Tracing The Rock Origins Of The Dreaded (Or Iconic?) Mullet Hairstyle
By: Ivan Munoz
The mullet, often regarded as the single worst hairstyle of all time, has plagued musicians’ heads since it’s inception in the early 70’s. This “business in the front, party in the back” cut is a very polarizing hairstyle, and most who’ve had it regret that phase in their youth as it becomes a lifelong future punchline when their spouse and friends ultimately pass around that old driver’s license at a party and have a good laugh at your expense.
Pretty intense; alas, a product of it’s time.
35 years from now, no one could see that happening because, when it’s on your head, you’re convinced it’s the coolest thing ever. I’m sure we’re all familiar with Bono’s 1985 hairstyle from the now iconic Live-Aid. Speaking of 35 years, we just came up on the 35th anniversary of Live-Aid, and go figure, that mullet has proven to be, let’s call it, a product of its time. Even Bono regrets his mullet, here’s what he has to say about it:
“I regret that my hair looked like it had been pressed by an iron at the back when we did Live Aid. That's still very hard to deal with.”
“I have an erase button on the mullet hairdo”
“Yes, I had a mullet. OK? Men should never look like they ironed their hair.”
I was having a conversation the other day about hairstyles, and inevitably the peak of 70’s rocker hair came up; Love it or hate it, there’s no doubt that this infamous hairstyle defined and encapsulated an era. We started to wonder…who invented the mullet?
So it’s time to do some hair anthropology.
The evolution of the mullet can be traced back to the long-hair movement of 1968, which evolved from the hair revolution The Beatles started in 1964. Beleive it or not it wasn’t socially acceptable, at least in the US, to have hair that covered your ears as a male before 1964. That all changed with the British invasion. So the mullet is based in the steady evolution of longer hairstyles that emerged in the 60’s.
If we’re asking this all important question, the crown of ‘inventor’ comes down to a few people, and it’s a pretty close match: Paul McCartney, David Bowie, Rod Stewart, and the two guys from Badfinger (Pete Hamm & Tom Evans).
Let’s get into details and take a look at these four contenders:
Bowie
Late 1971 - Rear album cover of Hunky Dory
February 10, 1972 - The offical debut of the Ziggy Stardust character at the Tolworth Toby Jug in London
As you can see in the above photos, Bowie’s transformation occurs between December of 1971 and February of 1972. With transition from David Bowie to Ziggy Stardust comes with change from long hair to mullet. This means that he most likely cut his hair into a mullet in, let’s say, January of 1972.
Badfinger
Mid 1971 - during the creation of Straight Up
Late 1971 - the album cover for Straight Up
These look pretty mullet-y thats for sure. Pete Ham and Tom Evans were certainly early adopters of the mullet, growing their hair long through the late 60’s and 1970, then cutting the bangs and front rather short by mid-71. So we’re getting closer.
McCartney
Early-Mid 1971
Mid 1971 - Summer, Scotland
McCartney, an originator of many styles, be them musical or sartorial (mostly musical), was one of the first wearers of the mullet. Well before his iconic Wings Over America tour of 1976, photo proof of him having this hairstyle can date back to early 1971! Seen in the photo above on the left is McCartney, with his then new band, Wings rehearsing for the recording of Wild Life in Scotland in “Rude Studio” on his ranch. His hair’s looking pretty shaggy and grown out, but it is distinctly short on the front and sides. The photo seen on the right is from the photo sessions for Wild Life also taken in Scotland but around mid-71. As you can see his hair is trimmed into a deliberate mullet, short on the front, top, and sides, but long in the back.
Rod Stewart
1970 Faces documentary
The Faces at The Marquee Club (London), December 7, 1970
However, around this time in the very early 70’s McCartney was hanging around with none other than Rod Stewart. Seen here in these screenshots from a Faces documentary and a December 1970 performance, it is clear that Rod Stewart invented the mullet. In fact, he was almost a full year ahead of his counterparts. Though this isn’t the extreme mullet you’d see in the 80’s, it is still a mullet at it’s core. Business in the front, party in the back. It was definitely Rod Stewart who influenced McCartney to get the mullet since they were becoming good friends at the time.
Bowie on his 1987 Glass Spider Tour rocking, what I find to be, the coolest iteration of the mullet to have ever existed.
So there you have it: looks like, based on our deep-dive and research (and we spent a little more time that I’d care to admit down this rabbit hole), Rod Stewart was the one who had this hairstyle first. So he can lay claim to the title of the inventor of the mullet. I think it’s fair to say that these three men together were responsible for the mullet, however. Rod Steward started it, Paul McCartney refined it, and David Bowie perfected it.
By the 80’s the mullet was in full swing and taking an era by storm whether people liked it or not. To that, I say long live the mullet!
If you know of anyone who had it before Rod Stewart in 1970, don’t hesitate to write us and let us know!
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About The Author
Ivan Munoz is a musician, bassist, singer, musicians advocate, and member of the Victor Talking Machine Company. Along with this Ivan can be found devoting his time to various musical projects, compositions, and working on musical instruments. Click the photo for more!