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Classic Album, FUCKING TERRIBLE Cover Art

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Good lord, that Gabriel cover is one of my favorite sleeves of all time.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 14 April 2005 21:51 (nineteen years ago) link

Alex, I guess corporate wasn't the right word. I just found it interesting what types of designs different people dislike. Some here seem to dislike garish colors or imagery that is intentionally ugly or seedy (something I personally have a taste for). I thought all of the covers you posted looked kind "well designed" but possibly just boring or inappropriate to the music.

I guess that's how I feel about the Smile cover which is fine but just seems a little too simple and plain for what's inside. At least the Pet Sounds cover has a kind of bizarre petting zoo thing going on. On the other hand if that Smile cover were released 30 years ago I think I might have just become used to it and considered it iconic. For now I can't picture the album without that weird little storefront illustration.

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Thursday, 14 April 2005 21:56 (nineteen years ago) link

Pretty much any funk record from the 70s.

― Yejoon (Yejoon), Thursday, 14 April 2005 21:59 (nineteen years ago) link

I think it really depends on the album. I also have a hard time divorcing the visuals from the sound. I always found the cover art to Junkyard by the Birthday Party to be completely incongruous with the music contained therein. It's a great sleeve, and it's a great album, but they just don't match up to me.

http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000006ZCC.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

It looks like the Birthday Party should sound like some metallic rockabilly band, which is -- of course -- just not the case.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 14 April 2005 21:59 (nineteen years ago) link

Yes! I was thinking of Junkyard too. I avoided that album for so many years because of the cover. But strangely I've grown to like it over time. The fact that the great sleeve and the great album don't match up is kind of great itself.

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:01 (nineteen years ago) link

This is true.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:02 (nineteen years ago) link

The content of this illustration is kind of funny but the style is so blecchhh...

http://image.com.com/mp3/images/cover/200/drd900/d923/d92362hta34.jpg

― walter kranz (walterkranz), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:04 (nineteen years ago) link

great sleeve and the great album don't match up

Another great example of that....

http://orbita.starmedia.com/~subhumans/grupos/throbbing_gristle/20jazz.jpg

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:05 (nineteen years ago) link

That Throbbing Gristle sleeve is fucking ace!

― Yngwie AlmsteenMay (sgertz), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:13 (nineteen years ago) link

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0007SL1LW.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000002LSO.01._SCMZZZZZZZ_.jpg
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000ADXEC.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

― Mr. Snrub (Mr. Snrub), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:13 (nineteen years ago) link

That Throbbing Gristle cover reminds me of this one

http://www.importantrecordstore.com/images/content/distributed/builttospillwaverscd.jpg

― darin (darin), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:14 (nineteen years ago) link

Alex in NYC OTM. Really disappointing.

Meanwhile....

http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B0000000S4.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

― Si Carter (Si Carter), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:40 (nineteen years ago) link

Er... the 'really disappointing' was about KJ2003, but he's spot on with Junkyard as well, which I always found somewhat bizarre.

― Si Carter (Si Carter), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:43 (nineteen years ago) link

the flaming lips one is OTM

― Sym Sym (sym), Thursday, 14 April 2005 22:56 (nineteen years ago) link

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000003Z4C.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

No one wanted to see Nick Cave shirtless.

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000002LGS.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

I personally think most of New Order's album covers are fucking terrible.

― Jessie the Monster (scarymonsterrr), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:02 (nineteen years ago) link

I think THIS one was meant for the Lips:

http://www.flaminglips.com/media/discography/albums/04_priestDriven/afc_priestDriven.jpg

Hit To Death has a classic cover too.

― donut debonair (donut), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:05 (nineteen years ago) link

I've always hated HATED how the Lips were portrayed on In a Priest Driven Ambulance. it makes then look like some Guitar Center employees and their stoner friends forming some sort of Guns N' Roses/Jane's Addiction type rip-off band. (Although Wayne Coyne has admitted to ripping off GNR before! Although by this phase, the Flaming Lips were pretty much at their peak.)

― donut debonair (donut), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:07 (nineteen years ago) link

I guess I also don't like how pouty the Lips look here, when Wayne is one of the least pouty rock stars ever (for better or worse)

― donut debonair (donut), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:08 (nineteen years ago) link

dear god we've got people listing new order and '70s funk albums' on this thread WTF

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:08 (nineteen years ago) link

blount OTM, especially re: 70s funk records!! wtf indeed. I like a lot of the album covers on here (Soft Cell, Flaming Lips, GbV). That Junior Murvin cover tho - yeah I dunno if its great or terrible. It's a great *image* but the style it's executed in is really goofy.

― Shakey Mo Collier, Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:11 (nineteen years ago) link

mainly in comparison to its bretheren

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:13 (nineteen years ago) link

any Neil Young album

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:14 (nineteen years ago) link

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:15 (nineteen years ago) link

any neil young album without his handwriting or him on the cover maybe

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:16 (nineteen years ago) link

http://www.musicmatic.de/R/Rollers2a.jpg

― Yngwie AlmsteenMay (sgertz), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:18 (nineteen years ago) link

re: Neil Young, uh no. After the Gold Rush, Tonight's the Night, Time Fades Away, American Stars and Bars (designed by Dean Stockwell!) are all great.

Landing on Water is awful tho.

― Shakey Mo Collier, Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:18 (nineteen years ago) link

classic albums with classic covers disturbingly replaced on the cd could fill the thread but this one's always annoyed me the most

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:19 (nineteen years ago) link

urrgh yeah that's a travesty. the original flag/daisy design is soooooo classic.

― Shakey Mo Collier, Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:19 (nineteen years ago) link

In the 90's especially, there were a ton of hack-job Photoshop renderings that made their way onto album covers. An example:
http://img.epinions.com/images/opti/c0/53/85429-resized200.JPG

― Yngwie AlmsteenMay (sgertz), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:22 (nineteen years ago) link

Jessie SO OTM regarding Let Love In. Henry's Dream was pretty crap too.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:26 (nineteen years ago) link

At the risk of being misunderstood, I'm talking SOLELY about their cover art. Both those Cave albums are utterly classic.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:27 (nineteen years ago) link

i don't mind let love in so much but god the henry's dream art was awful.

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:28 (nineteen years ago) link

This classic album used to have a classic cover, until it was replaced by this rather pointless photo:
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000002P5U.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:35 (nineteen years ago) link

the lame nude chix cover was conceived by some suit. hendrix hated it, for good reason. that's not great (the only hendrix cover i luv is axis), but at least he looks like he's on fire and it fills the frame which works well with the album.

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:37 (nineteen years ago) link

o god some the "psychedelic" hendrix photos that were on the covers of the cd reissues briefly during the nineties were awful and deserve a namecheck here. thankfully you could flip the book around and get the original covers.

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:38 (nineteen years ago) link

oh come on the Are You Experienced? album cover is damn near perfect.

― Shakey Mo Collier, Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:42 (nineteen years ago) link

but the axis cover is perfect

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:43 (nineteen years ago) link

i'm not that crazy about shot from beneath a person, i think the 'give it away' video traumatized me.

― j blount (papa la bas), Thursday, 14 April 2005 23:44 (nineteen years ago) link

has anyone ever realized that De La's album cover has them making a PEACE SIGN with the typography & their heads???? LOL. Brilliance.

u guys really are contributing sum quite unterrible covers, by the way, (including the De La, the Soft Cell & the Peter Gabriel,--the first & last being easily be argued as sum the BEST ever) & also throwing out quite a few NOT-VERY-CLASSIC MUSIC SELECTIONS as well...

but personally, gigantic co-sign on the Brian Wilson SMiLE cover, same with the original intended cover as well. complete lazy non-happy-effect-giving, non thought out, non-anything C-R-A-P. what the hell happened??
http://wsucr.no-ip.org/smile.jpg

& though I fully disagree bout the very iconic & fully greatly-designed Day-Glow Hippy Peace Sign cover, I always though De La's second album: cover hindered me ever really accepting the album
http://www.dustygroove.com/images/products/d/delasoul~~~_delasouli_101b.jpg
just never actually wanted that shoddy cover in my collection. Never bought the record. Buhloone Mindstate was arguably worse, but with the much improved cover (Best De La cover award??) then I think it's impacted me much further listening & appreciating it.

Also, the second Pharcyde album cover is very mediocre, but especially the back cover. just sh*tty looking... bad photoshopped(?) gritty bitmapped purple lighting, & just bad general type & layout & everything. Especially compared ta the magnifincence of the first LP cover.


And not that anybody here'll likely know what I'm talking bout--Sticky Fingaz Black Trash Autobiography cover with him alternately in the fake braids & in the spiked-leather-jacket, running away from the cop car, with the sh*tty "red glare lights" just always looked real reallll disgustingly chunky bad turrible ta me. Never quite felt right leaving it on the display shelf though it's arguably a should-be-classic.

― Cavebaby Jesus, Friday, 15 April 2005 00:34 (nineteen years ago) link

this one PWNS this thread:

http://www.musicmatic.de/Z/Zappa__7a.jpg

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Friday, 15 April 2005 00:46 (nineteen years ago) link

Eisbar so OTM that I have to go donate my innards to science.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 15 April 2005 00:47 (nineteen years ago) link

gary numan's ghost is definitely not a classic, but it's NOT awful.

the cover, though -- yikes!

http://www.songlyricscollection.com/lyrics/g/gary-numan/exhibition-tour-1987-ghost/exhibition-tour-1987-ghost.jpg

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Friday, 15 April 2005 01:02 (nineteen years ago) link

Late to thread as always but I really like Anton Corbin's cover on Henry's Dream. I'll give you Let Love In though, Nick is much better served in a suit.

I always had a problem with this cover. It takes a nanosecond for something like that to automatically look dated:
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00000272N.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg


― VegemiteGrrl (VegemiteGrrl), Friday, 15 April 2005 01:04 (nineteen years ago) link

oh, but ned's gonna hate me now!

http://www.wishville.co.uk/chameleons/images/sotb0001.jpg

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Friday, 15 April 2005 01:17 (nineteen years ago) link

i put most nick cave album covers in the AWFUL category on principle, for that AWFUL mullet he used to sport.

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Friday, 15 April 2005 01:18 (nineteen years ago) link

One of my favorite albums of all time.....but the cover is laughable....

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000002KHH.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 15 April 2005 01:19 (nineteen years ago) link

The guy on the front of Paranoid reminds me of my 6-year-old self playing Star Wars in my back yard with a glow-in-the-dark lightsaber.

― Yngwie AlmsteenMay (sgertz), Friday, 15 April 2005 01:34 (nineteen years ago) link

Oh man. That cover is BRILLIANT. He's p a r a n o i d !

― Bobby Peru (Bobby Peru), Friday, 15 April 2005 01:39 (nineteen years ago) link

No, actually, they're War Pigs (the original title of the record). Geddit? Pink? Weapons? War Pigs? Geddit?

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 15 April 2005 01:44 (nineteen years ago) link

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drd800/d862/d86291nkvl6.jpg

a great great album, but the covers always bugged me

― m0stly clean (m0stly clean), Friday, 15 April 2005 01:56 (nineteen years ago) link

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