The Strangest Things Ever Sold at 70s Rock Concerts
The 1970s was the golden age of rock concerts, featuring massive stadium shows, psychedelic light displays, and screaming fans packed into legendary venues. Beyond the music, 70s concerts were also known for their wild and unconventional merchandise. While today’s concerts feature neatly packaged T-shirts and posters, back in the day, you could buy things that were far less predictable. From inflatable pigs to LSD-infused memorabilia, here is a look at the strangest things ever sold at 70s rock concerts.
1. The Pink Floyd Inflatable Pig (Yes, Really)
If you attended a Pink Floyd concert in the late 70s, there is a chance you could have walked away with your very own inflatable pig. Inspired by the giant flying pig on the cover of Animals (1977), the band actually sold small, blow-up versions of the pig at their concerts. Fans quickly took to bringing them back to later concerts, creating a surreal sea of floating pigs in the audience. Today, original Pink Floyd inflatable pigs can sell for hundreds of dollars among collectors.
2. LSD-Laced Posters and Programs – Urban Legend or Reality?
One of the wildest legends of 70s concert culture is the claim that some posters and tour programs were dosed with LSD. The idea was that by simply handling them, fans would absorb the psychedelic drug through their skin. Whether this actually happened or was just an exaggeration of the already-drug-fueled era is still debated. However, if there was any band where this could have been possible, The Grateful Dead or Jefferson Airplane would be prime suspects. There are even rumors of specific venues where concertgoers swore they experienced unexpected psychedelic trips just by handling merchandise.
3. The Rolling Stones’ Custom Condoms
While most bands focused on selling traditional merch, The Rolling Stones took things a step further by selling their very own branded condoms during the Some Girls tour in 1978. With Mick Jagger’s infamous reputation, this marketing move was both hilarious and oddly fitting. Some fans kept them as souvenirs, while others put them to practical use. Sealed, unused Stones condoms have surfaced in memorabilia auctions for surprisingly high prices, proving that even the strangest merchandise can become a collector’s item.
4. KISS’s “Blood-Infused” Comic Books
KISS was known for their over-the-top marketing, but nothing topped their 1977 Marvel comic book, which allegedly contained actual blood from the band members. Gene Simmons and the rest of KISS supposedly had their blood drawn, mixed with the red ink, and printed in limited copies of the comic. Whether this was true or just a marketing gimmick, it remains one of the strangest and most rock-and-roll pieces of merchandise ever produced. Fans who own one of these comics today claim it remains one of the most valuable KISS collectibles in existence.
5. Led Zeppelin’s Tiny Leather Whips (Because… Why Not?)
At the height of their success, Led Zeppelin sold miniature leather whips as part of their concert merchandise. Inspired by their wild, hedonistic image, these little whips were both a joke and a collectible. Some were even engraved with the band’s famous “Zoso” logo. Whether fans used them as fashion accessories or for other purposes is anyone’s guess. What is clear is that they were among the strangest pieces of official band merchandise from the decade.
6. Bootleg Vinyls Sold… By the Bands Themselves?
Bootlegging was huge in the 70s, with unofficial concert recordings being sold on vinyl to eager fans. While bands publicly condemned bootlegging, some musicians allegedly secretly participated in selling them, especially at their own concerts. The reason? Some bands saw it as a way to make extra cash without their record label taking a cut. Legends claim that artists like Bob Dylan and The Who may have indirectly benefited from the bootleg trade. In some cases, bands were said to have leaked their own concert recordings just to spite their record labels.
7. Grateful Dead’s DIY Tie-Dye Kits
If you were at a Grateful Dead show in the 70s, chances are you saw a rainbow of swirling tie-dye shirts. Rather than just selling pre-made shirts, the Dead offered DIY tie-dye kits, letting fans create their own custom merch. This was both a marketing move and a way to promote the band’s free-spirited culture. Some original tie-dye kits, still unused, have sold for thousands of dollars among Deadhead collectors. These kits remain a testament to how Grateful Dead fostered a community-driven brand like no other band of the era.
8. The Who’s Smashing Guitars – But for Sale
The Who were known for smashing their instruments on stage, particularly Pete Townshend, whose guitar destruction became an iconic part of their performances. In a surprising twist, some of these broken guitars were actually collected and sold as concert souvenirs. Some fans were even lucky enough to grab a piece of a smashed guitar right after a show. Today, surviving fragments of these destroyed instruments sell for astronomical prices at auctions, making them one of the most valuable types of rock memorabilia.
9. David Bowie’s Space-Themed Perfume Samples
During his Ziggy Stardust era, David Bowie’s marketing team experimented with some unusual promotional ideas. At select shows, concertgoers were given small vials of space-themed perfume inspired by Bowie’s futuristic persona. Descriptions of the scent range from “cosmic and metallic” to “alien and unearthly.” While this promotional experiment was short-lived, it is one of the more unusual pieces of memorabilia Bowie fans still search for today.
When Merch Was as Wild as the Music
The 70s were a time when rock and roll was not just about the music-it was about the experience, and that extended to concert merchandise. Unlike today’s carefully curated merch tables, the 70s saw bands selling everything from psychedelic souvenirs to downright weird collectibles. And while some of these items are now rare and valuable, one thing is certain: merch in the 70s had way more personality than your average band T-shirt today.
Next time you are at a concert and see a $50 hoodie, just remember-things could be weirder. You could be buying an inflatable pig, a leather whip, or a Rolling Stones-branded condom instead.
