Poster Child : The Psychedelic Art & Technicolor Life of David Edward Byrd

A stunning retrospective on the art and stories behind one of rock ’n’ roll’s most influential cover artistsBeginning in the late 1960s, graphic artist David Edward Byrd pioneered the iconic visual styles that have come to define rock ’n’ roll. Byrd created poster, concert, and album art for Jimi Hendrix, the Who, Lou Reed, Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, Ravi Shankar, Traffic, Van Halen, the Grateful Dead, and KISS, among others. In fact, the 1968 poster that Byrd created for the Jimi Hendrix Experience was voted #8 in the Top 25 Rock Posters by Billboard. Beyond this, he created the iconic imagery for many Broadway shows, including Follies, Godspell, Jesus Christ Superstar, Little Shop of Horrors, and more. Byrd is considered one of the foremost graphic artists of 20th-century pop culture, and yet, he has never achieved widespread name recognition. Poster Child shares the artwork of Byrd with incredible accompanying anecdotes about his encounters with rock ’n’ roll legends. Music lovers and cultural connoisseurs alike will gravitate to this book for its visual vibrance and storytelling.

Poster Child: The Psychedelic Art & Technicolor Life of David Edward Byrd is a stunning retrospective on the art and stories behind one of rock ’n’ roll’s most influential artists—written by Byrd and author Robert von Goeben.

Beginning in the late 1960s, graphic artist David Edward Byrd pioneered the iconic visual styles that have come to define rock ’n’ roll graphics. Byrd created poster, concert, and album art for Jimi Hendrix, the Who, Lou Reed, Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, Ravi Shankar, Traffic, Van Halen, the Grateful Dead, the 1969 Woodstock Festival, and KISS, among others.

In fact, the 1968 poster that Byrd created for the Jimi Hendrix Experience was voted #8 in the Top 25 Rock Posters by Billboard. Beyond this, he created the iconic imagery for many Broadway shows, including Follies, Godspell, Jesus Christ Superstar, Little Shop of Horrors, and more.

Byrd is considered one of the foremost graphic artists of 20th-century pop culture, and yet, he has never achieved widespread name recognition. Poster Child shares the artwork of Byrd—including never-before-seen sketches of famous posters for celebrated musicians—with incredible accompanying anecdotes about his encounters with rock ’n’ roll legends, which combine to create a book that is sure to thrill music lovers and cultural connoisseurs alike for its visual vibrancy and storytelling.

Foreword by Marc Myers, Award-Winning Author of Rock Concert: An Oral History