Tomorrow would have been Keith Moon’s 79th birthday. The Who’s drummer is remembered not just for his music but additionally for certainly one of rock’s most well-known tales—the declare that he drove a Rolls-Royce right into a swimming pool. Whether or not or not it truly occurred, the picture turned legend.
To mark the Phantom’s centenary, Rolls-Royce recreated the scene. A retired Phantom shell was lowered into the Tinside Lido in Plymouth, an Artwork Deco pool with its personal musical historical past—The Beatles have been photographed there in 1967 whereas filming Magical Thriller Tour.
Phantom and Music Icons
From its earliest days, the Phantom has been tied to musicians. Jazz greats like Duke Ellington and Rely Basie traveled in Rolls-Royces, setting a precedent later adopted by rock and pop icons.
- Marlene Dietrich arrived in Hollywood in 1930 and was given a Phantom I, which appeared within the movie Morocco.
- Elvis Presley purchased a Phantom V in 1963. It got here with bespoke options together with a microphone and writing pad, and was later resprayed silver-blue.
- John Lennon owned two Phantom Vs. One was repainted in psychedelic colours earlier than the discharge of Sgt. Pepper’s; one other was remodeled completely in white, reflecting his minimalist interval with Yoko Ono.
- Liberace drove a mirrored Phantom V onto Las Vegas levels as a part of his exhibits.
- Sir Elton John owned a number of Phantoms, together with one with a strong sound system and one other in pink-and-white, which he later gave to percussionist Ray Cooper.
The Keith Moon Story
Accounts differ about what occurred on Moon’s twenty first birthday. Some say a Lincoln Continental went into the pool. Others insist no automotive in any respect. However the fable caught, and in standard reminiscence the automotive was at all times a Rolls-Royce Phantom. That repute for extra cemented the Phantom’s place in rock historical past.
Phantom in Hip-Hop
The Phantom’s connection to music didn’t finish with traditional rock. For the reason that early 2000s, it has develop into a fixture in hip-hop tradition. A Phantom VII appeared in Snoop Dogg and Pharrell’s 2004 video for Drop It Like It’s Scorching, whereas Lil Wayne featured it on the quilt of Tha Carter II. References to Rolls-Royce’s Starlight Headliner—“stars within the roof”—are actually frequent in rap lyrics.
A Century in Music
For 100 years, the Phantom has been related to artistic figures throughout genres and generations. From Dietrich and Elvis to Lennon and Lil Wayne, the automotive has remained an emblem of success and self-expression. The recreation at Plymouth is much less about fixing a fable than acknowledging the Phantom’s function in music historical past—a legacy that exhibits no indicators of fading.
