The sun is out, just like it was over six decades ago when the Blues made a big impact on a tour of the Caribbean where the local culture also had an impact on the team. Now for cool clothing with a summer splash, we have some eye-catching designs inspired by that same culture and Chelsea heritage, and by vintage travel posters and postcards, harking back to an era of international travel defined by glamour, adventure and wonder.
The Summer of ’64 range collects together a short-sleeve shirt, a t-shirt and a pair of shorts all featuring themes familiar from the visit to the West Indies by Tommy Docherty’s vibrant young side.
Back then, 11 games were played in under three weeks on four different islands and a 7-0 win over a Barbados side was sufficient to persuade their goalkeeper, Keith Boyce, to switch his full attention to cricket, a sport in which he became a West Indies all-time great.
The Summer of ’64 range follows cricket clothing in choosing seasonal white as its main colour, which was also the case for a very rarely worn Chelsea away shirt which, with its thin single blue and white hoops, did see action during the Caribbean games. That heritage image features along with other tropical motifs on the Summer of ‘64 shirt, as does a sound system.
So taken were the players with Eric ‘Monty’ Morris’s ska song Sammy Dead that they brought a copy back and persuaded the Stamford Bridge DJs to play it, beginning a long association with Jamaican-inspired music at Chelsea which continues today with Liquidator.
The sound system design is the main feature, on the back, of the Summer of ’64 t-shirt.
The lightweight shorts in contrasting blue have the era-appropriate Chelsea badge embroidered on them.
You can shop for summer in the Megastore at Stamford Bridge on Saturday when we play Real Sociedad, and the Summer of ’64 range is also available in the online store