
If you would like to print t-shirts for your band, silk screened t-shirts wholesale is a great choice for this purpose. In fact, merchandise has an important source of income for bands as record sales fall away in the Internet age. Many shirts from this era have become eminently collectable and command prices well into four figures.īands soon latched on to the market for official t-shirts and the merchandise stall became a common sight at gigs. The t-shirt was reborn as a counter culture icon. Along with band logos and company adverts came anti-war slogans and tie-dye. A new type of ink was invented that meant that printed t-shirts could withstand day to day wear and washing, so designs flourished. The 60s saw t-shirts become a form of expressions, as logos, slogans and cartoons were added. The history of Western culture from the 60s onwards can be mapped out in t-shirts – think of such classic designs as the Rolling Stones lips shirts, the Ramones’ logo shirts and Frankie’s Relax line, the zeitgeist has been captured and displayed over the hearts of generations.Īsking people what their favourite underwear is, or which socks they remember most would undoubtedly elicit more than a few strange looks, but change the question to t-shirts and not only will there be answers, but also tales of when/where it was bought, what the wearer was doing at the time and very probably a misty eyed, nostalgic story caught up in the shirt’s very fabric.

Soon the t-shirt had been adopted the world over and images, slogans and messages had been added to the basic design.


Within a year, t-shirt sales had reached $180m in America alone and a fashion phenomenon was born. Originally designed to be worn under military uniforms, the t-shirt stepped out and entered the mainstream as outerwear following Marlon Brando’s performance in A Streetcar Named Desire, smouldering in a white tee. The t-shirt has become our personal billboard, a means of expression we can slip on and an essential part of our wardrobes. With a new shop dedicated to band t-shirts opening in Liverpool, Getintothis’ Paul Evangelista takes a look at the history of the t-shirt and interviews the new owner.įor something so unassuming, the humble t-shirt, more than any other item of clothing, has become a cultural signifier, a chance to announce to the world which tribe you belong to, what you are into and even something of your life history and personal views.
