I Miss Album Covers

Oh great - here he goes again - moaning how the past was better than the present. Give it a rest will ya, the decade of your youth was tacky, tasteless and trashy! Listen pal, you were obsessed with gadgets and garbage too. Have you forgotten the Sanyo Walkman (couldn't afford a Sony I guess) that was securely fixed to your belt from 1982 to 1985? Or what about those Adidas high-tops with the fat tongue that you intentionally stuck out of the shoe - what the hell was that all about? And let's not forget PBR - what were you thinking drinking that swill? I realize it only cost $2.48 for a six-pack (tax included), but were the day-after technicolor bowel movements really worth it? 

To all of these accusations (and certainly many, many more) I readily admit my guilt.
 

In fact, I'll go one step further and proclaim that the Age we now live in is pretty damn cool. I have come around to embrace most of its shiny baubles and buttons - Facebook, blogging, podcasts, smartphones, texting, iPads and iTunes. Sorry Twitter, I still don't really understand tweeting or twatting or (t)whatever it is you are all about.

 

 

Specifically, as a music lover, I readily embraced the revolution in music that Apple spawned in the last decade ago. My iTunes library isn't as vast as others (I once knew someone whose online collection exceeded 45,000 titles - granted she got many of them in the divorce), but it offers me enough variety to create more playlists than I could listen to in the next decade.

Music downloads - both legal and illegal - changed the music-buying experience. But so what - the death of Musicland and Sam Goody wasn't a bad thing - those weird salespeople always gave me the hee-bee-gee-bees anyway. Sadly though, something vital was lost in the industry's relentless march from vinyl to cassette to compact disc to - ultimately - digital. Album covers.

 

 

Done well, a recording artist's album cover could become iconic. During the zenith (and end) of vinyl (yes, the 80's), bands went so far as to adorn their album with a specific type-setting (font) for the band's name. These fonts were the property of the band and were repeatedly used on subsequent albums, concerts t-shirts and merchandising (think AC/DC, Aerosmith, Boston, Judas Priest, ZZ Top). So by the late 80's, FM radio had become a fusion of popular music, art, design and typography. And hair. Can't forget the hair.

But, like all things Bold, Ballsy and Bright - a backlash was inevitable. Grunge - popularized in the early 90's by the Seattle sound of Nirvana, Pearl Jam and the Stone Temple Pilots - gave the 80's a bit of a complex. What had once seemed fun and outrageous, quickly became silly and embarrassing. Drab replaced gaudy. Spandex was exchanged for flannel. Contemplative overtook narcissism.  

 

 

That's the nature of popular music I suppose. But did they have to turn their backs on creating great album covers? With the exception of a few (Nirvana's Never Mind), the album cover was an afterthought, sinking into insignificance until its final end, ushered in by the digital download.

So here's to nostalgia - a list of my favorite album covers. Sure, a few are from the 80's - but what did you really expect - The Plain White Tees?

 

 

1. High Infidelity by REO Speedwagon - 1980. Yes, as a 14 year-old teen I stared long and hard at this cover for months after purchase. Can you blame me? 

2. Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd - 1973. This cover is still cool, as evidenced by one or two 7th grade students in my classroom who still sport it on their t-shirts.

3. Led Zeppelin by Led Zeppelin - 1969. Sure, Jimmy Page plagiarized one of the most memorable photographs of the 20th century for the cover of their debut album, but lovers of this band don't think of the airship's crash - just the soaring sounds of arguably the best rock band ever.

4. Boston by Boston - 1976. Still one of the best-selling albums of all-time, Boston's album cover raised the bar for artistry and symbolism in the music world. 

5. 1984 by Van Halen - 1984. The band never took themselves too seriously, unlike many of their peers, as shown by this mischievous cover of an angel (devil?) who bears a strong resemblance to front man David Lee Roth (who had wisely purchased paternity insurance during the band's heyday).

6. Whipped Cream and Other Delights by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass - 1965. At one time this band rivaled The Beatles in record sales in the mid-60's. No doubt, the cover didn't hurt. This album was in my home when I was a small child. Although I don't remember listening to it (I was born in 66), my love of Cool-Whip has never abated.

7. True Blue by Madonna - 1986. I appreciate the Material Girl much more now than I did as a kid. The list of wanna-be's and imitators that have trailed in her wake (I'm talking to you Gaga) have only served as reminders of the originality she brought to the music scene 30 years ago. This album's cover captured and cemented her status as an American icon. 

8. Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band - 1975. The Boss's album cover, sporting himself leaning on Clarence Clemons' shoulder, has been imitated over and over again through the years, but never duplicated. The only one that comes close is Springsteen's own cover to the 1984 release Born in the U.S.A.

9. British Steel by Judas Priest - 1980. This album is a little obscure, but it introduced me to the heavy metal band Judas Priest - who I would listen to ardently throughout high school. What I couldn't take my eyes off of was whether the hand holding the razor had actually sunk his fingers deep into the blade or not. A great illusion, and greater album.

And of course . . .

10. Abbey Road by The Beatles - 1969. The Fab Four, largely responsible for the concept of the music album - rather than simply releasing songs as singles - also pioneered the notion of the album cover as art (see Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Magical Mystery Tour). It was their final album, however, that is justifiably regarded as the most memorable piece of cover art in music history. And probably their best collection of tunes too.

 Surprisingly, vinyl has been making a strong comeback in the last decade. Perhaps it's because of the great cover art that accompanies so many of those classic LP's. Or maybe you are like my dad - you like to hear ever scratch and imperfection that the needle can coax from a record. Either way, it's encouraging to know that great cover art wrapped around great music was once part of the music experience.