In 1967 the head of Elektra Records took the bold step of renting out a billboard on West Hollywood’s historic Sunset Strip to promote a little-known Los Angeles rock band called the Doors. For the next fifteen years, the Strip exploded with the vibrant art of a generation bent on changing the world—and selling some records at the same time. Once the Doors had paved the way, everyone from the Beatles and Bob Dylan to Frank Zappa and Led Zeppelin wanted to be represented on the one-of-a-kind wooden panels that lined the boulevard.  Sunset Strip was the heart and soul of a vibrant music scene and Robert Landau, a teenager at the time, was there to document these ephemeral pop art masterpieces.

Photo #1) This 1969 *Abbey Road* ad was one of the first to extend its images beyond the rectangular boundaries of the billboard — so enticingly that a fan sawed off Paul McCartney's head as a souvenir. (The teenager who stole it now a senior citizen, still has it. The Capitol Records art department originally intended to replace the head, but then decided to leave McCartney decapitated, to play off the "Paul is dead" rumors. 

Photo #2) This piece of rock history, Paul's head, now hangs in the "thief's" living room, and the question remains: Does Paul McCartney know about this mischievous moment? ⁠

Photo #3) The cover of Ringo Starr's 1970 debut solo album, *Sentimental Journey,*was a photo of a Liverpool pub. The billboard, however, wittily played up the drummer's most iconic feature: his schnozz.  

Photo #4-#6) More Beatles on the Strip

Photo# 7) The first rock billboard 1967 The Doors  

Photos @ Robert Landau  
Rock 'n' Roll Billboards of the Sunset Strip 

Billboards on the Sunset Strip