Shepard Fairey’s Artwork, Gifted to His Pal John Doe, Now Adorns the Long Play Lounge

Before the pandemic, John Doe – the Americana troubadour who also anchors the classic L.A. punk band X – took his visiting friend Shepard Fairey – creator of both the iconic Andre the Giant Has a Posse street art image and the Barack Obama Hope poster – to his neighborhood bar, the Long Play Lounge.

Three of the Shepard Fairey prints on the walls at the Long Play Lounge on St. Johns Ave.

Doe, who’s resided in Austin since 2017, describes himself as a “very small part owner” of the joint on St. Johns Ave., which is themed around the blessedness of the 33rpm 12-inch LP. The bar hosts DJ nights and listening parties and always has good records spinning on the turntable.

“Shepard and I have been pals for a while and, really in the last five years, got to be close,” Doe explains. “He contributed to the last book [Under The Big Black Sun: A Personal History of L.A. Punk – which Doe co-authored]. He’s probably the most visible artist around, but, apart from that, he’s a super music fan and kind of a collector and historian as well.

“He came to the bar and really dug it and liked the whole idea of it being LP centric,” Doe continues. “Then he told me ‘You know I have some original art that I just silkscreened onto old LP covers, would you want something like that?’”

Doe’s response: “Fuck yeah.”

“I thought ‘Oh my God, this is the best offer you could get.’ Obviously Shepard’s well known and a terrific artist, but it was also the way that it fit. The whole thing was pretty organic. ‘Hey come to my bar.’ ‘Oh this is great. I actually did some art that would fit here.’ All those things together really makes it kind of unique and special.”

Fairey then set Doe up with sextet of original works that he’d silkscreened onto LP covers for a series he’d created in the 2010s. Doe’s kept them in his home until now. This week, they went up on the walls of the Long Play Lounge (north Austin location) – a felicitous compliment to the bar’s vinyl aesthetic.

On Saturday at 5pm, the Long Play Lounge will be having a party to christen the new decorations. Doe says he’ll be raffling off a couple signed silkscreened Shepard Fairey posters at the event – all you have to do to get a ticket is buy a drink.