60s Mods

60s Mods: Scooter, striped blazers and mod haircuts

Being a Mod in the 60s was a complete lifestyle choice - clothes, music, clubs and scooters. Mods did normal, nine to five jobs, often at the bottom of the corporate ladder, but outside of work, they totally immersed themselves in the Mod lifestyle. By 1964, Mods had their own monthly magazines, 'The Mod' and 'The Mod's' and their own television programme, 'Ready, Steady Go' (or RSG), which was first broadcast in 1963. The programme's co-host, Cathy McGowan, also wrote for 'The Mod's' monthly. Mod bands such as The Who, the Small Faces and the Kinks also adopted the Mod style.

Origins of Mod

It is difficult to pinpoint exactly when Mod started. Probably as early as the late 50s, small groups of individuals reacted against the Beatnik scene, baggy clothes, scruffy beards and Trad Jazz and the violence and yobbishness associated with Teddy Boys. They opted for smart suits, strongly influenced by Italian and French styles, and listened to Modern Jazz. They revelled in the new modern lifestyle of coffee bars and supermarkets that came to Britain in the late 50s. These early Mod pioneers were known as 'Modernists', because of their liking for Modern Jazz, but approved of 'modern' in every aspect of their lives. Influences from the Continent were strong. Early Modernists liked French films, often watched for the style of the actors' suits rather than the content as many did not understand the French language. They smoked French cigarettes - Galois and had French or Italian style haircuts.

There was also a strong influence from the US. They liked Modern Jazz, by black US artists and later US Rhythm and Blues hits, also by black artists, usually rare tracks from the Tamla Motown label. There was also an American influence on clothes. Button-down shirts, rare in the UK, were sometimes bought from US servicemen. Another early Mod haircut was the 'College Boy' - derived from the American Ivy League look of the late fifties.

Mod terms

Faces were top Mods who were seen as taste makers in the Mod movement, the first to start a new trend.

Numbers were younger Mods. The term came from having t-shirts with numbers on. For a time The Who called themselves The High Numbers; the name was meant to appeal to the Mod market. Younger Mods were also called sixes and sevens because the t-shirts cost 7/6 from Woolworths.

Tickets could also mean the same as Numbers, or might have referred to people with no fashion sense. A First Class Ticket being the worst offender.

Mockers copied both Mods and Rockers, and mixed and matched from both.

Mids did the same, but by accident rather than design.

States were people who tried to be Mods, but could not get the look right. Alternatively this term was used to describe Rockers by Jimmy in Quadrophenia. It meant in a bit of a state.

Modernists become Mods

The Modernists were small groups of individuals, mainly males, although there were a few females. Within their circle they talked about clothes; they were completely obsessed with the right look and style. These early Mods spent small fortunes on made to measure suits, shirts and shoes. It simply was not possible to get what they wanted in Burtons.

The early Mods sought out tailors in South and East London who could knock up a suit based on drawings they supplied. The back street tailors, used to supplying the extravagant taste of the Teddy Boys in the 50s, adapted to the new youth fashion of the Mods.

There was a strong Jewish element amongst the early Mods. Many Jewish boys had fathers in the rag trade and grew up with an interest in clothes. They also had the right connections to find tailors who would make suits to their requirements. At this stage Mod was a middle class, as well as a working class, cult.

Within these groups were individuals who lead the style and taste of the others: the 'Faces'. One early Face was Mark Feld, later much better known as Marc Bolan from T-Rex. In 1962 aged 15, he was interviewed for 'Town' magazine along with two other lads. The group managed, on an apparent shoe-string, to buy the very latest styles. Mark Feld and his associates also bought clothes from John Stephen's first shop, 'His Clothes' and John Michael. Harry Fenton was another early Mod label.

It was important to look different and distinct from the crowd. Mods compromised sometimes and altered clothes bought from the chain stores, but they still looked streets ahead of their time. Their attitude was cynical. It was all about living for now; it was not worth waiting for the future.

Mod becomes noticed

1964 was the first year in which the Mods came to public attention. They clashed with rival youth group, the Rockers, who preferred leather jackets, motor bikes and traditional Rock'n'Roll. The disturbances began at Clacton and spread to Brighton and Hastings during the Bank Holiday weekends in 1964. The scale of the violence was often over-reported and sensationalised. It took a while for the straight press to work out what was going on. Some of them preferred to refer to both groups as Teddy Boys. Mod scooter, 1960s

Some of the original Mods wanted to distance themselves from the fighting and now preferred to call themselves Individualists or Stylists. Being a Mod was now less about being an individual and more about being part of a wider movement and to some extent conforming to its norms. Jimmy in Quadrophenia illustrated the dichotomy of being a Mod in the mid-sixties. He wanted to be someone, an individual, someone who stood out from the crowd, yet he was part of a gang that adopted a similar style of dress.

The Mods were now mainly working class teenagers. The school leaving age was 15. The economy was booming and many of these youngsters had little responsibility and money in their pockets. They saw little value in saving for the future and lived for the moment, the short years between leaving school and getting married.

By 1964 the Mod style was fully formed. Rhythm and Blues had replaced Modern Jazz as the Mods' favourite music. Early Mods liked listening to rare Tamla Motown discs, often bought from American servicemen in the UK. The Rolling Stones' music appealed to the Mods, but not their scruffy image and Mods never liked the Beatles. Their own bands were The Who, the Small Faces, the Kinks, the Animals and the Yardbirds.

The Small Faces were an authentic Mod band. The Who were introduced to the style by Pete Meadon, their manager for a brief period. Meadon was a Mod himself and saw the commercial potential of a Mod band. Originally known as the Detours, they had changed their name to The Who, because of a dance hall MC who introduced them as 'The Detours, the who?'. Meadon persuaded the band to change their name again, to the High Numbers - a clearly Mod label. Numbers were young Mods with numbers on their t-shirts.

Under their new managers, Chris Stamp and Kit Lambert, The Who reverted back to their original name.

The Who's Pete Townsend claims he introduced the pop art target into Mod fashion. The Who certainly brought more colour to the style and popularised the Union Jack jacket, another pop art motif.

Stylistically Mods still liked a smart suit, in a style that was constantly updated. Jackets became waisted, rather than box style, drawing on the influence of the traditional City Gent look. The length of the vents in a jacket and centre, or side vents became particular points of style. Lapels were always thin and trousers slim fitting with narrow bottoms. Mohair was often the first choice for material. It could be two-tone mohair, which looked a different colour if viewed from a different angle. Slim ties were still popular, with knitted ties being particularly fashionable. Shirts were slim fitting, the button-down collar was very important.

Favourite tailors and outfitters included Harry Fenton, John Michael and of course, John Stephen. By the mid 60s John Stephen's men's shop had taken over from the backstreet tailors. John Stephen's on Carnaby Street became the male equivalent of Mary Quant's Bazaar. In 1966 you could buy a suit from John Stephen for 37gns. (guineas: 1 guinea = £1 1 shilling see Old money) John Stephen also sold a gold lame leather jacket for 50gns.

Vespa bagdge, 1960s

In the mid 60s, the London Mods congregated in Carnaby Street for a regular fashion parade. Pop music poured from the boutiques and men's shops along the small, narrow street. By the mid 60s, boutiques catering for girls as well as boys were common on Carnaby Street; the Mods usually brought their girlfriends along with them. Shops on Carnaby Street often came and went. Shops that were on Carnaby Street in the 60s included:

Men's shops/male boutiques:

Ladies' boutiques


The parka and the scooter were essential Mod accessories in the 60s

Carnaby Street also had a junk shop called Gear. It sold furniture from our Victorian past and reminders of the then fashionable Art Nouveaux era. Also on Carnaby Street in 1967 were a couple of old fashioned pubs, a health food shop, a toyshop and Button Queen, which sold old buttons.

Mods also wore casual clothes. The original Modernists saw this as a dilution of the style. Jeans had to be Levis, shrunk to fit. The Fred Perry polo shirt was always a favourite with the Mods. Originally only available in white, in the 60s it was sold in various colours. The Fred Perry could be worn with a suit or with jeans. Jeans or slacks could be worn in a variety of colours; hipsters and flares came in and out. Mods also wore blazers, sometimes brightly striped boating blazers. Sports jackets in similar style were also worn, as well as suits.

A favourite casual jacket was the Harrington. It was a short, blouson style, zipper jacket named after Rodney Harrington, a character in Peyton Place. James Dean also famously wore a red Harrington in the 50s.

Favourite shoes were Clarke's Desert Boots, Chelsea Boots, originally with Cuban heels and Hush Puppies. Winklepickers were also worn by Mods in the very early sixties, but were quickly replaced by chisel toes, which were Winklepickers finished with a square toe. These in turn were replaced by round-toed shoes. Bowling shoes also came in and out of Mod fashion. Mods also wore sneakers with jeans.

The look was often finished with an ex-US Army Parka. These were worn to protect the suits on the Mods' favourite form of transport, the scooter. Favourite scooters were Lambrettas or Vespers, both from Italy.

Women as well as men followed Mod fashion. The Mod girls had neat, short hair, cut in simple geometric styles. They wore twin sets from Marks and Spencer, combined with A-line skirts. Mod girls also wore trousers and men's shirts.

The Mods's attention to detail extended to everything they owned. Their scooters were adorned with wing mirrors, extra chrome and sometimes fur. A parka, often from army surplus, was worn to protect the suit, when out on the scooter. Everything had to be just right. Mods carried transistor radios, which had to neat and stylish.

Jimmy's Lambretta from Quadrophenia

The latest thing was very soon out of fashion. Mods wore last month's style to work, if they had middle class office jobs. A favourite lunchtime meeting place for the London Mods was 'Chips with Everything', a Lyons Restaurant at 88 Chancery Lane. Mods also favoured 'Golden Egg' restaurants.

At lunch time and in the evenings, the teenage Mods went to 'Tiles', which opened in 1966. There was a dance floor, music and fashion shops within the club. Older Mods saw 'Tiles' as trashy and commercial. They preferred original Mod music venues such as 'The Scene' and the 'Marquee'. Outside of central London, the Mods frequented suburban dance halls such as the Streatham Locarno or the Wimbledon Palais de Dance.

Even as early as 1964-5, it was possible to distinguish different strands in the Mod movement. There were the original Mods, now referred to as Stylists or Individualists; they preferred sharp suits and were often older and better off than the younger Mods. Stanley Cohen in 'Folk Devils and Moral Panics' referred to this type as the 'Smooth Mods'. There were the 'Scooter Boys' who wore smart trousers and pullovers under an ex-army parka. Then there were the 'Hard Mods' who wore heavy boots, jeans with braces and Fred Perrys. They often sported a crew-cut and were the forerunners of the Skinheads. The original Skinhead fashion, like Mod start out of the Ivey League look. The first Skinheads wore button-down shirts, ties, cardigans and sheepskin jackets. That was 1968; by 1970, they were somewhat different.

From 1967 to 1968 Mod disappeared and Psychedelia took over. Those not keen to join the Hippy movement either settled down or became Skinheads.

Mod labels

Fred Perry

The Fred Perry polo shirt was popular with Mods from the early 60s. It was originally meant for tennis and only available in white. Mod fashion demanded a greater selection of colours. The Fred Perry could be worn casually with jeans or under a suit.

Ben Sherman

Ben Sherman made his own take on the classic Ivy League button-down Oxford shirt from his factory in Brighton from around 1963. The Ben Sherman shirt had buttoned-down collar with an extra button at the back, a pleat in the back and a hanging loop sewn into the shirt. Ben Sherman's were sold at John Stephen and Lord John on Carnaby Street in the 60s. They were worn by the original Mods and some of the Mod bands of the era.

Later the Ben Sherman shirt was adopted by the Skinheads.

The Pills

To sustain their party-through-the-night lifestyle, some Mods used amphetamines, or speed. Favourites included: Purple Hearts, Black Bombers and French Blues.

Quadrophenia

Quadrophenia was made in 1979. It was a film set in 1964. Jimmy Cooper (Phil Daniels) is a Mod living in London. He has a dead end job as a post room boy for an advertising agency. His job is merely a way of financing his Mod lifestyle. It pays for his sharply tailored suits, his scooter and his pill habit. By night he goes out clubbing and goes to parties. He comes in after midnight; his parents cannot understand him.

Jimmy is obsessed with being a 'face', a fashion leader amongst the Mods. It is his position in the Mod movement that drives him. His loyalties to the Mod movement are questioned when a friend, returning from the army, turns out to be a Rocker.

The film's climax is a Bank Holiday trip to Brighton for the London Mods. They steal pills from the chemist to sustain their activities over the weekend, get their hair cut and buy new suits. Jimmy is upstaged by the ultra cool, Ace Face (played by Sting). The weekend ends in the inevitable punch up between Mods, Rockers and the Police. Ace and Jimmy are arrested.

Ace Face's Scooter from Quadrophenia

On his return to London, Jimmy's mind is a mess. May be he has had too many pills? He gives up his job and begins a downward spiral. He rejects the Mods' obsession with fashion. The final straw is discovering Ace Face, the fashion icon, is a bellboy at the Grand Hotel in Brighton.

Quadrophenia is now itself a period piece. Made in 1979, at the time of a rival of Mod styles, it captured the teenage mood of the late 70s, as well as the early 60s. The film shows the fashions and style of the earlier 60s era and illustrates the clash of cultures between the Mods and Rockers, as well as between the generations. Like other films made in the 70s, there was little attempt to make the street scenes authentic. You see 70s Cortinas, modern pedestrian crossings and people wearing 70s clothes in the background. The fighting in the Brighton scenes though, looked all too real!

Mods: reference and further reading

Mods on the web:

See www.modrevival.net for a site which covers the original Mod movement and the late 70s to early 80s revival.

For the Mods and Rockers clash on 18 May 1964, see BBC on this Day 18 May 1964, there is also a video explaining 'Mod Culture'. In May 1964, the latest Mod fashion was white or blue hipster slacks worn with a tee-shirt.

For more on Quadrophenia see http://www.quadrophenia.net/.