James Mollison: The Disciples

by Desmond Morris, James Mollison (Photographer)

James Mollison's stunning panoramic portraits of pop concert fans emulating their idols are collected in this addictive volume. Represented bands and stars include Madonna, Marilyn Manson, P. Diddy, the Sex Pistols and Rod Stewart. Beautifully designed, with an introduction by Desmond Morris and more than 500 individual portraits combined into 58 panoramic images, The Disciples is an original, sharp and highly entertaining take on contemporary music culture and the tribalisms inspired by popular music stars.

Genres: Photography, Music

128 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2008

About the author

Desmond John Morris (24 January 1928 - 19 April 2026) was an English zoologist, ethologist and surrealist painter, as well as a popular author in human sociobiology.
He is known for his 1967 book The Naked Ape, and for his television programmes such as Zoo Time.

After the death of his wife in 2018 he lived with his son and family in Ireland.[ Morris died in Naas, County Kildare, on 19 April 2026, at the age of 98.

abridged from Wikipedia

Reviews

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fabulous, fascinating, humorous, and all together enjoyable look at music fans. The photographs of these fans in their fan garb are pretty great. The photos show, and Desmond Morris' forward explains, how fashion is used to show our allegiance to a certain group. Often we get caught making fun of goths or shoe-gazers or whoever for not actually being as individual as they might claim their fashion makes them. This might be true, but this book points out that we're missing the communal/tribal aspect of those "individual" fashions. A fashion is basically the simultaneous expression of the individual as well as the community that individual belongs to - community and individual remain ever connected.

The devotion these people have to their music god(s) is pretty fascinating for me, since I feel pretty passionate about a number of bands (some of them are in this book), but I look at these fans and don't feel that I quite fit into any of these fashion groups. So that's an interesting personal thought that doesn't really relate to the quality of this collection, except to show how Mollision's photographs really make me think about somethings. The title is completely appropriate, for these fans really do seem to be the Devout of the devout. I salute them all.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I. LOVE. THIS. BOOK. Just when you think there is nothing new anyone can do in photography, along comes Mollison, who decided to take portraits of people attending concerts--in London, in the US, in Italy. Then he chose 10 representative images from each concert and knitted them into a panorama of concert goers. The Lady Gaga goers were particularly gaga-eque, and the Katie Perry fans were brightly colored, but I have to say my favorite was the Rod Steward layout, with ten 55-plus men with spiky blonde hair and a good bit of fat on them. It's an incredibly delightful book to page through, but I found it even more fun when I read the synopsis of the photo shoots, found in the back of the book, and then looked at the pictures. This book is highly recommended. If your library doesn't have this, seek it out in the bookstore or even purchase it for yourself. It is that good!

[Phillip Goodman]

at first comical, then amazing, the images, or rather those depicted in them, so much of the time, fly in the face of good sense, but there is such joy in them. the fashion, the style perverse, anti fashion, much of the time, some of them come across as profoundly ugly, other profoundly boring, almost non entities in terms of cults and subcultures, and band fanatics, but some are just awesome, in the way that lets you know you're looking into a mirror. subjective awesomeness and beauty and style.

[Trin · Rating 4 out of 5]

James Mollison went around to a bunch of concerts and pulled people from the crowd to photograph. This book highlights their sartorial fannishness, and it's hilarious to try to guess the band just from looking at its fans' outfits. Try it at parties!

[Mykle · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG! People are sheep! And they look fabulous.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing! People with common interests look alike and form their own "tribes," in this case, different musical group fans. It thrilled me!

[Valerie Warner Danin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very engrossing pictures! Perfect coffee table book.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great gift for any music lover. Awesome as a coffee table book.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fascinating!!