In the mid 90s, I owned a record shop in the East Village. I would go all over the city to look for records. At one stop in the Bronx, I was buying records from a guy in his apartment. You could tell that these were the records of a DJ because they weren't just played, they were put to work – used for scratching, and were heavily worn in that specific way. The condition was so bad, I could't really sell most of them at the shop. I put together a small pile, and told him that was all I could use. He then asked me if I'd be interested in some show flyers. I didn't really collect paper stuff at all, but he pulled out this pile of flyers. I thought they were great, so I bought them.
I liked them too much to sell them. They seemed historic to me. They featured some of my favourite early hip hop groups and had some great graphics. I had them in a box for years, and would occasionally break them out to show to a friend, one of whom suggested that they would make a good book. That is how the "archive" and this book were born. This archive presents a look at the flyers that packed the parties at the high schools, roller rinks, and local clubs before hip hop took over the world.
47 pages, spiral bound softcover, hand assembled, 27.5 x 21.5 cm, SUN (New York/Los Angeles)