The Best of Punk Magazine

Just a awesome book!! I totally recommend it for collectors and nerds alike.

This is really a monumental compendium of PUNK magazine and what they accomplished during their short run. John Holmstrom's chapter notes are super entertaining and I felt like I got to know some of the personalities involved in the making of PUNK magazine. I really enjoyed it. I definitely learned that it was a damn miracle that the mag got published at all. There is a lot of material on Debbie Harry from Blondie, which is classic stuff. She was obviously as cool as she appeared to be. It wasn't an act! There's also a ton of cool stuff on Iggy Pop, The Ramones (of course) and other Punk-ish celebs of the time like David Johansen. Edward "Legs" McNeil comes off looking like the polished turd everyone in NYC knows he is. The quality of this big, heavy book is high, with a solid cover, nice paper and lots of pictures, drawings and magazine reproductions. Some of J. Holmstrom's old cartoon work is very cool, too. Something I like about this book is that you can open it randomly to any page and there is something funny to look at.

I worked for John Holmstrom and Punk Magazine as an artist, back in the Seventies. So, bear that in mind as you read this. I reckon if you're reading reviews for this book, that you have some idea of what it's about. So, I'll skip all that. I always loved John's "take" on how a publication could look and be. One of the things that I found really interesting about the original publication was how Holmstrom always seemed willing to go out on a limb with the format and layout. Sometimes, it was a newspaper. Other times it was like a comic book or even a big coloring book. The writing was always great and funny,...the art was always eye-catching and entertaining. Not to mention the fact that it covered every aspect of the emerging "punk" scene, in a way that no other Rock & Roll publication out there, at the time, was covering it and included, virtually, every artist out there. The vibe was always a little smart-assed and cool. I'd look back at my old issues, through the years and wish that there was a big art book of that material that I could pull off of the shelf to peruse. Now, thanks to John Holmstrom and his partner in crime, the incredibly attractive, Ms. Bridget Hurd,...I have that book. It has size and it has weight AND it has the very best of Punk Magazine! Not only does it have that, but at the core of this tome is Holmstrom's biography of the magazine. How it got started, who started it, the various players involved with the publication throughout the years,...the whole roller coaster ride. John's known, throughout the world as a ground breaking artist/cartoonist, but I've always enjoyed his easy-going writing style as much as his art. So, it's nice to see so much of it in one place. It's like you're sitting around with the guy as he tells you this story. It's a great, wonderful book. I'd tell ya' that even if my stuff wasn't in it. John and Bridget have done their comrades proud in this beautifully produced volume. I'd recommend this book, even if you're not the least bit interested in the subject of Punk Rock. Intelligent fun!!!

John Holmstrom (nice guy, we corresponded). Anyway, this book is all PUNK magazine volumes reprinted and combined into a nice hardcover. I got this so I don't wear out my collectible originals from handling them. BTW, my most prized original copy has a mailing address label for Robert Olaf Stoop, his personal copy. He had a subscription to PUNK magazine in 1976. If you don't know who he was Google him.

Exceeded expectations by far. If it's not a bound periodical of all the issues of Punk ever made, in their entirety, it sure looks and feels like one. Only it's got the backstory (amusingly informative) for counterpoint. You get all the fumettis (photo-novels) too ("the Legend of Nick Detroit", "Mutant Monster Beach Party", etc) in MUCH higher resolution than was ever available on the tabloid paper on which the original magazine was printed. It's lovely to see them all in better quality, as well as many outtake pictures and supplemental photography showing all our favorite people from that illustrious time. I bought it primarily because I'm a Blondie/Debbie fan, and there is no scarcity of pictures of her in it. As well as lots of Ramones, Richard Hell, et al. This ones a keeper!

I purchased this before it was available. It finally arrived...a year later. Just in time for the birthday it was intended for last year! lol The release date kept being put off. That was somewhat irritating. But after receiving I have to say the quality and content of the book is excellent. Receiver is thrilled!!!!

This is an incredible book for anyone, but especially anyone who is in the punk rock and the history of it all. The information in here interviews photos you feel like you lived back in the day.!!!

Gave this as a gift to someone who, like me, came up with the OG Punk. Was well received and brought the real scene into perspective. Thanks, JH and crew!

Edição de luxo, com os números da Punk Magazine, com capa dura! Incrível, vale o valor!

Great Item at a great price and quick delivery!

Un 10

An excellent 'best of'. If you were into this scene it's a superb reminder of the fun and frolics of the Mid- late 1970s and if you were not, it's a great piece of social/music/fanzine/ history. John Holmstrom and the founders of PUNK magazine did a great job then and Holmstrom has done a great job in capturing the heart and soul of this seminal and influential mag. Go buy and give yourself a treat.

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