Hello, World!
The Front Page Man
A newspaper-style trail guide guiding visitors along The Holloway Road and around the ten installations that made up "Joe Meek – 304 Holloway Road" for LGBTQ Heritage Open Days Unsung Stories Festival 7-9 September, 2017. The front page, by kind permission, reproduces the Evening Standard from the day Joe Meek died and the back page reproduces another front page news article regarding his conviction for cruising. For a readable copy of the newspaper please see below and to request a copy please contact the artist.
The Green Door Man
A lightbox styled as a green door, title of one of Joe Meek's first big hit records. When you peek through the peep hole you see the image of Gina Ware, proprietress of The Gateways, a gay club that Joe Meek frequented in Chelsea and that also famously had a green door.
When they said 'Joe sent me'
Someone laughed out loud behind the Green Door
The Ghost-in-the-machine Man
A dansette record play with moving image projected into the lid showing footage montaging sixties horror films that Joe Meek loved with images of Heinz, the wannabe pop star that Joe Meek created and fell in love with and whose bleached hair was a reference to the film 'Day of the Dead'.
THE LEATHER GOODS MAN
Leather goods installed among the wares of Holloway Express 24 hour supermarket at 304 Holloway Road. The leather goods contained speakers playing sounds as would have been heard through the floor of the leather goods shop located below Joe Meek's independent home recording studio. These would have been ‘raw’ sounds that he significantly altered in post-production so totally different from what would have been heard in the resulting recordings.
The Radar Man
A radar unit installation referencing Joe Meek's national service as a radar mechanic and broadcasting the world's first openly gay pop song 'Do You Come Here Often?' produced by Joe Meek in 1966.
Installed in Biddestone Park, across the street from Joe Meek's studio at 304 Holloway Road.
The Reverb Man
A shower cubicle with the sound of the heavenly choir of backing vocalists issuing from the shower head and the sound of a male lead vocalist coming up through the plughole. This installation brings to life the legendary recording conditions at 304 Holloway Road with musicians scattered across the three levels of the flat and the Joe Meek trademark vocal sound achieved by recording singers performing in the tiled bathroom.
Installed in Biddestone Park, across the street from the site of Joe Meek’s home and record company at 304 Holloway Road.
THE TEA CHEST MAN
When Joe Meek's possessions were removed from 304 Holloway Road after his death, 67 tea chests full of archive recordings were removed from the property. Installation of reel to reel player, tea chests and quarter inch magnetic tape in former department store window at Resource For London.
The finale to JM304 was a performance set to the 'I Hear A New World' album culminating in a building projection onto 304 Holloway Road itself. Extracts from the performance and the whole building projection can be seen here.
A multimedia installation trail commissioned by LGBTQ Heritage Open Days to explore the controversial life and work of independent pop music producer Joe Meek. This commission was one of four Unsung Stories to celebrate 50 years since the partial decriminalisation of homosexuality in England and Wales. Ten installations were located along the Holloway Road, starting at a newspaper stand outside Holloway Road Tube Station and ending with a building projection onto the fateful location of 304 Holloway Road itself.