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Album Cover News Recap – December, 2014
Posted on January 2, 2015 | Comments Off on Album Cover News Recap – December, 2014
Album Cover Hall of Fame Album Cover News Recap – December, 2014
2014 finished off with a bang with regards to album cover-related news, with one album cover image – the one found on the cover of LP1 by FKA twigs (her popular debut record) – garnering the most mentions in our recap of the 20+ "Best Of" and "Worst Of" album art articles published by many of the magazines, sites and blogs that cover the topic.
Above and beyond these year-end lists, December was another busy album cover news-related month. As the popularity of vinyl records continues to grow, reports of successful sales of limited-edition packages peppered the news – it seems as though many musicians, record labels and their design teams have decided to explore this area again and have stepped up to the table with impressive (and, in the case of DJ Qbert's Extraterrestria, interactive) packaging.
The new year ended with the announcement of the names of the nominees for the 2015 Grammy Awards in the album packaging categories and the release of many new books featuring the work of photographers, designers and illustrators active in the album art world, with several of them also supported by museum and/or gallery shows. The work of photographers Glen E. Friedman, Gene Spitz, Bob Minkin, Art Kane and Bob Gruen, along with artist Michael Fishel and the Hipgnosis design team were all featured in new books, with one book, titled Rock Covers (published by Taschen), compiling the works of many of these talented people in a 550+ page illustrated tome.
Album art fans were also treated to several interviews with folks that have important roles in the record cover world, such as exhibition curator Dave Brolan (re: his shows for Gibson Guitars), designers Vaughan Oliver and Aubrey Powell and musician Greg Lake (lamenting the loss of album cover art) along with info on the work of design teams that, for various reasons, created some excitement by riffing on classic album artwork to create updated interpretations of their own. The news featured information on a number of new exhibitions and gallery shows, including a rare showing of works by artist Cal Schenkel (Zappa, Captain Beefheart, etc.) and a display of Rolling Stones photography at the new Taschen Gallery in Los Angeles.
Of course, I'm hoping that you were able to take a look at the new articles posted on the ACHOF site, including my interview with artist Paul Wakefield (about his work for Supertramp, Vangelis, Rick Wakeman and others) and photographer David Hamsley's look at the unique designs created for gatefold record covers over the years. In the meantime, here's your chance to catch up on news you may have missed while you were out doing your Holiday shopping (or out at your favorite pub or restaurant while you were working to avoid those crowds). Regardless of how hectic your lives may be, there's no reason that you should go without up-to-date info on one of your favorite topics (don't you agree?), so you can be sure that we'll continue to work (nearly) every day to continue our efforts to prove to you that there's always something new to see and learn in the world of album cover art, and you know that you'll find it all here on the ACHOF site.
December 31 – As we enter into the new year, I want to thank everyone who has supported the ACHOF over the past year and wish you all a Happy and Prosperous 2015.
1) Interesting article in The Independent (UK) by writer Jonathan Owen about the continued growth in the sales of vinyl records, much of which can be attributed to the desirability of the packaging. While the sales are at levels not seen in 20 years, an interesting bit of research quoted (done by ICM Research) states that, according to their polls on the subject, 27% of the people that buy records do not listen to them – rather, they enjoy the artwork and information provided with the retail packages while still listening to the music on CD or online. While vinyl records still only represent 2% of overall music sales, it is interesting to note that the sales of album cover-sized frames have risen nearly ten-fold, indicating that the display of record cover art on the walls of music fans' homes continues to be an important way these fans choose to express their appreciation of both the music and the art delivered by their favorite musical acts. More on this at http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/album-art-resonates-with-music-fans-as-sales-hit-twodecade-high-9945564.html
2) On display in the UK for the first time in years – from now until January 18th, 2015 at the 14 Henrietta St. building in London's Covent Garden area – is a group of images shot by the very talented Glen E. Friedman, well-known for his photos of many of the best-known punk, rap and hip-hop artists and responsible for album covers for artists including Ice-T, Beastie Boys, Circle Jerks and Public Enemy, among many others. The exhibition corresponds to the publication (by Rizzoli International) of Glen's career-spanning book titled My Rules, the seventh book he's released and including over 300 memorable images, of which over 50 are on display in this show. Presented by ATP and Givens, with more information available at http://www.atpfestival.com/events/gefexhibition/news/1411041049
December 30 – 1) An update to my original December 11 article on the subject – released in time for the Holidays by Taschen – Rock Covers, a 500+ page book by authors Jon Kirby and Robbie Busch, edited by Julius Wiedermann. According to the publisher, "Paying tribute to this art form, Rock Covers brings you a compilation of more than 750 remarkable album covers, from legendary to rare record releases. Artists as varied as Elvis Presley, The Beatles, The Sex Pistols, Pink Floyd, The Cure, Iron Maiden, and Sonic Youth are gathered together in celebration of the cover art that defined their albums and their cult status. Each cover is accompanied by a fact sheet listing the art director, photographer or illustrator, year, label, and more.." They've also included several interviews and information about how certain covers helped define an act's place in rock-n-roll history. More on this on the publisher's site at http://www.taschen.com/pages/en/catalogue/popculture/all/03405/facts.rock_covers.htm
Of course, this has been added to the Resources section on the ACHOF site..
2) Now on display at the Sun Valley Center's Ketchum, ID gallery is an exhibition called "Under The Influence Of Rock & Roll", a show that works to – via the display of a nice collection of photos, artifacts, posters, sculptures and the like – illustrate Rock's impact on our world's cultures and lifestyles. The work of several well-known album cover artists are on display, including the photos of Ethan Russell, Andrew Kent and SNL staff photographer Edie Baskin. The museum will be hosting several gallery walks and tours during the show's run (now thru January 30, 2015), including a lecture in late January on Ethan Russell's memoir titled Ethan Russell, An American Story, featuring his photos of the cream of the crop of classic rock music-makers. http://sunvalleycenter.org/visual-arts/exhibitions-in-ketchum/
December 29 – I'll be updating my recent "Best/Worst of 2014" article on the ACHOF site this week with some additional data (some folks were a little late to the table, but I feel that it's important to be able to include all of the lists I can find in the "final totals"). In the meantime:
1) Music Times writer Joey DeGroot has put together a new article that just perfect for the Season – a season where we're treated to many examples of young and cute on the "year end wrap-up" cards we all get ("here's our five-year-old Mindy with our new puppy Ozzy!"). Titled "8 Album Covers With A Childhood Photo Of The Artist", you'll see examples featuring oh-so-cute pictures of musicians including Kendrick Lamar, Johnny Cash, Wilco's Jeff Tweedy and the ever-so-cute (even with the finger tats) rapper Lil Wayne, among others. I'm waiting for baby pix of Steven Tyler, Lenny Kilmister or anyone from Public Enemy, but I might have to wait a while for those –http://www.musictimes.com/articles/21473/20141225/8-album-covers-with-childhood-photo-artist-lil-wayne-kendrick-lamar-nas.htm
2) Photographer Gene Spitz was on hand to take many memorable photos of music celebs as they partied at various hot spots, so its cool to see his striking photo images displayed alongside creative re-interpretations of his photos produced by an impressive international list of artists in a new exhibition that begins this week with an opening reception this New Year's Eve at the BLDG Gallery in Covington, KY. Titled "Soul, Sequins & Solid Gold", this show goes to great lengths to portray "the glitz, glamour, rock 'n' roll, disco and drama of the 70s and 80s" and lets loose the talents and imaginations of a team of 20 artists from 3 continents, the results of which will be on display until the end of January. More info and background on the show and its participants can be found at http://bldgrefuge.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/sssg_press_release.pdf
December 26 – 1) Just posted my annual "Best/Worst Album Cover" summary of the many "best of" and "worst of" lists published by the brave writers and publications that go out on a limb to tell us which album covers were worthy of your praise – or scorn – this past year. While there was a clear "winner" in the "best of" category (featured on an act's debut album – nice start!), there were no stand-out "losers", although there were many records whose covers were generally criticized for their impressive offensiveness or "blandness unbecoming the musical act they were produced for" (quite the serious charge, I think).
What I was most-impressed by this year was the sheer number of lists produced, so our summary conclusions were based on a LOT of data, all of which is included in the handy reference section at the end of the article.
In any case, click on the link and enjoy the read – comments, as always, are appreciated – https://albumcoverhalloffame.wordpress.com/2014/12/26/best-and-worst-album-cover-art-lists-2014-summary-and-analysis/
2) While this has nothing to do with album covers, I do want to show the folks that sometimes wonder why there is an Album Cover Hall of Fame that there are large numbers of passionate people behind the many "Halls of Fame" that exist today (and are supported, to varying degrees, by collectors of all stripes). To illustrate that statement, I'd like to introduce you to the people who'll be opening a new museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 2016 dedicated to all things Bobblehead…yes, Virginia, there will be a Bobblehead Hall of Fame museum soon. How cool is that !?!? – http://www.antiquetrader.com/antiques/collectibles/bobblehead-hall-fame-coming-wisconsin?
December 24 – 1) Writing for the Diffuser.fm site, James Stafford has put together an excellent list of Christmas/Holiday-themed records that have some of the "baddest" (not sure if this means "good" or "bad" anymore but, in this case, it simply means "the worst") album covers ever produced. While some of the musical acts are unknowns (except to those who revel in bad album art images), others who've chosen to use horrible Holiday imagery include Phil Spector, The Kingston Trio and Wham! And while I'm not familiar with Rudy Ray Moore's music, I am now sufficiently titillated that I have to track it down – see the whole slideshow at http://diffuser.fm/your-really-bad-christmas-cover-art-gallery/
2) Ran across this article about an interview with singer/guitarist Greg Lake in which he laments the loss of great album cover art in the marketing of today's music. While you'll see (on Friday) that there is still great (and nasty) album art being produced, it is interesting to get Mr. Lake's take on this, seeing as he's been in bands (King Crimson, ELP, etc.) that have featured some of the most-memorable album art ever made. Read the article on the Something Else site for an intro and link to the YouTube video interview – http://somethingelsereviews.com/2014/12/24/greg-lake-king-crimson-elp-album-cover/
Also – this being Christmas Eve and all – here's a link to a video of Greg Lake's now-classic Christmas tune "I Believe In Father Christmas" – enjoy – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXCEdrnaFlY
December 23 – 1) Was doing a bit of research yesterday on Amazon's fine art offerings and came across a work by the artist David Ballinger that I thought would be appreciated by fans of album cover art. While I don't know much about the artist or what motivated him to create this work, this unique item makes an optical illusion out of two famous Beatles album covers – Meet The Beatles and Abbey Road. It'll take a second or two for you to see the aspects of both covers that are included, but I think that you'll find the overall effect pretty cool. It's available for purchase on the UGallery site – http://www.amazon.com/The-Beatles/dp/B00DONZ7HQ/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1419373526&sr=8-5&keywords=david+ballinger
2) Writing for the Business Today site (India), Jimmy Jacob interviews curator/archivist Dave Brolan about the latest showing of his "Gibson: Thru The Lens" photo exhibition, staged recently in India (co-produced by Vivanta by Taj). While, of course, the show's focus is on shots of a wide range of guitar heroes – Hendrix, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Les Paul, Elvis Presley, Noel Gallagher and many others – playing their favorite Gibson guitars, the list of photographers who have contributed to this show include a "Who's Who" of album cover photo greats, including Baron Wolman, Mick Rock, Ross Halfin and more. Fans can learn more about the person who has produced this popular show via the link at – http://businesstoday.intoday.in/story/rock-and-roll-music-photography-exhibition-gibson-brands-taj/1/213742.html
December 22 – 1) It seems unfair that all that talent lives inside of one person…just had a chance to see the album cover for the new single by Tim Biskup's band "Big Butter" and, as you might figure, it's quite nice. A staple in the LA-area art scene, Mr. Biskup has produced artwork featuring wildly-colorful characters and scenes that's been quite popular with collectors of "lowbrow art" for many years, so it is great in this case to be able to get affordable prints of cover art from a well-known artist. There are two new singles with associated limited-edition prints available now, with the new full-length album scheduled for a February, 2015 release. Take a look at Tim's latest work via the link at http://store.timbiskup.com/big-butter-open-focus-beaver-on-the-back-porch-7-single-pink-vinyl-w-print/
2) BLARE Magazine's senior editor Marie Rupolo is having a little fun at the end of the year in her efforts to "re-imagine" the album covers for some of the year's best-known music releases. In her article titled "Art Attack: Re-Imagining Album Covers From 2014", Marie gives us alt-looks at record art from bands such as Against Me, Mac Demarco, Lana Del Ray and Flying Lotus, along with many others. Another fine example of inspiration taken from album artwork and its edgy work products – more to see at http://blaremagazine.com/2014/12/17/reimagining-album-covers-from-2014/
If any of our fans have done something similar, please feel free to drop us a line and let us take a look as well.
December 19 – 1) Very nicely done interview with designer Vaughan Oliver on the Designboom site about his career in album cover production. As part of a talented team at the late, great design firm V23, Oliver and his mates contributed scores of memorable cover images for clients including The Pixies, Cocteau Twins, Lush and many others and, moving on after the agency closed in 2008, he's made many more musical acts look great, including The Breeders and TV On The Radio. Most-recently, he's produced the cover for The Pixies' 2014 release titled Indie Cindy. Read more about his inspirations, his travails and why he keeps doing what he's doing (and doing it so well) in Giles Revell's article, via the link at http://www.designboom.com/design/interview-with-graphic-designer-vaughan-oliver-12-19-2014/
2) When Bob Seger's Against The Wind LP won a Grammy Award in 1981 and went on to sell over six million copies, many music buyers were introduced to – in a big way – the fantastic art of painter Jim Warren, whose 1977 painting titled "Running Wild" served as the prototype for what is now considered one of the most-remembered album cover images of the era. What many (outside the art world) don't know is that Warren is also the painter who created the world's two "most-famous" nude paintings in the modern contemporary art world, according to Google Images search statistics. Warren's works will be going on a world tour in 2016, but you can get a preview and some background info in this recent article on the Virtual Strategy Magazine website http://www.virtual-strategy.com/2014/12/16/sexual-explosion-vs-re-birth-which-nude-painting-ranked-worlds-most-famous-2016-art-tour-#axzz3MNPEmUkh
3) In my most-recent posting about David Hamsley's collection of gatefold album covers, David mentioned something about a new book by author/artist Michael Fishel about the work of art publisher "Big O" and, after looking into it a bit, I wanted to let ACHOF fans know about the book in case there were folks on their gift lists who might enjoy a beautifully-written and illustrated book about the publisher's history and output. Album cover artists such as Roger Dean, Terry Pastor, David Juniper, H.R. Giger and many others produced hundreds of memorable images for posters, books and the like during the 1960s and 70s, so to find so many of these put together in one volume is truly impressive (and so is the foreword, written by Roger Dean!). To learn more about the book (and the people featured inside), read this article on the Boing Boing site – http://boingboing.net/2014/12/05/the-big-book-of-big-of-psyched.html
December 18 – Just in time for your year-end album cover historical retrospective needs…here's my latest article – a Featured Album Cover Fan Collection put together by writer and photographer David Hamsley, with a focus on "gatefold" LP covers, beginning with Cream's Wheels of Fire and including a number of 12″ x 24″ masterpieces that packaged music from Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Joni Mitchell and many others. With art and photography from album cover greats including Martin Sharp, Roger Dean, Norman Seeff and several others, David has given us an expert's view on these stunning works of art – hope that you'll take a moment now to learn more about the stories and the people behind some of your favorite record images. Enjoy responsibly, and please share with your friends and loved ones – https://albumcoverhalloffame.wordpress.com/2014/12/18/featured-fan-portfolio-david-hamsleys-favorite-gatefold-covers/
December 17 – 1) And he took the words right out of my mouth! In this recent posting on the Creative Review (UK) site titled "Beyond The Record Sleeve", design agency founder Simon Moore, whose firm (Baby) specializes in work for music industry clients, spells out the case for continued investment by music acts/record labels in the visual aspects of their overall creative endeavors. It's refreshing to read articles like this in a time when many other writers lament about "the end of the album cover". Simon and his clients seem to realize that album cover images are just one important part of an overall strategy to build an acts "brand" with more than just its music – fans want to see that their favorite acts have as much pride in their imagery, as expressed in their videos, their stage designs, gig posters, merchandise, etc., as they do in their latest releases. You can read more about Simon's determined efforts to build a career as an artist/designer, what motivated him then and what still motivates and excites him today, via the link at http://www.creativereview.co.uk/cr-blog/2014/december/simon-moore-music-design
2) In this recent NY Times Op-Ed by Gary S. Cross, a professor of Modern History at Penn State, readers will find a compelling argument about the importance of design in bringing us products that, without thoughtfully-designed packaging to provide enough attraction to get us to take notice and, hopefully, take them home, we might never have had the chance to enjoy what they were. Using examples such as Jell-O (gelatin powder in a box), "new wave" foods (ala Tofurky) and, of course, album covers, Professor Cross makes some interesting arguments about the need for packages to go beyond just housing a physical product and that we should also consider the simple beauty of natural packages (think banana peels) as we ponder designs for products yet invented. Perhaps scientists could develop a way to grow vinyl records on trees – each one unique! Read more at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/13/opinion/joy-to-the-packaging-people.html?
December 16 – 1) Up for bid at Christie's in London today are a collection of photos taken by the late, great Robert Whitaker, the man responsible for both the "permissible" cover image for The Beatles' Yesterday & Today LP and the rare and quite-valuable original version known to collectors as "The Butcher Cover", which showed the mop-tops wearing white butcher coats decked with meat, some blood and a rather spooky selection of baby doll parts. The story of Whitaker's relationship with the band, along with a preview to some of the items in the auction, can be found on the auction house's site at http://www.christies.com/features/Backstage-with-The-Beatles-5359-1.aspx
2) In the newest posting in his "And Justice For Art" series, Metal Underground writer Ramon Martos Garcia gives us a nice selection of album covers that feature at that seems quite clearly inspired by the promotional images created for films. Is it flattery or simply laziness on the part of the designers? Take a look at the examples for bands including Dreamgrave, Bloody Hammers and the metal band that has my favorite name, Meshuggah (what a bunch of crazies, no?) and let me know what your take on the controversy is. http://www.metalunderground.com/news/details.cfm?newsid=108945
December 15 – 1) Yesterday, I began my weekly read of the NY Times Magazine. After passing over the regular ad for nice-but-ridiculously-expensive apartments in NYC and Porsche's latest hybrids, I came to a full-page image of David Bailey's photo of Mick Jagger that was used on the cover of the Rolling Stones' Goats Head Soup LP (not something you expect to see in The Times!), part of a two-page spread by the Taschen publishing house for a new book and corresponding exhibition at their Beverly Blvd. gallery in Los Angeles. The book, edited by Reuel Golden, is titled It's Just A Shot Away: The Rolling Stones In Photographs and includes, in its over 500 pages, shots (including many album cover images) by an array of top photo talent, including (among others) Anton Corbijn, Annie Leibovitz, Gered Mankowitz, Terry Richardson, Ethan Russell, Jerry Schatzberg, Albert Watson and Guy Webster. The foreword was written by President Bill Clinton, and the book includes three essays from award-winning writers David Dalton, Waldemar Januszczak, and Luc Sante. I had to find out more.
Today, I logged on to the Taschen site and, in case you're interested in getting one of these limited-edition books yourself, here are some of the details about the several editions available for purchase:
There are 6 "SUMO-SIZED (20 in. x 20 in.) art editions" available, each including the book – hand-signed by Jagger, Richards, Watts and Wood – along with a limited-edition photo print by one of the featured photographers. In editions of 75 copies, two of the editions – one with the previously-mentioned photo by David Bailey and the other with a print by Corbijn – were priced at $20,000 each and are SOLD OUT (!!). The other four versions, with photos by Brent Rej, Mankowitz, Russell and Webster – each priced at $10,000 – are still available.
There is an 1150 pc. SUMO-SIZED edition of the book, still signed by The Stones but without a special art print, available for $5,000 per copy.
A smaller-format (13 inches square), open-edition book is selling for $150.
From now until January 31st, the new Taschen Gallery at 8070 Beverly Blvd. in LA will have an impressive show of both unique and limited-edition prints of many of the photos included in the book available for sale. Fans of the band will most-certainly want to stop by to see what's available – there are many that you've seen and many new images lifted from the archives of the many photographers who've covered the band over the past 50+ years. http://www.taschen.com/pages/en/catalogue/photography/all/02616/facts.the_rolling_stones.htm
2) To follow-up on my December 5th posting about the new book of images taken from the archives of noted UK design firm Hipgnosis, there's a new interview by writer Carey Dunne with surviving founder Aubrey Powell on the Fast Company magazine site. Lots of details about "the making of" a number of your favorite cover images for musical acts including Peter Gabriel, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Who, The Rolling Stones and many others (nice slide show, too). http://www.fastcodesign.com/3039377/the-dark-side-of-the-moon-cover-designer-on-the-making-of-iconic-rock-album-art
December 12 – 1) Just posted a new "Featured Artist Portfolio" article on the ACHOF site, this one featuring the impressive works by photographer Paul Wakefield, the man responsible for the amazing designs and photos featured on classic albums including Supertramp's Crime of the Century and Crisis? What Crisis?, Heaven & Hell for Vangelis, The Scream for Siouxie & The Banshees and many more. Paul was kind enough to share some of his original sketches and photo out-takes for these projects, so you'll get a chance to look "behind the scenes" of the creative efforts that produced these memorable images. Feel free to share with your friends and anyone you know who is inspired by the works of a truly creative photographer – enjoy – https://albumcoverhalloffame.wordpress.com/2014/12/12/achof-featured-album-cover-artist-portfolio-paul-wakefield/
2) If you're stumped trying to figure out what gifts to get your album art-loving friends this Holiday season, USA Today writer Jym Wilson gives you a number of cool rock music-related photo books to consider, including the newest releases from recent ACHOF inductee Danny Clinch and the new Hipgnosis Portraits book by Aubrey Powell, among others. Lots of nice options to consider – http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2014/12/05/books-rock-kurt-cobain-lenny-kravitz-chris-stein/19891655/
December 11 – 1) Art Kane's cover for The Who's The Kids Are Alright, showing the band sitting in front of a monument, draped in a Union Jack flag, is a classic album art image, but this is just one of the many photos that are featured in a new show at London's Snap Galleries that begins today and runs through the end of January. His son, musician Jonathan Kane (of NYC's Swans), has worked with the publisher Reel Art Press to release a new 320 page book (titled simply Art Kane) featuring carefully-curated selections from the famed photographer's archives, with many now on display in the gallery. In Kathryn Bromwich's article on The Guardian web site, you'll get to see several of the featured images and read some of Mr. Kane's anecdotes regarding some of his best-known images – http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2014/dec/06/art-kanes-photographs-of-60s-music-greats-in-pictures
2) When the Wall Street Journal publishes an article about the release of a new album cover art book, you have to wonder whether brokers will now be motivated to use their mega-bonuses to add some of these works of art to their collections…In a new 550-page book called Rock Covers by authors Robbie Busch and Jon Kirby, you'll find hundreds of cover images, along with interviews with many of the art directors involved in the production of these memorable images. It's available from art book publisher Taschen for $69.99, and WSJ writer Alexandra Wolfe has put together a nice slide show of some of the better-known covers included in the book. http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-art-of-rock-album-covers-1417808393?
December 10 – Focusing today on album cover talent and imagery from the NE United States:
1) The work of album cover artist extraordinaire Cal Schenkel was on display thru December 27th at the IMPeRFect Gallery in the Maplewood Mall in Germantown, PA, organized in a show by Jim Dragoni and Renny Molenaar. Cal's fantastic paintings and art direction have been featured on covers for Frank Zappa, Captain Beefheart and Tom Waits, among others, and since a lot of his work showcases his interpretations of machinery, autos, etc., he's titled the show "Anthropomorphic Crankcase" – a very Zappa-esque title, for sure. Cal was on hand from time to time during the show, and the gallery had scheduled a number of related events as well, so click on over to writer Alaina Mabaso's article on the show as seen on the Newsworks web site to get all of the details – http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/nw-philadelphia-more-stories/item/75871-renowned-album-cover-artist-launches-imperfect-gallery-show-this-weekend
2) Writing for the NJ.com web site, writer Brian Donohue has put together an article/showcase based on the many album covers featuring images of New Jersey. Hint – there's a lot more there than what's found on the covers of Springsteen and Bon Jovi records! In "19 Great New Jersey Album Covers", Brian includes works in many different genres – big-name acts and ones better-known by Jersey locals, including Redman, The Four Seasons, The Bouncing Souls and others. Also included – Led Zeppelin 1 which, you'll recall, features a picture of the Hindenberg dirigible disaster that took place at a landing pad in Lakehurst, NJ… read and view these examples of NJ pride at http://www.nj.com/ledgerlive/index.ssf/2014/12/new_jersey_album_covers_the_garden_state_depicted_on_lpcd_sleeves.html
December 9 – While I'm certainly partial to the originals, I find it fascinating when other talented artists take their turns at "re-imagining" album covers…here are two recent articles on the topic:
1) Writing for the Designboom site, Nina Azzarello gives us an introduction to the antics of the team at UK-based home entertainment retailer Superfi and their collection of Beatles albums done as if they were designed by Apple Computer vs. Apple Records. I think that, in some of the examples, the designers have gone a bit too far – on the re-do of With The Beatles, the "Fab Four" are now Apple Computer's own stars and, in the case of A Hard Day's Night, the multiple photos are now screen icons, but I must give them credit for coming at the entire notion of album cover spoofs from another angle… See the entire collection at http://www.designboom.com/art/apple-designed-beatles-album-covers-12-05-2014/
2) The folks at LA's Gallery 1988 tend to come up with interesting themes for the shows they put on and, in the case of a recent show titled "33 and a Third and a Third" (which ran thru December 21st), they've enlisted the help of 100 artists to come up with a collection of re-interpreted album covers that span the ages and several musical genres. According to the show's producers, "this dialogue between contemporary artists and cultural icons speaks to what it means to be a 'fan' and an admirer of an art form that is well acknowledged yet may be on the endangered species list in terms of relevancy moving forward into a digital age." Many of the works are certainly inspired, and you can see 10 examples from the show in Katherine Brooks' recent article on The Huffington Post site – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/05/33-and-a-third-and-a-third_n_6272276.html
December 8 – Two new photo-related items for your review, plus an auction update:
1) DeadHeads, rejoice! Photographer Bob Minkin has just released a new book featuring a nice selection of photos he's taken over the years of the Grateful Dead in concert. Titled Live Dead, the 224 page book shows the band making fans happy over the 40+ year period that Bob has been associated with the group. You'll recognize Bob's work from both the photos that have been published in countless books, magazines and web sites and the album covers he's contributed to, including the photo-collages he created for the "Dick's Picks" series. Here are two links if you'd like to learn/see more – the first http://minkinphotography.com/livedead/ takes you to the info page on Minkin's site, while the second http://youtu.be/bo94XQhcv8Y takes you to a promo video that includes a number of the images included in the book.
2) Photographer Bob Gruen's photos have graced the covers for a wide range of musical acts, from KISS to The Raspberries, but he's perhaps best-known for his photos of John Lennon, who he befriended in in NYC in 1971. To help promote Gruen's book of Lennon-related photos titled John Lennon: The New York Years, there's a new exhibit of his photos on display at the Malmaison Hotel in Liverpool, England. In Jade Wright's recent article on the Liverpool Echo web site, you'll learn more about Bob's relationship with John, Yoko and many of the musical acts he's photographed over the years, and you can buzz through a nice slide show of image there as well – http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/iconic-john-lennon-photos-exhibited-8215918
3) To follow up on the info I'd published last week about the Megadeth-related sale hosted by Backstage Auctions, it looks as though fans really valued the selection of a dozen large-scale album art reproductions that were on display in Dave Mustaine's personal studio – prices realized for these unique pieces went from $471 for an acoustic panel featuring the cover of the band's 2001 release The World Needs A Hero to $3098 for the panel bearing the image of 1986's Peace Sells…But Who's Buying along with the signatures of Dave M and his fellow band-members. To see the complete results from this specialized sale, follow the link – http://www.backstageauctions.com/catalog/auction_realized.php
December 5 – 1) Fans of 1980s album cover art should hop on over to The Mirror web site to take Richard Beech's new quiz titled "The Totally Bodacious 1980s Record Sleeve Quiz". There are 16 multiple-choice questions in the quiz, which features a nice mix of popular records from acts including…well, if I told you, I'd be giving away some of the answers, wouldn't I? I got 15 out of 16 and was mad that I missed the one I missed (a Tom Petty-related question)…Best of luck to you – let us know how you did – http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/totally-bodacious-1980s-record-sleeve-4685086
2) Writing for The Daily Beast, writer Ted Gioia gives us the details on a new book about one of the most-prolific art agencies in album cover history – Hipgnosis, featuring the talents of (the late) Storm Thorgerson, Aubrey Powell and the late Peter Christopherson. You know their work for Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Peter Gabriel and many others, but in the beautifully-illustrated art book titled Hipgnosis Portraits, surviving partner Powell (now a respected film director who also recently helped Monty Python stage their live shows at the O2 in London) provides a detailed history of the firm and its work, including a number of alt-take images from their projects, some of which are included in a 10-photo slide show reachable from the DB article. Certainly a great gift idea for any fan of iconic album imagery – http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/12/05/the-golden-age-of-rock-album-covers.html
3) The Recording Academy has just published the list of this year's Grammy Award nominees in the two categories we follow here at the ACHOF:
The nominees for "Best Recording Package" are –
– Formosa Medicine Show by The Muddy Basin Ramblers (Hove Records), David Chen & Andrew Wong, art directors
– Indie Cindy by the Pixies (Pixies Music/[PIAS] Recordings), Vaughan Oliver, art director
– Lightning Bolt by Pearl Jam (Republic Records), Jeff Ament, Don Pendleton, Joe Spix & Jerome Turner, art directors (Pearl Jam)
– LP1 by Young Turks (XL Recordings), FKA Twigs & Phil Lee, art directors
– Whispers by Passenger (Nettwerk Records), Sarah Larnach, art director
The nominees for "Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package" are –
– Cities Of Darkscorch by Various Artists (The Numero Group), Leland Meiners & Ken Shipley, art directors
– A Letter Home (Vinyl Box Set) by Neil Young (Third Man Records), Gary Burden & Jenice Heo, art directors
– The Rise & Fall Of Paramount Records, Volume One (1917-27) by Various Artists (Third Man Records/Revenant Records), Susan Archie, Dean Blackwood & Jack White, art directors
– Sparks (Deluxe Album Box Set) by Imogen Heap (RCA Records/Megaphonic Records), Andy Carne, art director
– Spring 1990 (The Other One) by the Grateful Dead (Rhino Records), Jessica Dessner, Lisa Glines, Doran Tyson & Steve Vance, art directors
Congratulations to all the nominees – looking forward to announcing the winners when they're announced early next February.
That's all for now – look for updates every week day on our news feed – https://www.facebook.com/AlbumCoverHallOfFame – we'll be back next month with another summary for you.
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