Album Covers that beg the Question: What the Hell were You THINKING?

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no, no.... Roger Dean epitomises everything I hate about graphic art - hideous nonsensical, puffed up pretentious twaddle.... and it's SO dated. The Yes sleeves should all be recalled and ritually burned. Each one of them.

Cheers Kingfish.... is the flag a negative thing, then?

― russ t, Thursday, 29 May 2003 15:23 (twenty years ago) link

Uh, yeah, it's the Confederate flag, so unless you live in the southern US, it's a negative thing. If you live in the South, it's a heritage thing and has absolutely NOTHING to do with racist rednecks. < /sarcasm>

― NA. (Nick A.), Thursday, 29 May 2003 15:38 (twenty years ago) link

albert ayler: live in greenwich village on impulse. the two disc reissue has ayler as a puppet.

― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Thursday, 29 May 2003 15:44 (twenty years ago) link

i have that herbie mann LP!

(ladies, it's a gatefold.)

― gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 29 May 2003 15:44 (twenty years ago) link

Maybe it's a metaphor for the fact that he was a puppet of the free jazz Illuminati.

― NA. (Nick A.), Thursday, 29 May 2003 15:48 (twenty years ago) link

That person in the middle of the bed on the SPRCSS or whatever album - Nick swore that wasn't a girl. Then we heard female vox on one track and he's like "Woah! It's it amazing how he makes himself sound like a girl??" ha ha

I've never understood the Sleater-Kinny All hands on the bad one cover. What the hell is going on there?

― Sarah McLusky (coco), Thursday, 29 May 2003 15:50 (twenty years ago) link

''Maybe it's a metaphor for the fact that he was a puppet of the free jazz Illuminati.''

heh, and what does that mean?

― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Thursday, 29 May 2003 16:05 (twenty years ago) link

The Yes sleeves should all be recalled and ritually burned. Each one of them.
I gots a spare gas can and a box of matches, someone has to bring hotdogs or marshmallows....lets all make a day of it.

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Thursday, 29 May 2003 16:27 (twenty years ago) link

Yeah, but as ridiculous as the Yes sleeves are/were, they appropriate to their milieu/genre/target demographic. They're not sleeves that those responsible look back on and say "SWEET FUCKIN' CHRIST, WHAT THE FUCK WAS I SMOKING WHEN I OKAY'D THAT EYESORE?!?!?!" Thus, their inclusion to this thread is in error. That is all

― "the Management" (vassifer), Thursday, 29 May 2003 16:31 (twenty years ago) link

Word, Mr. Manager.

― Jay Vee (Manon_70), Thursday, 29 May 2003 16:41 (twenty years ago) link

Don't worry, Julio, like 75% of the things I write, it's meaningless.

― NA. (Nick A.), Thursday, 29 May 2003 17:07 (twenty years ago) link

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000001ESL.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg and http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000002GXG.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

I wish I could find a pic of Mitchell's "Dog Eat Dog", which features a truly hideous painting of the artist as a dog woman.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Thursday, 29 May 2003 17:54 (twenty years ago) link

I sooooo agreee with ya on that Rush cover. Way to alienate 90% of your audience (i.e.acne-speckeled metalhead mooks) in one fell swoop.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 29 May 2003 19:19 (twenty years ago) link

holy shit, I think that joni mitchell could substitute in for a new Beck release.

― Kingfish (Kingfish), Thursday, 29 May 2003 19:38 (twenty years ago) link

''Don't worry, Julio, like 75% of the things I write, it's meaningless.''

hehe b-but that's not what i meant!

― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Thursday, 29 May 2003 20:19 (twenty years ago) link

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drd800/d804/d80493j719t.jpg

The cover's so brown. Such an ugly brown! It's probabaly the dingiest cover of the Eighties.

(Incidently, this was the first rock record I ever bought.)

― Christine 'Green Leafy Dragon' Indigo (cindigo), Friday, 30 May 2003 01:05 (twenty years ago) link

The cover of All Hands on the Bad One is some kind of backwater church revival, presumably Pentecostal.

― David Beckhouse (David Beckhouse), Friday, 30 May 2003 01:12 (twenty years ago) link

The confederate flag pic is actually a crop of a pretty famous photo by William Eggleston. What band decided to make it their cover art?

― el maury, Friday, 30 May 2003 02:20 (twenty years ago) link

Primal Scream

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Friday, 30 May 2003 02:26 (twenty years ago) link

Joni Mitchell's Don Juan's Reckless Daughter cover is cool! It's meant to be kinda nonsensical, as the back and inner sleeves addtionally prove. The black dude in the hat is her, obv. Dog Eat Dog's cover is Joni surrounded by dogs with her arms raised; dog woman? I think the Yes covers are sometimes cool, but some of them are kind of sloppily executed. I especially like Relayer and Drama

― Sean (Sean), Friday, 30 May 2003 03:04 (twenty years ago) link

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drf200/f233/f23305oon0b.jpg

No?

― Andrzej B. (Andrzej B.), Friday, 30 May 2003 04:38 (twenty years ago) link

"Dog Eat Dog's cover is Joni surrounded by dogs with her arms raised; dog woman?"

My bad, I was thinking of another cover that was dog themed and had a painting. This wasn't it.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Friday, 30 May 2003 13:31 (twenty years ago) link

Indulge me for a second and scroll way back to the top of the page where the first Steve Walsh cover.....is that supposed to be a bird on the right hand side of Steve Walsh's face (his left hand side)? And what's it doing? Eating out of his ear? This cover haunts me with its abject bizarreness.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 30 May 2003 14:38 (twenty years ago) link

don't do drugs, kids.

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Friday, 30 May 2003 14:40 (twenty years ago) link

That Steve Walsh cover reminds me of Pen&Pixel, if they did covers for CMC International that is.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Friday, 30 May 2003 14:44 (twenty years ago) link

Wow...that Indonesian Popular Music CD was released by Smithsonian Folkways!! (still laughing, minutes later after seeing it)

― Ernest P. (ernestp), Friday, 30 May 2003 15:01 (twenty years ago) link

The guy on the cover of the Indonesian Popular Music CD sounds nothing at all like the picture would make you imagine, sadly

― dave q, Friday, 30 May 2003 18:30 (twenty years ago) link

Someday I will find a picture of Buddy Miles' Booger Bear and give you all nightmares.

― Nate Patrin (Nate Patrin), Saturday, 31 May 2003 14:42 (twenty years ago) link

one month passes...

I got one name for y'all:

Kenny Fucking Loggins

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000029FW.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00000273U.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000025RO.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00000259D.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000025H2.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000029BV.01._PE8_SCMZZZZZZZ_.jpg

― turkey (turkey), Tuesday, 8 July 2003 07:25 (twenty years ago) link

Herbie Hancock has a lot of these...

http://www.jazzversand.de/Modern/Hancock/486571b.jpg

My eyes! Those colours!

http://www.jazzversand.de/Modern/Hancock/471235b.jpg

Is that Buddha with some soap bubbles?

http://www.jazzversand.de/Modern/Hancock/486572b.jpg

Digital image manipulation has come a long way since the eighties...

http://www.jazzversand.de/Modern/Hancock/471240b.jpg

What are you doing to that poor flamingo?!?

http://www.jazzversand.de/Modern/Hancock/486570b.jpg

Admit it, Herbie! You'll never look cool.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Tuesday, 8 July 2003 07:55 (twenty years ago) link

re: Kenny Loggins Covers
How very counter-intuitive. You'd think Loggins would do lots of creepily Springsteenesque-wannabe looking covers, but no...he's a granola munching new age space cadet at heart (if his album covers are to be believed); None of them are particularly ugly...just odd.
Now, the cover for "Vox Humana"...THATS ugh-lee!

#1 - What...is he aiming to be the next Andreas Wollenweider?
#2 - There's something slightly high-art paedo about that one.
#3 - Aiming for that lucrative "Frank Buck - Bring 'em Back Alive" tv show soundtrack demographic. Or to impress the people who make hair mousse. One or the other.
#4 - "Dooooodddde...I'm sooooooo sttttooooooonnnnneeeeed..." (Actually, it's kinda pretty in a "just saw the video for Orinoco Flow and want an album cover that looks just like it" kinda way.
#5 - Jesus uses the patented super-saiyan Kameha-meha Blast Wave Attack!
#6 - "Charles Manson...the New Age Years"

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Tuesday, 8 July 2003 10:45 (twenty years ago) link

Now, the cover for "Vox Humana"...THATS ugh-lee!
and here's proof...
http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drd800/d809/d80949txys4.jpg

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Tuesday, 8 July 2003 10:46 (twenty years ago) link

Wow. I'm still reeling from Mr.Hands!

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Tuesday, 8 July 2003 11:46 (twenty years ago) link

"And now, my young padawan... to complete your training, and become a Jedi master... you must first grab my magic ball!"

"Master - NOOOOOO!!!!" *becomes Darth Vader*

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000025H2.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

― Sam J. (samjeff), Tuesday, 8 July 2003 14:55 (twenty years ago) link

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: this must be the worst album cover ever. It's not even funny or weird, just plain BAD.

http://www.nic.fi/~jsantala/nightwish/ocean.jpg

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Thursday, 10 July 2003 07:56 (twenty years ago) link

joe cocker is the undisputed master at this sorta thing ... take a look fer yerselves ... ALL HAIL JOE COCKER ALBUM/CD COVERS!!

― Tad (llamasfur), Thursday, 10 July 2003 08:12 (twenty years ago) link

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drd800/d848/d84839q75re.jpg

― Tad (llamasfur), Thursday, 10 July 2003 08:14 (twenty years ago) link

That Nightwish cover is actually kinda cool.

― Lord Custos Epsilon (Lord Custos Epsilon), Thursday, 10 July 2003 11:52 (twenty years ago) link

Nightwish have the best album covers! They're just all-around perfect. Especially the picture on the front of their website where one of the guys is trying to look all tough in a doo-rag...

― adam (adam), Thursday, 10 July 2003 13:25 (twenty years ago) link

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00000348M.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Thursday, 10 July 2003 21:04 (twenty years ago) link

those herbie hancock ones are great!

― s1utsky (slutsky), Friday, 11 July 2003 05:13 (twenty years ago) link

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/dre600/e697/e69782f6sv4.jpg

I like to pretend this one didn't happen.

― ben welsh (benwelsh), Friday, 11 July 2003 05:17 (twenty years ago) link

three months pass...

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000C9ZLD.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

― wtf?, Tuesday, 4 November 2003 00:17 (twenty years ago) link

It's the color choice that really does that one in.

― Kenan Hebert (kenan), Tuesday, 4 November 2003 00:59 (twenty years ago) link

An obvious one:
http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drf100/f110/f11074q3334.jpg

A lot of people wondered what they were thinking - and and lot of people still do....

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Tuesday, 4 November 2003 01:30 (twenty years ago) link

played a gig with Cheap Trick once in the 80's and Steve Walsh was the *hidden* keyboard player. He wore Reeboks, tube sox, and running shorts. He had a rainbow mohawk. He stood and dance all night behind a speaker stack in a club that only held about 200 people. Everyone could see him, but he was never acknowlaged. It was sad and hilarious at the same time. When the band was done, he acted as a roadie. Neilson kind of shut me up when I was making jokes ala "Carry on my Wayward son" but then he started snickering too.

― Speedy Gonzalas (Speedy Gonzalas), Tuesday, 4 November 2003 10:40 (twenty years ago) link

That Strokes one is a (non-commissioned) painting from some artist, innit? Not that that makes it good. I really hate the fact it's a bit lopsided, I scanned it in three times before I realised it wasn't my fault.

― DJ Mencap (DJ Mencap), Tuesday, 4 November 2003 10:49 (twenty years ago) link

http://www.io.com/~dork/records/pages/DrugsDave.html

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 13:33 (twenty years ago) link

four months pass...

Yes and I thank You! Don't know IF I'm in the right place or not, but here goes! I am looking for a company called PEN & PIXEL GRAPHICS INCORPORATED - 2400 Central Parkway - Suite M - Houston, Texas.

Do I have the right Album Cover People? Please email me back as I am interested in doing a CD Album cover for my music. Will await your reply. Thank you!

― Gerald L. Withers, Friday, 26 March 2004 07:48 (twenty years ago) link

http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drg000/g054/g05479gvo26.jpg

― donut bitch (donut), Friday, 26 March 2004 08:03 (twenty years ago) link

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