A leading music photographer, Robert Alford has had his work featured in Creem, Rolling Stone and People magazines and on television, album covers and liner notes. The extensive list of musicians he has photographed reads like a "who's who" of popular music, from AC/DC to ZZ Top.
Alford, born in Denver, Colorado, in 1954, was raised in suburban Detroit, where he lives and works today. He received his first camera at age seven, and by his early teens, Alford was photographing cars and drag races at a local drag strip. It was a Sly and the Family Stone concert in 1970 that Alford shot that transformed him from photographer to rock photographer. By 1974, he was contributing to Creem magazine and soon became the publication’s sole staff photographer. Through his assignments at Creem, Alford developed close and lasting relationships with many artists, including Cheap Trick, John Mellencamp and ZZ Top. He art directed several videos and albums for ZZ Top and shot album cover photos for the band, as well. Alford continued to contribute to Creem until it stopped publishing in the Nineties. His photos have appeared in numerous books, including Rock Style by Tommy Hilfiger, Whole Lotta Led Zeppelin by Jon Bream, AC/DC: High Voltage Rock and Roll by Phil Sutcliffe and Star Guitars by Dave Hunter and Billy Gibbons. Alford has worked with more than 500 artists and performers and currently operates rockphotoarchive.com. He continues to work and live in the Detroit area.