Outta Sight Album Covers of the ’70s (from Punk to Funk)

By Douglas Newman
July 17th, 2008

I recently posted an article that surveyed some of my favorite jazz album covers. In this installment of “Album Art as Fine Art,” I’ll list some of my top sleeve designs in rock, glam, funk and punk circa the 1970s. The seventies was a fertile time for music. Sure, the 1960’s spawned Sgt. Pepper’s, but the 70’s dawned with Plastic Ono Band, an equally jarring masterpiece. But that’s a debate for another time. On to the round-up!

ROCK
	Surf’s Up by The Beach Boys (1971): It was a dark time for The Beach Boys when Surf’s Up was released in 1971. The 1960’s golden boys of sunny California pop music were in a downward spiral and leader Brian Wilson was depressed and obsessed with death. The cover of Surf’s Up, based on James Earl Fraser’s End of the Trail statue, perfectly captures the feeling of despair surrounding the band. Up to this point, The Beach Boys were always associated with bright imagery and good time music.
	Space Ritual by Hawkwind (1973) Nothing conveys what a space ritual might look like more than this cover for the classic Hawkwind album. A psychedelic space rock opera. Far out!
	Who’s Next by The Who (1971) There’s something grimy and in-your-face about the cover of The Who’s 1971 masterpiece. Taken at Easington Colliery, the photo shows a large concrete piling protruding from a slag heap, stained by the fresh urine of the four band members. Punk before punk.
PUNK
	Horses by Patti Smith (1975) I would love to have been old enough in 1975 to listen to Horses when it was first released. I can imagine how startling it would have sounded at the time, considering it predated the coming punk explosion by at least a year. The rawness of her delivery, the immediacy of her lyrics, the crude garage-inspired instrumentation, and the stark, simple cover photograph by Robert Mapplethorpe all converge to create a near perfect statement from one of rock’s premier poets. Completely devoid of any grand design gestures, the stark photograph of Patti nonetheless speaks volumes about the transcendent music that lurks behind the cardboard sleeve.
	Metal Box by Public Image Ltd. (1979) True to its name, Metal Box, the second album from the incomparable John Lydon, Jah Wobble and crew came encased in a round metal film canister with the P/I/L logo embossed on the top piece. The cold, metallic “cover” nicely represented the challenging, dubby post-punk warbles of the music inside.
	Pink Flag by Wire (1977) The simple, angular cover art goes hand in hand with Wire’s sharp, sparse art-punk. A complete package of sublime minimalism.
FUNK
Free Your Mind / Maggot Brain / Uncle Jam Wants You by Funkadelic (1970/1971/1979) Most people prefer the outlandish cosmic cartoons of Cosmic Slop, One Nation Under a Groove and Hardcore Jollies, and while I acknowledge their brilliance, I lean towards the simpler photographic style of Free Your Mind…, Maggot Brain, and Uncle Jam Wants You. I mean, what band other than Funkadelic can make being buried alive and attacked by maggots look like so much fun. Listen to the music and you’ll know why.
	There’s a Riot Goin’ On by Sly & the Family Stone (1971) The cover of There’s a Riot Goin’ On is a simple, yet powerful political statement, especially given the title of the album. Undeniably subversive, but not in your face. It’s a dark turn for the merry funksters. As Stephen Thomas Erlewine comments, “This is idealism soured, as hope is slowly replaced by cynicism, joy by skepticism, enthusiasm by weariness, sex by pornography, thrills by narcotics.”
Thrust and Flood by Herbie Hancock (1974/1975) In the 1970s, Herbie had a string of cosmic covers that perfectly encapsulated the far-out funk of his new jazz fusion experiments. While Headhunters is the most well known, I prefer the wackiness of Thrust and Flood. Herbie as intergalactic space traveler, bringin’ da funk to distant galaxies.
GLAM
	Electric Warrior by T. Rex (1971) The first true glam rock classic, Electric Warrior has an infectious swagger that still sounds fresh today. The album cover, with Marc Bolan’s glowing silhouette playing his axe in front of a stack of amplifiers, screams “rock and roll” and preps you for the zip-gun boogies to come.
	Country Life by Roxy Music (1974) Not much needs to be said about this one. A brilliant marketing ploy if ever there was one. No better way to get teenage boys to buy your record than to slap two topless (and practically bottomless) ladies on your album cover. Country Life was released in 1974, so you can imagine how shocking it was back then. Thankfully, the music behind the provocative sleeve delivers, as Country Life stands as one of Roxy Music’s most consistent records. A true glam rock classic.
	Aladdin Sane by David Bowie (1973) Stepping out of Ziggy Stardust’s shadow, Aladdin Sane finds Bowie developing a new character and adding avant garde flourishes to his signature glam rock sound. The record found Bowie unsure of his future as a pop star, split between a craving for the glamor of stardom and the mundanity of a normal life. This ’schizophrenic’ feeling is represented both by the origin of the album’s title (a play on “a lad insane”) and by the cover shot, which features make-up of a glittery lightning bolt bisecting his face.
DISCO
	Butt of Course by The Jimmy Castor Bunch (1975) No, that’s not a misspelling in the title. A singing and dancing cavewoman with a bare breast hanging out of her furry one piece and a caped, Afro-clad superhero beaming his pearly whites. Sure, make’s perfect sense.
	Disco-Tex & The Sex-O-Lettes by Disco Tex & His Sex-O-Lettes (1975) Another classic illustration for another classic disco album title. Disco Tex was big pimpin’!
	Sesame Street Fever by Grover et. al (1977) Travolta’s got nothing on Grover and the Bee Gees pale in comparison to the superstar trio of Cookie Monster, Bert, and Ernie. Disco’s true kings!

——-
So many great album covers to share with you good people. What are some of your favorites from this era? Stay tuned for future installments of sleeves from the sixties and eighties.

Add a Comment

COMMENTS (16)

Thos Weatherby said:

How about “Weasels Rip My Flesh”, by Zappa?

Stop Smoking said:

Grover dancing to disco? Classic.

Josh Wright said:

Wow what a blast down memory lane that was! Amazing. Boy do I remember “Country Life”. I dont know any teenage boy who didnt have that one! LOL. Funny thing is, I cant remember one song fro mthe album but I sure remember the cover.

JT
http://www.Ultimate-Anonymity.com

Ahmet said:

Or how about “Weasels Ripped My Flesh” by Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, which is an actual album?

Arte nas Capas de Discos | [Coió Online] said:

[...] mais. Algumas até caíram no esquecimento. E foi justamente pensando nisso o blog JamsBio reuniu algumas capas históricas de álbuns famosos dos anos [...]

crowbarred said:

And …. we cant forget “Diamond Dogs” by David Bowie, can we

Raydeen said:

Brain Salad Surgery by ELP. The original fold out version was the best.

loomis said:

The Jimmy Castor bunch were funk, not disco. Ever heard Troglodyte?

DeadHead said:

How could you forget AoxomoxoA

Ed said:

Bloodrock - Bloodrock USA album was pretty disturbing. Left me with nightmares when I was a kid and went to the record section of the local Two Guys. Yikes!

Merton said:

No Queen? For SHAME. “A Night at the Opera”, which Freddie Mercury himself designed, or “News of the World” by famous Sci-fi artist Frank Kelly Freas were both iconic and gorgeous. Of course, I ought to be used to Queen never getting the recognition they deserve in this country. At least the entire rest of the world understands how great they were.

Zac said:

I like:
Grateful Dead - Grateful Dead
Grateful Dead - Live\Dead
Hendrix- Axis: Bold as Love
Hendrix- Band of Gypsies
Simon and Garfunkle- Sounds of Silence
Jackson C. Frank- Jackson C. Frank
The Smiths- The Queen is Dead

There’s some new album covers that I like a lot. Too bad album art is a dying trade. Now that it’s not 12″ and in your face it’s almost been lost.

Katie said:

Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. ‘Nuf said.

Joe | A New Band A Day said:

I love There’s a Riot Goin’ On - it’s so simple but effective. The expectation is that there’s something altered about the flag, to try to be obviously subversive - but it’s not. The message is simple and startk- great.

Joe - http://www.anewbandaday.com

RPO said:

sesame Street Fever… really?

t post sleeves said:

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Outta Sight Album Covers of the ’70s (from Punk to Funk)

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