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Author Topic: Album Covers/Artwork  (Read 29000 times)
undercover-m
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« on: February 21, 2016, 11:41:27 AM »

Can we have a thread that talks about album artwork??

Being somewhat of an artist myself, I am quite fascinated by album art.
It's one of the many perks of vinyl: seeing a 12"x12" print of the artwork instead of a tiny picture on an iPod screen.

Anyway, feel free to just post pictures of your favorite works, or even tell a little bit about it (where was the photo taken? Who drew it? etc.).

I'll start off with Foster the People's albums. "Young and Sick" is the artist. A very weird and trippy vibe, which is exactly why I love it.



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Ron
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« Reply #1 on: February 21, 2016, 12:01:26 PM »

I have no idea why, because honestly I've never even heard the whole album, but this has always been one of my favorites:



That's just a great album cover.


Here's another fantastic one, this is Diana Ross's first album.  I like it because although she looks almost like a little kid on it, it completely stands in stark contrast to her image even at the time of being the biggest Diva that ever lived.  It's a fantastic photograph that shows her in a different light than people expect to see her.  Honestly it shows her as the little kid that pulled herself straight out of the high-rise projects in Detroit to be one of the most famous women in the world.  



No thread about Album Covers would be complete without one of Herb Alpert's fantastic ones:



Doesn't really need any explanation.  

And also one of my all-time favorites



To be honest one of the reasons I like it is because Michelle Phillips is one of the most beautiful women that ever lived, but the whole vibe of the cover, even the album name perfectly captures what the Mama's and Papa's music was all about at the time.  I could look at it all day, fantastic cover.  

Two other interesting things:

1. notice how they cover up the open toilet, a big no-no in film and photography back then, and

2. notice the look on John's face (foreground), and Denny's face (background), and then realize that although John was married to Michelle, Denny was having an affair with her. 

« Last Edit: February 21, 2016, 12:05:11 PM by Ron » Logged
alf wiedersehen
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« Reply #2 on: February 21, 2016, 12:04:21 PM »

I dig this thread, and I'll go for a couple of modern examples I've been thinking of lately:

Protomartyr's two most recent albums--their first album doesn't really count--are following an interesting design.


The second and most recent is named The Agent Intellect, which is a conceptual idea about human intellect. I believe that's the purpose of the black box.
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« Reply #3 on: February 21, 2016, 12:06:21 PM »

That M&P sleeve photo was taken by Guy Webster, who worked with the BBs a lot during the SMiLE era. I did a brief interview with him for my BB Album Covers project - the updated versions of which will be available soon...
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« Reply #4 on: February 21, 2016, 12:09:58 PM »

I think I see a noticeable, recurring element in your album cover choices, Ron. Tongue
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Ron
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« Reply #5 on: February 21, 2016, 12:14:52 PM »

LOL


Here's another fantastic one to break the theme, and I'm sure everybody's seen it but again it's a GREAT album cover.



They went out to the dump, piled a bunch of tires on top of each other and set them on fire, then put the big wooden Satan up above it and almost got burnt up themselves trying to take the photo.  It perfectly captures Ira Louvin's song writing at the time, too, and

(i'm a Christian, so I can say this) the picture also sums up the whole "Raising hell on Saturday Night praying for forgiveness on Sunday Morning" Baptist thing that they grew up in and represented. 
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JK
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« Reply #6 on: February 21, 2016, 12:18:21 PM »

This cover is almost as disturbing as the music on the two CDs:

 
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« Reply #7 on: February 21, 2016, 12:23:04 PM »



This is another fantastic one, not necessarily because it's really coherent or anything but because it kind of sums up Michael's life at the time.  HUGE fan, but he always left me thinking "I wish he wouldn't do that".  When the end of your song has a key change, then another key change, then another key change because you added in a second choir... maybe you're doing too much.

Same thing with this album cover, it's legendary and very strange, lots of little stuff going on, but like his music around the time ultimately it doesn't quite get to the great level it could have because there's just too much going on.  Needed an editor. 
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alf wiedersehen
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« Reply #8 on: February 21, 2016, 12:27:01 PM »

Here's a new album cover that I love. Other than it just being excellent from a composition standpoint, I am fascinated by the seemingly impenetrable mystery. Is that a body lying next to the open door? What's that light inside the car? Why is this car stopped like that? Something's happened, but regardless of how long you stare at it, the answers don't become any clearer. I always choose to forget that I don't like their music, and I always want to listen again because of the cover. Eh, what the hell, time for another listen. Edit: Nope, still don't like it.

Drenge's Undertow

« Last Edit: February 21, 2016, 12:45:39 PM by Bubbly Waves » Logged
the captain
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« Reply #9 on: February 21, 2016, 12:29:59 PM »

Always liked this.

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« Reply #10 on: February 21, 2016, 12:31:42 PM »

I like a lot of Mountain Goats album covers, with this one among my favorites. (Also among my favorite albums.)

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undercover-m
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« Reply #11 on: February 21, 2016, 01:20:42 PM »

I think I see a noticeable, recurring element in your album cover choices, Ron. Tongue
if we're going for people in awkward poses....


The copy I own is this one, but this one is funnier. Also, I don't know why there are different versions of this cover. ALSO, I love that kitchen.


The hair.


Awkward family photos.
« Last Edit: February 21, 2016, 01:25:24 PM by undercover-m » Logged

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undercover-m
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« Reply #12 on: February 21, 2016, 01:24:26 PM »

That Drenge's album looks like a scene from Twin Peaks, or something.
It does look like a body next to the car.
And I took a quick listen to their songs. Sounds like a darker version of some of the post-pop-punk stuff my friend has shown me.

Also, the whipped cream album cover is priceless. It takes "I'm never gonna wear this dress again" to another level.
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« Reply #13 on: February 21, 2016, 01:30:57 PM »

Some of the best music ever to come out of Australia----and a supercool cover:



With a classic cover designed by Ed "Big Daddy" Roth. With thanks to Will (feelsflow) for that info.
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« Reply #14 on: February 21, 2016, 01:37:12 PM »

Some of the best music ever to come out of Australia

I'll second that. Big Jesus Trash Can!
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undercover-m
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« Reply #15 on: February 21, 2016, 01:41:25 PM »



want the wallpaper?
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« Reply #16 on: February 21, 2016, 02:13:41 PM »

What a great topic!

This image from the UK Nirvana's second album is the stuff of nightmares:

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« Reply #17 on: February 22, 2016, 05:46:33 AM »



Mark Hollis's lone solo album (1998): "The cover photo, taken by Stephen Lovell-Davis, is of Sardinian Easter bread. Hollis stated about the image, 'I like the way something appears to come out of his head, it makes me think of a fountain of ideas. Also the manner how the eyes are positioned fascinates me. When I saw the picture for the first time I had to laugh, but there's some very tragic about it at the same time.' (From the album's wikipage)
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You're Grass and I'm a Power Mower: A Beach Boys Orchestration Web Series
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« Reply #18 on: February 22, 2016, 09:24:22 AM »



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« Reply #19 on: February 22, 2016, 02:56:07 PM »

Two very nice ones off the top of my head




(Admittedly the magic of this one has worn off having seen it so many times, but it just fits the music so well)
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« Reply #20 on: February 23, 2016, 08:57:53 AM »





Do I see a pattern emerging here?
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« Reply #21 on: February 23, 2016, 12:31:30 PM »

The title for the Carly Simon album fits a little too well.......

.
Not gonna lie, I'm more of a dog person than cat. But cats make the best album covers.
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« Reply #22 on: February 23, 2016, 12:34:09 PM »

edit: *the best indie album art.

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« Reply #23 on: February 29, 2016, 12:08:11 PM »

This album isn't out yet, but I think the cover is striking and thought to post it here. So now I am.
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JK
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« Reply #24 on: February 29, 2016, 01:49:12 PM »


This one looked so familiar----and I found it eventually and revisited it on Youtube. Wonderful album. Thanks for reminding me of it. :=)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMu2QM0vqMA

   
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"Ik bun moar een eenvoudige boerenlul en doar schoam ik mien niet veur" (Normaal, 1978)
You're Grass and I'm a Power Mower: A Beach Boys Orchestration Web Series
the Carbon Freeze | Eclectic Essays & Art
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