Today’s guest is Gered Mankowitz: the brilliant photographer whose images of The Rolling Stones helped define the visual identity of the band’s earliest and most explosive years.

Impressed by Gered’s work, Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham brought him into the band’s inner circle when he was just 18, making him their official photographer from 1965 to 1967. In that short but seismic period, he created some of the most enduring photographs in rock ’n’ roll. He shot them in his Mason’s Yard studio for the covers of ‘Out Of Our Heads’ and ‘December’s Children’, on Primrose Hill for ‘Between The Buttons’, and on stage in America for ‘Got Live If You Want It!’ All wonderfully gritty and intimate portraits that truly shaped the band’s rebellious identity.

In this episode, Gered takes us inside those years to reveal the extraordinary stories behind his now infamous shoots. He recalls how he earned the band’s trust by capturing them as they truly were, and how their group aesthetic evolved alongside his growing confidence as a photographer. He remembers shooting the Stones on their chaotic tours, at work in the studio, in the privacy of their own homes, and even on horseback while cowboying in Arizona.

Delving into one of the defining chapters of his career, Gered offers a front-row account of the Stones’ wild rise - an incredible living history, told by the man who captured it frame by frame.

Gered’s prints, posters, and books are available to buy from his website. You can also follow him on Instagram.

Lip Service is produced and presented by Simon Harper.

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