1The Libertines
Legendary NME snapper Roger Sargent is winner of the Outstanding Contribution To Music Photography Award at the forthcoming NME Music Photography Awards With Nikon. Here, he talks us through some of his iconic photos, beginning with this shot of The Libertines. “They’d not been together for over six years. The flag was painstaking lettered by my girlfriend and speedily nicked by Peter.”
2Cat Power at ATP, Camber Sands.
Cat Power at ATP, Camber Sands. “Chan Marshall from Cat Power refused to leave her chalet for the shoot. I was initially a little peeved but she won me over by singing an impromptu song about me from her bed.”
3Hurts, Berlin.
Hurts, Berlin. “An absolute joy to shoot. It’s nice when bands give a shit how they sound AND look.”
4Bob Mould.
Bob Mould. “My second (I think) cover for NME and the first time I was lucky enough to shoot an absolute hero of mine. This wasn’t the actual cover shot – it was deemed ‘too scary’.”
5Radiohead, Brighton.
Radiohead, Brighton. “Taken in the Richmond in Brighton about 100 years ago, when Radiohead were touring Pablo Honey. Basically the upstairs room of a pub.”
6Bloc Party.
Bloc Party. “Bloc Party’s first press shoot. I loved the first single and hounded a pal at the label to get to shoot them!”
7AC/DC.
AC/DC. “I was given 5 minutes with the singer and guitarist from AC/DC. I took 4 and a half. They were fantastic, every picture was different, every one a winner. Indie dullards take note.”
8Trash Talk.
Trash Talk.
9Tom Meighan and Liam Gallagher.
Tom Meighan and Liam Gallagher. “I had a spell as Kasabian’s official unofficial photographer. I would tag along to various gigs and shoot away. This was after their V headline show – Liam was mid brilliant rant, pointing to me and telling Tom, ‘This fucker knows it, he knows it.’ Not sure what I knew but I agreed, of course.”
10Naughty By Nature, New York.
Naughty By Nature, New York. “One of my first trips to America. We were there to cover Naughty by Nature and Royal Trux in the same weekend.”
11Richard Ashcroft.
Richard Ashcroft. “Shot for NME’s dad mag Vox just after the band recorded ‘Urban Hymns’. Proper rock star.”
12Nina Persson.
Nina Persson. “All I can remember about this shoot is that it was in Copenhagen and that her pubicist broke my first MacBook ‘helping me’ with my bags.”
13Rage Against The Machine, The Underworld, Camden
Rage Against The Machine, The Underworld, Camden “I actually started at Melody Maker and did about five jobs for them before jumping ship. This was one of them, RATM’s first London gig – before the internet clearly.”
14Fatboy Slim.
Fatboy Slim. “This was on of those briefs which comes from one of the editors needing sleep or drugs or therapy. Basically, they had the headline Stormin’ Norman in mind, despite this being one of the few times we weren’t involved in some kind of gulf war. Just to complete the time frame disparity the only army helmet I could get was from the Vietnam war.”
15Carleen Anderson.
Carleen Anderson. “Another hero of mine. Few recollections on this bar it was a scorching hot day and it was a really quick shoot on a bridge in west London.”
16Aimee Mann.
Aimee Mann. “This was my first proper trip to the States, we went to Boston first, to Aimee’s house where this photo was taken (with her favourite ventriloquist’s dummy). We then travelled to Asbury Park for a gig at the world famous Stone Pony venue.”