Fifty years ago this month Jimi Hendrix was carried into St Mary Abbott's Hospital in South Kensington, London. He was already dead. One of the doctors who assessed the body that day was the former Senator and Greens leader Bob Brown. Bob remembers clearly Hendrix’ panicked girlfriend trying to keep up behind the stretcher in her high heels as they rushed him through the doors.
Over forty years after this historic and tragic event, I was asked to spend a couple of days photographing Bob Brown as he went about his work in Southern Tasmania, listening to stories of his extraordinary life. I was curious to make these images. His politics and mine didn’t necessarily align but I had never doubted that his intentions were always good.
I remember a kind, thoughtful and generous man. Pulling into a petrol station to fill up his Prius in a logging town outside Hobart he was casually abused by another customer there, but he smiled and drove slowly away from confrontation saying that there were bigger battles to fight. This incident typifies why so many people find him Inspirational, not because of a charismatic personality but because of his dogged, relentless commitment to the causes he believes so passionately about.
The picture below was never used. The magazine that had commissioned me, found it too mundane. They engaged a Sydney photographer to reshoot him a few weeks later in front of fake lush green garden wall in the Qantas Club at Mascot Airport…
Here he sits in the Styx Forrest amongst “Eucalyptus Regnans”, or giant ash. Some of these trees are more than 500 years old, 20 metres in girth and stand 90 metres tall.
When this photograph was taken old growth logging was still permitted in the forest. After a bitter campaign run partly by Bob Brown, they were added to the forest reserve system in 2013.
Jimi Hendrix said ….
“In order to change the world, you have to get your head together first.”
Bob Brown’s head is certainly together.
And here’s a little Dylan by Hendrix to brighten you Thursday Morning.