Francesco Mellina

I think I’ve mentioned in previous journal entries that by far the biggest photographic influences on me in my formative adolescent years were the photographers who worked for the weekly music papers – the ‘inkies’ – which I read avidly throughout my secondary school and student days. Mostly the NME but also Sounds and the Melody Maker. These, along with other magazines and fanzines and, of course, record sleeves provided all sorts of useful information about music, musicians, politics, the state of the world and the happening looks of the day! I couldn’t get enough!

Names such as Pennie Smith, Jill Furmanovsky, Roberta Bayley, Janette Beckman, Kevin Cummings and Anton Corbijn are just as evocative for me as the names of the musicians they photographed.

And Liverpool’s punk and post-punk scenes had their very own ‘photographer in residence’ in the shape of Francesco Mellina. Born and raised in Polistena, Italy - Francesco settled in Liverpool in his early 20s and has lived here ever since.

His photographs of local bands such as The Teardrop Explodes, Echo and the Bunnymen, Wah! Heat, Dead or Alive and OMD as well as visiting bands such as The Clash, The Ramones, the Jam, Talking Heads, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cramps, Japan and a very young U2 appeared in publications including The Face, Smash Hits, ID, Melody Maker and NME along with shots of the Scouse scenesters who made up the bands’ audiences.

A great selection of Francesco’s photographs have recently been published in a book, ‘REVEALED: Youth culture, pop culture, subculture – The Photographs of Francesco Mellina 1977 - 1982' and I went along to Spoke’s shop this evening to meet Francesco and get a signed copy of the book. I'm suitably chuffed that he let me take a picture of him!

You can see examples of Francesco's photos here and here...