This is indeed a strange coincidence. Jimmy Cauty, one half of the discordian band know alternately as The JAMs, The Timelords, and The KLF, was also an accomplished artist, and created two posters, for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, in the late 70's/early 80's. Though I never owned either of those posters, I remember them well. I think one of my middle school buddies had one or both of them, as he and his mum were huge Tolkien fans.I was heavily into acid-house music back in the late 1980's and early 1990's. Two of my favorite 1980's Calgary dance clubs, The Banke and The Republik, had a DJ who was in a University class with me, and he would cut us tracks from the latest Chicago and English acid-house band releases while he was DJing. The KLF was my favorite acid-house band. It didn't hurt that The KLF politics bordered on the anarchic and their antics were gleeful social and cultural disruptions.
The KLF's The White Room album was sheer genius. Too bad The KLF's follow-up album, The Black Room (a planned collaboration with the heavy metal band, Extreme Noise Terror) was still-born.These LOTR and Hobbit posters are incredibly intricate, and the Gandalf in Cauty's Lord of the Rings poster is among my favorite renditions of the character.
I just think it's odd that Jimmy Cauty, one of the original Timelords -- Doctorin' the Tardis -- should have also been a fan of Tolkien's Ringlords.
My head esplode. Are you effin' kidding me? I totally loved the Lord of the Rings poster you're talking about... AND the KLF? Wow. That's insane.
ReplyDeleteHoly Justified Ancients of Mu-Mu, Batman!
ReplyDeleteThanks for that incredible revelation.
I had (maybe still have) the LoTR print but never would have imagined it was done by the infamous KLF bloke.
Now I'll have to hunt through all my old boxes and see if it's still knocking about.
Haven't seen that poster in a while, but I still love it. Thanks for the facts. They throw the doors of association wide open - if that's possible, much else is possible too. What an odd world this is!
ReplyDeleteAfter all these years, I still can't wrap my head around the fact that they convinced Tammy Wynette to record with them.
ReplyDeleteI had that poster (maybe I still do, in a cardboard tube somewhere?) and had no idea it was by Rockman.
ReplyDeleteI had the first poster but had no idea who illustrated it. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI think I had that first poster in college. I loved it and still think it's very nifty. Thanks for sharing!!
ReplyDeleteLove the poster. Need to find a copy and frame it. I just wish that they could duplicate your buddy so everyone could have one. :)
ReplyDeleteI still have that first picture. Rather than a poster, I have a smaller version laminated on particle board. It was all the rage among 1980's college nerds like me.
ReplyDelete"I have a smaller version laminated on particle board. It was all the rage among 1980's college nerds like me."
ReplyDeleteTHAT'S the version I have/had - I was just way too tired to think of the correct words to describe it ;)
I have the gandalf framed on my living room wall, good piece
ReplyDeleteAs an acid house dabbler and LotR geek, I'm amazed at the connection. What an interesting discovery!
ReplyDeleteRisus - Listen to some of the BBC radio broadcast of LoTR and you will see it's not far fetched.
ReplyDeleteI have the top one in my living room. One of my friends has the bottom one in hers.
ReplyDeleteThe KLF connection, Fascinating.
I had the LotR poster in my dorm room in college, it's probably still floating around in storage somewhere. I also spent a lot of time listening to KLF in college. Interesting connection! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI just picked up a wooden backed, clear coated version of Jimmy Cauty's The Lord of the Rings poster at a flea market. It is absolutely incredible! The detail is fantastic! I am on a mission now to collect it's mates.
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