Monumental! Martha Cooper is a flat-out amazing photographer who happened to take a keen interest in NYC street culture at the exact right time, documenting the real real real stuff from 1979-84. She's most famous for her landmark Subway Art book, but Cooper was shooting tons of flics of the entire youth lifestyle at the time- the neighborhoods, the hangouts, the buildings, the buses, etc- and of course the foundations of hip hop's (cringe, sorry) four elements. The book is arranged chronologically, documenting things from the South Bronx & LES beginnings up to the TV shows and movies of the mid 80s, with special sections on the downtown art scene, style, media responses and more. Includes extensive writing and interviews from Zephyr, Charlie Ahearn, Patti Astor, Duro, Lee, Fab 5 Freddy, Seen, Futura, Pink, Daze, Kay Slay, Henry Chalfant, Frosty Freeze, Ken Swift, and many more. This is an absolute must have, highest recommendation, one of the best hip hop archives ever, and an extremely powerful collection of photographs no matter how you look at it. 240 pages, hardcover edition.

reviewed by the mgmnt