chicago, IL, August 21, 1965 #1Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr En Route to San Francisco, California, August 30, 1965 #1The Beatles, en route to their show at the Cow Palace outside of San Francisco, California, on August 30, 1965. Also on the plane from Hollywood with the Beatles was Joan Baez, who visited them backstage in San Francisco. Their double-header at the Cow Palace drew 11,700 fans in the afternoon and 17,000 more that night—and even had to be stopped for 10 minutes after fans pushed through the barricades and rushed the stage.Paul McCartney, En Route to St. Louis, Missouri, August 21, 1966 #1The Beatles, Kansas City, Missouri, September 21, 1964 #3Ringo Starr, Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, MN, August 21, 1965 #1 This spectacular shot of Ringo Starr, part of the only collection of on-stage photos in existence, shows Ringo playing his black oyster pearl Ludwig drum set as he provides the driving beat for The Beatles as they perform for the fans at Metropolitan Stadium. George Harrison’s prototype Rickenbacker 360/12 model 12-string guitar with a FireGlo finish is sitting on a guitar stand next to Ringo. George used this guitar later in the show when they performed the song “A Hard Day’s Night.” Fleet Street dubbed this guitar the Beat Boys’ “secret weapon” when the song came out, because no one had ever used an electric 12-string before.Paul McCartney and George Harrison, Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, MN, August 21, 1965 #3Paul McCartney and John Lennon Backstage, Olympia Stadium, Detroit, MI, August 13, 1966 #1George Harrison, Backstage, JFK Stadium, Philadelphia, PA, August 16, 1966 #1 Perched on a craft service table, George Harrison tunes his guitar, an Epiphone Casino with an aftermarket Bigsby Vibrato that he acquired in the spring of 1966. This guitar was in the studio for their album Revolver and the single “Paperback Writer”/”Rain”, as well as on tour with them all over the world in 1966.John Lennon On Stage, JFK Stadium, Philadelphia, PA, August 16, 1966 #1 With Lennon-esque shades and his favorite guitar – a 1966 Epiphone Casino – in his hands, John Lennon performs at JFK Stadium (formerly Philadelphia Municipal Stadium) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on August 16, 1966.Paul McCartney and John Lennon On Stage, Crosley Field, Cincinnati, OH, August 21, 1966 #1The Beatles in Bel Air, California, August 23-24, 1964 #1
