ABORT Magazine™

Rock & Roll Refraction: A Conversation with NEIL ZLOZOWER (ISSUE 15 Preview)

(Photo – Neil Zlozower)

Rock & Roll’s most famous photographer Neil Zlozower celebrates the release of his fourth book “Six String Heroes” and once again captures the true essence of Rock & Roll from behind the lens. He took the time to speak with ABORT Magazine’s Photo Editor Scott Alexander to discuss his latest book, how it came together, working with digital vs. film and the possibility of a book dedicated to drummers only. Sweet!

Scott Alexander: We’re with the one and only, legendary rock photographer, Neil Zlozower, fresh off the release of his fourth book, ‘Six String Heroes”. How are you Neil?

Neil Zlozower: Good you’re going to have to talk a little louder, I’m a little deaf! I am the loudest voice in Rock and Roll, you wont have a problem hearing me, I guarantee it. (laughs)

ABORT: (Laughs) Perfect, then we will get right into it, after your first three books, what made you decide to dedicate the pages of your fourth to the guitar? Was there a moment you were looking through your archives of negatives, and just knew ‘Six String heroes’ was next?

NZ: I was sitting here one day with my buddy Steve Vai, and I was showing him of my photos for the “Fuck You” book, and he looked at me, and asks, “why don’t you do a guitar book?” At first I was against it, I don’t want to do you know: Here is Pete Townsend, Steve Vai, here is Zakk Wylde…” Steve goes, Neil, why don’t you pick out 10 or so guitarists that you worked closely with over the years, Eddie Van Halen, me, Satriani and you could focus the book on those guys, and still have a lot of stuff. I liked that idea; I told Steve I would do the book under one condition. I would do the book if he wrote the forward, and he agreed.

We ran the idea past my publisher, Chronicle Books, and they liked the idea. Then, it sort of changed to what I didn’t want in the beginning, to what I didn’t want. We didn’t go into the ten guitarists; it went into a bit of everything. If you like Bonnie Raitt, and you don’t like Slash or Zakk Wylde, you’re not going to buy the book. We tried to put a little of everybody, from Johnny Watson, to B.B. King, and people like that. There are a few people that aren’t in the book that I would have loved to have in there, but didn’t have room for. There are a ton of great players out there, and I have photos of a lot, but there are only so many pages to the book. There were certain people I wanted in the book that got vetoed out by the two other people who had a say in who went in there. There are a few people I personally don’t want in the book, but with a three-person decision, you have to give and take a little.

(I want to know who the “few people” are – Ed)

ABORT: With all these other people you wanted in there, but weren’t able to, it almost leaves you open for a second volume of Six String Heroes?

NZ: I don’t know how I am going to top this one. (laughs) I just had my friend Erik Turner from Warrant call and thank me for putting him in the book. He had been a fan of my photos from back in the Creem and Circus, seeing my name under the photos of his heroes.

ABORT: Are we going to see any new books focusing on other parts of ‘The Band’ Singers, Bassists, Drummers?

NZ: You know, I was thinking about a drummer book, but I don’t know. Thank god, I don’t know how many drummers can actually read, I think they are capable of looking at pictures, but drummers are my favorite people in the world to pick on, but I have another book in progress now, It wont be out for another year or so, and I’m not going to spoil the cake and tell you what it is right now, but I like doing these books. I have been shooting for 41 years, a lot of the work is already done, now its just a matter of me and my art director putting together this new book featuring one guitarist who basically set the standards for all the guitarists this day and age, but he is going to be on board with us to. I’m sure you can guess who it is.

ABORT: I can think of a few people who it might be. Do you view rock photography as an ‘old boys club’ or do you welcome the new generations of photographers who find themselves in front of their favorite bands in “The pit”?

NZ: There are people like me, dinosaurs like me, they’re a thing of the past. Most of the people now, its’ all digital, I know people these days who don’t even know how to use a light meter!  I’m not necessarily talking about live photography, but they will go into the studio, take a shot at 1/125 at F11, and they will take a shot, they’ll go wow, this is way too bright and step it down to F16 or F22.  They don’t even know how to use a meter to get it right the first time. I grew up in the day, when it’s all film, manual focus, manual everything, and you had to think to get a great photo. Back then when you made a great photo, you SHOT a great photo.  Now, there are no more shooting great photos, what you do now is “create an image”, its amazing how many photos where they take heads from different frames, go in and remove bags, and whatever they got to do.  I mean, I’m not a fix it in the mix type of guy.  I always try and start out with the very best possible photo that I can, and take it from there.  Whereas, people these days, people just fix shiny faces, triple chins, and stuff like that in Photoshop. That isn’t the way I like to work when I get hired for jobs, you know?

READ THE ENTIRE INTERVIEW IN ISSUE 15 OF ABORT – OUT SOON!

Zloz.com

chroniclebooks.com

By Scott Alexander

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