A rare portfolio of images taken at the first American concert by the Beatles leads a sale by the online auction platform Paddle 8.The 10 photographs by Rowland Scherman are being sold at the time of the 50th anniversary of Beatlemania’s final live concerts.The online sale “Backstage Pass: Music Photography” highlights the British group just two years before that last show. In 1964, the quartet made its US debut on The Ed Sullivan Show and days later played a first gig in the country.“When it was announced that their first American concert would be in Washington DC, where I lived, I had to be there to capture it on film,” Scherman said in an emailed release by Paddle 8.While Scherman worked for LIFE, TIME, and Newsweek in the 1960s, most of his 10 pictures have never been published. The images capture both the smiles of the Liverpudlians and the craziness of the audience, who showered the stage in jelly beans. (Fans were inspired to throw the candies after guitarist George Harrison revealed that he loved Jelly Babies.)The auction has spans more than five decades, with everything from concert and candid shots to album artwork. There are others photos of musicians just starting out, such as Elvis Presley in the 1950s (taken by Alfred Wertheimer) and the 17-year-old Prince in his first professional photo shoot, by Robert Whitman. Other artists represented include David Bowie, Iggy Pop and Lou Reed; Led Zeppelin; the Beastie Boys; NWA; Notorious BIG; Kurt Cobain; Amy Winehouse and Daft Punk.“Backstage Pass: Music Photography” started on September 13 and runs through September 29 on www.paddle8.com. All photographs can be bid for, or bought immediately, at prices from $500 to $10,000.
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