Fresh to Death

First of a 2-part column.

* Disclaimer The writer of this article is speaking about some of the clothes that were very popular during his youth and adulthood. This article in no way asserts that the brands named were the only ones that were popular.

I was born in 1971 so my frame of reference goes as far back as the late 1970s. I remember my mom and dad in the “French cut slacks” and the Botany 500 outfits. The clothes of the 70s were distinctive, loud and very comfortable. As a child, I have memories of bell-bottoms and applejack hats. I cannot speak much about the name brands because I did not know them. Here is a sample of the clothes my parents, aunts and uncles found really groovy.

I remember in the early 80s “Hawaiian sets” became hot they had to be Jams though. You did not want to be outside with a Hawaiian set on that was not a Jams. O.P (Ocean Pacific) had some very nice shirts and shorts. As I got older and found out that there was a group of cats that went to the department stores (Gimbels, Strawbridge’s, Wannamaker’s) to steal and would come through the neighborhood and sell the IZOD/POLO shirts with the rainbow colors (hard to get) that my mother would not buy because they were “stolen property”. Then we come to the jeans. Any discussion of the jeans of that era must start with Lees. From the “fire engine red” to the “heather grey” ones, you were not official if you did not have an Adidas sweat suit jacket that you wore with the corresponding Lees. The “two-tone” Lees were hot. Sergio Valente’s jeans had the best cut to them. The only other jeans that were “baggy” that compared to them were the Coca Cola jeans but more on them later. Sergios also had a “Platinum” edition those came with the leather pockets. Coca Cola came out with some of the best clothes ever. As stated before there were no jeans that fit better and were baggier then Coca Colas. The shirts were somewhat plain but they were needed to complete the outfit.

As I got older, many of the styles changed but the driving force was still always the jeans. Guess cornered the market and long before Tommy Hilfiger African Americans flooded the Guess shops and outlets. Once the Guess Jumper hit every kid went to their parents and said, “I have to have one of those jumpers” In high school, Benetton became hot and everyone had to get one of those Benetton bags. During those same times (mid to late 80s) some clothes came out of nowhere with “Foghorn Leghorn” in a diamond. Le Coq Sportif suddenly became what you had to have. Those cotton sweat suits were in demand. (Ask the Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff ) I remember a gang of us riding the “L” train and then the bus to go to the Marshall’s Department store in search of as many of those sweat suits that we could find

Now we come to the sisters. During that time, it seems funny now that many of the outfits and things that were worn by the sisters are "low key" compared to what its being worn now. From the Gloria Vanderbilts to the “Jordache look” jeans are what got the party started. I remember how a girl could wear a Mickey Mouse shirt with some “biking shorts”, colored socks and some matching Reeboks and stop the music at the house party or roller rink that we all used to go. There isn’t a guy my age or older that doesn’t remember Salt and Pepa (of course Spinderella) in the “Push it” video with the leather “SNP” jackets on with “dookey dope ropes” with body suits wearing those long red with the black letters Gucci Boots on. It was some much easier for the sisters to be fly.

NEXT UP LATE 80s continued and the 90s

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