Joe Bangay
Joe Bangay is probably the oldest working rock and roll photographer, still behind a camera. Originally a press photographer, his photographs capture the story of the moment: when Fonteyn and Nureyev touch, Robert Mitchum hoods his eyes, Mohammed Ali offers a warning punch, a young McEnroe drops the ball gently over the net and Status Quo put their heads and guitars down and go for it.
Joe Bangay's career began at the age of eleven when he gained a job as a local news reporter. From a young age Joe Bangay aspired to play for Arsenal but George Alison, the Arsenal Manager advised Bangay at his trial to stick to education, as there was "no money in football”. Joe Bangay elected to do a national service in the RAF where after a short flying career he transferred to the world of intelligence, which took him all over the world. During the war with Indonesia, he befriended Daily Express Chief Foreign Correspondent, Geoff Thursby and on leaving the RAF was taken on by Sir Max Aitkin, Chairman of Express Newspapers; immediately starting as a hard news photographer for the Daily Express, where Joe Bangay rapidly established his reputation.
On Joe Bangay's fiftieth birthday he was given his first rock and roll assignment: photographing Status Quo at Hammersmith Odeon. It seemed Joe Bangay had found his niche, exclaiming to himself "why had I not got into this rock and roll before?" He applied his newsman instincts to tracking down the greatest rock and roll stars of the day. Joe Bangay photographed all the big stars of rock and pop music in the 80's and 90's and, more recently, has added classical and jazz to his repertoire. His personal passion for the Ballet lead him to create an archive of front of house and back stage ballet pictures from the 70’s to today.
Within his photographic career Joe Bangay became friends with many of his subjects, he has a mine of anecdotal stories and is a great personality himself, still racing around the country in his Lotus sports car with his camera bag never far from his side.