Prince (October 28, 2016) – “Man With A Camera” Daniel Corrigan / Heyday Feature - Star Tribune
This Star Tribune Variety cover feature celebrates photographer Daniel Corrigan and the publication of Heyday: 35 Years of Music in Minneapolis. Written by Jon Bream, the article looks back over Corrigan’s extensive documentation of Minnesota’s music scene, with Prince given a prominent place through a large 1981 concert photograph and Corrigan’s recollections of photographing Prince six times during that year.
Publication: Star Tribune
Date: October 28, 2016
Country: United States
Writer: Jon Bream
Photography: Daniel Corrigan
THE STORY
Published under the headline “Man with a camera”, the feature profiles photographer Daniel Corrigan as the release of Heyday: 35 Years of Music in Minneapolis brought together more than three decades of Corrigan’s music photography.
The introductory heading explains that the new book highlights 35 years of Minnesota music, while Bream describes Corrigan’s longstanding connection with the Minneapolis scene.
Corrigan is described as First Avenue’s assistant facilities manager, unofficial tour guide, occasional stagehand, sometimes security guard and official photographer.
The article explains that Corrigan’s photography developed alongside this work, placing Corrigan close to performers and events throughout the Minneapolis music community.
PRINCE – 1981
Prince receives one of the three prominent photographic positions on the Variety page.
The black-and-white concert photograph, numbered 2, shows Prince performing on stage with guitar during 1981.
In the accompanying “In his own words” section, Corrigan recalls:
“I shot Prince six times — four times at First Avenue.”
Corrigan adds two observations about photographing Prince:
“He was teeny-tiny and 2) how good he was as a guitar player. I’ve never seen anyone with such complete mastery.”
The recollection provides an especially valuable contemporary connection between Corrigan’s photography and Prince’s early Minneapolis performances.
HEYDAY
The feature accompanies the publication of Heyday: 35 Years of Music in Minneapolis.
The book contains more than 500 photographs, presenting Corrigan’s visual record of performers connected with Minneapolis music over a 35-year period.
Bream notes that the collection ranges across numerous artists and groups, including U2 and Michael Jackson alongside Minneapolis acts such as Dessa and Hippo Campus.
The book includes text by Danny Sigelman.
DANIEL CORRIGAN
The article describes photography as something Corrigan pursued alongside a varied working life within the Minneapolis music environment.
Corrigan also photographed regularly for City Pages and the University of Minnesota’s Minnesota Daily.
The feature explains that Corrigan’s archive eventually grew to encompass thousands of negatives and digital files.
One revealing comment from Corrigan concerns the retrospective process of assembling the book. Looking back through so much material meant rediscovering images that had not necessarily remained familiar over the intervening years.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Three Daniel Corrigan photographs dominate the page.
Photograph 1 presents The Replacements in an elevator in 1985. Corrigan’s accompanying recollection explains that the group had intended to make an elevator photograph and were crowded together for the session.
Photograph 2 documents Prince performing in 1981, with Corrigan recalling photographing Prince six times.
Photograph 3 shows Lifter Puller in 1999, with Corrigan explaining that unusual props appearing in the photograph belonged to a beauty salon in the building rather than being deliberately brought into the shoot.
Together, the three photographs illustrate the breadth of Corrigan’s work, ranging from performances to deliberately staged and more spontaneous images.
CONTEXT AND NOTES
Published several months after Prince’s passing, the feature offers a particularly valuable photographic retrospective of the Minneapolis music community in which Prince’s career developed.
The Prince section is concise but important. Rather than providing a general retrospective of Prince’s career, Corrigan contributes a specific first-hand recollection of photographing Prince repeatedly in 1981, including four occasions at First Avenue.
Corrigan’s observation concerning Prince’s guitar playing is equally significant. The photographer remembers not simply the visual impact of Prince’s performances but the remarkable command Prince demonstrated over the instrument.
The page also promotes the publication of Heyday and accompanying events connected with the book.
FEATURE HIGHLIGHTS
Event: Daniel Corrigan profile and Heyday book feature
Publication Date: October 28, 2016
Era Documented: 35 years of Minneapolis music
Prince Photograph: 1981 live performance
Photographer: Daniel Corrigan
Writer: Jon Bream
Book: Heyday: 35 Years of Music in Minneapolis
WHAT THE CLIPPING SHOWS
• Daniel Corrigan’s 35-year photographic documentation of Minnesota music
• A prominent live photograph of Prince from 1981
• Corrigan recalling photographing Prince six times
• Four of those Prince shoots taking place at First Avenue
• Corrigan particularly remembering Prince’s mastery as a guitarist
• Heyday containing more than 500 photographs
• The Replacements photographed in an elevator in 1985
• Lifter Puller photographed in 1999
• Jon Bream profiling Corrigan and the photographic archive behind Heyday
All magazine scans, photographs, and original text excerpts referenced in this entry remain the property of their respective copyright holders. This Chronicle entry is a transformative, non-commercial archival summary created for historical documentation and educational reference. No ownership of the original material is claimed or implied.
Comments