January 1965: The Who's first single I' Can't Explain' released.



ARTIST NAME: Robin Gnista

MEET THE ARTIST: Robin Gnista is a graphic designer who specialises in connecting music and visual arts. He creates album cover art, poster art and tour merchandise, designed with a distinctive, bold approach. His work for the 60th Poster Series builds on the early 60's advertising techniques for a retro-mod feel. In addition to The Who, Robin has created artwork for Bob Dylan, John Lennon’s estate, The Hives, The War On Drugs, and more.

MEANING BEHIND THE DESIGN: "The track [I Can't Explain] has this sense of immediacy and direction, this energy. It's powerful and unruly but hyper-focused at the same time. And the poster? That’s what the poster is about. It’s that energy, in poster form.

Robin Gnista

September 1967: The Who appear on the US TV show, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.

ARTIST NAME: Tom Walker

MEET THE ARTIST: Tom Walker is a Pop Culture Artist from Liverpool, UK. He blends an old-school vibe with modern technology and specialises in alternative movie and gig posters. Tom has created official licensing work for Disney, Marvel, Universal, Legendary, TOHO, ACDC, Mötley Crue, The Smashing Pumpkins, Wu-Tang Clan and many more.

MEANING BEHIND THE DESIGN: This poster started as a homage to the art of the 60's action movie posters. The Bond movies, Westerns and Hitchcock's catalogue were big inspirations in creating this artwork. Placing the band members in their familiar heroic poses with the exploding drum kit is just a tiny part of the overall image. This was until I showed my father-in-law (the biggest WHO fan I know) a rough sketch and he immediately said, "The star of the show should be the explosion!" And that lit a creative spark that transformed the image into what it is today. Far more action-packed than I could have created if I used the band member's likenesses.

Tom Walker