The Guide to Album Covers by Comic Book Artists 1/22/11

CSBG Archive

by Brian Cronin | January 22, 2011 @ 10:48 AM | 19 Comments |

Here’s the deal – the end goal is to get the ultimate guide to albums covers drawn by comic book artists. Every Saturday, I’ll post ten album covers by comic book artists.

I’ll add these ten to the master list (which you can find here).

What you do is that you e-mail me albums (at bcronin@comicbookresources.com) that you’d like me to feature, and I’ll keep adding them until we have THE ultimate guide to album covers drawn by comic book artists!

Here are the next ten albums!

Enjoy!

Soooo many people sent in suggestions that I really don’t have the time to detail who suggested what. Feel free to note in the comments section if a particular album cover was suggested by you!

Do note that I’m not counting covers where the comic book artist just did, say, the logo or just designed the cover.

Alphabetical by Artist, then Chronological by Album

Allred, Michael

The Gear, Son of Red Rocket 7 (1998)

Bagge, Peter

George Thorogood & the Destroyers, Haircut (1993)

Burns, Charles

Various Artists, Sub-pop 200 (1988)

Chaykin, Howard

The Hood, Cooler Than Thou (1987)

Collins, Mike

ShyFX and T-Power, Set it Off (2002)

(Mike was nice enough to send in this cover himself)

Gibbons, Dave

Kula Shaker, K (1994)

Jusko, Joe

Overlord X, X Versus the World (1990)

Sienkiewicz, Bill

Bruce Cockburn, The Charity of Night (1996)

Texeira, Mark

Public Enemy, Muse Sick-n-Hour Mess Age (1994)

Windsor-Smith, Barry

The Byrds, Preflyte (1973 Columbia re-issue)

So get suggesting!

Send your ideas (and if you have jpegs, send them, too!) to bcronin@comicbookresources.com

Also, if you have better quality JPEGs than the ones I’m using, feel free to send them in (like if I only have a small image, for instance).

Comments below

19 Comments

Graeme Burk

January 22, 2011 at 11:05 am

I know Sienkiewicz’s own website has the version with the actual title on the album cover, which may have been an early design he submitted, but in the end, the album was actually released with just the artwork, sans lettering. Here’s an example.

http://i35.tinypic.com/29pxi6w.jpg

Jordan D. White

January 22, 2011 at 11:10 am

Dave Johnson did a cover for one of my favorite bands, Get Set Go.

http://img529.imageshack.us/i/veruinedyourlifebygetse.jpg/sr=1

buttler

January 22, 2011 at 11:24 am

My first thought with that Mike Collins cover was, “Whoa, Darkstars come in different colors? I hope nobody tells Geoff Johns!”

Marcus Bruté

January 22, 2011 at 1:15 pm

Here’s a good one: Wu Massacre by Meth, Ghost and Rae drawn by Chris Bachalo & inked by Tim Townsend (plus the three alternate covers)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wu-Massacre

theConundrumm

January 22, 2011 at 2:13 pm

… and Dave McKean for… ach, where to start..? I like the one that he did by that band…

"O" the Humanatee!

January 22, 2011 at 2:34 pm

Not only has Jim Woodring done art for his friend, noted jazz guitarist Bill Frisell’s, albums’ Gone, Just Like a Train (http://www.billfrisell.com/artists/Frisell/frisell_gjlat.html) and With Dave Holland and Elvin Jones (http://www.billfrisell.com/artists/Frisell/frisell_dhej.html); but Frisell did music for Woodring’s little book Trosper (http://www.billfrisell.com/merch/trosper.html) and the two have collaborated on a live show called Mysterio Simpatico (http://www.jimwoodring.com/gallerypages/arsgratia/artmysterio.html). Mysterio Simpatico has not, to my knowledge, been released in any recorded form.

Given Robert Crumb’s affection for “old-timey” music, it’s no surprise that he’s done many, many covers – including on records by his own Cheap Suit Serenaders. The site/thread http://rateyourmusic.com/list/darb321/album_covers_by_r__crumb lists and shows over 80 covers by Crumb. These include some non-old-timey stuff and a few bootlegs.

Curiously, Walt Kelly did cover art for Songs of the Pogo (http://www.amazon.com/Songs-Pogo-Walt-Kelly/dp/B00008OM8O), but that’s kind of a cheat, since he wrote them. 8^)

The Holy Grail for this topic has to be a classical album with art by a comic book artist. Does anyone know of one?

ramirez

January 22, 2011 at 5:00 pm

P. Craig Russell has drawn a few covers for classical music albums…

gitley

January 22, 2011 at 5:37 pm

Billy the Sink also did a killer cover (front and back, actually) for RZA’s first Bobby Digital album:

http://sleevage.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/08/00-rza-as_bobby_digital_in_stereo-front.jpg

http://sleevage.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/08/rza-as_bobby_digital_in_stereo-back.jpg

and Frank Quitely did a single cover for something called the Phantom Band:

http://c3.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images02/73/l_fca52e02f63345ddba78a7f3a506971a.jpg

Calvin

January 22, 2011 at 5:49 pm

what’s even more interesting is the amazing number of comic artists who have done Criterion collection covers.

T.

January 22, 2011 at 7:10 pm

what’s even more interesting is the amazing number of comic artists who have done Criterion collection covers.

That would be a cool future feature. Also cool would be if Brian eventually did comic artists who did book covers, particularly fiction.

On a site with a long history of really cool features, this is by far one of the best!

Michael Cavna

January 22, 2011 at 10:46 pm

Brian…
excellent topic. here are my top-5 covers by cartoonists (not just comic-book artists):
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/comic-riffs/2009/09/tom_tomorrows_art_featured_on.html

–M.C.

Tim B.

January 23, 2011 at 12:30 am

Grant Morrison & Frank Quitely did the design and artwork for Robbie Williams’s 2005 Intensive Care album

Blair

January 23, 2011 at 11:16 am

What about Jeffrey Lewis? Aside from doing all the art on his CDs he also produces a great comic book called ‘Fuff’ (aka ‘Guff’). He’s also done lectures on ‘Watchmen’ and he loves ROM! What’s not to like?