A BRIEF HISTORY OF ALBUM COVER ART IN JAZZ

In 1939, the art director at Columbia Records, Alex Steinweiss, realized that the record industry had to make their record covers more appealing so as to attract potential buyers for their art form. It was not enough to denote an artist’s product by simply stamping their name in black and gold paper sleeves for 78rpm records. One could not distinguish one record from another.

The challenge for designers now became to produce an accurate visualization of the music. Some of the early albums by artists such as Charley Parker did not reflect or measure his level of innovation and excitement. During their time of trial and error, an American jazz lover, Alfred Lion, was attempting to start a new jazz label called Blue Note, which would allow musicians like Clifford Brown, Hank Mobley, and Dexter Gordon, as well as designers such as john Hermansader, free reign, to create complex music like bop that could be matched by bold colours and imagery on the album covers. Then along came the brilliant Reid Miles in 1955 to further advance the Blue Note signature, while working tirelessly on over 500 album covers in a 12″ framework. Many of the covers have become as iconic as the music itself; not only thanks to the imagination of Miles but also to the groundwork of Hermansader and photographer Frank Wolff. If one was to define the Blue Note style, it would be safe to surmise that it involves a unique text placement, dynamic layout, and vivid colour schemes. The greatest flattery that can be bestowed on this pioneering record label is that not only other labels followed their pathway, but also media platforms like Spotify advertising their products. Many of these historic designs can certainly stand on their own, as expressive, stimulating works of art. When was the last time you purchased an album mainly for its cover?

ESSENTIAL JAZZ ALBUM COVER ART

1. Dave Brubeck Qt. – Newport 1958 or the cover from Time Magazine {Columbia}
2. Oscar Peterson Trio Play The Irving Berlin Songbook {Verve 1959?}
3. Ella Fitzgerald At The Hollywood Bowl-The I. Berlin Songbook {Verve 2022}
4. Thelonius Monk – Monk/Straight No Chaser {Col. 196?}
5. Jimmy Rowles Sextet – For People Who Hate Jazz {Tampa 195?}
6. Herb Ellis & Red Mitchell – Diggin’ Around (Concord 1989)
7. Charlie Mingus – Tonight At Noon (Atlantic 1964)
8. Sun Ra – Standards (Org Music 2018)
9. John Coltrane – Chasing Trane OST (Impulse 2017)
10. Vince Guaraldi Trio – Jazz Impressions of a Boy Named Charlie Brown (Fantasy 2015?) with lithographs of all the characters
11. Joe Pass – Blues For Fred (Astaire) (fantasy/Pablo 1988)
12. Charlie Parker With Strings – Alternate Takes (Verve/UMG 2019)
13. Stanley Turrentine & Oliver Nelson – Joyride (Blue Note 1984)