Saturday, May 30
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Album Cover of the Week

Aug292016 by Chris HolmesNo Comments
Album Cover of the Week: Jonah Jones, I Dig Chicks

Album Cover of the Week: Jonah Jones, I Dig Chicks

Album Cover of the Week
I Dig Chicks (Capitol Records ST/T 1193, 1959) is more properly billed to the Jonah Jones Quartet, but I'm not about to quibble. This cover is at once way too on the nose and supremely clever. I don't have a photography or graphic design credit for the front cover, so if you know who is responsible for this beauty let me know. As far as the personnel on the record, Jonah Jones gets vocal and trumpet credits but I haven't been able to ID the other musicians. Here is the album description from the back cover: "For those who appreciate the finer things in life, gentleman Jonah Jones supplies words and music for an album filled with songs about man's favorite hobby: Chicks! The now famous Jonah Jones style is thoroughly in evidence throughout this album. As he sails through these
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Sep302013 by Chris HolmesNo Comments
Album Cover of the Week: Shock Music in Hi-Fi by the Creed Taylor Orchestra

Album Cover of the Week: Shock Music in Hi-Fi by the Creed Taylor Orchestra

Album Cover of the Week
October doesn't start until tomorrow, but I just can't wait to get started on my Countdown to Halloween 2013 posts so I'm kicking things off a little early. Here's a fun little vintage album cover to set the mood for you -- it's Shock Music in Hi-Fi by the Creed Taylor Orchestra (ABC-Paramount ABC-259, 1959). Now if you ask me, the woman on the front cover looks more in a state of grief than of shock or horror. But it's a neat visual and works well with the "Shock" portion of the typeface. Credits on this one are easy, as they're listed right on the back cover. The front and liner photographs were taken by Tony Triolo, and Matt Schutz designed the front cover. Here's a clip from the album, to give you an idea of what this record sounds like. It's "The Crank," written by Ke...
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Aug122013 by Chris HolmesNo Comments
Album Cover of the Week: Two Sides of Eydie Gormé

Album Cover of the Week: Two Sides of Eydie Gormé

Album Cover of the Week
With the passing of beloved singer Eydie Gormé (of the famed Steve and Eydie duo) at the age of 84, let's look at a pair of her album covers from the 1950s. The first is the understated sophistication of 1959's Eydie Swings the Blues (ABC-Paramount, ABC-192). Photography credit for this goes to Arthur Siegel. This cover is pretty much mid-century elegance defined, wouldn't you agree? Meanwhile, here's a fun little number from the next year. It's 1960's Eydie in Dixieland (ABC-Paramount, ABC/ABCS 343). Cover photography by Gary Wagner. RIP, Eydie.
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Jul292013 by Chris HolmesNo Comments
Album Cover of the Week: The Deviants, Ptooff!

Album Cover of the Week: The Deviants, Ptooff!

Album Cover of the Week
Iconic English musician and journalist Mick Farren passed away over the weekend after collapsing onstage at a performance in London, so I felt it was time to take this series out of mothballs and feature a great album cover he was directly associated with. It's from the debut album by Farren's influential psychedelic rock band, the Deviants -- Ptooff! Described in the liner notes as "the deviants underground l.p.," Ptooff! falls stylistically somewhere between garage rock and psychedelic rock. It's not as trippy as early Pink Floyd; it sounds more grounded -- mostly -- but also more sinister. Cover design and artwork on the album is credited to Kipps, a name I can't find referenced anywhere else. I know little of the Deviants, but it wouldn't surprise me to find out that Kipps is...
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May132013 by Chris HolmesNo Comments
Album Cover of the Week: The Billy Cobham/George Duke Band, “Live” On Tour in Europe

Album Cover of the Week: The Billy Cobham/George Duke Band, “Live” On Tour in Europe

Album Cover of the Week, Music
Credit for introducing me to this fantastic cover goes to one of my favorite record shops, Princeton Record Exchange, which recently posted it on their Facebook page. It's a joint effort between legendary jazz fusion drummer Billy Cobham and multi-instrument star George Duke, 1976's "Live" On Tour in Europe (Atlantic Records, SD 18194). And boy is it ever strange. If you weren't too skeeved out to keep reading, that's Billy Cobham on the left and George Duke on the right. Credit for this illustration goes to Jim Warren, who is no stranger to freaky cover art involving hands. That all said, this is a pretty damn good album, so check it out if you can. Just keep your eyes closed.
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May62013 by Chris HolmesNo Comments
Album Cover of the Week: The Bob Seger System, Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man

Album Cover of the Week: The Bob Seger System, Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man

Album Cover of the Week, Music
Shortly before he became one of the top heartland rock acts of the 1970s and '80s, and a few decades before "Like a Rock" guaranteed that he would never have to work again, Bob Seger released a pretty great and eclectic debut LP in April 1969. Ramblin' Gamblin' Man was issued by Capitol Records (ST 172) under the group name The Bob Seger System, one of three records that group recorded for the label. You might be wondering what that lovely portrait of a young lady in blue standing on an ice shelf has to do with the album title. Fortunately Seger explains on the back cover: The title of this album up until three days ago was "Tales Of Lucy Blue". At that time I realized that Lucy Blue is Ramblin' Gamblin' Man. Thank you Doctor Fine! I have no idea what he's talking about either...
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