Album Cover Hall of Fame’s News Update and Link Summary for August, 2022

Posted August 1, 2022 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

Mid-Summer greetings to you all. Since we last spoke, many of you have experienced extremes in several aspects of our lives – temperature, drought, economic uncertainty, politics, etc. – and so I hope that you’ve all managed to keep your heads above water (assuming that you have water) and your focus on what’s going well in your lives. I’ve been trying hard to keep a positive mindset, but I have to admit it’s been an effort aided by my discovery of some delicious new gins and other mixers (drop me a note if you’d like some recommendations). In any case, let’s get back to the matters at hand.

This past month’s research into all things album cover-related has uncovered a lot to read about and look into – some items being continuations of ongoing serials and other stories providing us with some new and exciting things: exhibitions, items for sale or auction, deeper dives into artists’ portfolios and several articles that uncover new and never-before-divulged details about some of our favorite covers. Overall, the frequency and quality of these news bites continues unabated. The fact that this news comes from sources all over the world certainly adds to the notion that the interest in great album cover art (and in the people that make it) knows no boundaries.

Album Cover Hall of Fame News Update and Link Summary for May, 2022

Album Cover Hall of Fame’s News Update and Link Summary for May, 2022

Posted May 1, 2022 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

Wow, what a month. Busy with so many things, and “the hits keep on coming”. You’d have thought that everyone’s attention would be focused on truly important things happening in and to our world – war, a refugee crisis, the world economy zig-zagging with every bit of news and several people who think that it is more important to legislate to remove vague references about some of the sad truths about U.S./World history than to address the ongoing issues head on – and yet those in the visual and musical arts continue to produce works that inspire us and make us think and smile. This month’s summary is my valiant attempt to share coverage of those efforts with all of you, so I do hope that you’ll spend a little time digging through the sections and sharing things you find interesting with others as well. We all need to learn how to share better, no?

Album Cover Hall of Fame News Update and Link Summary for February 2021

 

 

 

 

 

 

Album Cover Hall of Fame’s News Update and Link Summary for February, 2021

Posted January 29, 2021 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

This past month, I think we’ll all agree, was one that made all the world stop and wonder what the future might hold for us in so many aspects of our lives. Will democracy survive? Will justice be served? When will I be able to get a shot of the vaccine? Why won’t some of my neighbors – for their benefit and mine – wear a f#%king mask? With so many important questions to consider, it makes me wonder why it is that I remain committed to delivering a steady stream of news about what’s happening in the world of album cover art, design and photography…Perhaps its merely a way to distract both myself and my readers from spending 100% of our time wondering whether sane and qualified people will quickly step up to deliver us all from the clutches of this now-year-old pandemic or, maybe more so, simply my way of pointing out that, with the proper attention and resources paid, the arts – and the people involved in them – can do wonders to keep us all sane and paying attention to what’s important beyond what’s being delivered to us – at 130db and in bright red 50-point type – via the many places we source our news and entertainment.

Album Cover Hall of Fame News Update and Link Summary for December, 2020

Posted December 1st, 2020 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

Well, we made it to December first and, I have to tell you, part of me is much happier than the last time I was writing this intro for you, while the other part is still in a mild state of bewilderment, with a sizable number of my fellow countrymen (and countrywomen) refusing to believe in both the results of an election and the fact that there’s a pandemic still raging. How, then, am I finding the strength to sit at my desk and tap out a missive to a readership that might partly be suffering from either/both the effects of a nasty disease (that’s killed 260,000+ people her so far, and many thousands more world-wide) and/or the notion that their elected representatives might not have been fairly elected (a baseless theory supported by no actual evidence)? Perhaps it’s due to the fact that, in spite of whatever has brought us all to this point, art and music creators continue to transcend boundaries and inspire our lives and emotions with the pure power of their work. Or, it might be my ever-expanding gin and tonic recipe book – in any case, there continues to be a lot of interesting developments in the world of record album imagery…

Album Cover Hall of Fame News Update and Summary for April, 2020

 

 

 

 

Album Cover Hall of Fame News Update and Summary – April, 2020

Posted April 1, 2020 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

Greetings from Chicagoland. While it’s my hope that my monthly news summaries bring a little joy into your lives, I must admit that the preparation and delivery of this month’s article during a world-wide health and economic crisis had me wondering whether any of you would be disappointed if I’d chosen to put things off for a while. With many of us sequestering ourselves from the outside world and/or having to deal with the loss of a job, serious health and family issues and a general fear of the unknown, it seems to me that we all have a lot more on our minds than the answer to the question “what’s happening in the world of album cover art and packaging?” Keeping this in mind, and accepting the fact that I’m sure most of you realize that I have more time on my hands to sit at my computer than usual, I’ve decided to shoot out a somewhat-truncated summary document both to keep fans of album art informed and to give this lonely and frustrated soul something to do while we ride this out together.

Album Cover Hall of Fame Breaking News Update for June 21, 2019

Album Cover Hall of Fame Quickie News Update – June 21, 2019

By Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

Welcome to the first day of Summer (assuming that the “new” Summer includes days like the ones we’re having here – high temp of 65, with rain forecast for the next several days). It’s days like these that make me happy to be able to report that the works of the people who make your favorite album cover images are included in a whole host of exhibitions on display now/soon. In addition to the details of these current/ongoing shows, you’ll also find interesting tidbits about new books, prints and other collectibles now available, along with a story or two that I thought you might want to read, and so, without any further delay, here’s a quickie update, provided as a tease to the regular end-of-the-month summary due in 10 days or so…

Exhibitions/gallery shows –

1) NEW SHOW OPENING 6/21 – Having wowed the crowds in Los Angeles last year with a huge show in Chinatown that drew thousands of fans, street art/graffiti art fans in the NYC area can now traipse on over to a new show called Beyond The Streets that opens to the public this weekend in a large space (over 100,000 square feet!) of its own in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. According to the show’s advance PR, “BEYOND THE STREETS celebrates society’s most pervasive mark makers and rule breakers with unprecedented purpose and scale. The exhibition explores the collective urgency of using the street as a canvas for expression”…and features “enlightening panel discussions hosted by legendary street art icons and presentations by contemporary artists who are continuing to redefine and reshape the art form.” Album cover art fans will see examples of work from many of their favorites, including Cey Adams, J-M Basquiat, Martha Cooper, Shepard Fairey, Glen E. Friedman, Keith Haring, Takashi Murakami, Mister Cartoon and Kenny Scharf, among others.

The show runs thru August, 2019 and is located at 25 Kent Ave, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The entrance is on North 12th between Wythe and Kent Avenues, right next to the Wythe Hotel, William Vale Hotel, and Brooklyn Bowl. Open Wednesday to Sunday, 11am – 8pm. Closed Monday & Tuesday. Gen admission is $25, kids 6-11, $12. https://beyondthestreets.com/pages/visit

My friend Rocky Bucano from the Universal Hip-Hop Museum (www.uhhm.org) toured the show with some friends of his and was kind enough to share some of the photos. Thanks, Rocky – you definitely have some of the coolest friends…

LL Cool J by Rocky Bucano, UHHM.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cornbread Retires @ Beyond The Streets by Rocky Bucano, UHHM.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Art @ Beyond The Streets, Rocky Bucano, UHHM.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2) NEW SHOW OPENED 6/14 – Recently opened at the Ulster Museum in Belfast, Northern Ireland is a show whose history began almost 20 years ago when the curators from London’s Victoria & Albert Museum put on a show called The Art of Selling Songs: Graphics for the Music Business 1690 – 1990 that dug deep into the museum’s impressive collection of music-related graphics to show how graphic design was used to promote and sell musical performances and products. The updated version of this show now on display in Belfast presents an “A side” – artwork from “the olden days” thru the introduction of pop music – and a “B side” of more recent work, featuring works from artists and designers including Julien Opie, Peter Saville, Andy Warhol, Albert Watson and many others. A bonus show called Overtones: Irish Music Art celebrates artwork created by Irish artists/designers and works for Irish acts including Ash, Snow Patrol, Them, U2 and others. Here are a couple of recent articles – one in the Irish Times– https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/great-irish-album-artwork-goes-on-display-at-ulster-museum-1.3924937 and one on the Irish News.com site – https://www.irishnews.com/news/northernirelandnews/2019/06/14/news/sgt-pepper-and-alternative-ulster-star-in-striking-new-exhibition-of-album-artwork-1641599/ – that serve to provide overviews of the show, with the second one also including a short video interview with the exhibition’s curator, Anna Liesching, curator of art at National Museums NI.

The displays are available for your enjoyment from now through the 15^th of September, with more info available on the museum’s site at  https://www.nmni.com/whats-on/the-art-of-selling-songs

3) ONGOING (INCLUDES NEW IMAGES FROM GALLERY) – In last month’s summary, I wrote about the gallery show featuring photographer Bob Gruen’s work now on display (through July 6^th) at the Brian Liss Gallery in Toronto, Canada, and now I’m happy to provide you with a small selection of photos of the gallery’s exhibition, as provided by the nice people there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bob Gruen @ Brian Liss Gallery, Toronto – used by permission

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bob Gruen @ Brian Liss Gallery, Toronto – used by permission

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You’ll recognize some of Mr. Gruen’s “greatest hits” – his photos of John Lennon in NYC (one wearing his “New York City” t-shirt and the other with Lennon flashing a peace sign in front of the Statue of Liberty), his photo of Led Zeppelin in front of their tour plane, etc. – along with others from his 40+ year portfolio compiled while covering the rock scene for many publications and television shows. Of course, we’re very appreciative of the album covers he’s produced, such as Dressed To Kill for KISS; John Lennon, Yoko Ono and the Plastic Ono Band’s Sometime in New York City and Raspberries for the Raspberries, among others.

Visitors to the gallery will find, in addition to a fine selection of fine art prints for sale, that they’ll also have copies of his 2011 career retrospective book Rock Seen for you to take home as well. http://liss-gallery.squarespace.com/bob-gruen

Artist News and Interviews

1) OH, YES! – Famed fantasy artist Roger Dean’s daughter Freyja is quite the artist herself, with some album art credits on her resume as well. Here’s a recent interview with the artist as shown on the Japan Times web site – https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2019/06/08/people/freyja-dean-art-mythology-prog-rock/

2) NOT QUITE A KNIGHT – Early on in his career as a British photojournalist, Terry O’Neil had access to the music business elite at the time, with his portfolio including shots of The Beatles, David Bowie, Eric Clapton, Elton John, the Rolling Stones, The Who, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra and many others. His photographs of Bridget Bardot, Audrey Hepburn , Sir Laurence Olivier and super-model Jean Shrimpton beautifully captured each in their prime. O’Neill was also invited to shoot portraits of civic and world leaders, as well as the British Royal Family, and his reputation as a result of these sessions grew accordingly.

Now 80 years old, Mr. O’Neil received a Royal honor, being awarded the CBE (Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) for his career’s contributions to photography, so here’s a pictorial run-down of his celeb and music-industry shots in The Mirror – https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/gallery/terry-oneills-legends-stories-behind-16522861

That’s all for now – stay tuned and be on the lookout for timely news alerts on our news feed –https://www.facebook.com/AlbumCoverHallOfFame – we’ll be back when we can with another monthly summary for you.

Unless otherwise noted, all text and images included in this article are Copyright 2019 Mike Goldstein and AlbumCoverHallofFame.com – All Rights Reserved. All of trade names mentioned in these summaries are the properties of their respective owners and are used for reference only.