Pennie Smith Honored

Pennie Smith, the legendary music photographer who captured the image on the cover of The Clash's 'London Calling' has been honored in London, it has been reported.

The photographer was given an 'Outstanding Contribution' award at the Record Of The Day award ceremony in London last night (November 27th). Former (or should that read "current"?) Blur guitarist Graham Coxon presented Smith with the award.

Pennie Smith is undoubtedly one of the most influential photographers of all time. Working with the music press in the 70s, she captured rock at its globe-strutting height, taking iconic photographs of Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Lou Reed and of course The Clash.

The image of Paul Simonon smashing his bass at the end of another show was used as the cover to 'London Calling' perhaps the group's definitive album. The cover is of course iconic, frequently named as one of the best ever.

Pennie Smith still works frequently, though only rarely in the music realm. Perhaps her most significant recent contribution was the black and white photos of The Strokes taken before the release of 'Is This It?'. Stunning work, they still go a long way to visually defining the band.