Richard Bruland Bebop Records Art Posters Collection, 1982-1990 | Special Collections & Archives

The Richard Bruland Bebop Records Art Posters Collection consists of 792 original posters created by Bruland, as well as photographs and event calendars. The collection also contains articles and newspaper clippings regarding Bebop Records, and other promotional materials for the store and performances.  The collection is arranged in four series: Art Posters - Richard Bruland (1982-1990), Performers, A-Z (1984-1990), Bebop Records History (1984-1990), and Non-Manuscript Material (1986-1990).

Series I, Art Posters - Richard Bruland, contains 792 posters for the performances held at Bebop Records. A wide variety of artists of varying genres and styles are included, especially songwriters Beck and Lucinda Williams, alternative rock groups Jane’s Addiction and Fishbone, hardcore punk legends Bad Brains, the Minutemen, the Circle Jerks, Exene Cervenka, and Henry Rollins, and rock bands Los Lobos and The Bangles. In addition to its noted musical performers, Bebop Records also hosted the eminent poets and writers Jim Carroll, Kate Braverman, and Wanda Coleman. The posters are arranged chronologically.

Series II, Performers, A-Z, includes booklets, flyers, invitations, and photographs serving as publicity information for specific performers at Bebop Records. The majority of this series is made up of promotional photographs of the various performers but also includes letters written to Richard and some collections of poetry.  The files are arranged alphabetically by name of performer or group.

Series III, Bebop Records History, contains articles, business documents, calendars of events, correspondence, performance signup sheets, magazines, photographs, and schedules of events. This includes articles from the Los Angeles Times, LA Weekly, and various underground magazines and journals, as well as a rough draft of Bebop's original logo. The files are arranged alphabetically.

Series IV, Non-Manuscript Material, contains oversize material, and six compact discs which contain scanned images of posters, articles and photographs. Several discs contain performances held at Bebop Records. There are also several calendars listing all of the performers and when they played. One calendar of particular interest was created by the musician Zoogz Rift, who performed numerous times at the store.