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"Rock 'n' Roll and Fast Cars - Volume II"

Photography by Martyn Goddard

Martyn went from Art College in the 70's straight into taking images of young bands like Queen and later The Jam and The Cure. He then progressed into following his passion for cars. This book is a summary of his lifetime's work.

This book is the follow up to Volume I as it was apparent that there was still a great deal of additional work not included and this book has extra content previously not included.

Order now for only $60.50 including FREE delivery.

PLEASE NOTE: To order this book from anywhere outside the USA please visit our Online UK Shop.

"Rock n Roll and Fast Cars - Volume II"
Price $60.50 (inc. FREE delivery)
"Rock n Roll and Fast Cars - Volumes I & II" Bundle"
Price $99 (inc. FREE delivery)

144 pages, hard back. Published in 2017 by Really Useful Products Ltd. 1st Edition. ISBN: 978-1-5272-1300-5

Introduction by Mike Pickles - CEO Really Useful Products Ltd

Martyn is truly an interesting and clever guy, with a great eye for an image. When we were talking about his first book, I suggested we called it Volume I. Martyn did not have grandiose ideas, and he thought the title was maybe too pretentious - so we agreed to leave Volume I off the title. Also, I think he was concerned that he did not have enough material to command a follow-up. In the interim period, he would regularly just drop into the conversation what he had worked on over the years. A great example of this was when he told me he had recently worked through the night to get images of George Michael ready for the singer's obituary by a USA-based client. He casually said that he was George's official photographer for many years. I suggested we should now create a second volume, and after Martyn reviewed his remaining work with Jacquie, his book designer, it was agreed that this book should be published. Martyn is a great person to be around, and it is amazing just how things all seem to fit into place when you are working with him.

Mike Pickles, September 2017

About this book, an introduction by Martyn Goddard - Author

For rock bands, the second album is always a critical period in their career - and for automobile designers, the MkII or facelift of an existing vehicle is a challenge. Volume II of "Rock 'n' Roll and Fast Cars" is a cocktail of both for me as a photographer. The first book would have been the last book, but for the fact that it looked good and was so well received by the readers. Also, I've produced so many images over a 44-year career that the space on the 150 pages of version one meant I had to omit many images that were worthy of inclusion - a task akin to getting a quart into a pint pot. This book will be given over to displaying the photographs with my thoughts and anecdotes of what happened on the shoots in what, to me, was the golden age of popular music, automobiles and magazines. As before, there will be a selection of period road-trip stories that put the automobile images into context, written by some great automotive journalists.

Over the past year I have enjoyed visiting record-collector fairs in London and the Netherlands. Through the book I've met a number of artists and art directors from the early days, along with fans who just like the strange mix of music and car culture. At the London Olympia event, a record collector purchased the book. Flicking through the pages he commented "did you take this picture? It's an iconic image". My response was "yes, that's my photograph of Debbie Harry used on the picture disc of Parallel Lines". The collector turned out to be the CEO of Atlantic Records, Craig Kallman. It's always good to receive positive feedback.

The realisation of both Volumes I and II would not have been possible without the wholehearted support of Mike Pickles and his Really Useful Products Company. Mike is a serial collector of music memorabilia and automobiles, so who could want for more? A truly knowledgeable supporter of this project. This book, though a testament to my past work, includes images from some of my latest assignments - such as the story about the Type 57 Corsica for the Bugatti Automobiles customer magazine, Ettore. Enjoy Volume II.

Introduction by Craig Kallman - Chairman and CEO Atlantic Records

In 1951, Chess Records released what is widely thought of as the first rock 'n' roll record - "Rocket 88" by Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats (who were in fact Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm). With its raw energy, distorted guitar and sexual innuendo, it was a watershed record that paved the way for the birth of rock 'n' roll out of rhythm and blues. The song's central character is a car - or more specifically, the powerful V8 engine in an Oldsmobile 88. It is all about the attraction of this powerful machine to the man who's driving it and especially to the women he's driving in it. Rock 'n' roll and fast cars have been inextricably linked ever since.

Rock 'n' roll records and automobiles have a lot in common. There are some that are beautiful and subtle, some that are loud and aggressive, some that have aged like fine wine and some that were at their best when they were new and of the moment. Cars appeal to our instincts in much the same way that music does - we have gut reactions to automobiles that we love and to music that moves us. We can't always explain why a certain car turns our head any more than we can explain why that one song grabs us and won't let go. Which brings me to Martyn and his amazing ability to capture the vitality and energy of both rock 'n' roll artists and stunning automobiles. It's a rare gift. It's not easy to express in a still photograph the spirit of something that truly comes alive when it's in motion - like a rock star or a great car.

Through Martyn's eyes, the link is undeniable, and his images are infused with power and charisma. I'm not a automobile collector, but I am a passionate (okay, obsessed) record collector, and the importance that great photography plays in the art of music cannot be overestimated. Great album photography, and great music photography in general, reflects the mood, enhances the artist's vision and draws you into the music. Martyn stunningly channels the essence of every artist he shoots.

I first met Martyn at the London Record Collectors Fair in November 2016. I loved the first edition of "Rock 'n' Roll and Fast Cars", and I was blown away when I found out that he was the one who had shot the Debbie Harry photo used on the Parallel Lines picture disc. It's a fabulous, iconic image that I regularly show to artists I sign as an example of what the right photograph can encapsulate and communicate. Like Martyn's first book, this one is another adrenaline rush of breathtaking imagery and seductive beauty - musical and automotive alike. As the last line in Rocket 88 says, "we're 'oozin' and cruisin' along"... and it's one fantastic ride.

Craig Kallman, Chairman & CEO of Atlantic Records, September 2017

Product images

Rock n Roll and Fast Cars Volume II - front cover Rock n Roll and Fast Cars Volume II - back cover 1952 Mercedes-Benz 220A. The Rose Car, painted by Hiro Yamagata Ian Dury takes a break from a recording session, London, UK, 1980 Debbie Harry of Blondie. Parallel Lines picture disc, New York, USA, 1978 Blondie. Best of Blondie rooftop photoshoot, New York, USA, 1978


"Rock 'n' Roll and Fast Cars - Volume I"

Photography by Martyn Goddard

Click here to view a 50 page preview online >>>

Order now for only $55.00 including FREE delivery.

PLEASE NOTE: To order this book from anywhere outside the USA please visit our Online UK Shop.

"Rock n Roll and Fast Cars - Volume I"
Price $55.00 (inc. FREE delivery)
"Rock n Roll and Fast Cars - Volumes I & II" Bundle"
Price $99 (inc. FREE delivery)

143 pages, hard back. Published in 2016 by Really Useful Products Ltd. 1st Edition. ISBN: 978-1-5262-0521-6

Introduction by Mike Pickles - CEO Really Useful Products Ltd

I've not known Martyn for so long but I have known and loved his work going all the way back to The Jam. I loved the images but had no idea or interest really in who took them. Fast forward and about a year ago a friend of mine was working on a photo shoot and told me the photographer was quite a character - I now know this remark was an understatement. We met a week or so later in Lake Como at a car event and as I was driving an interesting car Martyn suggested that he took an image. As I am always relaxed I agreed and then we had a long long discussion on our joint love of music and cars. If I was to summarise Martyn I would say he never shuts up. This is rich coming from me.

We discovered we were both separately invited to The Jam exhibition a month later at Somerset House curated by Nicky Weller. It turned out we were both also on the list of thanks. Nicky had also told Martyn that I helped support her book Growing up with The Jam.

A while later Martyn out of the blue made the trek up north to see me and asked for support on this venture. I was keen to see his previous work and Martyn knew that my reaction was key to support. He nervously handed over his other books and I was blown away by the composition, emotion and use of colour. I immediately said yes and - a few months later - here is the book. I hope you enjoy the book as much as me.

Introduction by Martyn Goddard

In 2007 I staged an exhibition at the Exposure Gallery London to mark the 30th anniversary of the release of The Jam In the City album, which I had shot in 1977. Since graduating from Harrow College of Technology & Art in the early 1970s I had found myself working for various rock bands including groups in the new wave and punk genre, and it was also around that time that I undertook automotive assignments for Car magazine. For the exhibition I assembled a group of prints of Rock & Roll artists and supercars that I had photographed. I hope the visitors thought it an interesting mix of images representing people and machines of the era.

Now ten years later and after the publication of a book on road trips around France titled "An Omelette & Three Glasses of Wine" I have, with the help of Mike Pickles, produced this book of photographs covering forty-plus years working as a photographer. I have always been a freelancer, which has given me freedom to work for an array of interesting magazines and record labels. It's been an extension of my teenage dreams of music and fast cars that my chosen profession has given me the ability to be a part of, as I can't play a note of music and only managed fourth place in my ten-year career as a historic rally driver. The book is all about the images, the people and automobiles. Browsing the pages of photographs and reading accompanying copy and reprints of period stories, I hope you will be able to appreciate some great artists, automobiles and events that I was on hand to record in my own way. Over the 150 pages, with the help of editor David Lillywhite, it illustrates the enjoyment I have had working on the assignments. Not all went as planned but all shoots were fun on reflection!

I started my career as a dyslexic photographer but due to the massive changes in the technology and the publishing business I am now a photojournalist, producing words to accompany the images. In the early days, I presented my portfolio to magazines and record companies, picture editors and art directors and it was a couple of these who gave me the career breaks such as the Queen live gig in 1975 and my first Car magazine assignment, which turned out to be photographing a Bedford show truck. Today my images are marketed via the internet; efficient but I miss the personal contact. Nowadays, from time to time I lecture to student photographers, by chance at my old college, now called Westminster University. My opening comment is something like, "the only thing that is the same today as that day in 1973 when I graduated is that light passes through the lens of a camera".

Today we are bombarded by imagery via social media, most of a throwaway nature, around a trillion taken in 2015 alone. I continue using the latest digital cameras, processing the images on my computer giving me greater control, the holy grail of every photographer, which was only dreamt of in the classic film stock era. Enzo Ferrari was often asked which was his favourite Ferrari; he replied his marque's next automobile. I have my favourite photographs but still delight in producing new images in new ways. As they say, you are only as good as your last assignment!

Book Contents

Rock 'n' Roll
016-025 Queen Live
026-049 Punk and New Wave
050-067 Pop and Prog
068-073 People

Fast Cars
080-087 Car Magazine and Supercar Classics
088-097 Octane Magazine
098-107 Automobile and Car & Driver
110-121 The Blues Trail
122-131 Monterey or Bust
132-137 To the Wilds of the North
138-141 Royal Automobile Club
142-143 Photo Notes

In the Press

Martyn Goddard is the Master of Rock and Road
Article by David K Gibson on the BBC web site, 15-Aug-2016

Famed for his iconic images of fast cars and rock stars, the British photographer has shot everything from AC/DC to Zagato...
[click to read full article on the BBC web site]

Baby, You Can Drive My Car -
Revisiting the Unbreakable Link Between Cars and Rock 'n' Roll

Article by Chris Nelson in Automobile Magazine, 2016

The release of contributing photographer Martyn Goddard's 150-page book, "Rock 'n' Roll and Fast Cars", has us thinking about the odd-but-undeniable relationship between two of our favourite things: cars and rock music. Both have been intertwined throughout Goddard's life since assisting Gered Mankowitz, who photographed Jimi Hendrix and The Rolling Stones.

"For me, my passion for photography was fired by the lack of any musical talent at all and only average driving ability at the limit", Goddard says.

"The adrenaline rush I had shooting in the orchestra pit at a Queen gig or photographing Blondie on the roof of the Record Plant in New York made me feel like I did driving a historical roll in an Alfa Romero or sitting shotgun in a Porsche 959 going 187 mph at night on an autobahn.

"In a strange way there is a link between wild music and powerful automobiles, and from time to time the two genres would merge", continues Goddard, who photographed Pink Floyd's Nick Mason alongside his awesome car collection and once chased English singer-songwriter Chris Rea down pit lane at the old Reims circuit in France.

A story Goddard did for us - in which he traces the trail of well-known bluesmen in a 1981 Coupe DeVille, driving from the famous recording studio in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, to Memphis and up to Chicago ("Key to the Highway", September 2013) - makes an appearance in "Rock 'n' Roll and Fast Cars".

It's a book that captures the omnipresence of great music and great automobiles in Goddard's life while encapsulating the peculiarities between the two. It sent us scrounging through the musical ether to find other automotive ties to singers, songs and rock 'n' roll.

Rock 'n' Roll and Fast Cars
Article by MD in Octane Magazine, 2016

Readers of this magazine will be very familiar with Goddard's car photography; what is less well known is that he had a previous career as a rock music photographer, shooting some of the biggest names in the business. This (naturally) picture-heavy book is a look back at some of his more memorable moments in both fields. It would have benefitted from a proper edit (it's Pat Townshend, not Townsend...) but the pics are great, and the eccentricities of rock music divas are always amusing.

Product images

Rock n Roll and Fast Cars Volume I - front cover Rock n Roll and Fast Cars Volume I - back cover Debbie Harry recording Parallel Lines in the Record Plant studio, New York 1978 Nick Mason of Pink Floyd with his Ferrari 250GTO Cisitalia 202 1948 parked in an Italian village Porsche 959 at speed on test for Car & Driver 1983


"Growing Up with The Jam"

Book sponsored by Really Useful Products

Recollections from Growing Up With The Jam by people like Mick Jones (The Clash), Mick Talbot, Glen Matlock (Sex Pistols), Adam Ant and many more.

Order now for only $45 including FREE delivery.

PLEASE NOTE: To order this book from anywhere outside the USA please visit our Online UK Shop.

"Growing Up with The Jam"
Price $49.50 (inc. FREE delivery)

Product images

Growing Up with The Jam - front cover Growing Up with The Jam - back cover


"Growing Up with Punk"

Book sponsored by Really Useful Products

Recollections from people involved with the punk movement and growing up during this time. Collaborations include Debbie Harry, Iggy Pop and Don Letts.

Order now for only $45 including FREE delivery.

PLEASE NOTE: To order this book from anywhere outside the USA please visit our Online UK Shop.

"Growing Up with Punk"
Price $49.50 (inc. FREE delivery)

Product images

Growing Up with Punk - front cover Growing Up with Punk - back cover

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