"Selling" and "sellout" aren't the same thing. If you like prog-pop, this is the gold standard. Changes... Hold On.... Leave It.... It Can Happen.... Top-notch stuff. Better than the first Asia record for me. Anyway, Yes can claim both the first sampled drum break AND the first Fairlight orchestra stab on a #1 single. Pretty ahead of the curve for a "sellout" song.
So I’m coming at this strictly from the cover art standpoint. And I don’t think it’s just about bad art it has to be cheesy or somehow put you off. love beach and chicago hot streets will likely never be topped certainly for bands with major commercial appeal. but one that was maybe just for me is the white stripes elephant. I was a young fellow and loved white blood cells. But something about the kinda country getup Jack white had on put me off and I did not spend my allowance on it. Got the next one and loved it and eventually went back and have no real problem with the art nowadays. but true fact that art didn’t do it for me at that point.
The album title screams Mike Love Beach Boys type album. Heck, if the actual Beach Boys made "Love Beach" back in '78, it might have had positive reviews.
I don't know if this counts because it's a picture that's on the gatefold of Uriah Heep's 1979 "Fallen Angel" album. But when somebody bought the album, got it home, and took the shrink wrap off they would certainly see this picture. Myself, personally, I really enjoy this album. It's my favorite album they made with John Lawton as lead singer but the safe, white bread, men's-clothing-store-at-the-late-70s-shopping-mall grooming and clothing choices and the band interacting with the little brat girl like people have to do at family reunion's could make somebody be afraid that Uriah Heep has turned into a louder, longer haired Cowsill family. I like the music but there are a lot of fellow Heep fans who also MUSICALLY consider "Fallen Angel" to be one of Heep's "Love Beach offerings".
Marty McFly got in his DeLorean and picked up REO Speedwagon in 1979 and took them 10 years into the future to year 1989 and had them look at this thing that would be selling like hot cakes called 'hair metal'. Marty flew them back to 1979 with ideas they got looking at Britny Fox, Faster Pussycat and other suchlike CD and cassette covers 10 years in the future.
Indeed it is. To anyone under 40, it's basically the foundation of nearly all the popular music they've grown up listening to. Since we're on the Hoffman forum, let me use a better comparison: "I Feel Fine" by the Beatles. First #1 single to include guitar feedback. Is that also "a milestone to be proud of"? I guess it depends on whether you want an artist to keep recycling their earlier glories... or to evolve and experiment (or, to use your terminology, "sell out"). I'll take the latter every time, but hey.... There's fans of Herman's Hermits too!
I've got nothing against innovation. I've always loved prog. When I took up jazz, I didn't just hang with bop, but rather embraced avant garde as well. Ever expanding avenues of expression is great. But not everything new is a creative triumph.
Especially since Storm and Po set it up for realz with 700 beds and it started to rain and they had to start over another day.
Going For the One is one of Yes' BEST albums, but it was certainly hurt in sales with that awful album cover. Don't care about the symbolism. Just don't want to see that. Both musically and album-cover considered, I think you could make a better case for "Tormato" being their "Love Beach." This even though "On the Silent Wings of Freedom" is a superb Yes song. I guess "Love Beach" did have "Canario" so similar issue.