Mick Jones Puts Rock Memorabilia On Display

If you want to see several items of rock 'n' roll history in one place, and London, England is closer to you than the Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame in Cleveland, former Clash and Big Audio Dynamite member Mick Jones has just the thing for you.

Jones, 53, has been collecting rock 'n' roll memorabilia since he was young, and has put some of his items, which include Big Audio Dynamite lyric sheets, stage clothes, a note from Joe Strummer and issues of Creem and Rock Scene magazines on display at London, England's Chelsea Space gallery. (Now you have a reason to go to Chelsea, unless, like Elvis Costello, you still don't want to.) The collection, which is dubbed the Rock And Roll Public Library, will be on display until April 18.

"I have kept everything; if it exists, it's probably there somewhere," Jones told Reuters.

Jones has been storing his items in a warehouse in west London, according to Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper. Jones says he was inspired by late film director Stanley Kubrick (2001: A Space Odyssey, Full Metal Jacket), who collected boxes of his personal possessions. Kubrick's estate donated the boxes to the London University Of The Arts after his death.

"When I saw how enigmatic Stanley was with his boxes, initially I thought, well, yes, you can just have a private collection, but then I came around to thinking that the point is to share the stuff, so that other people can enjoy it. It's still by no means properly sorted, but this is a start."

Jones told Reuters he wants the constantly growing collection to have a more settled home one day.

"Ultimately, I'd like to have a permanent place to exhibit the whole collection like a museum, like a library where you can come and see the stuff and maybe get a copy or sit there and read it," he said.