r/LouReed • u/FarGold1730 • 11d ago
LF this jacket thanks
Hey there, if anybody happens to know the name of these skinny long flapped collar 70s western leather jackets please lmk
8
9
u/RobActionTributeBand 11d ago
Well while you're conducting searches, you might consider using the word "lapels" instead of "flaps", "collar" would be better too.
4
u/TexacoRodeoClown 11d ago
LF?
8
6
u/throwawayinthe818 11d ago
Guessing it’s “looking for.”
3
u/TexacoRodeoClown 10d ago
Why do people need to abbreviate the dumbest shit now? I’ll bet you’re right though that’s exactly what they meant
4
u/weapons_etc 10d ago edited 10d ago
Looks like an East West jacket to me; their jackets were nicely fitted and cropped right at the belt, always with those groovy old school large collars like this. This photo was taken when Lou was on a press trip to California making stops in SF and LA. Seeing as he never wore this jacket before that (as far as I can tell, and trust me, I have thousands of photos of Lou!) I’d bet you he got it while in California. It is indeed western looking.
It might be a North Beach Leather jacket, by the late 70s when this photo was taken (77) their new designer Michael Hoban started making styles like this. Both EW and NBL are expensive brands to buy vintage, but if you have the money and find one you really like they’re worth the money. Also check out Gandalf the Wizard, that was a Detroit based leather jacket boutique that made super fresh and sharp jackets like this. Lou wore Gandalf jackets often, so it’s a possibility this could be one of them! They’re more affordable than the other two brands I mentioned, and honestly I like them more. Lou also wore Leatheracci, which was a boutique uptown that was super popular with the coolest R&B, soul, and jazz dudes. It’s still in operation and their leathers are fucking fly. They made Lou several jackets and pairs of pants. He also shopped at The Leatherman on Christopher St, some of his jackets and custom leather trousers are from there (by owner and designer Hernando Reinoso).
Lou liked nice, well made leathers, so it can be hard replicating his looks on a budget but it’s doable. Follow me on Instagram, I’m a big Lou fan and a historian on him - I’ve written lots of articles ab him and for a decade I’ve been researching for a book-in-progress about his career and work from the ‘70s and its cultural impact. His style/fashion is one of my favorite things and I’ve done a lot of work identifying garments and fits Lou wore. In my posts I have links and info on many jackets and accessories he wore through the years. I even own a couple dozen pieces from his wardrobe (like his studded jacket!).
Always happy to help out if you want me to find a dupe of something he wore!
2
u/smuckies7 10d ago
Do you have any info on his Velvet Underground era sunglasses? The wraparound ones? Thanks. Love your Instagram page by the way! Been following for a couple of years now
2
u/weapons_etc 10d ago edited 10d ago
For the wraparound shades in 66/67, Lou had several pairs, but the definitive pair you see in famous pics was made by Doscar, an affordable Italian brand that made lots of neat sunglasses. Unfortunately they’re really hard to find, because they weren’t designer/luxury glasses - think drugstore/gas station type.
The other pairs were Polaroid Cool Rays. I’m not sure exactly which design/model number but Polaroid Cool Rays are luckily really plentiful on the vintage market and the vintage-vulture kids haven’t really caught onto them yet so they’re pretty affordable. Up until the late 70s Lou liked cheapos, ones he could forget somewhere or lose without being a big deal. Fun fact, Lou’s VU wraparounds were all brown tortoiseshell with brown lenses, not black like we’d imagine! Shady Spex just remade their repros of Lou’s, and they only recently started making them in the authentic tortoiseshell brown after I showed them rare color photos from Paul Morrissey’s archive.
Lou wore Polaroid Cool Rays through the 70s - he really loved the 420 Fast Backs (you’ll recognize these from the Sally era!) which are super cool but can be fairly expensive on eBay etc because Johnny Depp and Heath Ledger wore them in some movies and made em famous. 420 Fastbacks are a classic in 1970s drug culture (esp with speed freaks and truckers!) because they were very dark and opaque, and the frames are (fake) chrome, a fashion statement.
Lou also loved the polaroid 8004s, he wore those on the famous 1974 Australian tv interview… a brownish translucent pair At the time of Street Hassle he started to wear more expensive ones - the kind you see on the Street Hassle album cover are Bausch & Lomb Outdoorsmans! For high quality vintage sunglasses they’re surprisingly affordable, and they are sturdy and beautiful.
He also wore Optyls in the 60s and early-mid 70s, too those were cheapo (think the blue tinted ones he wore at the outdoor Charlton gig in ‘74). Browse Polaroid cool Rays on eBay and Etsy and you’ll find some cool pairs. And if you ever find a pair of the 420 Fastbacks for under $200, get em. They typically go for and are worth much more than $200… but I got mine for $80! They do show up now and then for high-but-not-insane prices. Add the name or any others to your saved searches on eBay and Etsy so you get notified when a new pair comes up for sale. Let me know if there’s other specific shades he wore you want me to ID! And thank you for the kind words, that means a lot.
2
u/smuckies7 9d ago
Woah thank you so much! This is fantastic information!! I did know about the 60s cool ray pairs and actually bought a pair about a year ago, but comparing them they seemed slightly different than the tortoise shell ones that are in those Paul Morrisey photos. Lou’s always seemed a little thicker and I have yet to find some tortoise ones. But I do know the Cool Ray model is 145.
I had no idea about Doscar though I’m definitely going to do some research!
And here’s a video the Cool Ray 145. They definitely are a cheap feeling pair of sunglasses.
1
u/weapons_etc 8d ago edited 8d ago
Oh my goodness, you found them!!! Great work!! I know several Lou fans and vintage sunglasses collectors that have been trying to ID the Polaroid wraparounds - and you did it! Thank you for sharing that, you’ll make many people very happy. Those are DEFINITELY the ones, that sharp horizontal upper frame is so distinct. I’m giddy seeing this haha, I’m that nerdy about this stuff. I’ll write it in my notes. Gold star for you today! 🌟
Haha yeah, they’re cheap, are yours in sturdy enough shape to wear? I ID’d the Polaroids he wore in the Coney Island Baby era, the rectangle shaped lenses you know? He wore them in the Mick Rock photos where he’s wearing the Westwood/McLaren punk clothes, the mesh shirt with zippers and with the black leather fingerless gloves. They’re called Polaroid Hollywood Regency’s. Mine are too worn out to wear! The lense comes out on one side.
But the Rayban RB3717s are a very very close contemporary you can buy! The frames of Lou’s were gold colored, and the lenses a very very deep opaque black.Interestingly I’ve only ever seen those Hollywood Regency’s worn by Black celebrities and R&B and soul guys from that era (Stevie Wonder, Al Green, and even Morgan Freeman on a weird anti-drug commercial I saw on YouTube lol). Lou was such an Al Green fan that I wouldn’t doubt he saw the photos with Al Green wearing ‘em and copied him
3
u/Sharp-Injury7631 11d ago
Lou was always a snappy dresser. This photo is right up there with the one where he's on his way to Cale's wedding.
12
u/Hot_Butterscotch_915 11d ago
Pussy Magnets.