The NY Dolls with some beautiful admirers.
These women were known for their lips, hair, legs, and hips, but most of them were very smart (and obviously ingenuous) and they had a wicked taste in music (depending on the band). Here are a few of rock’s legendary muses, with and without all their clothing. Enjoy.
-Amy Haben
ANITA PALLENBERG
Muse of three out of five of the Rolling Stones, amongst others.
“Anita was the sexiest girl I had ever seen.” -Keith Richards
“I felt from Anita an unmistakable electrical charge. She was so clever, so European, so built.. .She exuded a stylish and playful decadence that was at once intellectual, sultry, and mischievous.” – John Phillips
KATE MOSS
Muse of Pete Doherty and Jamie Hince (The Kills). Moss is currently married to the above mentioned Kills guitarist.
Moss with Pete Doherty
“I love her with all my heart. I like the way she walks and talks. I love her bones. I love her brain.” – Pete Doherty
“My wife is very much my sidekick. So I tend to get separation anxiety when I’m away from her.” – Jamie Hince
MARIANNE FAITHFULL
Muse of Mick Jagger, John Dunbar, Brian Jones, Keith Richards, Graham Nash, Eric Clapton, Ben Brierly (The Vibrators) and probably dozens more. It’s been rumored that The Beatles’ song, “And Your Bird Can Sing” was written about her.
MISS PAMELA DES BARRES
Muse of … A LOT of incredible musicians!
“I dig musicians, I feel they have the most to offer me mentally and emotionally because they think basically along the same lines that I do; extremely creative people. Music is Life. As Captain Beefheart once said ‘God is a perfect musical note.” -Pamela Des Barres excerpt from I’m With The Band.
BEBE BUELL
Muse of Steven Tyler, Iggy Pop, Rod Stewart, Todd Rundgren, David Bowie, Elvis Costello, Stiv Bators, and more. Not to mention Warren Beatty and Jack Nicholson.
Bebe Buell 1974 – Playboy
” I always saw them [the “Band-Aids”] as muses. I remember when I met you, you treated me as an equal! You were as much of a participant in the creation and inspiration of the music as some of the musicians in the bands.” – Cameron Crowe talking to Bebe Buell (His film’s character ‘Penny Lane,’ was loosely based on Bebe Buell.)
MARSHA HUNT
Muse of Mick Jagger. Inspiration for the song, “Brown Sugar.”
“If I sailed with you around the world, all my sails would be unfurled.”
“I would kiss you softly. And bite your mouth, too.”
-excerpts from Mick Jagger’s love letters to Marsha Hunt
SABLE STAR
Muse of Johnny Thunders, Richard Hell, Iggy Pop, David Bowie, Robert Plant, and many, many more..
Johnny Thunders and Sable Starr – Photo: Bob Gruen
Sable Starr
“I slept with Sable when she was 13 / Her parents were too rich to do anything / She rocked her way around L.A. / ‘Til a New York Doll carried her away…” -Iggy Pop
JANE BIRKIN
Muse of Serge Gainsbourg and Hermes…
“I’ll go and I’ll come, inside you my love, and then I’ll hold on.” – Serge Gainsbourg on Jane Birkin (‘Je t’aime moi… non plus’ lyrics)
Related:
Anita Pallenberg: A Life in Style
