In early 1968 a NYC high school kid who loves rock music buys a secondhand pro camera so he can get close to the musicians that he idolizes at the Fillmore East. He meets and photographs Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, the Who, the Jeff Beck Group, Led Zeppelin, Janis Joplin, and many others.

In the heart of New York City during the early 1960s, a quiet, wide-eyed kid named Thom Lukas found himself swept into the center of a cultural revolution.

Though shy by nature, he carried with him two things that would change his life: an uncanny stroke of luck and a camera. In 1963, he was sneaking into television studios to watch celebrities perform live. Just five years later, in 1968while still in high schoolhe was slipping through the doors of the legendary Fillmore East, capturing extraordinary moments both onstage and backstage as some of the worlds greatest bands made history.

His journey only grew wilder from there. Imagine being mistaken for Mick Taylor, being pushed into an elevator, and finding the Rolling Stones beside you. Picture Jimi Hendrix himself stepping in to save you from the police. Envision hotel room gatherings with Pink Floyd or the Jeff Beck Group. It may sound like the plot of a Hollywood film, but every story is real.

In over 380 color and black-and-white imagesmost previously unpublishedThom Lukass photographs are vivid proof of rock’s unforgettable era from the late ’60s into the ’80s.[AuthorName]By Thom Lukas, With Edoardo Genzolini, and Foreword by Joshua White[/AuthorName][AuthorBio]New York Cityborn music loverThom Lukas (b. 1952) started sneaking into TV show audiences, hotel rooms, and backstage areas when he was 10 years old. At 15 hebought a Japanese camera to attempt to legitimize his hobby of trying to get close to sixties rock stars: Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Led Zeppelin, and Pink Floyd, and may more. Thom was a fixture at the Fillmore East and other NYC venues.
Edoardo Genzolini (b. 1991) is an author, teacher, filmmaker, and bass player living in Perugia, Italy. His books for Schiffer Publishing are the results of meticulous, innovative research, with an archival take, on musicians, photographers, and various music scenes of the 1960s and early 1970s.
Joshua White was the creator of Joshua Light Show at the Fillmore East.[/AuthorBio][NumIllustration]380 color and b/w photos[/NumIllustration][CoAuthor][/CoAuthor][SubTitle]The Adventures of a Teenage Rock Photographer in New York City[/SubTitle][ColorPattern]380 color and b/w photos[/ColorPattern]