Happy May 24th, the day the greatest song-writer of all time was born. Today, the amazing Bob Dylan turns 69 years old. Do I really have to go into detailed praise of this man, whom I love so much? Currently I don’t very much feel like needing to prove to you his greatness (if you don’t get it, you are missing out). Let’s skip past all the different musical conversational possibilities when dealing with Dylan, (there need’s to be a Dylan themed ‘Table Topics’ asap); acoustic vs. electric, folk vs. blues, fav live album, fav duet, fav 80s album, Christian Dylan, Jewish Dylan, 2000s Dylan, XM radio Dylan, fav bootleg volume, etc… What I decided to do on this wonderful coffee charged morning, other than listen to his discography in chronological order, is try to find awesome Bob Dylan t-shirts online (that is kind of our specialty). This proved to be a somewhat difficult task. For one, there are way too many cheapster zazzle/cafe press type of shirts out there that makes sifting through the web a pain in the ass… I’d rather make my own t-shirt than waste money on one of these, because despite their cheap quality, I couldn’t even find one that was at least aesthetically pleasing. Finally, I stumbled onto Lucky Brand, quickly remembering a Bob Dylan t-shirt I own from them. It’s not that great, but I am a big vintage concert poster fan. This is the first one I found online, and I think it’s pretty awesome:

It was only I fell in love with this shirt, that I found out that it is a kids size, and out of stock. Don’t you hate it when that happens? However, with the search, Lucky redircted me to this one (get it here):

and this one, you can get here (On sale):

I like both of these. The first with its creative use of the lyrics from Mr. Tambourine Man to create a nice rustic picture (only his shnoz looks a bit Ringo-eque). The second features a faint picture of the later, black shade, afro-sporting, ‘Don’t Look Back’ Dylan. My only beef is that I would rather not see the text of Dylan at the bottom. If you don’t know it’s Dylan, that’s your problem.

I also found this Bob Dylan tee, which I am still unsure of exactly how I feel about, from artiitii.com :

There is also this shirt, from the official Bob Dylan site:

and this one, on which I love the back, but the front completely ruins it (I am really not a fan of that new Dylan ‘eye’ emblem that he uses):

However, the best Dylan tees, in my opinion, are the vintage concert tees, if you want to spend the big bucks, check out some on Ebay . My favorite, having to be:

And so we come to the end of this wonderful Bob Dylan search, and I am still left feeling a bit unsatisfied. I may have missed a cool shirt hiding somewhere on the internet, but in general, the designer iconic rock figure shirt seems to be a rarity, which is really quite a shame. I don’t like my rock shirts to be cheap, sticky prints, that look like they were made in a basement for 20 cents a pop. I feel there’s a lot of creativity that can be infused into making a rock shirt, but I couldn’t find it out there.

Last but not least, I can’t let you go without putting a song up! However, I was unable to put up one of my favorite Bobby songs, Maggie’s Farm live from Newport version (so much better than original, Bloomfield kills it on the guitar!) So, I decided to put up this hilarious clip from the incredible Scorsese documentary, No Direction Home.

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When it comes to abstract art, there are only two schools, and both hate each other (and in a movie they would battle it out in a bicycle, car or ski race, karate match, or surf battle). The one side completely dismisses abstract art as nonsensical, untalented, meaningless and that it basically resembles a drawing hanging on a refrigerator that was done by a 2 year old with his fingers who may have swallowed some paint in the process. While the other side of spectrum praises abstract art because it can bypass literal perception and reach into the otherwise impenetrable world of unconscious emotion. That’s cool. I like to think of myself as respecting both parties for their talents and their beliefs; however, I should note that when I see a modern abstract painting of some random shape selling for ridiculous sums of money, it is a bit disconcerting. Nevertheless, at the end of the day some of these art professors, that may come off as pretentious bullshiters, have been studying their Jackson Pollock and Wassily Kandinsky for a long time, so there has to be something to what they preach. …Anywho, I’m in the business of t-shirts and in that belongs art, randomness and nonsense, and it looks great. So whether this image looks like a weird pirate, a dirty peacock or absolutely nothing, it’s still dope (cause I said it is) and also because the website’s cool enticer “super eye-catcher for the next night out at the club or bar hopping”, how do you say no to that?

From Marc by Marc Jacobs, get it here

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Nothing says Howdy Doody like a bare midriff and big breasts—Fun Bags. Cha-Chas. Winnebagos. Devil’s Dumplings. Milk Jugs. Gazongas. Coconuts. Melons. Tweedledee and Tweedledum. Ninnies. Speed Bumps. Splazoingas. Squachies. Wopbopaloobops. Whimwhams— Oh, where is my mind? Back to the topic at hand, there is plenty more to discuss. Like that haircut for which I have no defense; half mullet, half bouffant? It is also very important to notice the keen, sangfroid nature about her pose as she leans on her car (not sure what type, could be a dune buggy?) and her eyes strike you. This shirt encapsulate that spirit of the 70s when women could unabashedly show off the goods and everything was just dandy, Daisy Dukes anyone? To complete the throwback aura of the shirt there is this small detail on the back:

Not necessarily saying she is nice and easy, just that whole 70s freewheeling vibe is. Note: it kills me that this image might be from a show or movie and I am unaware of it, so if you have any information, please comment.

From KING KRASH, get it here

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It was just this past weekend when someone, upon seeing my Mickey Mouse watch, commented negatively on it and sparked a small confrontation. It was in this argument with this silly person that I realized that too many people take themselves way too seriously. Now, I have no problem with someone who chooses to not sport cartoon characters on their wrist, but to be so adamantly against somebody else doing is so fickle and frivolous. There’s a lot we as humans can learn from cartoons and if we let our inflated egos and false notions of our ‘mature’ selves blindly lead us, we ignore so many beautiful things. Yes, you have to ‘grow up’ eventually but if we forget the innocence and unadulterated mirth of childhood and let the cynical ideology of being a grown up engulf us, then we lose that idealistic nature of wanting to do things differently, of not wanting to be just another spoke in this life wheel of the drudgery by being an another nobody in the sea of nobodies. Oh, the t-shirt. It’s just amazing. Despite the sick navy stripes which I think are the ‘must-have’ look for this upcoming spring, but the big, bold and sexy image of the pirate Donald Duck on the front, badass.

From JC de Castelbajac S/S 2010 line, get it here

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While you were too busy focusing on Mohandas Gandhi’s wise words about peace, you probably missed a whole other side of him. Drinking raw eggs and jogging in the cold 4 AM dawn of South Philadelphia, he was a lean mean boxing machine. Don’t let Gandhi’s slim physique fool you, it was his speed that got to you, “I’m so fast that last night I turned off the light switch in my hotel room and was in bed before the room was dark”. Only two hits; him hitting you and you hitting the ground. Sam Rothstein once made over half a million taking 12 to 1 odds against Gandhi. He was a champion for the ages, spreading love through the art of broken noses and cracked jaws. Towards the end of his run, after his loss to Sugar Ray Robinson he succumbed to the fast life of his nightclub and was arrested for underage prostitution. “I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am, let’s face it”.

While we are on the topic, I’ll use any excuse to hear Mike Tyson speak:

From Impure get it here

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Magic Sam – Love Me With A Feeling

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Although they are somewhat under-represented on this blog, I love red shirts. You can put almost anything on a red tee and it’ll probably be awesome. Put a sexy picture on the front, preferably with some sort of female nudity, and you’ve got a best seller (at least in my eyes). If that image is adapted from the a Legendary Glam Pop Album’s cover art, then you have transcended reality and entered a new realm of t-shirt spectacularity! House of the Gods, a collection of musically inclined shirt designs, really hit a home-run on this one, and I am pretty sure they didn’t inject any steroids to enhance their performance. I mean think about it, how many album covers can you think of that are better than this one? I mean it’s no Abbey Road, but Roxy Music is #387 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time even though chances are you haven’t heard even one song from the entire album. You should know that Bryan Ferry and his Roxy Music band-mates were some of the classiest gentlemen of their time, bringing glitz to an otherwise sartorially confused generation. Just notice how they had the topless young lady cover herself up. ( I needed an excuse to show the close up… can you blame me?)

Also, pay attention to how they gave the beautiful strangers a few moments to apply a fresh coat of lipstick. In the 70’s there was no Revlon Colorstay lipstick, reapplication was necessary after, say, lunch… or a blow job. I also can appreciate the placement of the band’s name (House of the Gods’ doing). I mean what guy wants to witness the disapproving glare of a naked woman’s eyes as he ogles her repeatedly. Well done House of the God’s and well done Roxy Music.

House of the Gods took care of business, but you can only lead a horse to hay, you can’t make it eat… so feast my three legged friend, for you have been brought to the straw fields. But nothing in life is free, so pay your for your meal here

And in case it’s true and you haven’t heard even one song from Country Life, you’ve just lost your virginity and I am the one to take it!

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Unless you are Slick Rick, you keep your accessories to the essentials; watch, tie, cufflinks, and shades (and obviously an assortment of shoes). You should never be wearing the same thing as other people, especially sunglasses. In regards with what is popular, cool things will always be cool (I say ‘always’ very cautiously). Trends are usually just a recycled coolness from the past that was just forgotten, or something that makes you turn around half a year later and shake your head in embarrassment of having followed it. When picking sunglasses it is all about what works for you. I don’t care how awesome some shades are, if they don’t work for you, don’t force it.

The spring/summer line of ‘W’ shades from Retro Super Future are ridiculously dope. However, the ones that stand out the most in awesomeness are the pictured ‘Summer Safari’. Don’t feel it necessary to go out and get yourself a pith helmet, hunt zebras or ride around in a Wrangler, but they do have that African sunset, organic feel to them. It is the smooth brown mixed with the almost (but thankfully not) leopard print, that takes these glasses to the next level. The actual shape that resists any curves and has a flat top is just the perfect mix of old school retro and futuristic. Smooth. Shades are an essential for the Spring and Summer, so make sure to keep it fresh.

From Retro Super Future, get in here and check out other colors here

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Little Anthony & The Imperials – Shimmy Shimmy Ko-Ko-Bop

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Well, when I was a young man and never been kissed, I got to thinkin’ it over, how much I had missed… The problem was that instead of looking for girls, my time was preoccupied with blowing bubbles, and other adolescent joys that one loses as he gets older. This t-shirt captures that unadulterated prepubescent enthusiasm. Also, the bubbles are reminiscent of those trippy 60s liquid lights shows (Pink Floyd, Jefferson Airplane, Velvet Underground, etc.) The color of the shirt covers a photograph of a young woman, where only her eyes remain, peering out of the t-shirt in an ambiguous glare. The brand, Ardentees, takes the art of the tee (“wearable canvas”) very seriously; “visual exploration of the symbiotic relation between fashion and art”. As a pseudo-historian of t-shirts, I appreciate their enthusiasm, for the print shirt had its genesis in the hands of artists’ artistic expression.

From Ardentees, get it here

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