Bringing together a treasure trove of photos by the late Paul C. Gilbert, new book Road People of Aotearoa chronicles the early days of the phenomenon of DIY house trucks, which appeared on New Zealand’s roads around the mid-1970s as part of an alternative lifestyle movement.
John Tucker was an earlier adopter of the house truck lifestyle, building his own out of necessity due to his personal circumstances. But the subculture that surfaced around him was a community that travelled together and played together - converging on music festivals of the time such as Nambassa in the 1970s and Sweetwaters in the early 80s.
Dale Whitcomb and Trevor Rangi McGlinchey's trucks, Coromandel,1979.
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert
John Tucker.
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert
John Tucker, Jonathon Acorn, Tahi, and Jade at Nambassa 1979.
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert
Mahana bus at Kerikeri during their Far North tour 1978-79.
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert
Mahana at Nambassa Winter Show at His Majesty's Theatre Auckland, 1978.
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert
David Sheridan's fire-eating act Road Show Fayre Nambassa,1979.
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert
Robyn's house truck after Sweetwaters Festival. The first house truck built by John Tucker 1982.
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert.
Neelie (the dog), David Sheridan, Paul the Grey Wizard (with hat) and Claire Honeyman in front of the Wizard's truck, Aratiatia, 1984.
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert
Podge with Acorn's Puppet Theatre truck and caravan 1979.
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert
Some of The Original Travelling Road Show fleet at Clifton Road Takapuna c.1979
Photograph by Paul C Gilbert
Photographer Paul Gilbert, circa 1978.
Listen to the 'War Sequence' from the Mahana Rock Opera, performed and recorded live at Nambassa in 1979:
