Flowers for Tom Wilkes

Last month marked the 2nd anniversary of the death of a great album cover artist, Tom Wilkes. Yesterday we celebrated his birthday, and for a more fitting tribute than I could offer you should turn to this post by Barney Hoskyns in which he transcribes some of an interview he did with Wilkes in 2003. Wilkes talks about his art and how he got into the business of sleeve art design.

Rolling Stones FLOWERS sleeve by Wilkes.

Photo diary: Storm Thorgerson and Kevin Godley

Some Hamleys Toy Shop teddy bears got a foot-tickle from Storm Thorgerson the other day.

Kevin Godley (of 10cc and Godley and Creme) accompanied us on a visit to Storm at his north-west London studios as we knew that Storm, and Po (Aubrey Powell) had made some fantastic album covers for 10cc and Godley and Creme too.

We had persuaded Storm to sign a small number of the muddy-pawed cuddlies used famously in his cover art for Muse (for their single, Uprising) and the Steve Miller Band too (for their recent release, Bingo!).

Catching up

Storm signing, under duress

Making off with the newly honoured bears

Kevin Godley

You can see Storm Thorgerson's prints at HYPERGALLERY.

Columbia Records' Art Directors and the first exciting era of album cover art

When Alex Steinweiss became Advertising Manager in 1943, Jim Flora took over as Art Director for Columbia Records. Flora brought his own unique style as you can see in these three examples of his work:

Jim Flora, Pete Jolly Duo.
Edition of 125

Jim Flora, Mambo for Cats
Edition of 200

Jim Flora, Hot 5
Edition of 25

Click HERE to see Jim Flora's work at Hypergallery!


Click HERE to learn more about Jim Flora from our April 2009 blogpost!

Alex Steinweiss

The gentleman who pretty much invented the album cover as we know it died on Sunday 17th July 2011 age 94. Time to mourn his passing and celebrate his achievements, namely some utterly beautiful LP sleeve art.

Alex Steinweiss was quoted as saying that he thought if he could be a good sign writer he'd be happy. What he actually achieved had a far greater impact on twentieth century culture than he could possibly have imagined. This is a man who opened the door to the kind of innovation we are seeing from Bjork's Biophilia project - the thought that you could attach visual ideas to musical works. So powerful was this attachment that the two are now inextricably linked. Even a plain album cover became a strong visual statement, just think of the Beatles' White Album.

A fantastically influential creative force is now lost to the world but he left us with some great stuff. We intend to commemorate his creative life by delving into our Taschen monograph dedicated to his work.

Steinweiss featured heavily in the Eisner Museum's (closed until further notice) exhibition The Art of the Album Cover and an online game / feature they created lists four eras of album cover art: the 70s, the 60s, the 50s and 'The Era Of Steinweiss'. That says it all, really.

Also, here is the NY Times Obituary by Steven Heller from the 19th July.

R.I.P. Mr Steinweiss.

The rise or return of the LP sleeve

As digital subscription services such as Spotify and Apple's iTunes grow and launch, more and more artists are releasing LPs with free digital downloads to address both the practical need for digital music and the emotional desire for a more visceral contact with our musical passions.

The way is paved for a resurgence of truly exciting album cover art and a new generation of artists and designers working in the genre. Let's hope that this is embraced by music lovers and creatives alike! It is such a unique and fertile forum for artistic exploration.

So many of my contemporaries are discovering (or rediscovering) the joy of the 12" record as an object, and the rich listening experience that goes along with it.

Up the album cover!

Bulletin

Revolution and teddy bears are in the air for Muse. this Uprising print by Storm Thorgerson has finally arrived at Hypergallery, in an edition of only 50 prints.