Thin Wild Mercury presents the story behind Jerry Schatzberg’s extraordinary photographs of Bob Dylan – from their first meeting during the recording of Highway 61 Revisited to the creation of the blurred, era-defining cover of Blonde on Blonde.
First published by Genesis in 2006, and now marking its 20th anniversary in the 60th year of Blonde on Blonde, this award-winning book returns to celebrate one of the most compelling creative partnerships of the 1960s – bound to the same exacting specifications at our Italian bindery and drawn from the remaining numbered copies of the original limited edition of 1,500.
Sixty years after the release of Blonde on Blonde, Thin Wild Mercury is shipping worldwide. The Collector copies are now available for immediate dispatch.
'As a photographic subject, Dylan was the best. You just point the camera at him and things happen. We had a good rapport and he was willing to try anything.' - Jerry Schatzberg
By the early 1960s, Schatzberg had established himself as a leading New York photographer, working for publications including Vogue and Life, and moving at the centre of the city’s creative world. He first met Dylan during the recording of Highway 61 Revisited. Over the course of the following year, he photographed him in the studio, on stage, in rehearsal and in formal portrait sittings – capturing moments of intimacy, intensity and transformation.
Among these images is the now-iconic blurred portrait used for the cover of Blonde on Blonde, a bold artistic decision that helped define the visual language of an era. Alongside this are studio portraits of striking clarity and poetic restraint, as well as candid photographs that reveal a rare closeness between photographer and subject.
'I got a call from Sara (Lowndes). She said: "Bobby hears you want to photograph him." I said, "I would love to." She said he was recording an album and gave me the address. When I showed up they were in the middle of recording Highway 61 Revisited... That's how I began.' – Jerry Schatzberg
For the first time in Thin Wild Mercury, Schatzberg recounts the stories behind these photographs in his own words – from the phone call that led him to Dylan’s recording sessions to the moment he was asked to shoot the album sleeve that would become one of the most influential in popular music. His reflections illuminate not only the images themselves but the creative atmosphere of New York in the 1960s – a period of extraordinary artistic cross-pollination.
'Jerry Schatzberg is a master of image making. His skill as a filmmaker is unquestionable. His photographs have a timeless quality: not one has dated, and yet some of these images are so iconic it seems they have always existed.' – Kate Simon, photographer and author of Rebel Music.
Few artists have moved so fluidly between disciplines as Jerry Schatzberg. Before turning to film, he established himself as one of the leading photographers of his generation, capturing actors, musicians, artists and cultural figures with equal intensity.
In the 1970s, he became an influential figure in American cinema, directing films including Puzzle of a Downfall Child, The Panic in Needle Park, and Scarecrow. Throughout his career, Schatzberg’s work has remained at once immediate and enduring.
'Usually when I photograph somebody, I spend as much time as I can with the subject before taking a picture... If I didn't take the time, I'd be photographing myself.' – Jerry Schatzberg
To commemorate this anniversary year, Genesis presents 60 special Anniversary Copies of Thin Wild Mercury.
Each Anniversary Copy includes:
The lithograph measures 10.5 × 10 inches and is printed on matte, coated Italian art paper. Suitable for framing, it presents one of Schatzberg’s celebrated studio portraits of Dylan with exceptional tonal depth and clarity.
Each lithograph was signed by Jerry Schatzberg at the time of the original 2006 publication and has been carefully preserved in the publisher’s archive. No new prints have been produced for this release.
These Anniversary Copies are strictly limited to 60 book-and-print sets.
The Collector copies of Thin Wild Mercury remain available.
Limited to 1,500 numbered copies and personally signed by Jerry Schatzberg, this large-format volume spans 300 pages and features nearly 500 photographs – many previously unpublished – printed across three fine art papers with image varnishing throughout.
Each copy is hand-numbered and bound in bespoke cloth, with a portrait of Bob Dylan inset into the front cover and housed in an elegant slipcase.
'We thought we knew Bob Dylan - until we saw this book.' – AIGA Book Awards
In order to make investing in one of our limited edition books or prints easier, we offer an interest-free option to spread the cost.
For purchases over £150, the payments are spread over three months. For example, for a purchase of £360, £122.40 would be paid today, followed by two instalments of £118.80.
Genesis will dispatch your item once the last instalment is paid.
Select from the following copies:
An award-winning look at Bob Dylan by former photographer for Vogue and Life magazines, Jerry Schatzberg, who was at the centre of New York's cultural whirlpool in the Sixties.
Since 1974 Genesis has created signed limited edition books on behalf of authors and artists ranging from the Beatles to Buckingham Palace.
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