Go Fly A Kite – assembled diorama

While I’ve written before about the number of musicians who’ve shown great talent in all of the creative aspects of their professional lives, it seems that most of them sought out a formal education in the arts before setting out on their paths to musical stardom. You’ll recall examples such as Pink Floyd (Roger Waters, Nick Mason and Richard Wright all went to London’s Polytechnic College on Regent Street in London, while Syd Barrett studied at Camberwell), Talking Heads (David Byrne, Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz all attended the Rhode Island School of Design), Devo (Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale studied at Kent State) and The Clash (Joe Strummer, Paul Simonon and Mick Jones), along with Freddie Mercury, Eric Clapton, John Lennon, Ray Davies, Michael Stipe, Pete Townshend, Ron Wood and many others.

Nominated for both a 2012 Grammy Award in the “Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package” and a 2012 Independent Music Award (IMA) in the “Album Packaging” category, musician/songwriter Ben Kweller’s work on Go Fly A Kite – the debut CD/LP on his own The Noise Company label – is an impressive example of a multi-talented musical performer involving himself in every creative aspect of his products. What’s even more impressive is that Kweller is self-taught, having dropped out of high school at 15 to devote full time to his first band, Radish. By telling the “formal” music business to “go fly a kite – I’ve got the talent to make it on my own”, it is Ben’s commitment to all aspects of his craft – along with a long list of fans both in and outside of the music business – that has provided him with the ability to impress both fans and critics on his own terms with each successive outing. Drawing on inspirations from his love of comic book illustrations and taking advantage of a chance meeting with someone at his young son’s pre-school, the intricate and impressive packaging for his latest release had me wondering about how it all came to be, and faithful readers know what happens when I get to wondering….

Interview with Ben Kweller (interviewed in April and May, 2013) -

Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com – Hello Ben, and thanks for taking time out of your schedule to talk with me about your work on the packaging for Go Fly A Kite. I love the way that it folds out to reveal a detailed diorama of a massive battle between the good “Kweller Heads” and the evil “Biz Skeletons”. Please let me know how and when were you introduced to your design team for this assignment, or did you have to do some research and then contact them? Had you worked with the team before?

Ben Kweller, musician and designer – I’m a believer in local sourcing, so since we’re based in Austin, I wanted to work with a local design firm. I met the EmDash people – Erin, actually – in a fairly unusual way. My son Dorian went to a “hippie-style” pre-school here. At the end of the year, one parent we’d met had crafted a graduation yearbook herself that I thought was really cool. The next year, I wanted to keep that idea going and asked the school owner to introduce us to the parent who’d made the yearbook the previous year, and that turned out to be Erin at EmDash. I told her that I wanted to make a new yearbook, so she shared her Adobe InDesign templates with me. I know Photoshop pretty well but wasn’t experienced in InDesign, so Erin gave me some basic instruction in it. She then showed me some of the album cover work she’d done and I liked what I saw so much that I knew that she was someone who’d be able to help us create a great cover.

When my wife Liz and I sat down and brainstormed a bit with the EmDash team, we were expecting that they’d come back with a few possible ideas, but when we returned the next week, they showed us over 20 comps! Obviously, a very creative group!

Mike G – Since you were so hands-on in the effort, how did you go about choosing the additional talent – the designer, illustrator, photographer, writer, etc. – who would work with you on this effort? Had you already decided on the basic approach to the design and/or composition? Had you seen similar examples of their work that you hoped they’d adapt for this effort?

Ben K – Two people who were really critical to the success of the project were the illustrator, Josh Cochran, who’d done the cover illustration for the awesome Zombies Vs. Unicorns book, and Rick Gasparini, our project lead with the printing company we worked with, Ross-Ellis in Chicago.

Erin and Kate had worked with Josh before and had sent me a copy of his book – I just loved his style, so once we’d selected Josh as the illustrator, I sent him a list of 52 references to the music to provide him with inspiration. To create the “Kwellerheads vs. Bizkeletons” artwork you find in the package, he drew inspiration from that list and created a new work in the style of his original Zombies vs. Unicorns – there are lots of symbolic references in the new work he did.

Go Fly A Kite – inside artwork

(Editor’s note/mini-bio – Josh Cochran grew up in both Taiwan and the United States, graduating from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena with honors and began his career as an illustrator immediately upon graduation. He works for a broad range of clients in the fields of advertising, publishing, broadcast and the web. Josh also teaches at the School of Visual Arts in NYC works occasionally as a guest art director for the NY Times Op-Ed page. He exhibits his fine art efforts in a variety of galleries and lives in Brooklyn with his dog, Porkchop.)

Rick worked very closely with us during the pre-production process, really going out of his way to help us create the intricate die-cuts that we ended up using. He let us experiment a lot, so we felt that by the time we got to the final stages of printing, we were confident that the finished product would be just what we had anticipated.

MG – Can you tell us what the inspirations were for the particular images chosen for the cover/booklet? Did your music or previous visual styles provide you with some inspiration as to how to develop the basis for the package? How important is it for you to include visual connections to the music you’re designing the packaging for?

BK – I’ve always been interested in album art. I did the artwork for my own mix tapes and my early cassettes and just always loved being able to enjoy looking at the artwork and reading the lyrics. This release is on our own label (The Noise Company), so both Liz and I wanted the artwork to make an impression. The cover image embodies the symbolism of the song lyrics. I also wanted to carry on the tradition of me being in the middle of the cover, and one of the first ideas that was discussed was having a battle between an army of Kwellers versus an army of business suits, and so after we met with Josh and saw his work, that’s what we built the diorama around. As for the actual cover, most of the work on the record had been finished and I decided that I wanted to include a song book with chord charts in the package as well. I was working on adding the graphics for the chords when I accidentally blew up a picture of an E-chord – which the first song on the album, called “Mean To Me”, starts with – and voila! I added some colors and we had our cover image.

Go Fly A Kite Album Cover

MG – So, from concept to final product, how long did it take you to develop the finished package? Were there any special processes or other aids used? Can you let me know about the # of designs that were considered or submitted before the final decision was made?

BK – We worked mostly in InDesign, and EmDash produced the type and did a lot of project management, making sure that the designs were balanced and that all of the colors were just right. The whole process took about 6 months, start to finish. Some of that time was needed to make the custom templates required as we were going to need two separate sheets to make the diorama. There were two full comps of the ink illustrations and, even after the final art was done, we worked with Rick and did 4-5 cut-outs until we got it just right. We ended up using a very thick matte paper stock so that the diorama would be sturdy when it was assembled.

MG – Obviously, you were quite pleased with the final product. Is that why you submitted this particular work for consideration for both the Grammy and IMA Awards?

BK – My friend Connor Oberst won a Grammy a few years ago and I felt that we could make something just as good, so after we finished the package for Go Fly A Kite and got such great feedback from people we showed it to, I thought that we should go ahead and submit it. We first sent it to the Recording Academy for Grammy consideration, and they obviously liked it since we were nominated for one. They put it in the “Box Set/Limited Edition Package” category, even after I explained to them that it wasn’t a box set and was not meant to be a limited edition. They told me that they just wanted to make sure that it was considered for a Grammy because it was too good not to be, so I guess that I’m happy that they liked it so much. We didn’t win, but it was great to be able to go to the Awards ceremony as a team.

We felt strongly about the success we’d had with the package and so we submitted it to the Grammy and IMA people for consideration as well, so we’re keeping our fingers crossed this time..(Editor’s Note #2 – since this interview was completed, the IMA Awards were handed out and, while impressed with the package for Go Fly A Kite, the award for was given to another nominee, Smithsonian Records’ Woody At 100 Box Set).

MG – With all this work on Go Fly A Kite now behind you, can you tell us what are you working on now? Is art part of your life on an ongoing basis?

BK – You caught me in the middle of some acting work I’m doing for a film by William H. Macy called Rudderless. I play a character who is in a band and some of my music is being used in the film as well. As far as art on a day-to-day basis goes, I do sketches and paintings in oils and pastels of people that inhabit the places I travel through while on tour. These are for myself…

About the artist, Ben Kweller -

Born in San Francisco, CA in June, 1981, Ben’s family moved soon after to Texas, eventually settling down in Greenville. Showing a talent for music and song-writing early on, young Ben had taught himself how to play the drums by the age of seven, composed a dozen songs on piano by the age of nine and learned to play the guitar (a Red Fender received as a birthday gift) by age 11. In 1993, at the age of 12, Ben met drummer John Kent and bassist Ryan Green and, together, they formed a band called Radish, which played local gigs and released two independent records – an EP titled Hello and a full-length album titled Dizzy. Shortly after the release of Dizzy, Green decided to return to his schooling and, ultimately, was replaced by Bryan Bradford, AKA “Brain”.

Looking to expand their audience, the band sent a copy of Dizzy to a friend of Ben’s father, guitarist Nils Lofgren, who after hearing the band recommended them to producer/musician/ukulele aficionado Roger Greenwalt. Greenwalt, whose own band The Dark had shown his appreciation for musical talent of all stripes, brought the band into the studio, recorded a demo and sent it to his contacts at a number of record labels and, after a bidding war, signed them to Mercury Records in 1996. Ben was 15 at the time…

Contracted to release  a trio of singles and then a full-length album (Restraining Bolt), the band then went on an extended promo tour, hitting all of the late-night talk shows and then went on tours through the U.S. and Europe, including appearances at Lollapalooza in 1996 and the Reading Festival in 1997, opening for more-established acts including Failure, Faith No More and SevenDust. Adding two additional players in 1998, the band then went to the famed Muscle Shoals Studios in Alabama to record the band’s sophomore effort (this time, for Polygram Records) titled Discount Fireworks which, as the result of the label’s merger with Universal Music Group, was never released.

In spite of all of the critical success and hard work, the band didn’t ever “break into the bigtime”, and so in 1999, Ben moved to Brooklyn, New York with girlfriend Liz Smith and set out to start a career as a solo act. Recording to a computer in his apartment, his first release of “anti-folk” music was a CD titled Freak Out…It’s Ben Kweller. A short while after the release, Ben received a phone call from a new fan – Evan Dando of The Lemonheads – who invited Ben out on tour with him. That tour was then followed by tours with Guster, Juliana Hatfield and Jeff Tweedy and, whenever he found himself back in the NYC area, he’d play at established clubs including Brownies, the Knitting Factory and the Mercury Lounge. In 2001, he was approached by the founders of indie label ATO Records (Michael McDonald and guitarist Dave Matthews) to be their first world-wide signing and, after the initial release of a five-song EP titled Phone Home, Kweller released his first LP – called Sha Sha – in early 2002 and which, powered by the strength of its single “Wasted & Ready”, sold over 200K records. Ben then put together a live band and embarked on a world-wide tour, joining acts such as Kings of Leon, My Morning Jacket and The Strokes.

Sha Sha album cover

Teaming up with a couple of other talented Bens – Ben Folds and Ben Lee – the trio called themselves “The Bens” and released an EP by that name in 2003. Kweller also continued writing songs both for a second solo album titled On My Way and for other acts as well (we wrote and sang on Guster’s 2003 single “I Hope Tomorrow Is Like Today”). After touring in support of On My Way, in 2006 Ben released his third album simply titled Ben Kweller, which was a true solo effort, with Kweller playing all of the instruments himself. His fourth solo effort, Changing Horses, was released in early 2009 and then, in 2010, Ben chose to set off on his own, leaving ATO Records to form his own label, The Noise Company. Working with some of the musicians featured on Changing Horses, Kweller debuted his first self-produced record, Go Fly A Kite, in 2012.

To read more about this artist, please visit his website at http://www.benwkweller.com

About this AlbumCoverHallofFame.com interview -

Our ongoing series of interviews will give you, the music and art fan, a look at “the making of” the illustrations, photographs and designs of many of the most-recognized and influential images that have served to package and promote your all-time-favorite recordings.

In each interview feature, we’ll meet the artists, designers and photographers who produced these works of art and learn what motivated them, what processes they used, how they collaborated (or fought) with the musical acts, their management, their labels, etc. – all of the things that influenced the final product you saw then and still see today.

We hope that you enjoy these looks behind the scenes of the music-related art business and that you’ll share your stories with us and fellow fans about what role these works of art – and the music they covered – played in your lives.

All images featured in this story are Copyright 2002 – 2013 Ben Kweller and The Noise Company – All rights reserved – and are used by the author’s permission. Except as noted, all other text Copyright 2013 – Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com (www.albumcoverhalloffame.com) & RockPoP Productions – All rights reserved.

God Bless The Go-Go’s by Maryanne Bilham

To follow up my interview with photographer Robert Knight, I interviewed his wife, partner and fellow photographer Maryanne Bilham about the photo she took for the cover of the Go-Go’s 2001 release titled God Bless The Go-Go’s.

Of course, then, it would take a photographer with a strong sense of how modern women should be interpreted visually to create just the perfect set of images for the cover of the first new Go-Gos record in 17 years. They found that in Maryanne Bilham, who shares her recollections of the process of turning “good time girls” into Saints in today’s interview.

While the resulting image raised the hackles of the religious right, fans of the band thought it an applicable tribute – enjoy the read, now posted on the RockPaperPhoto.com site – http://www.rockpaperphoto.com/blog/photographer-maryanne-bilham-and-the-memorable-cover-art-for-“god-bless-the-go-go’s”-2001-release/

SRV Cover Photo by Robert M Knight

In 2006, after a string of posthumously-released recordings, Sony’s Legacy division put out a remastered and updated 16-track retrospective of Stevie Ray Vaughan music titled Real Deal: Greatest Hits – Vol. 1 and went to well-known SRV photographer and friend Robert M. Knight to find just the right image to grace the cover.  Robert was the only photographer on hand that night in Wisconsin and took the last photos of SRV in performance and prior to his boarding the helicopter.

Reaching back into his archives also brought back a flood of memories – some happy and life-affirming; others quite painful – when he chose an image for this package from another concert in 1990 where he’d caught SRV “in the light”. Robert recounts some of the details of his relationship with Stevie Ray, the photos he took of him that fateful night, and more in today’s latest interview posting, hosted by the nice people at the RockPaperPhoto.com online gallery – http://www.rockpaperphoto.com/blog/the-real-deal-the-story-of-photographer-robert-m-knight-and-guitar-master-stevie-ray-vaughan/

Posted April 2, 2013 by Mike Goldstein, curator, Albumcoverhalloffame.com

To be an artist of any sort in Depression-era America required both talent and commitment. For an artist like Woody Guthrie, inspiration for his song-writing came initially from his experiences living in the Oklahoma Dust Bowl (if you call that “living”) and meeting some of the many migrant workers who, like he, were looking for something – work, charity, companionship – to help them make it through the day. He learned a lot from absorbing the traditional music these migrants played and sang while they worked – or commiserated about their lack of work – ultimately creating the portfolio of songs that would earn him a place at the top of the list of “most-influential American songwriters” of the 20th Century.

While his legend has been built around his musical talents, many are surprised to find out that it was Guthrie’s capabilities as a sign painter, illustrator and cartoonist that kept him fed as he journeyed to California early on in his career. Fans of his music were first given a look at his artistic talents when they saw the cover sketch used on his 1943 autobiography titled Bound For Glory, but most have remained unaware of his prodigious output in this area, not knowing that he also produced a number of images used to illustrate his record albums, sheet music, tour posters, articles he’d written on a variety of subjects and, in many cases, drawn to help him better-visualize the inspirations for his music.

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of his birth in 1912, the producers at the Smithsonian Folkways record label turned early on in the process to their long-time creative partners – Fritz Klaetke and his team at the Visual Dialogue design firm in Boston – to create a design for a retrospective box set package they’d release called Woody At 100: The Woody Guthrie Centennial Collection.

Collaborating with producer and archivist Jeff Place to dig deep into the Folkways archives to find examples sketches, drawings and other related ephemera that would he the design team fully illuminate the man and all his artistic capabilities. They also tapped Guthrie’s daughter Nora, who’d also been involved in a fine book that chronicles her father’s talents as a graphic artist (titled Woody Guthrie’s Artworks, written by Steven Brower and published in 2005), for additional help. The impressive results of this work were awarded this year’s Grammy Award for “Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package”.

I caught up with Fritz recently and asked him to give us the story behind this award-winning design project and what it was like to be charged with coming up with a creative visual interpretation for a package that chronicles the musical output of one of our country’s most-honored creative forces…

Mike Goldstein (Curator, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com) – Fritz, welcome back from your vacation break, and thanks for taking the time to discuss this project with me. Let’s get started with some background questions – How is it that you were first introduced to Woody Guthrie’s music?

Fritz Klaetke – (Partner, Visual Dialogue) – You know, it’s funny to say this, but I think that, as one of those classic American songwriters, Woody Guthrie’s music is just in the air here. I probably heard “This Land Is Your Land” as a kid growing up in Detroit. but the first time I really “studied” Woody and his music was in 1994 when I designed the CD package for Woody Guthrie: Long Ways To Travel, which was one of my first package designs for Smithsonian Folkways Recordings.

Woody Guthrie – Long Ways To Travel

Mike G – In your opinion, what was it that made Woody Guthrie – the artist and his music – different from other artists in his “category” or of his day?

Fritz K – I don’t know if Woody even had a category back then. I think that he took the traditions of the “wandering, singing storyteller” and made them his own.

MG – I understand that this is a comprehensive compilation, featuring many, many songs, but was there a particular track on the album that served as the inspiration of the package art and design?

FK – The inspiration wasn’t a particular song, but rather the direct, personal feel to Woody’s music–hence the life-size cover photo of Woody staring out at the listener. Another inspiration was his type-written lyrics, letters, and notes. We created a collage of the typewriter type which functions as a rough-textured border for the cover photo and continues inside the book.

MG – What “guidance” – or specific instructions – did you provide the illustrators or the photographers/designers that created the key parts of your packages?

FK – Well, all the design was done right here at Visual Dialogue – it was only me and designer Kimber Lynch working on it. I’d say that the “illustrator” was Woody himself – we were able to select from an amazing collection of visual artwork he created that was housed in the Folkways archives. The photography and other artifacts were supplied either by Folkways or came directly from the Guthrie archives. With all of it, the package was really about Woody, so we wanted to make the design about him, not us. From the large photo on the cover to the interior layout which emphasizes his artwork and original lyrics, Woody and his work is in the foreground and we’re backstage hopefully making him look good.

MG – As I know that he was a prolific painter, cartoonist and illustrator, were you tempted to use, or riff on, any of his own work? Was the label as hands-off as you make it sound, or were they actively involved in any/all aspects of the development of this design?

Archival images by Woody Guthrie

More images from the Woody Guthrie archives

FK – At the outset of the project, I worked closely with Mary Monseur, the production manager at Folkways, to come up with the format for the book with disc pages in the back. During the process, I also worked very closely with Jeff Place, the producer and archivist at Folkways who really drove the selection of content, but the design was basically left up to me.

MG – How did you choose the talent – the designers, illustrators, typographers/graphic designers, photographers, etc. – who would work with you on this effort?

FK – As I mentioned previously, all of the creative work was done in-house here at Visual Dialogue. We did get a bit of advice on the text typography from my colleague and neighbor Jim Hood, who teaches at the Art Institute of Boston and is a scholar of type design history. We were looking for a typeface that worked as a text font but was also appropriate to the era in which most to the songs were recorded and ended up with Devinne. That typeface was paired with Trade Gothic Condensed used for headlines.

MG – Taking into account all of the project coordination, how long did this process take – from start to finished product?

FK – All said, it took about two years, but that’s because we had to nail down a format for the package well in advance before anything had been designed in order to get printing estimates. Once we actually had our kick-off meeting at Folkways with Jeff Place, the producer and archivist, and Mary Monseur, the production manager, the process took about three months to first deliver files to the printer, then quite a while to produce, since the package was being printed in China…

Design comps for Woody At 100

Almost there…!

MG – Were there any special tools you used or work processes followed – manual or computer-based – that helped create the finished product? Can you give me any more details of that final aspect of the process? How were you able to oversee the quality of the pre-press and final printing? Did you or Smithsonian have anyone in China overseeing the process?

FK – there weren’t really any “special” tools used – just our usual graphics software – Adobe InDesign and Photoshop. For the printing and production, we worked with Tri-Plex Packaging in New York City and I kept close contact with the account person there, Jason Roth, while he coordinated the review of materials, proofs, etc. and acted as the liaison connecting us with the actual printing and binding teams in Shanghai.

MG – When working on a package like this, do you consider your efforts to be works of self-expression, or do you take your lead from your client?

FK – In this case – the artist Woody Guthrie – was definitely the driver for our design. In working for Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, we’re also cognizant of the rich visual heritage of Folkways and the album covers created by Ronald Clyne (Editor’s note – the late Ronald Clyne was the designer responsible for over 500 of the label’s record covers over a 40-year period and is credited with developing Folkways’ unique style of album imagery). In a sense, the Woody At 100 cover is an extension of the early LP cover designs for Folkways – strong, black & white photography combined with bold, straight-forward typography and a limited color palette.

MG – Before we change gears a bit, I’d like to ask you if there is any other anecdotal info about this project you’d be willing to share…every project I’ve ever looked into seems to have something of an “ah-ha moment”, so anything you’d be willing to share would be quite a treat!

FK – One of the hardest parts about the Woody At 100 project was coming up with a photo for the cover. So many photos of Woody have been used to death in other projects and, like Monet’s haystacks, they can become pretty dull after you’ve seen them a hundred times. We really had our hearts set on using an image of Woody where he’d be looking straight out from the cover. After much searching, Nora Guthrie found an undated, passport-sized photo tucked away in a closet somewhere that had never been seen outside of the immediate family. When we found that image, we knew we had our cover photo!

MG – Let’s talk a bit about some topics I’d like to get your opinions on – First off, with the electronic delivery of music products growing at a fast pace, are you noticing any more or less enthusiasm on the client’s – or artist’s – behalf to invest time and money in packaging that stands out?

FK – It’s interesting how the role of music package design has changed with downloaded music. Cover art definitely takes on less importance when it’s viewed on an iPod screen but, conversely, box sets – with their ability to deliver a fuller experience with the inclusion of extensive song notes, essays, artwork, etc. – give package designs like Woody At 100 an arguably bigger role than the in the heyday of the LP cover era. I believe that this deeper experience is what many real fans of particular musicians or groups ultimately crave – a way to go beyond just the songs included on the records.

MG – How do you think album cover art help us document human history? I believe that iconic album cover art – in many ways – has had a noticeable effect on Pop Culture. What’s your take on this – is the imagery and music providing the direction, or is it reflecting the culture, or ??

FK – It’s interesting to think about this question. In a case like Woody At 100, the cover art represents a documentation of a milestone project of one of the 20th century’s great artists. In a sense, it reflects Woody’s time in which he created the music, but it’s filtered through a 2012 lens. For contemporary music, I think cover art definitely becomes one of the defining visual representations of the era in which it was produced. It’s too bad that so many of our leading musicians – including those who are out there on the edge from a musical standpoint – are often quite unimaginative when it comes to their visual representation.

MG – You bring up an interesting point. When Guthrie was first releasing his records, there wasn’t any album art per se, so musicians had to rely on other forms of promotion to get their music into peoples’ homes – endless tours and radio. Since he was both a political animal and an active visual artist, it would have been interesting to see what sort of album covers (and music videos) he’d have approved and how involved in the process he’d have been. What do you think?

FK – As I mentioned before, his first album, which was released on Asch Recordings (Editor’s note #2 – Asch Recordings was the precursor to Folkways Recordings, run by Moe Asch, an early believer in the importance of impactful album cover images) in 1944, features Guthrie’s artwork.

Woody Guthrie on Asch Records

I’m sure he would have been right at home designing his own music packaging. There are several of his cover sketches included in the book and, of course, it would be interesting to speculate on the results if Woody would have picked up a still or video camera…

MG – Last question – Where do you keep your new Grammy trophy?

FK – Well, as of this date, I still haven’t received it. I found out that it takes like two months to get the engraved award! I was hoping to go through airport security with it on the way back to Boston from Los Angeles but, when I do finally get it, I have a place of honor picked out in my studio next to a bunch of design awards and my middle school ping-pong trophy.

About the artist, Fritz Klaetke (info provided by the interviewee) -

Fritz Klaetke of Visual Dialogue

The offspring of an architect and a painter, Fritz Klaetke was genetically pre-destined to be a designer. He grew up in Detroit and founded Visual Dialogue in 1988 while still a student at the University of Michigan. Today, the studio is located in a renovated row house in Boston’s historic South End neighborhood.

The output from Visual Dialogue ranges from brand identity to music packaging, print collateral to websites, magazines to sculpture, and book design to interiors. Clients include The Art Institute of Boston, Barbara Lynch restaurant group, Combined Jewish Philanthropies, Harvard University, Institute of Contemporary Art, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, MIT, Moshe Safdie and Associates, New York Public Radio, and Smithsonian Institution.

Visual Dialogue has received recognition from organizations including the American Institute of Graphic Arts, Art Directors Club, Type Directors Club, and The Webby Awards and the work has been featured in publications such as Communications Arts, HOW, I.D., Novum and Sports Illustrated. In addition, several of Fritz’s projects are included in the permanent collection of the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York City.

The design of Big Wet Kiss for the Boston-based band Chucklehead was Fritz’s first foray into music packaging in 1992. Since that time, he has created music packaging for artists including Lead Belly, Boozoo Chavis, Johen Cohen, Roscoe Holcomb, Langston Hughes, Mississippi John Hurt, Ella Jenkins, Sleepy LaBeef, Bill Monroe, Jonathan Richman, Pete Seeger, Doc Watson, Mary Lou Williams, and Bob Wills.

Besides the Grammy-winning Woody at 100 package, other box sets Fritz has designed include Jazz: The Smithsonian Anthology, Friends of Old Time Music and Lead Belly’s Last Sessions, all for Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. In addition to over 70 music packages, Fritz and his team at Visual Dialogue also designed the Webby-nominated Folkways website: www.folkways.si.edu.

A video Fritz’s Grammy acceptance speech can be viewed at www.visualdialogue.com/and-the-grammy-goes-to

For more information on Fritz Klaetke and Visual Dialogue, please visit their website at www.visualdialogue.com

About this AlbumCoverHallofFame.com interview -

Our ongoing series of interviews will give you, the music and art fan, a look at “the making of” the illustrations, photographs and designs of many of the most-recognized and influential images that have served to package and promote your all-time-favorite recordings.

In each interview feature, we’ll meet the artists, designers and photographers who produced these works of art and learn what motivated them, what processes they used, how they collaborated (or fought) with the musical acts, their management, their labels, etc. – all of the things that influenced the final product you saw then and still see today.

We hope that you enjoy these looks behind the scenes of the music-related art business and that you’ll share your stories with us and fellow fans about what role these works of art – and the music they covered – played in your lives.

All images featured in this story are Copyright 2013 Fritz Klaetke and Smithsonian Folkways Recordings – All rights reserved – and are used by the author’s permission. Except as noted, all other text Copyright 2013 – Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com (www.albumcoverhalloffame.com) & RockPoP Productions – All rights reserved.

Ernie started his career on Madison Avenue in the late 1960’s. He was hired at Norman Levitt Advertising and his award-winning work for Decca Records (including designs for the Jesus Christ Superstar album) quickly established his creative genius and created demand for his talents. As a young designer in the late 60’s, Ernie had the honor and privilege of working side by side with many great, emerging artists. Ernie’s drive and passion for excellence led him to a new chapter in 1970 when he joined forces with Craig Braun, Inc. in New York. Knowing the importance of first impressions, he wanted to make a mark on his first assignments. The results have become rock icons – the tongue logo for The Rolling Stones and the rule-breaking Sticky Fingers album. Three months later, Ernie opened a satellite office for the agency in California where he would be the head Art Director. The hits kept coming for Ernie.. Alice Cooper’s School’s Out, Cheech & Chong’s Big Bambu, and Captain Beyond, among others..

In 1972, Ernie was at the top of his game and knew it was time to leave and start his own agency. He opened the legendary “Pacific Eye and Ear” agency where, over the next 13 years, he created another 183 album covers for rock legends such as The Doors, Aerosmith, The Bee Gees, The Guess Who, Black Sabbath, Jefferson Airplane, Grand Funk Railroad, and Iron Butterfly. Pacific Eye and Ear was now on the map forever – easily recognized as one of the top three album design companies in the country. As Pacific Eye & Ear’s Owner/Creative Director, Mr. Cefalu was the conceptual link for some of today’s top illustrators, designers, writers and photographers, including Drew Struzan, Ingrid Haenke, Joe Garnett and many others. During his tenure at Pacific Eye & Ear, Ernie earned three Grammy Award nominations, 10 Music Hall Of Fame Awards and four Creative Director Awards of Excellence from The Los Angeles Art Director Club.

In the late 80’s, as work in the music business was slowing, Ernie knew it was time to reinvent himself. He would “go mainstream” where traditional advertising was expected, but he would offer clients a very different kind of service and product. If they were half as bored as he was with status quo in advertising, packaging design, consumer promotions, and merchandising materials in stores, he knew he would have an exciting, thriving business. He felt he was really in touch with people – he understood how they thought, how they felt and how they acted. Ernie felt different businesses require different solutions…but they all need an attitude, a heart and a soul. Ernie could provide that connection. In 1989, Ernie added an unlikely account to his client roster – Nestlé USA. Over the next decade, his work helped over 20 brands in Nestlé’s five divisions post double-digit sales growth.

More recently, Ernie was Senior Creative Director and Co-Owner of Y & M Associates in Los Angeles, an agency known for its breakthrough business solutions fueled by keen strategic focus and unparalleled creative design. He sat at the helm of this cutting edge boutique and his eye, and hand, touched and guided every client’s assignment. He remains a leader in this industry.

Today, Ernie Cefalu is the owner and Senior Creative Director of HornBook Ink, where he is retained by four Fortune 100 companies as their in-house Creative Director, with Cott Beverage (the #1 non-name brand beverage company in the World), HSBC Financial, Chang Beer (Southeast Asia’s #1 Beer), Coca Cola and Energy Club being the most recent additions to Ernie’s client roster, and with the recent releases of new albums by Alice Cooper and Burton Cummings, this brings the total number of albums designed to date to over 210.

Ernie Cefalu at home

To see more of Ernie’s work – and to purchase an original work from his collection, please visit his web site at http://www.originalalbumcoverart.com or his Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/ernie.cefalu

Porfolio images

Album Cover Art –

From Left to Right, Top to Bottom – Jefferson Airplane – Baron Von Toll Booth , Black Sabbath – Sabbath Bloody Sabbath,    Modern Jazz Quartet – In Memoriam, Kenny Rankin – Silver Morning – Bee Gees – Main Course, Alice Cooper – Welcome To My Nightmare

From Left to Right, Top to Bottom – Jesus Christ Superstar Original Cast Recording, Alice Cooper – Dada, Mary Travers – Circles and Aerosmith – Toys In The Attic; Captain Beyond – Captain Beyond; Iron Butterfly – Scorching Beauty

Packaging –

Comps for various elements to be included in Alice Cooper’s School’s Out record package

Comps for various products derived from the packaging for Cheech & Chong’s Big Bambu recording

Details of the various elements that made up the cigar box-style packaging PE&E created for Jefferson Airplane’s Long John Silver album.

Merchandise -

Rolling Stones – Lips & Tongue art and merch

Aerosmith – Toys In The Attic T-shirt

Ernie is also working on a book about his career and was able to provide us with some comps from his work so far:

It’s great to be able to see the scope of the works created by Ernie and his team of very talented artists. We’ll update this profile with more info on this publication as it is made available.

Interview links -

3-part interview with Ernie – includes discussions about his earliest efforts, Jesus Christ Supertstar, the controversial Lips and Tongue work for The Rolling Stones, and his work with renowned poster artist Drew Struzan -

Part 1 - http://rockpopgallery.typepad.com/rockpop_gallery_news/2009/05/cover-story-interview-jesus-christ-superstar-with-designs-by-ernie-cefalu.html

Part 2 - http://rockpopgallery.typepad.com/rockpop_gallery_news/2009/07/uncovered-interview-part-2-rolling-stones-lips-logo-by-ernie-cefalu.html

Part 3 - http://rockpopgallery.typepad.com/rockpop_gallery_news/2009/10/uncovered-interview-the-pacific-eye-ear-years-with-designs-by-ernie-cefalu-and-drew-struzan.html

All images featured in this story are Copyright 1970 – 2013 Ernie Cefalu and HornBook Ink – All rights reserved – and are used by the artist’s permission. Except as noted, all other text Copyright 2013 – Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com (www.albumcoverhalloffame.com) & RockPoP Productions – All rights reserved.

by Mike Goldstein, curator, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

March 15, 2013

There are many examples of musical artists who are also accomplished visual artists, displaying great talent in the fields of painting, illustration, photography, sculpture and product design. Scholars of rock musicians know that a number of well-known musical acts were founded by art students that met each other while attending art school. Examples include Pink Floyd (Roger Waters, Nick Mason and Richard Wright all went to London’s Polytechnic College on Regent Street, while Syd Barrett studied at Camberwell), Talking Heads (David Byrne, Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz all attended the Rhode Island School of Design), Devo (Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale studied at Kent State) and The Clash (Joe Strummer, Paul Simonon and Mick Jones). Other well-known musicians who studied art include Queen’s Freddie Mercury (who attended both Isleworth Polytechnic and Ealing College and who went on to design the famous “Queen Crest”), Eric Clapton (Kingston College of Art), Pete Townshend (another Ealing alumnus), Brian Eno (Winchester Art School), R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe (a U. of Georgia art major), Ray Davies of The Kinks (Hornsey College of Art in London ), Keith Richards (London’s Sidcup Art College) and Ron Wood (Ealing again) of The Rolling Stones and John Lennon (Liverpool College of Art). After studying art at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne under the tutelage of Richard Hamilton, Roxy Music’s Bryan Ferry had a career as high school art instructor – specializing in ceramics and pottery – prior to forming the band in late 1970.

Whatever their motivations (Mick Jones of The Clash is quoted as saying that, although he felt that he had no real artistic talent, he went to art school to form a band as many of his musical influences – Lennon, Richards, Townshend, etc. – had gone to art school and then formed bands soon after), it is clear that right-brained, multi-talented individuals seem to have had an important influence on the development of both the aural and visual aspects of the pop music business.

The following are some examples of musicians who’ve also demonstrated their graphical skills in creating imagery used on some of their best-known album covers:

Name of Musician – Employed as – Album Cover Credits include/links to their art-related sites (if applicable)…. in alphabetical order:     

Joseph Arthur – singer/songwriter – RNDM and Fistful of Mercy – Joseph Arthur – Come to Where I’m From, Junkyard Hearts I-IV and Holding The Void  (Paintings)

http://www.museumofmodernarthur.com/gallery.html

Sam Beam – multi-instrumentalist – Iron & Wine – Iron & Wine – The Creek Drank the Cradle, Kiss Each Other Clean and Around The Well (Paintings, Illustrations, Art Direction)

http://www.ironandwine.com/?frontpage=true

Tony Bennett – singer – Rosemary Clooney – Girl Singer; Tony Bennett – Perfectly Frank; Bill Evans – Blue In Green; Leonard Feather – Night Blooming (Paintings released under his given name, Anthony Benedetto)

https://tonybennett.com/benedetto_arts.php

David Byrne – singer/guitarist/songwriter – Talking Heads – Talking Heads – Talking Heads, Naked, Stop Making Sense, Speaking In Tongues, More Songs About Buildings And Food and Talking Heads 77; Fatboy Slim – Here Lies Love;  David Byrne – Forest and Big Love (Photography, Graphic Design)

http://www.davidbyrne.com/art/index.php

Michael Cartellone – drummer, Lynyrd Skynyrd – Lynyrd Skynyrd – Lynyrd Skynyrd Greatest Hits (Paintings)

http://www.michaelcartellone.com

Wayne Coyne – singer/guitarist, The Flaming Lips – The Flaming Lips – Telepathic Surgery and Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (Paintings)

http://wombgallery.com/

Bob Dylan – singer/songwriter – Bob Dylan – Self Portrait (Painting)

http://www.bobdylanart.com/standard-2012.asp

John Entwistle – bass guitarist, The Who – The Who – The Who By Numbers (Drawings)

http://www.walnutst.com/cart/products.php?cat=25

Jerry Garcia – guitarist/vocalist, The Grateful Dead – Jerry Garcia – Very Best of Jerry Garcia and So What; The Grateful Dead – Infrared Roses  (Paintings)

http://www.weirgallery.com/gallery/jerry-garcia/

Hugh Gilmour – bassist, Pig Iron – Iron Maiden – Live at Donnington; Tony Iommi – Fused; Black Sabbath – The Collection; Whitesnake – Box O’ Snakes; Pig Iron – Blues + Power = Destiny (Illustrations & Art Direction)

http://www.gilmourdesign.co.uk/

John Gourley – singer, Portugal. The Man – Portugal. The Man – The Satanic Satanist, American Ghetto and In The Mountain In The Cloud (Design/art direction – note – works alongside graphic designer Austin Sellers)

http://www.portugaltheman.com/?frontpage=true

Regan Hagar – multi-instrumentalist – Mulfunktion, Satchel and Brad – Eddie Vedder – Ukelele Songs; Pearl Jam – Pearl Jam 20;  Brad – Interiors, Welcome To Discovery Park and Brad Vs Satchel; Satchel – Family, RNDM – Acts (Design, Photography, Artwork and/or Layout)

http://www.pearljam.com

Bonus – here’s a link to the interview I conducted with Regan about his work on Eddie Vedder’s Ukelele Songs package – http://rockpopgallery.typepad.com/rockpop_gallery_news/2011/10/uncovered-interview-designer-regan-hagar-on-his-work-for-ukulele-songs-by-eddie-vedder.html

Jamie Hewlett – artist/animator, Gorillaz – Gorillaz – Gorillaz and Demon Days; Mindless Self Indulgence – Frankenstein Girls Will Seem Strangely Sexy

http://www.gorillaz.com

Mike Hrubovcak – singer, Divine Rapture and Monstrosity – Grave – Exhumed; Sinister – Legacy of Ashes and Carnage Ending; Mr. Death – Detached from Life

Bonus #2 – Here’s a link to the interview I did with Mike on the album cover work he created for Grave’s Exhumed album – http://rockpopgallery.typepad.com/rockpop_gallery_news/2008/10/cover-story-interview—exhumed-by-grave-with-design-artwork-by-mike-hrubovcak.html

http://www.visualdarkness.com

Mark Hudson – multi-instrumentalist/producer, Hudson Brothers – Ringo Starr – Ringorama and I Wanna Be Santa Claus (Illustrations)

Yusuf Islam (previously known as Cat Stevens) – singer/songwriter – Cat Stevens – Mone Bone Jakone, Tea For The Tillerman, Teaser And The Firecat and Buddha And The Chocolate Box (Design and Illustrations)

http://www.yusufislam.com/

Daniel Johnston – singer/songwriter – Daniel Johnston – Hi, How Are You?, Fear Yourself and Is and Always Was (Illustrations)

http://www.hihowareyou.com/store/shop/prints/

Conrad Keely – singer/guitarist/drummer, …And You Will Know Us By The Trail of The Dead – …And You Will Know Us By The Trail of The Dead – Worlds Apart, The Century of Self and Tao Of The Dead (Illustrations)

Curt Kirkwood – singer/guitarist, Meat Puppets – Meat Puppets – Huevos (Illustration)

http://www.myspace.com/themeatpuppets/photos/albums/curt-kirkwood-art/3203134

John Lennon – singer/guitarist/songwriter – The Beatles – John Lennon – Walls and Bridges and Come Together (Illustrations)

http://johnlennonartwork.com/

Marilyn Manson – singer, Marilyn Manson – Marilyn Manson – Lest We Forget and Portrait of an American Family (Paintings)

http://marilynmanson.com/art/paintings/

Nick Mason – drummer, Pink Floyd – Pink Floyd – Relics

http://www.stpaulsgallery.com/album-prints/pink-floyd-relics-print-signed-by-nick-mason.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=0&P_ID=902&strPageHistory=search&numSearchStartRecord=16

Linda McCartney – singer/keyboards, Wings – Paul McCartney – McCartney, Ram, London Town, Venus and Mars and Paul McCartney’s Standing Stone; Jimi Hendrix – Valleys of Neptune and Electric Ladyland (back cover); Wings – Wings at the Speed of Sound (Photographs)

http://www.lindamccartney.com/

Paul McCartney – singer/bass/keyboards, The Beatles and Wings – Paul McCartney – Ram (Paintings)

http://www.mccartneyart.com/

Joni Mitchell – singer/songwriter – Joni Mitchell – Clouds, Court and Spark, Turbulent Indigo, Dog Eat Dog, Dreamland, The Beginning of Survival, Taming The Tiger, Ladies Of The Canyon, and Song To A Seagull; David Rea – X7; Crosby Stills Nash & Young – So Far

http://jonimitchell.com/paintings/

Jimmy Page – guitarist/songwriter, Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin – IV (Art Direction)

Carlos Santana – guitarist/vocalist, Santana – Santana – Multi-Dimensional Warrior, Maria Maria, Supernatural, Viva Santana, Swing of Delight and Milagro/Sacred Fire (Art Direction), Havana Moon (Cover Art Concept)

John Squire – singer/guitarist – The Stone Roses – The Stone Roses – Made Of Stone, The Stone Roses, She Bangs The Drums, What The World Is Waiting For, I Wanna Be Adored and The Complete Stone Roses (Paintings)

http://www.johnsquire.com

Dean Torrence – singer, Jan & Dean – Harry Nilsson – Skidoo/The Point!  and Aerial Pandemonium Ballet; The Beach Boys – 15 Big Ones, Summer in Paradise and Love You; Dennis Wilson – Pacific Ocean Blue   (Designer): Nitty Gritty Dirt Band – Alive/Rare Junk (Illustrations)

http://galleryhb.com/content/dean-torrance-artwork

Klaus Voorman – bass guitarist/session player, The Beatles, Plastic Ono Band, George Harrison, Carly Simon and others – The Beatles – Revolver and Anthology I and II; Turbonegro – Scandinavian Leather (Illustrations and Art Direction)

http://www.voorman.com

Ronnie Wood – guitarist, The Rolling Stones – Tim Ries – The Rolling Stones Project; The Jones Gang – Any Day Now; Ron Wood – Not For Beginners and Gimme Some Neck; Eric Clapton – Crossroads (Paintings)

http://www.ronniewood.com/Artwork/Menu

Roy Wood – singer/Guitarist, The Move/ELO  – The Move – Message from the Country (Paintings); Annie Haslam – Annie in Wonderland; Roy Wood – Boulders and Mustard

Thom Yorke – guitarist/singer – Radiohead (in collaboration with artist Dan Rickwood AKA Stanley Donwood) – Radiohead – OK Computer and Kid A

http://www.slowlydownward.com/

While they don’t have any album cover credits, musicians Tico Torres (drummer for Bon Jovi), Ringo Starr (drummer for The Beatles), Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart (drummers for The Grateful Dead) and David Bowie have all staged exhibitions of their art work and produced art prints for sale through galleries around the world.

Additional Helpful Resources used:

Paste Magazine article 6/17/11 by Carey Hodges – “9 Musicians who create their own record art”

http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2011/06/10-musicians-who-create-album-art.html

Talenthouse site article 5/29/12 by Michelle – “5 Musicians who double as Cover Artists”

http://blog.talenthouse.com/2012/05/29/5-musicians-who-double-as-cover-artists/

A Brief History of Album Covers by Jason Draper

As I continue on with the efforts to make the AlbumCoverHallofFame.com site a most-comprehensive offering, the amount of time I spend doing research is truly amazing. Never did I imagine the amount of digging I’d need to do in order to find out more about the people who’ve created everyone’s’ favorite album covers, separate the fact from the fiction, and then present the results in a hopefully-enjoyable fashion to the fans of album cover design that come visit from time to time.

Along the way, I’ve come to rely on general information sites such as Wikipedia, music-oriented databases like the ones underlying ArtistDirect and AllMusic and many, many specialty sites, from those of professional organizations such as the AIGA and the Recording Academy to the sites hosted by both the designers/artists/photographers themselves and those run by their fans and admirers. I’ve also turned to a number of books that I’ve added to my personal reference library over the years, most of which I’ve listed on my reference page on the topic. Recently, I came across a book – published in the U.K. in 2008 – that I hadn’t seen before and through the miracle of Amazon.com, found a copy that I purchased to enhance my collection (always a collector, right?). Recognizing the name of the author as a journalist and editor working for one of my favorite music magazines (Record Collector), I thought that I’d reach out to him to find out more about him, his own love of album cover art and “the making of” this book.

With such an enormous range of covers to choose from, it has always puzzled me as to how someone goes about choosing what to/not to include in a book that provides a survey of album cover imagery. Some authors have attempted to present “the best of” or “the worst of” record sleeve design (based on whatever selection criteria they’ve developed, including their own experiences as designers and/or simply critics of art/music/pop culture) while others have narrowed their scope to genres and sub-genres (“Classic Covers of the 60s” or “Top 20 Death Metal Covers”). For me, it’d be an exercise in frustration as there is so much great and/or interesting work that the final product would be encyclopedic and would take another 50 years of my time to compile. I’ll admit right now that this is NOT something I’m going to be undertaking so, instead, I’m going to work hard to get inside the heads of those enterprising authors who’ve shown a greater degree of dedication to this quest and then present their stories to my adoring readership…

Jason Draper is the Reviews Editor at Record Collector Magazine and has written for a number of magazines, music encyclopedias, books and web sites. In his book titled A Brief History of Album Covers, he’s put together a detailed, chronological retrospective of “classic album covers” – beginning with Elvis Presley’s debut in 1956 and ending with the (Best of) Oasis record from 2006 – that attempt to represent each included decade’s prevailing styles and approach to promoting music products. I caught up with him recently (via email) at his home in the U.K. and asked him to interrupt his busy schedule for a while to give me the details on his book which, graciously, he obliged to do…

Interview with Jason Draper – conducted February, 2013

Mike Goldstein (curator, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com) -  Jason, thanks for your time today. While I’m impressed with the scope of your book, I would like to better understand more about what motivated you to do a book on this topic, particularly the Inspiration for the decision to focus on certain genres more or less than others. Was there something about, for example, “60s classic rock cover design” that impressed you more than any other era?

Jason Draper (author, A Brief History of Album Covers) – Hello, Mike. I’d like to preface our discussion with some important details. In actuality, this book was a commission, so my principal involvement was in writing it. The publishers asked if I would be interested after having drawn up an initial list of album covers that they thought were the most pertinent. I did have a bit of input, picking one or two that stood out for me and which I thought should have been included but, in the main, the list was theirs. I’m sure that their focus was on “classic rock” sleeves that still resonate down the years and – in many music fans’ minds – remain pinnacles of album cover artwork, no doubt helped by the LP-sized sleeves available at the time. I’m sure that these elements played a part in drawing up the list of entries.

Regarding the timing of the book…while I can’t speak directly for the publishers, in looking back I thought that by 2008, when the book came out, a lot of people were saying that downloads were killing the CD, just like CDs had allegedly killed vinyl. As I remember it, sitting here doing my day job at Record Collector, there was a lot of talk about the future of album art and whether we would ever get large-format artwork again. How could artists be expected to make an iconic piece of work for something that’s just going to be viewed thumbnail-size? And, also, from the digital side of things, what else could album artwork “do” now? Some digital releases had started to explore interactive artwork. I suppose it was as good a time as any to look at some of the more classic artwork from the both the LP and CD eras.

Mike G - What do you think that the effect of the cover art was on a music fan – that includes YOU - and your decision to purchase certain music…

Jason D – I think it works in different ways, which includes things such as a fan’s relationship with the musician, or what type of music you’re interested in, or just your particular feeling on a particular day. If you’re THAT much of a fan of a certain musician, you’ll buy their record regardless, but you can also buy into the image, too simply by carrying a Bowie album or a Guns N’ Roses album or whatever. It’s a statement about who you are and what you’re into, like wearing a badge and being part of a club.

This idea of identifying – both identifying with the music, and also having the music identify you – is more broadly applicable when it comes to different types of music. If you’re a fan of Turkish psych or Persian pop from the late 60s to mid-70s, you know that any time you see one of those cool sleeves that the likes of Finders Keepers, Guerssen or Sublime Frequencies designed to go with them, it’s going to be your sort of thing. You might, then, become a fan of a particular record label, which links back to the first point about the relationship you have with the music. As an example, I collect everything that the Trunk label puts out. Any sleeve that bears its logo – to me, it’s like a seal of approval.

Some artwork just speak for itself in terms of what the music’s going to be like. For instance, Public Enemy’s It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back – it’s about as Golden Age hip-hop as it gets so that, even if you don’t know the musician or the album, etc., you’ll know that this is the sort of thing that’s going to appeal to you. If you’re the curious type, you might stumble across some old weird library music artwork or something similar and just pick it up because, on that day, you happen to have some money to burn and have seen something you find intriguing… How many times have you thought, “I have to check this out – something that looks this cool has to sound good, right?” Though I guess it can work the other way, too – ‘The Partridge Family? No thanks!’

MG – Regarding research for your book – I’m assuming that you talked to both folks on the design side and folks on the artist/artist management/record label side. Can we discuss examples of who were the most insightful, who were the most-involved in the process, who were the most bizarre, etc.?

JD - Sorry, but here’s another less helpful – but thankfully short! – answer for you. I’ve been a music journalist for 10 years now – five when I was writing the book – so I’ve been lucky enough to have amassed a certain amount of knowledge about music history, album art, etc. Partly due to time constraints, I didn’t do any interviews for the book as it was more a case of telling the story of each sleeve in smaller chunks, while trying to string them together into a broader narrative, as opposed to embarking on an in-depth, academic study of album artwork.

MG – What do you think the relationships are – or have been – between the talent on the visual side of the music business – those that produce the album covers, packaging, set designs, tour merch, etc., – and the musical acts and the money/business side of the business? Why have some labels and acts been so supportive, while others look at it simply as overhead?

JD – Well this ties in with the above points about identifying with an artist – that whole badge thing. You can wear your allegiance on your sleeve, so to speak. Iron Maiden’s Eddie character is a great example of this. It’s marketing genius and about as iconic as it gets. The character resonates with the band’s music and, as long as the ideas are there, endlessly adaptable. This weird zombie-punk character’s been a mummy, a cyborg, a soldier, carved into a pyramid… Stick that on a T-shirt, key ring, whatever, and people will buy it. Fans want to identify with the artist and with each other. It’s more or less a given that artists and labels mostly make their money on merch these days and Iron Maiden has totally nailed it.

When it comes to overhead and the serious business side of things, I don’t know if I’m really qualified to comment. Some labels have more money, some don’t, I guess. I’ve interviewed a number of independent label heads for Record Collector and I’d say that 99 per cent of the time the look and packaging of their releases is very important to them. The general approach seems to be that, if they had more money to package their releases lavishly, then they’d spend it. Look at the Get On Down imprint – they do these amazing hip-hop releases, each packaged uniquely – GZA/Genuis’ Liquid Swords with a chess kit; Raekwon’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… on purple cassette, in a nod to its original tape incarnation. They’re dedicated to making their releases look like works of art.

MG – Is cover art something that reflects the times it is created in, or does it help – along with the music it packages – push the music industry and music fans into new directions culturally? Put another way, how does cover art help document human history?

JD - I think here it’s a little bit from Column “A” and a little bit from Column “B”. Partly, this has to do with fashion. You can identify a great number of 80s record sleeves from about 100 paces – the colors, clothes, fonts used, etc. – they definitely document that history in that sense. And then you have someone like Robert Crumb, who documents history in a different way with his drawings for 20s and 30s blues albums. His work captures that era, from the vaudeville aspect to Robert Johnston-style mythology.

Insofar as whether it pushes the music industry… of course, you can point to things like Sgt Pepper and The Velvet Underground and Nico’s debut and see how certain covers broke the mold and invited a rethink of what a sleeve can do. I think that any pushing-forward is still probably limited to the evolution of album artwork, though, as opposed to the evolution of the industry or the music. The Velvet Underground didn’t record, say, “European Son” because Andy Warhol put a “peel slowly and see” banana skin on their album cover. That said, I’m sure someone will be able to make a case for something like the introduction of gatefold sleeves and how that changed packaging forever…

MG – As you know, I’ve been fighting to establish the notion that cover art – and the artists that make it – can be great examples of “fine art” and “fine artists”. Iconic images are well-known by millions of people – for example, over 40 million people own a copy of Hipgnosis’s Dark Side of the Moon image – so why aren’t 99% of the artists more well-known and treated with due respect by the traditional art establishment?

JD – You’ve made a really good point. I guess you have to be a particular type of fan to even want to know who or what a Hipgnosis is, right? Not to mention who the artists behind it were. I’m guessing this is in part because album covers are often seen as a by-product of the music itself. That is, they’re designed to sell the album. If one goes on to stand on its own as a piece of great art, which many rightly do, then that’s just a bonus for all concerned. I guess Warhol, again, trod that fine line between ‘commodity’ and ‘art’, while the likes of Roger Dean and Mati Klarwein – who was an established artist before he appeared on Santana and Miles Davis sleeves – are both revered as artists by hardcore fans. But then this brings up the question of what they did first – that is, did they get into the music first and then the artist? Or, like in your earlier question, did the art draw someone in because it said something about the music?

Sorry, I know I’m being digressive with this answer. I guess, in the main, people do still think of album art as a bolt-on to the music. And though things are changing up to a point, I guess most album art is seen as secondary. Of course there are any number of album art book collections out there – from various publishing houses all the way up to high-end art-book publishers such as Taschen – while you can also buy 12” frames to mount your LP sleeves in. Here’s an interesting anomaly – in 2007, a really great visual artist called David Shrigley had a bunch of musicians record songs based on his lyrics for an album called Worried Noodles. I guess this flips the trend a little in that some fans of the musicians involved in the project would have wanted to hear what those artists recorded, but I guess the biggest interest would have come from David Shrigley fans.

MG – What are your views regarding the future of graphic/visual design in the music industry as it moves on to the many new distribution platforms? Are you seeing new opportunities for talent already established in the area and for new talent who might be looking to get into this field?

JD – I guess like anything, up-and-coming artists will master new technology and create their own art with it. Interestingly, Jonathan Barnbrook, who created the sleeve for Bowie’s The Next Day album – which is very interesting in itself – is a font designer by trade, or so I’m told. So he wasn’t even a cover designer in the more obvious sense – at first, he creates new-look text, with the new Bowie sleeve showing the first use of a font he’s designed called “Doctrine” (Editor’s note – he’s interviewed about this project here – http://virusfonts.com/news/2013/01/david-bowie-the-next-day-that-album-cover-design).  I believe that, half a century or more ago, the font designer would not have been the man behind the camera taking the photo, who wouldn’t have been the man who conceptualized the album cover, etc… There would have been more of a design team at work, working to a house style, perhaps. Now, like music-making itself, technology has enabled people do this sort of thing in their own bedroom.

This said, Pennie Smith will always have taken that iconic Clash photo for London Calling, and, say, Peter Saville’s Factory-label artwork will always remain a high watermark for graphic design-based sleeves. The best works of art won’t become obsolete. But, just like those two artists, people will use the tools available to them to work out how to do something new with them. There’s always room for new talent.

About the interviewee – Jason Draper -

Based in the U.K., Jason Draper is the Reviews Editor at Record Collector Magazine -

http://recordcollectormag.com/

He’s published books including Led Zeppelin Revealed (2008 Flame Tree Publishing), The Rolling Stones Revealed (2011 JG Press) and Prince: Chaos, Disorder, and Revolution (2011 Hal Leonard Publishing) and has contributed to The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock. He is also a regular contributor to NME Magazine and has written for a number of other music magazines and web sites, including Buzz, Metal Hammer, Sound Nation, Uncut and Big Issue Cymru.

About Jason’s book – A Brief History of Album Covers

Brief History of Album Covers by Jason Draper

Paperback: 384 pages, 174 illustrations

Publisher: Flame Tree Publishing; published August 1, 2008

ISBN-10: 184786211X

ISBN-13: 978-1847862112

Publisher’s description – Cover art can be an influential factor in a record’s success, and some designs are so memorable that they go down in design and music history – who doesn’t instantly recognize the covers for the Beatles’ Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band or Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon? Now celebrate some of the greatest covers of the last 50 years alongside entertaining and informative text, in this great little book that will make an ideal gift for any music aficionado or art and design enthusiast.

http://www.flametreepublishing.com/BookDetail.asp?Id=42&SubjectId=0

About this AlbumCoverHallofFame.com interview -

Our ongoing series of interviews will give you, the music and art fan, a look at “the making of” the illustrations, photographs and designs of many of the most-recognized and influential images that have served to package and promote your all-time-favorite recordings.

In each interview feature, we’ll meet the artists, designers and photographers who produced these works of art and learn what motivated them, what processes they used, how they collaborated (or fought) with the musical acts, their management, their labels, etc. – all of the things that influenced the final product you saw then and still see today.

We hope that you enjoy these looks behind the scenes of the music-related art business and that you’ll share your stories with us and fellow fans about what role these works of art – and the music they covered – played in your lives.

All images featured in this story are Copyright 2008 – 2013 Jason Draper and Flame Tree Publishing – All rights reserved – and are used by the author’s permission. Except as noted, all other text Copyright 2013 – Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com (www.albumcoverhalloffame.com) & RockPoP Productions – All rights reserved.

(Updated 3-18-13 with some additonal information)

This article is the ACHOF’s special effort to show, overall, which album cover images that music fans (as represented in music and design mags, blogs and related reader polls) are the most-liked and appreciated. Over the years, there have been many lists done by genre/sub-genre, but we chose to focus on results from polls and/or sites with a long history of publishing stories on album cover art.

While it is always an exercise in futility to say which album covers are the “best” (akin to “who is your favorite child?”), your Curator was able to draw certain conclusions based on the covers that appear repeatedly in each list’s “Top 10″ (as detailed below):

1) Bands that have sported the most-popular album images on their covers include Pink Floyd, The Beatles, The Clash, King Crimson, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, The Velvet Underground, The Sex Pistols and The Who.

2) Album covers that appear in most lists (based on our research thus far) include:
Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here
The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Abbey Road
The Clash – London Calling
King Crimson – In The Court of The Crimson King
The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground & Nico

3) Time period during which most of the “most-popular” album covers were created – 1965 through 1980

4) Most of the most-popular images are used on the covers of music in the following genres – Progressive Rock (AKA “Prog Rock”), Psychedelic Rock and Punk Rock.

5) Individuals associated with the U.K.-based design group Hipgnosis – Storm Thorgerson, Aubrey Powell, Peter Christopherson, George Hardie and Richard Evans – had their hand in the creation of more of the Top 10 covers mentioned than any other individual or group of designers.

We hope that you’ll take the time to review the following list of references – both online and in book form – that were used to prepare this article and then provide us with either/both any other lists you think we should consider and/or any feedback you might have on our conclusions or methodology. Our goals, as always, are to provide fans of album cover art the best available information and then stimulate ongoing discussions on the topic. Thanks for your attention and participation – Mike G

Music Radar – May 15, 2011 by Matt Robinson
http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/the-50-greatest-album-covers-of-all-time-444093#!1
Top 10 Covers – Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon; Nirvana – Nevermind; The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band; The Clash – London Calling; Rage Against The Machine – Rage Against The Machine; Iron Maiden – The Number of The Beast; The Beatles – The Beatles (White Album); Joy Division – Unknown Pleasures; King Crimson – In The Court of The Crimson King; Pink Floyd – Animals

Rolling Stone Magazine – June 15, 2011 by Andy Greene
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/pictures/readers-poll-the-best-album-covers-of-all-time-20110615
Top 10 Covers – The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band; Pink Floyd – Dark Side of The Moon; Nirvana – Nevermind; The Beatles – Abbey Road; The Clash – London Calling; The Rolling Stones – Sticky Fingers; The Beatles – Revolver; Bruce Springsteen – Born To Run; Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here; The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground & Nico

Gigwise.com site – April 2, 2012 by Holly Frith
http://www.gigwise.com/photos/71901/the-greatest-album-artwork-of-all-time
Top 10 Covers – Nirvana – Nevermind; The Sex Pistols – Never Mind the Bollocks…; The Clash – London Calling; Oasis – Definitely Maybe; The Strokes – Is This It; Beastie Boys – License To Ill; The Beatles – Abbey Road; Roxy Music – Country Life; Led Zeppelin – Houses of the Holy; The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground & Nico

Wired.com – June 20, 2010 by Scott Thill
http://www.wired.com/underwire/2010/06/gallery-album-covers/
Top 10 Covers – The Beatles  – Tie (Revolver, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Abbey Road); The Rolling Stones – Tie (Sticky Fingers, Exile on Main Street and Some Girls); Pink Floyd – Tie (Saucerful of Secrets; Meddle and Dark Side of the Moon); The Moody Blues – Days of Future Passed; The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground & Nico; Led Zeppelin – Tie (Led Zeppelin I, II, III, IV and Physical Graffiti); The Who – Tie (The Who Sell Out, Tommy and Quadrophenia); Small Faces – Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake; Miles Davis – Bitches Brew; YES – Tie (Fragile and Close To The Edge)

“Reader’s Choice Edition” on Wired.com – July 13, 2010 by Scott Thill
http://www.wired.com/underwire/2010/07/gallery-best-album-art-readers/
Top 10 Covers – Big Brother & The Holding Company – Cheap Thrills; Mothers of Invention – We’re Only In It For The Money; Rush – Tie (2112, Grace Under Pressure and Roll The Bones); Elton John – Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy; King Crimson – In The Court of The Crimson King; Uriah Heep – Very ‘Eavy, Very ‘Umble; David Bowie – Diamond Dogs; Nine Inch Nails – The Downward Spiral; Blue Note Records – works by Reid Miles; Molly Hatchet – Molly Hatchet

Planet Rock.com site – March, 2012 by ???
http://www.planetrock.com/photos/the-greatest-album-art-of-all-time-185306/
Top 10 Covers – Pink Floyd – Dark Side of The Moon; King Crimson – The Court of The Crimson King; Rainbow – Rainbow Rising; YES – Fragile; Led Zeppelin – Physical Graffiti; Iron Maiden – The Number of The Beast; Marillon – Script for a Jester’s Tear; Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here; Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV; Meat Loaf – Bat Out of Hell

UGO.com site – December 19,2008 by K. Thor Jensen
http://www.ugo.com/music/best-album-covers
Top 10 Covers – The Clash – London Calling; The Sex Pistols – Never Mind the Bollocks...; Paramore – Riot!; Nirvana – Nevermind; Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass – Whipped Cream & Other Delights; Pink Floyd – Dark Side of The Moon; The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed; Green Day – Dookie; The Donnas – Bitchin’; Funkadelic – Maggot Brain

Seymour Duncan (guitar accessories mfr.) site – June 19, 2012 by Scott
http://www.seymourduncan.com/blog/backstage-pass/greatest-album-covers-of-all-time-2/
Top 10 Covers – Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon; Pantera – Vulgar Display of Power; Spinal Tap – Smell The Glove; Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin I; The Beatles – Abbey Road; Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here; Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV; The Who - Who Are You; The Clash – London Calling; Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass – Whipped Cream and Other Delights

IGN.com – May 27, 2011 by Chad Grischow
http://www.ign.com/articles/2011/05/27/top-50-most-iconic-album-covers
Top 10 Covers – listed alphabetically, so I was unable to tell which were “the top 10″

Inspiredology.com graphic design site – February 12, 2008 by Chad Mueller
http://inspiredology.com/99-best-designed-album-covers/
Top 10 Covers – the article lists the “99 Best-Designed Album Covers” in no particular order, although the author states that his favorites in the list include Rise Against – The Sufferer and The Witness; Finger Eleven – Them Vs. You Vs. Me; Cartel – Cartel and Boys Like Girls – Boys Like Girls

Q Magazine - Internal poll of writers and subsequent book titled Q: The Hundred Best Record Covers Of All Time, compiled by Andrew Harrison and published in 2001
http://www.amazon.com/The-Best-Record-Covers-Time/dp/B001EX1QV4
Top 10 Covers – Sex Pistols – God Save the Queen; Joy Division – Closer; Nirvana – Nevermind; The Who – The Who Sell Out; The Stone Roses – The Stone Roses; Bob Dylan – Bringing It All Back Home; New Order – Blue Monday; The Beastie Boys – Licensed to Ill; The Clash – London Calling; The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

More references:

Website – Shortlist.com – June 21, 2012 – author unknown – a list of 50 “cool” album covers, in no obvious order, but including designer info and an interesting blurb about the record and its cover. Nice slideshow.

http://www.shortlist.com/entertainment/music/50-coolest-album-covers#

Book – 100 Best Album Covers – 1st edition published November, 1999 by Storm Thorgerson and Aubrey Powell
http://www.amazon.com/Best-Album-Covers-Storm-Thorgerson/dp/078944951X

Book – The Greatest Album Covers of All Time – Re-issue edition published October, 2008 Collins & Brown, written by Grant Scott, Barry Miles and Johnny Morgan (ISBN-13: 978-1843404811)
http://www.amazon.com/The-Greatest-Album-Covers-Time/dp/1843404818

Getting to the SAM, I realized that the exhibition wasn’t scheduled to start until the 14th (sheesh!!), so I did a tour of the current exhibits, including a fascinating one that was closing on 2/17 titled Elles:SAM that featured a eye-popping selection of works – prints, photos, paintings, sculptures and video installations – by “seminal woman artists”. Some of my favorites, including Lee Krasner, Helen Frankenthaler and Georgia O’Keeffe, were included and, while I wasn’t familiar with all of the artist represented, I was particularly impressed with the playful works of Yayoi Kusama and a video installation titled Cornered by Adrian Piper that managed to get even an ADD guy like me to sit down and watch for a while! http://seattleartmuseum.org/exhibit/exhibitDetail.asp?eventID=23870

After buying some Valentine’s Day chocolates at Fran’s Chocolate for my wife Fran (aren’t I cute?), I headed back to my hotel to prep for the evening’s festivities. I got there when the doors opened at 7pm, and any of you that know me know that I’m pretty horrible when it comes to “schmoozing”, so it was my plan to see if anyone else from Portland had gone up for the party (there wasn’t) and then find myself a table near a large monitor. Luckily, I found just such a place, ordered a G&T and settled in for an evening of watching (people and monitor) and checking every half-hour on the status of the silent auction bids on the poster package I’d donated.

Sitting at the table next to me, I did meet a nice guy named Davin Stedman who is a principal in a talented Seattle band called The Staxx Brothers  and spent a fair amount of time talking to him and his friends in attendance about the Grammy show, the music business, storyboarding music videos and, my favorite subject, album art. He was very knowledgeable on all subjects we dove into and I’m hoping that we stay in touch, as I was pretty impressed with some of the music/videos I’d seen on his site (http://www.staxxbrothers.com/info/index.html).

After a few hours at the party, during which my range of emotions ran from happy (to have seen fun. win a couple of Grammy Awards and for the Bruno Mars/Sting performances of classic Bob Marley songs) to intrigued (just HOW did they get Carrie Underwood’s dress to light up like that?) to disappointed (they showed Prince PLAYING in the previews!) to downright bored (sorry, just can’t get excited about Frank Ocean or Rihanna, although she’s quite beautiful). By 10:30, it was time to go. I checked on the auction table (bids on the posters were up to $170 – not bad, but should go for more), said good-bye to Davin and the local Grammy folks, and walked the short distance back to the hotel to watch the rest of the show in my room. Maybe next year, I can convince SOMEONE from PDX to join me and double the turnout from our fair city (or, even better, perhaps those of us in Portlandia can host our own party)…

The next morning, I took the monorail out to the Experience Music Project (“the EMP”, to locals) to see what was new and exciting in this temple to Paul Allen’s amazing collection of all things Pop Culture. Being somewhat more prepared this time, I knew that the new Art of Video Games exhibition wouldn’t quite be ready for viewing, but I’d wanted to see the Hendrix Hits London display and, time permitting, the Worn to be Wild leather jacket exhibition. As a side note – while I understand the power of a sponsor’s support of an exhibition (in the case of the Worn to be Wild display, that would be Harley Davidson, a company that makes more money selling licensed clothing and accessories than they do selling motorcycles) and that the EMP has expanded the scope of its original mission statement to include the very broad category of “Pop Culture”, I do hope that, one day, they’ll agree to talk to me and others who promote the importance of album cover art and artists as integral parts of both the music business and Pop Culture and work with us to curate a comprehensive album cover art show there.

Anyway, back to my visit. I next spent a short while traipsing through the Hendrix exhibit, where I did sit and watch a nice video they’d put together on Hendrix’s time in London and took a shot or two of drummer Mitch Mitchell’s silver sparkle drum set (well-known by Hendrix/Mitchell fans).

Mitch Mitchell drum set at EMP Museum

I then walked out to find a path to a part of the museum that I don’t think I’ve seen before. There, I came upon another exhibit that turned out to be a great surprise. Fans of science fiction and horror, run, don’t walk, to see the Icons of Science Fiction exhibit there – you won’t be disappointed, and your true geekdom will be tested. Turns out that Mr. Allen is a huge science fiction fan as well and, as someone with very deep pockets, he’s managed to put together a collection of artifacts from science fiction storytelling in all forms. First edition books, graphic novels (AKA “comic books”), scripts and props from movies and TV from the Golden Ages until now.

Mummy mask at EMP Museum

Gill Man mask on display at EMP Museum

Being a kid who was glued to the TV and in attendance at many Saturday “monster matinees” at the local movie house from the early 1960s on (and who can forget “Creature Features” with your host, Svengoolie?), the items on display reintroduced me to films and shows that I hadn’t thought about in ages. There were props from The Mummy, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, Forbidden Planet, Star Trek (TV and movies, all variations), Dr. Who and many others. To see a flying saucer model used in Plan 9 from Outer Space and that flying creature that landed on your head and sucked on your brains from It Conquered The World was just so cool. Being that the EMP is a teaching institution, there was an underlying premise to the exhibition – “What If…”(as in “what if we could explore the stars?” and “what if I had superpowers?”) and this was supported by a nice selection of video interviews with trend-setters in science fiction films and television both past (Roger Corman, Gene Roddenberry, etc.) and present (producers and directors for The Matrix, Terminator and others), plus a nice interview with John Landis about the ground-breaking theatrical short he produced with Michael Jackson for his song “Thriller”. With all that being said, the art collector in me couldn’t help but be jealous of Mr. Allen’s collection. Just imagine inviting your friends over to your house to watch a classic horror film on your big screen and being able to walk down the hall past Robbie the Robot and a full-sized Alien (Mr. Giger, your genius is indubitable).

Alien Monster on display at EMP Museum

http://www.empmuseum.org/at-the-museum/current-exhibits/icons-of-science-fiction.aspx

After emerging from that exhibit thoroughly satisfied, I waltzed on upstairs to see the leather jackets on display. There were many, many examples, including a Norton jacket (how did that slip in there?) from the early 60s decorated as any self-respecting “Rocker” would have done it and 8-10 jackets embroidered, pinned, patched, sketched on and ripped in honor of their owners’ favorite punk bands.

LP Wall on display at EMP Museum

There was also a wall of album jackets on display that featured musical acts wearing leather jackets and, seeing them (The Ramones, Springsteen, Joan Jett, Queen, Michael Bolton, etc.) only served to remind me that record covers really did reflect the styles of the times. So, while seeing the famous red ’56 Harley KH ridden by Elvis (as seen in Albert Wertheimer’s famous photo) had its value, it was seeing another example of the importance of album covers as historical documents that made the visit worthwhile for me.

http://www.empmuseum.org/at-the-museum/current-exhibits/worn-to-be-wild-the-black-leather-jacket.aspx

That, and being able to pick up a t-shirt with the Toys In The Attic artwork on it (nice work, Ernie/Ingrid!) for just $10! I’ll wear it proudly, and often.

Mike G’s Toys in the Attic T-shirt

Mike Goldstein, February 15, 2013, Portland, OR, USA

This year’s nominees in the packaging category included a wide range of talents – a few past nominees and winners, a number of U.S. and international design firms, some designers working directly for the musical acts represented and, as we’ve seen from past examples including folks like Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell, the handiwork of the musicians themselves, showing us that there’s more to their creative talents than just great songwriting skills.

You can view the offical list of the winning works from previous Grammy Awards events on the Grammy website (http://www.grammy.com/nominees/search?artist=&title=&year=All&genre=22), but here’s a bit of background on each of this year’s winners and nominees – an impressive group of creative individuals, for sure!

2012 Grammy Award Nominees – “Best Recording Package”

The Winner – Bjork – Biophilia (One Little Indian/Nonesuch) – Michael Amzalag & Mathias Augustyniak, art directors
Michael and Mathias are the partners in the M/M Paris art and design studios (www.mmparis.com). In addition to their work for Bjork, they’ve provided their art direction talents to a long list of clients including Kanye West and Madonna, fashion designers Calvin Klein, Stella McCartney and Jill Sander, Vogue Paris, and a host of contemporary artists.

To read an interview with the M/M Paris team on the MTV Hive site (by Eric Spitznagel), please click here. Mr. Augustyniak believes that the destinies of music and visual arts are linked (“If one doesn’t do anything strong to find a way to have a visual support to music, music is going to disappear. Do you know what I mean?), and true fans of album cover design can only nod their heads in agreement…

- Alabama Shakes – Boys and Girls (ATO Records) – Brett Kilroe, art director
Brett Kilroe has worked as a member of the Runner Collective design group (http://www.runnercollective.com/), VP of the RCA/Sony BMG Creative Group and as a Professor at the School of Visual Arts. Past clients include musical acts The Strokes, Kings of Leon and Foo Fighters, Warner Brothers, MTV, the Museum of Modern Art, and Rolling Stone magazine.

- Aimee Mann – Charmer (SuperEgo Records) – Gail Marowitz, art director
Past Grammy winner (for her work on Aimee Mann’s 2005 record The Forgotten Arm) Gail Marowitz (AKA “The Visual Strategist” – http://thevisualstrategist.com/) is also the creative director for Roadrunner Records. A 20+ year veteran in the music design business, Gail has also worked for Imago Records (Henry Rollins, Paula Cole), Sony Music Entertainment/Columbia Records (Aerosmith, Bob Dylan, James Taylor) and Wind Up Entertainment (Evanescence, Pilot Speed, Finger Eleven).

- David Byrne & St. Vincent – Love This Giant (4AD) – Noah Wall, art director
This fascinating take on the Beauty & The Beast theme features prosthetics by Gabe Bartalos, photography by Richard Burbridge and artwork/type by Catalina Kulczar, Juan Marin, Steve Powers and LeeAnn Rossi . Noah Wall is a Brooklyn, NY-based designer and web developer working under the name Knowawall (http://www.knowawall.com/www/index.html).

- Dirty Projectors – Swing Lo Magellan (Domino Recording Company) – David Longstreth, art director
A fine example of a multi-talented contributor, Mr. Longstreth is also the singer/songwriter and guitarist for the Dirty Projectors. He’s also directed a film about the album, titled Hi Custodian. The cover photo (http://www.dominorecordco.us/usa/albums/15-03-12/swing-lo-magellan/) was taken by David’s brother (and fellow artist) Jake and was taken outside of the NY house where they were recording the album, during a visit by their neighbor Gary.

2012 Grammy Award Nominees – “Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package”

The Winner – Woody Guthrie – Woody At 100: The Woody Guthrie Centennial Collection (Smithsonian Folkways Recordings) – Fritz Klaetke, art director Fritz is the founder of the Boston, MA-based creative agency Visual Dialogue (http://visualdialogue.com/). A well-respected member of the Boston design scene, Fritz has also lectured at a number of design schools both in the US and abroad. His firm’s clients include Rounder and MB Records, HBO, The Smithsonian, thehive.com and Dominos Pizza.  They’ve designed over 70 CD packages for Smithsonian Folkways over the past 20 years!

To watch a video of Fritz’s acceptance speech at the Grammy ceremony (during which he thanks the Recording Academy for highlighting the ongoing importance of album cover art in the promotion/packaging of music), please click on the following link – http://vimeo.com/59417275

- Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo – Soundtrack From The Motion Picture (Null/Madison Gate Records) – Rob Sheridan, art director 
A previous Grammy nominee for his work on the 2008 Box Set for Nine Inch Nails titled Ghosts I-IV, Rob (http://www.rob-sheridan.com/) is a graduate of NYC’s Pratt Institute of Design and has been working with Reznor and Nine Inch Nails since 1999. when he was hired to develop and run the band’s web site. As their creative director, he’s responsible for “everything from album art to stage design”.

- Ben Kweller – Go Fly A Kite (The Noise Company) – Kate Iltis, Ben Kweller, Liz Kweller, Erin Mayes, art directors

Kate Iltis and Erin Mayes are partners in the Austin, TX – based design firm EmDash (http://www.emdashonline.com/). Clients include publishers such as Random House, Harper Collins and Simon & Schuster, The Society of Illustrators, National Geographic,  Perla Chocolates, Davidson College and the Universities of Texas and Florida.

- Paul & Linda McCartney – Ram – Paul McCartney Archive Collection – Deluxe Edition (Hear Music) – Simon Earith & James Musgrave, art directors
Simon and James work together at the London, UK-based design firm YES (http://www.yesstudio.co.uk/). Previously nominated for the album cover and promotional campaign for the band Dirty Vegas, their client list includes the EMI, Island, Parlophone and Warp record labels, BBC Channel 4 and a number of book publishers and gallerists.

- The Rolling Stones – Some Girls: Super Deluxe Edition (UMe/Universal Republic) – Stephen Kennedy & Jimmy Tilley, art directors
Stephen and Jimmy are, respectively, the Creative Director and the Art Director for West London, UK-based Studio Fury design/art direction firm (http://studiofury.co.uk/). In addition to their work on the nominated package, they worked with the Rolling Stones (along with artist Ian Wright) on artwork for a 50th anniversary book on the band, with the cover image (the famous Lips & Tongue logo) created from 2500 round badges featuring never before seen photos of the band taken from the archives of The Mirror newspaper.