Badge — Elton John European Tour badge, 1982
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
1982
Badge in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (museum number S.626-1985), dated 1982. The museum's brief description reads: Elton John badge. Yellow background with black and red borders, text reading "European Tour 82" in black and Elton John's 'signature' in red and black.
Plastic coated with metal back.. Museum description: Elton John badge. Yellow background with black and red borders, text reading "European Tour 82" in black and Elton John's 'signature' in red and black. Plastic coated with metal back. The museum records it as Plastic coated with metal back., measuring Diameter 5.5 cm. These details come from the museum's own record; how far this object represents a wider collectible type has not yet been independently verified.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
Badges displaying a band or artist's name gained popularity from the 1960s and showed the wearers allegiance to a particular artist or group, and often by proxy a certain musical genre and subculture, especially in the 1970s and 1980s. Elton John is one of popular music's enduring icons. Having started his career performing in pubs from the age of 15, he worked his way up the music industry ladder by playing in bands with his friends, eventually becoming a staff songwriter for DJM Records. On gaining a record contract in 1970, at the age of 23, his live performance became bigger and more flamboyant. Backed by a large catalogue of ballads and piano rock, his scintillating stage shows involved him performing in wild costumes. Since the 1990s he has written several musicals, for the West End and for Disney animation.
Physical characteristics
- Material
- plastic, metal
- Dimensions
- Diameter 5.5 cm
Technical characteristics
- Technique
- Plastic coated with metal back.
Design
- Inscriptions recorded
- Elton John / EUROPEAN TOUR 82
Identification
- Museum object name
- Badge
- Museum object number
- S.626-1985
- Museum system number
- O1177270
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: confirm the wider type, maker and catalogue references against a specialist reference.