As we’ve previously explored, the 1960s was a wild time to be alive. Yes, yes, I know, I wasn’t there… but the evidence is everywhere: in the music, the art, the attitude. It’s one of those eras that seems like it could have been yesterday, yet also feels in a way like it never happened. But it certainly did. And it was documented with great zeal. All we have to do is peak behind the covers of some of the most illustrious zines from that time period.
Music Zines
Music magazines weren’t necessarily a brand new concept in the 1960s. After all, Billboard launched in the 1800s and Melody Maker (which would eventually become New Musical Express) in the 1920s. Nevertheless, their appeal skyrocketed in the 1960s. Look at this below cover, the first issue of Rave:
Rave was one example of the music zines that were sprouting up all over, particularly as bands like The Beatles created fan frenzies never before seen. Now people wanted to know everything about their favorite artists. Zines were now the main conduit through which acts could communicate to their following. Many journalists even became members of the bands’ entourages, giving behind-the-scenes tidbits to frothy-mouthed fans. Check this page out for a cool interactive timeline of the history of music zines.
Like A Rolling Stone
In the latter part of the 60s, when music and counterculture collided and transformed popular culture, zines began to take their journalism to new heights. Rolling Stone is perhaps the best-known. With its provocative images and headlines, as well as political contributions from such characters as Hunter S. Thompson, Rolling Stone became an authority on the developing music and cultural scene in the 60s. It’s also one of the few survivors, still running today, albeit a bit different than it once was in its heyday.
The Counterculture Zines
Of course, not every 1960s zine revolved primarily around music. Others were down in the weeds, so to speak… like the first-ever cannabis magazine, The Marijuana Review. Or the initially-underground International Times, which had a lot of psychedelic influence and explored taboo subjects like drugs, free sex, anti-war sentiments, race relations and other radical changes that were happening at the time.
And don’t even get me started on OZ Magazine. Started by editor Richard Neville, OZ was perhaps the preeminent counterculture zine of its day. It was so boundary-pushing and politically incorrect that it even faced a massive obscenity trial, though its editors were eventually acquitted. Nevertheless, leafing through some of the pages of an OZ magazine will make your jaw drop. It bears repeating: the 60s were a wild time.
Browse the 1960s Zines Collection at Bynx
This article really just scrapes the surface of the 1960s zines we have in the Bynx collection. Whether it’s a first issue of a legendary music zine, or a collection of rare, underground and counterculture zines, we’ve got a lot of unique items for the collector. Check it out!
Check out more 1960s ephemera in our online store, including our music posters and handbills, as well as other counter-culture goodies.
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