Category: Bootlegs

Every so often, a vintage T-shirt appears that seems to have everything going for it. Incredible design, extreme rarity, and just enough mystery to elevate it into grail status. The Aphex Twin x PlayStation Staff shirt is one of those pieces. But the more I looked into its origins, the harder it became to separate fact from folklore. What started as an attempt to track down one of these t-shirts for my own collection eventually turned into a much bigger question: Is it even real? Aphex Twin shirts have been right at the forefront of record sales in 2026, with ... Read more

When people imagine Woodstock, they often picture more than just mud, music, and myth. In the collective imagination, the 1969 festival also exists as a merch moment — a milestone in the history of the concert T-shirt. It seems obvious, almost inevitable: an event that iconic must have had T-shirts for sale. There must have been attendees wearing the Woodstock dove. There must have been stacks of them in cardboard boxes behind a makeshift booth. That assumption has muddied the waters regariding which vintage t-shirts with Woodstock logos on them actually came from the event. Like many things about Woodstock, ... Read more

@ralliroots recently contacted us after repeatedly noticing members of the community mislabeling the various types of t-shirts in the vintage universe. Let’s all get on the same page about these definitions, shall we? We’ve elaborated on our list of vintage t-shirt definitions with actual examples to set the record straight. And don’t worry, it is a touch confusing… What’s an Authentic Vintage T-Shirt? An authentic, real, true, or genuine vintage t-shirt is at least 20 years old. If two decades have passed since its manufacture, it’s authentic vintage, regardless of whether it’s an original, a reissue, a bootleg or throwback ... Read more

Living legend Ronnie “Woo Woo” Wickers During the 2001 Major League Baseball season, I worked as an usher at Wrigley Field making $4.50 and hour which was the minimum wage back then. It took me more than an hour to get to the stadium on public transportation from my home in the suburbs. I’d listen to a Phish CD on a Discman with anti-skip technology while being bumped into by all the fans heading to the game. The most appealing part of the job was that I’d get to watch my favorite team all season while being paid to do ... Read more

Buying an original T-shirt can be tricky, but nothing beats having in hand the original you bought at the time. This is particularly true if you bought it directly from the band via mail order, as is the case here. Now, that might be an impossible bar to overcome for many, but for a T-shirt hoarder and folder like me, who tends to obsess, this is an easy one. From the first time I saw them live, I loved Spacemen 3. So, in 1988/1989, I wrote to the address on the back of the record sleeve, and in return, I ... Read more