Album Covers At Which You've Spent a Lot of Time Staring

[JKL2000]

With or without music is fine. Discuss if you wish. I'll go first:

This one's pretty ugly, but it fascinates me. Is it an overhead view of someone standing on a rickety, wooden bridge, in the rain? I THINK so (Surrounded, too, by "spirits" which are providing the wind). The music is equally fascinating, of course (now playing, too). I've included a copy without the YouTube "play" triangle, which obscures the very center of the image, of course, because that center part is needed to tell that it's a person standing there. Go to Discogs to see the rest of the album artwork, which I don't think I'd seen, as the Musea release doesn't include it!:

[SunRunner2]

Pulsars "Strands" is a creepy cover alright and a outstanding album indeed.

So many stare-able album covers come to mind, however, I've always been fascinated by Memoriance's "Et Apres" and the various Moody Blues covers from the "Classic Seven" run.

[Progatron]

The Black Sabbath debut comes to mind. That one really nails the creepy/evil vibe in a mysterious way, rather than cartoonish. I've spent a lot of time looking at that one.

Nursery Cryme is another, I was utterly fascinated by it as a kid and I still have a nostalgic fondness for it - the back cover too, all part of the one big painting.

[miamiscot]

As a child I must have spent weeks staring at Roger Dean's covers...

Tales and Relayer most of all.

[Interstellar]

Another vote for the Black Sabbath debut. It adds to the impression that it was a perfect start : the right artwork, the perfect opening track which is also the name of the band.

In my teenage years, I found the cover art for Iron Maiden's Powerslave fascinating, because it had so many details that pointed toward the previous albums and singles.

I also loved Ange's classic 70s vinyl album covers, which had a lot of cartoonish details that disappeared from the CD versions. There was a world of weird, dreamy poetry in those pictures.

[loshammeros]

Uriah Heep ~ Look At Yourself ( when I need a good scare)

[markwoll]

From The Mars Hotel - Grateful Dead
Ummagumma - Pink Floyd

[Dave (in MA)]

Trying to figure out what the white text says. I had it for at least a few months before I noticed that there *was* white text. Brilliant.

[Sturgeon's Lawyer]

As a teenaged boy, I spent a lot of time, uh, staring at this one:

[loshammeros]

As a teenaged boy, I spent a lot of time, uh, staring at this one:

For those of us with original copies

[Dave (in MA)]

All of the Anthony Phillips albums that featured Peter Cross paintings have had extended viewings. Here's one.



They didn't have the same impact in the CD era.

[interbellum]

^^^Yeah, those Anthony Phillips-covers by Peter Cross were a joy for the eye!
Of course there is a lot to discover on Marillion's first couple of covers by Mark Wilkinson, especially when you also bought the 12"-singles on which covers those characters returned.
Ah, too many to mention. Hugh Syme (Rush), Hipgnosis.

Speaking of:

[Munster]

As a teenaged boy, I spent a lot of time, uh, staring at this one:

I read somewhere that these two were the girlfriend and sister of Michael Karoli, Can's guitarist

[Lopez]

Most of the Hipgnosis covers - trying to figure out the story, such as Audience's House on the Hill cover.

audience.jpg

[ThomasKDye]

The Black Sabbath debut comes to mind. That one really nails the creepy/evil vibe in a mysterious way, rather than cartoonish. I've spent a lot of time looking at that one.

I agree, it's fascinatingly creepy. It makes me wonder why they just half-assed most of their covers after that one.

[roylayer]

As a teenaged boy, I spent a lot of time, uh, staring at this one:

I also spent hours staring at the cover of Country Life. I couldn't figure out what the big deal was. :-D

[JKL2000]

The Black Sabbath debut comes to mind. That one really nails the creepy/evil vibe in a mysterious way, rather than cartoonish. I've spent a lot of time looking at that one.

Nursery Cryme is another, I was utterly fascinated by it as a kid and I still have a nostalgic fondness for it - the back cover too, all part of the one big painting.

Yes, the Foxtrot cover as well! Some people criticize Paul Whitehead's artistic skill, but I think it's his primitivism that makes these covers so fascinating, and makes you ponder them for extended periods. It's the fact that some of the relationships between objects, the faulty
scale and perspective, are crudely depicted, that draws the viewer in, IMO. Also, just trying to figure out WTF certain things are, like the bat-monkeys on horseback, or whatever!

[JKL2000]

I also spent hours staring at the cover of Country Life. I couldn't figure out what the big deal was. :-D

It's just a nice bush.

[JKL2000]

From The Mars Hotel - Grateful Dead
Ummagumma - Pink Floyd

Ummagumma, definitely. The Dead cover I stared at the most was Aoxomaxoa.

[Bake 2]

AOXOMOXOA ...one of Griffin's best. The black piece of plastic inside was a big letdown.
maxresdefault.jpg
68645efb371e1ef1ee5659deec282c94.jpg

[rapidfirerob]

The inside gatefold of The Allman Brothers- Eat A Peach, for one.

[JKL2000]

AOXOMOXOA ...one of Griffin's best. The black piece of plastic inside was a big letdown.

Really? I like it. I mean, it's not the Dead live, but still, some good songs there, IMO.

[proggy_jazzer]

I remember a night of my youth hanging at a friend's house when he put this on. I spent so much of my attention staring at the cover I barely remember hearing the music...

todd.jpg

[SunRunner2]

Kim Poor's various cover paintings were masterful and stare crazy, including "Voyage" and "Beyond Panic".

Voyage.jpg

Beyond.jpg

[dgtlman]

The inside gatefold of The Allman Brothers- Eat A Peach, for one.

Yep! Especially when high


maxresdefault.jpg