Rock Stars' Most Iconic Accessories -- The Hip, Geeky and Downright Strange

Posted by Kenneth Partridge
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It's not enough to wear the right outfit. Any chump with a few (thousand) bucks can check out Fashion Week -- ongoing this week in New York City -- and buy the latest designer look. The key is to accessorize, a skill that's nearly as important for rock stars as musical ability. As Fashion Week sashays toward its finale, we salute some of the most memorable accessories in music history. They range from simple and elegant to downright outlandish, but they share one thing in common: We can't imagine our favorite artists without them.

John Lennon's Glasses

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Lennon picked up his trademark wire-frame "granny" glasses in 1967, when he played Private Gripweed in Richard Lester's dark comedy 'How I Won the War.' As such, credit for the design belongs not to some Swinging London fashion house, but rather the British National Health Service, which issued the round specs throughout the World War II era.

James Brown's Capes

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Like Superman in reverse, James Brown was at his best when he slipped out of his cape. Onstage, the undisputed "Soul Brother Number One" liked to work up a mean sweat -- typically during the tune ' Please, Please, Please' -- and then make like he was going to leave the stage, too exhausted to continue. The emcee would come out and drape him in a cape, which Brown would fling to the floor, determined to give the audience a little more.

Madonna's Cone Bra

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Of all the accessories Madonna has worn over the years -- jelly bracelets, "Boy Toy" belt buckles, Marilyn Monroe-style kid gloves, handcuffs, etc. -- none have burrowed into our collective memory quite like her Jean Paul Gaultier-made cone bra. It's sexy and dangerous -- much like Madge herself.

Slash's Top Hat

Slash

A dash of dandyism amid the debauchery of the Sunset Strip rock scene, Slash's debonair headwear was as practical as it was fashionable. What other type of hat could have held back the GNR guitarist's Sideshow Bob curls? Amazingly, he doesn't have closets full -- just the one he's been rocking since '89 or '90. Too bad it can't write a memoir.

Bono's Shades

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Fun fact: The U2 singer's wrap-arounds allow him to see human suffering from up to 100 miles away.

Stevie Nicks's Shawls

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Rock's preeminent witchy woman wouldn't be the same without her flowing shawls and capes. Once she starts twirling, Stevie becomes a dark blur of mystical L.A. grooviness. Do as she says and 'Stand Back.'

Jimi Hendrix's Headbands

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A guitar-wielding psychedelic samurai, Jimi rocked the headband like no one before or since. Even Rambo looks weak in comparison.

Devo's "Energy Domes"

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They look suspiciously like flowerpots, but Devo's plastic headpieces were "designed according to ancient ziggurat mound proportions used in votive worship," if the band's website is to be believed. "Like the mounds it collects energy and recirculates it," the site adds, perhaps explaining how these Ohio weirdos have kept it going since the '70s.

Gwen Stefani's Bindi

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As per Hindu beliefs, the area between the eyes is the "sixth chakra," or "anjra," a point where powerful kundalini energy escapes the body. The bindi keeps it all inside, and circa '1995's Tragic Kingdom,' Stefani's dot may have given No Doubt the boost they needed to outlast their ska-punk peers and become one of the era's biggest rock bands. Why didn't Goldfinger think of that?

Red Hot Chili Peppers' Socks

Redferns

The Peppers' trademark stage antic of stripping down to nothing but strategically worn tube socks was quite the artistic risk: One false move and the band would most assuredly 'Give It Away.' Seriously -- how did those things ever stay on?

Elvis Costello's, Buddy Holly's, Rivers Cuomo's and Lisa Loeb's Nerdy Specs

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Buddy Holly may have made the world safe for bespectacled rockers, but 20 years later, at the dawn of punk, there was still something defiantly uncool about Elvis Costello's decision to rock '50s-style thick black frames. The glasses fit with Costello's picked-on, pissed-off persona, and in the early '90s, fellow underdog Rivers Cuomo donned a similar pair, completing the horn-rimmed holy trilogy. His band, Weezer, even recorded a song called 'Buddy Holly,' which became their first major hit. Around the same time, Lisa Loeb turned heads with her cat-eyed lenses, forcing dudes everywhere to admit their "sexy librarian" fetishes.

Keith Richards' Skull Ring

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Since Keef is immortal, we can only assume the guitar legend wears this ring to mock the Grim Reaper and his limited reach.

Kiss' Platform Boots

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That Kiss is still standing after nearly 40 years is nothing short of amazing. No, really -- have you seen Gene Simmons' boots? Dude teeters more than he stomps, but the cartoon demons are still packing arenas, so the calf cramps are totally worth it.

Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes' Condom Glasses

Michel Linssen, Redferns

In the early '90s, safe sex emerged as a hot-button issue, and condoms were everywhere -- including this TLC singer's glasses.

David Byrne's Shoulder Pads

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It takes big shoulders to fill out a suit like the one David Byrne wears in the 1984 David Byrne concert film 'Stop Making Sense.' With the help of some linebacker-grade pads, the stick-thin singer kept from becoming a droopy mess.

"Little Steven" Van Zandt's Bandanas

Van Zandt

Like the pompadour wig he wore on 'The Sopranos,' Van Zandt's bandanas are meant to cover the permanent hair loss that resulted from a car accident. Even when he opts for purple, the guitarist and 'Underground Garage' DJ is the most menacing, pirate-like member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band.

Karen O's "Handy" Headdress

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Whether the Yeah Yeah Yeahs frontwoman identifies with Native Americans or simply enjoys strapping big, colorful objects to her noggin, the "seeing hand" headdress she wore throughout the band's tour for 'It's Blitz' made for some memorable gigs.

Pre-Fame Rocker Gigs

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marks bldg contr

What about Kurt Cobain's red and black, striped sweater?

November 25 2011 at 4:37 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

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How bout those pepper outfits

October 16 2011 at 1:01 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Jim

The coolest one is Keith's ring.

October 12 2011 at 3:38 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

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