It's a rare photograph in the Pink Floyd canon – the four members sitting in their dressing room, preparing to play a rescheduled show at Brighton Dome Concert Hall in June 1972.
It’s a portait of a band at the height of their powers, only months away from releasing one of the biggest-selling albums in history.
And they debuted some of the tracks at the Dome, in a show bedevilled with technical problems, 40 years to the day today.
“It was rare to get any pictures of them at that point,” says photographer Jill Furmanovsky, who captured the shot.
“They didn’t do photoshoots, apart from a couple they did reluctantly with [long-time sleeve designer] Storm Thorgerson. As soon as they made a bit of money, they felt they didn’t have to do anything for the press; they disappeared behind a smoke screen.
“I was terrified to be in there. Their manager wasn’t very keen that I was in their dressing room, but I got away with it, possibly because I was a very young girl.”
She describes the image, taken on June 28, 1972, as the result of a “very inexperienced photographer”.
“I wanted to take a portrait of the band so I’d equipped myself with a flash gun but didn’t know how to use it properly,” she says. “The pictures were very poor as I used a wide-angle lens, so the light only covered the equivalent of a 50mm lens.”
The shot features in a new exhibition to mark the 40th anniversary of Floyd’s January visit, curated by Rock Archive, the collective of more than 60 photographers founded by Furmanovsky.
It features shots from the early Syd Barrett era by Colin Prime, sleeve designs by Thorgerson – apparently his Floyd work could fill the neighbouring Brighton Museum – and a career-wide selection from their long-time documenter.
“I have spent my longest history with Pink Floyd,” she admits. “They were the first shows I did as a professional photographer in 1972 [when she took pics “from afar” of their Dark Side Of The Moon rehearsals at the Rainbow Theatre in London], I covered their reunion in 2005, and last year I photographed David Gilmour playing guitar on Comfortably Numb with [original bassist] Roger Waters. They go all the way through my career.”
She got to know the band when she was sent by Thorgerson to follow them on their 1974 tour.
“They were very bright guys, all highly educated,” she remembers.
“They weren’t interested in projecting themselves, more in creating the music. You can tell from the bands that change clothes before they go on stage and those that don’t – I don’t think Pink Floyd ever did.”
In her long career, which began 40 years ago last Saturday, January 14, Furmanovsky has shot some of the biggest names in rock, capturing classic images of Tom Waits, The Police, Joy Division, Jeff Buckley, Miles Davis, Amy Winehouse and The Rolling Stones for the likes of Sounds, NME, Melody Maker, The Face, Q and Mojo.
Alongside Pink Floyd, she also followed Oasis on tour from 1994 to their demise in 2009.
But it all happened almost by accident, following a fateful decision to take her college camera out to see Yes at the Rainbow Theatre, on January 14, 1972.
“I was on a two-week college course and decided to take some shots of the band from the balcony,” she remembers. “While I was up there, I saw a load of photographers down by the front of the stage, so I walked down the stairs, past security to join them. I only had a roll of film with me.
“At the end of the gig I started talking to these two guys who asked me if I was a professional, and I said yes.”
It turned out the two were the official photographers for the venue, but were about to leave to work on a film. They asked if Furmanovsky would be interested in taking their place.
“I remember thinking I’d got myself into real hot water,” she says. “I went back to college and asked them to teach me everything in a week.”
What attracts her to a performer is one essential element: talent.
And her connection to young talent still continues, with a shoot for 21-year-old singer Ren Harvieu currently in her diary after she saw some of her YouTube videos.
“Talent always shines out,” she says. “When you see it and feel it, it seems to be timeless.”
Founders Room, Brighton Dome Concert Hall, Church Street, Friday, January 20 to Tuesday, March 20
* Furmanovsky will be introducing the exhibition with a short talk at 7pm tonight, although tickets are already fully booked. Call the Dome number below for returns.
Exhibition is open 10am to 5pm, free. Call 01273 709709.
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