Album Cover Hall of Fame’s News Update and Link Summary for March, 2023

Album Cover Hall of Fame News Update and Link Summary for March, 2023

Posted March 1, 2023 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

February might be a bit shorter than other months, but that doesn’t mean that we album art/artist fans were short-changed in the news department. Starting off with the Grammy Awards and continuing with new exhibitions, art and book releases and a lot of ancillary items, there’s plenty for us fans of album cover art/artistry to dig into, so let’s cut the chit-chat and take a look at what I’ve put together for you.

Preliminary judging has begun on the entries vying for another noted industry award – the Making Vinyl Packaging Awards – and, as one of the judges on the panel tasked to review the hundreds of submissions received, I’m curious and eager to see what always turns out to me a fascinating cross-section of examples of album covers/packages coming in from all over the world.

This month’s newsletter contains a human-curated (as opposed to an AI-generated – we’re old school here at the ACHOF) summary of the news in all of the main topic areas, with updates and info about several new museum and gallery exhibitions, new auctions and sales and a goodly number of art and artist-related articles. As always, I’d like to once again say “thanks” for your help and support, so  let’s get started with some updates on the award shows recently ended and currently in progress:

Album Cover Hall of Fame News Update and Link Summary for February, 2023

Album Cover Hall of Fame’s News Update and Link Summary for February, 2023

Posted February 1, 2023 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

January was a busy month in the world of album cover art and artists and, to be honest with you, it was all a bit overwhelming as I’ve begun to do the work to re-organize ACHOF-related content into the various silos that will ultimately make up the two sites I’ll be maintaining going forward. I’ve spoken with several people whose experience and gut instincts I appreciate and have a pretty good idea as to how to best proceed so, with your support and patience, I think we’ll all be happy with the new/revised formats that will come out of these efforts.

February looks to be chock-full of exciting news to come, first with the announcement of the winners of this year’s Grammy Awards in the Packaging categories (to be posted here on February 5^th as soon as they’re announced), which closely follow the Best Art Vinyl Awards results that were posted in early January (click here to see the results, if you missed my original article) and which included some really great examples of human-generated art and design. Voting will also begin soon for another noted industry award – the Making Vinyl Packaging Awards and, as one of the judges on the panel tasked to review the hundreds of submissions received, I’m curious and eager to see what always turns out to me a fascinating cross-section of examples of album covers/packages coming in from all over the world.

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

Album Cover Hall of Fame News Update and Link Summary for February, 2022, posted February 1, 2022 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

Hello again from the frozen tundra we call home and you call Chicagoland. While Winter continues to make for somewhat scenic snowy images outside our windows and, at the same time, some very slippery walking/driving conditions, I am happy to be able to sit safely and comfortably in my office and, via the miracle of a medium-speed internet connection, research, organize and deliver my monthly ACHOF news summary. Having nothing to do with my New Year’s resolutions, I was also able to finally deliver (partially) on my promised article that summarized and presented more in-depth info on one section of the album cover art exhibition that was staged in Western Scotland last fall (https://albumcoverhalloffame.wordpress.com/2022/01/14/achof-presents-the-art-on-my-sleeves-series-episode-1-all-nerve-album-cover-graphic-design/), with another section summary from that show to be published ASAP.

I’m also working on completing a multi-part article on the history of what the record industry sells as “special products”, with a focus on the people and companies that produce and market the stunning box sets that have come to market over the past several years. From “enhanced” and “special-edition” album packages to the multi-disc (and, in some cases, multi-multi-multi disc) packages that include some wonderful things unearthed from the music and memorabilia archives of your favorite musical acts, this will also be a multi-act writing performance by yours truly, so stay tuned.

Album Cover Hall of Fame Breaking News for January 21st, 2022

Album Cover Hall of Fame Breaking News for January 21st, 2022 –

Posted 1/21/22 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

Some things just can’t wait….

a) The accomplished and acclaimed album cover designer Ioannis is scheduled to participate in a series of two appearances in the Cape Cod area during which he’ll put on display the original art he created for two projects – one for Boston and one for the Allman Brothers Band – and will be sharing the stories behind these images with all those in attendance. Kicking the series off on Friday, January 28^th at The Music Room gallery and wine bar, Ioannis will show off the production artwork that was originally intended to be featured on the band’s third album (Third Stage) and which, after the powers that be decided to go with another artist’s imagery (with the album’s progress delayed a number of years due to personnel disputes and a lawsuit by the group’s label), this artwork was lost only to be found later by a fan, so this will be the first time that it’ll be on public display. Also on stage this first night will be the original Boston guitarist Barry Goudreau and his latest band – how’s that for a great tie-in?

Album Cover Hall of Fame Breaking News for January 14th, 2022

posted 1/14/22 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame

a) The long-promised first “episode” of the tour through the “Art On My Sleeves” exhibition is now up and available for viewing at your leisure. The focus of this article is on the covers featured in the section titled “All Nerve”, which shows a good number of examples of great graphic design produced over the past 50+ years and includes works by both very well-known designers/studios (George Hardie, Hipgnosis, Barney Bubbles, Vaughan Oliver and Chris Bigg of v23, etc) and some perhaps lesser-known talents whose work nonetheless is memorable and eye-catching. There’s a lot to see and learn, so why not just click on over to https://albumcoverhalloffame.wordpress.com/2022/01/14/achof-presents-the-art-on-my-sleeves-series-episode-1-all-nerve-album-cover-graphic-design/ to begin your journey?

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

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

Posted right around April 1, 2021 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

Spring Greetings to you all from Chicagoland. The weather has become rather consistently pleasant, allowing us to venture outside the house a bit, even sitting on outside patios at some of the local eating establishments (what a treat!). We’re still waiting for our turn at the local COVID vaccine center but, with any luck, we’ll get our shots in the next month or so and, if the rest of our fellow countrymen continue to do the right thing and help build our herd immunity, we might all be able to get out a bit more later this Spring/Summer. I’m not counting on everyone doing the right thing on behalf of the rest of the local citizenry – the loonies continue to proudly flout their warped notions of what “freedom” really means – so it’ll be quite some time before I think we’re “back to normal”, but let’s hope for the best.

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 January 2021

 

 

 

Posted January 1, 2021 by Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

We’ve reached the end of what has to have been one of the saddest and most-frustrating years most of us have ever lived through and yet, for those of us who have survived, I have to think that we’re all feeling somewhat grateful for having done so and are looking forward to seeing the end of this pandemic and, with any luck, a move towards a sense of “normalcy” in many aspects of our lives.

It’s the beginning of Winter here in the Chicago area and, just last night, we saw our first significant snowstorm. The weather, plus the threat of COVID, will keep me and my wife inside most of the time (except for our weekly trips to the grocery stores) and trying to support our local restaurants, who now can’t offer anything but take-out. I hope that we’re all doing what we can to keep these local vendors alive, and I’d like to add that we should all do more to support the local service organizations that are working miracles to keep those less fortunate than us sheltered, fed and in good health and spirits.

In the spirit of keeping things in perspective and understanding that you all have a lot on your plates these days, this month’s summary will be as brief and to the point as I can make it. Much work is still being done in the world of music industry-related visual design and production and so it’s my honor and pleasure to continue to report on – and promote – this work and the people who do it. So, let’s go…

Album Cover Hall of Fame News Summary Bonus Update for September 2, 2020

 

 

 

 

 

ACHOF BONUS NEWS CONTENT –
UPDATED September 2, 2020

By Mike Goldstein, AlbumCoverHallofFame.com

Just as I was hitting the “publish” button on my site – the one that sent my September 1 update out into the EtherWebs – several new alerts arrived that were timely enough that I thought it important to share them with you (as if I didn’t give you enough to read and ponder on Tuesday!). So, here ya go:

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

 

 

 

 

 

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

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

We’re entering the final stages of Summer 2020 – a summer unlike any I can remember – and now that we’ve heard the arguments from both sides regarding either the re-election of the current administration or its replacement with a new one, I know that the next couple of months will be full of messaging, news and theater but, while you might think that there’d be little news coming from the world of album cover artists and their art, in fact, there’s been a lot to look at, read and learn about. Visual artists have always played an important part in politics and have made some quite-memorable statements about society with their works (think of album covers released over the past 5-6 decades from musical acts such as Pink Floyd, Rage Against The Machine, The Roots and many, many others), so you won’t be surprised to find examples of such work included amongst the articles included this month’s news summary.