Favourite David Bowie album cover

Easy

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Although Blackstar's vinyl cover is a very close 2nd...superb design.

EDIT: Didn't realize I had 5 choices! Oops!

5. "Heroes"
4. Scary Monsters
3. Hunky Dory (minus the tacky 70s title lettering which luckily mine omits)\
2. Blackstar (LP)
1. Station To Station (original BW&R configuration)

 

this will be something like the third time I've made this vote in a Bowie sleeves discussion, but the next day is sheer brilliance, unparalleled by anything else in his catalogue. he had an entire career of albums featuring fantastic photos and great design... and then out came the sledgehammer.

when I first saw it, I was literally speechless at Bowie's willingness to slaughter his own sacred cow for the sake of a crucial message. my admiration for him as an artist went from really high to incredibly high.

 

Glad I got the right answer - Low. I would also vote for the ChangesOneBowie (remember seeing in stores as a kid) and ChangesTwoBowie (which Bowie signed for me) covers

 

I really love the cover art to 'Hours' except for the snake on the back side cover, as I do not like snakes at all, but the 'Hours' album cover could be in my top 5 on any given day, as I love the Younger Bowie/Older Bowie theme. That being said, here are the 5 album covers that I selected.

5. Scary Monsters
4. Station to Station
3. Heroes
2. Aladdin Sane(although very close to #1)

1. This is just too frickin' awesome cool:

 

I think many of the covers ( front, back , inside) complement the music very well indeed, though there are some where, for me, there's a mixed message.

The first instance of a great fit is Hunky Dory, with Ziggy, Diamond Dogs, Young Americans, Station to Station, Low, "Heroes", Lodger, Let's Dance, Never Let Me Down, 1. Outside, Earthling, Heathen and Backstar all being excellent examples where the complete package is an ideal fit for the music contained with in. That's a pretty good strike rate I think.

Of the above I think Young Americans is the best design fit for the music - the original US cover is very deep chocolate brown, textured with rich coloured reddish writing. The photograph is exquisite - the overall package shouts quality. The music contained within is mostly warm and intimate. It's a shame that very few countries around the world received the design the same way. New Zealand and Japan are two countries that did.

Of the ones that, for me, are not in that long list of excellent designs - some thoughts:

I find the 1967 album cover non-descript - gives no indication of the music at all - just a typical 1960's design, without relation to the music. Pleasant cover though.

The 1969 album cover gives the music a dark atmosphere, where the '72 RCA Space Oddity cover conveys warmth, and hence, for me, the original is a bit off the mark. Clever front cover, lovely rear painting.

Both the US and UK Man Who Sold the World first issue covers are compromises on the original design - I think Mike Weller's front cover illustration on the US original is a perfect fit for the music, the rear cover is almost an abomination though. I like the UK cover, but think the fit is not as good - something's missing.

In 1973 DB was accused of selling out by some in the music press - and the inside gatefold of Aladdin could be cited as an example of that. I find it sending a very different message than the very tasteful front and rear cover and inner sleeve, which are more aligned with the lyrics and music.

Pinups - lovely pics on both sides, though for me it seems unfinished, or like TMWSTW, something's missing. Its interesting that though they're very similar, both US and UK covers differ - in addition to the different sized titling on the front, the rear images are laid out differently on each. It underlines for me the lack of certainty in the design.

I find Scary Monsters needs some more cover warmth - the music is relatively warm, though intense, and the black and white inner sleeve and muted colours on the outside reduce that warmth, making the album harder going than it is.

Tonight - for me this is a case of the music and cover competing and not aligning much at all. Possibly bad taste 80s. Loving the Alien on the other hand? - great cover and concept.

Black Tie/White Noise - I like both the cover parts and the music contained within - I'm not convinced though that the cover conveys the warmth and generosity of the music though. Love the honest cover portrait.

Hours - I find the cover confusing - the harsh blocks of colour and photography tricks, given the general tone of the music and lyrics, most of which I find introspective.

Reality - pass - not my cup of tea

The Next Day - I appreciate the concept. I think it works well enough for the music, though the lyric sheet is very difficult.

It's interesting that with the advent of digital transmission, there less "cover holding/reading" that there used to be, so the designs matter less than they used to and the music is heard for what it is or isn't.

 

"Heroes" most enigmatic.
I have a soft spot for Tonight.

 

"Heroes"
Low
Aladdin Sane
Tonight
Station to Station

 

The original Station to Station for me. Closely followed by Diamond Dogs.

 

I'm one of two votes for Tonight??
Bowie did the artwork and it's such an original album cover. Beautiful!
(just don't listen to the contents!)

 

I enjoyed your thoughtful post.

With regards MWSTW. I dont mind the US cover but I could never quite resolve it with the music. A strongly graphical design but too 'Pop'? But today I find myself warming to it. Also the worn reproductions on Discogs suddenly give it a new feeling. The front and back (which perversely I like) seem so at odds with what I think about the sound of the album, but I now can see that it works in some quite indefinable way. I can imagine the US card paste-on feel, too. It feels like a different album. I wonder how that would have affected my listening and perception of the music.

The dress cover is the most telling in terms of Bowie's interest in mysticism and the occult and it feels very English. But I never really liked it as an image for an album. Too romantic, too pre-raphaelite, too bland for the music. But I think that is about the style rather than the idea. And the type is really not contributing anything.

The RCA b&w cover is the one I grew up with. The kicking, the image of this sole figure sole in a black void, the facial expression. All these things seemed to connect me to the overall sound of the album, the energy and the dark themes explored.

I also liked the RCA cover to Space Oddity. This photo seemed to fit the album much better than the original. The look of wonder, the light, the colour. These things seemed to capture the freshness and idealism of the times which are the subject the album.

Question. What do you mean by UK Man Who Sold the World first issue covers are compromises on the original design. How was the dress cover a compromise?

 

I don't think votes are about right answers. They're surveys of people's opinions.

 

Low tops my list, with the iconic Heroes, Scary Monsters and, of course, Aladdin Sane covers running close behind. Difficult to say why Low is so amazing. It is after all the cover that Bryan Ferry referred to as looking 'a little like Woolworths' (a cheap department store for non UK residents). The Next Day I love as it's so damned clever! It shouldn't work, but it does.

 

I have this boot, great quality.

 

"Heroes" by a million miles.

 

The exact same reason why I like it!

 

Both Mike Weller ( who was there - Visual Associations » ) and Kevin Cann (book: Any Day Now, The London Years 1947: 1974, pgs, 211,212) speak of the changes made to the original design.

In summary: Original design - gatefold cover with Mike Weller cartoon on front, dress cover image on inner gatefold, cartoons and photo(s) on rear cover. Original title: Metrobolist. Changed by Mercury USA to single sleeve, with new lettering at top front. Speech bubble content on front removed. Only released in USA (1970) and Japan. All other releases delayed. DB frustrated at changes, destruction of original concept, insists UK cover has dress image.

So in effect, neither design is what was intended. Whilst it is clear the US cover has been company modified, there is no compelling evidence to assume the UK cover would have been any different from the US had it not been modified. So the answer to the question asked (How was the dress cover a compromise?) lie partly in the historical fact and partly in answer to the question: Is the UK design primarily a reaction to the US company meddling with the original design, or did it become a fully fledged design in its own right irrespective of what had gone before?

BTW Germany Mercury designed its own cover, and I suspect that it was released prior to the UK issue, as the German issue sometime came with a sticker advertising the 1971 Mercury UK originated compilation album "Dimension of Miracles" (which includes "The Width of A Circle"). This compilation album has no album image against the Bowie track, yet all other included tracks do, suggesting that the cover image for the Bowie album is not known. Dimension of Miracles was manufactured in UK and Germany as well as other European countries.

Also, your kind words are appreciated.

 

I don't think that Discogs has an image of the rear cover of a legit US Mercury cover - here's a low light (grainy) photo of the legit (LH) cover next to a counterfeit (RH). The covers were lit from the right, so the left hand side is a bit darker than it should be. Notice the repositioning of the "oh by jingo" cartoon. Also that the lyric for the single (All the Madmen) is the first lyric.

 

Here is a single photo showing, from left to right, original US, UK and 1991 EMI (RYKO derived) front covers for Low - one of the more popular covers. Ryko used the US Best Buy edition of Low as their source, hence the incorrect colours for the lettering ( and rear cover).

 

Another single photo showing leading favourite at the moment - Aladdin Sane , left to right, UK original, US (cyan lettering) and 1990 EMI (RYKO derived) front covers. The EMI cover shows massive degradation of the image, and uses cyan lettering rather than royal blue, as it is sourced from the a later US edition (such as the middle image).

 

It's got a haunting quality and I also love the typeface and placement of the artist/album title. Very idiosyncratic.

 

Amazing story*. I never knew any of this. So, the cartoon was always intended as front cover. What would have been in the bubble? The original title? And the original back? Are there any pictures of it?

This makes so much sense - the dress photo inside. I wonder whether it would have been as landscape, filling the whole spread?

Somehow the combination of the cartoon with the dress makes an interesting statement.

Why on earth couldn't they have restored it for the recent repress? Lost opportunity!

*EDIT – but this isn't quite the same story as on wikipedia which says Bowie intended the dress photo as an alternative to the cartoon

 

Well, let's just say we can be glad about the fact that better options are available for TMWSTW.

 

Same shortlist, it's the orange in the Low cover that does the trick, you can spot it from miles. Ferry had some good ones, plus the cheapo sunglasses fluorescent colour thing.

 

The cheapo sunglasses fluorescent colour thing is my favourite! The cover I hasten to add, not the album so much. I think he must have been secretly very jealous of Low. It was streets ahead of what he was producing at the time.

But the orange in Low is compellingly odd, as is the side profile shot of Bowie. Again, it shouldn't work, or at least it shouldn't have dated well (orange is very 1977 ), but it does and it has.

 

I love the Station to Station cover, especially the font and the way it's been reused on Changes*Bowie and Live in Nassau. All in red, no spaces, like a really big (and raw) statement.

It's just out of the place, the way Bowie was out of his mind at the time. Not really beautiful, or attractive to the random buyer... just weird and fascinating.