embarassing album covers

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so have there ever been any albums that you've put off buying (or not bought at all) because of their "offensive" album covers? have you ever taken any shit from a shop assistant for buying said (or different) album?

― jess, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

fer instance i still haven't bought the "now thing" comp. becuz of that row of, uh, amply endowed cartoon ladies.

― jess, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I bought a comp called "Summer Booty Party" from Reckless Records. The cover showed several young women enjoying said Summer Booty Party in a cartoon style. The DJ pictures was providing the party, the women were providing the booty. I got a very hard glare from the woman in a Roots shirt who was behind the counter.

― Tom, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

When I worked in a record shop a long time ago I used to feel a prickle of morbid embarrassment every time I sold a copy of the Happy Mondays' Bummed. I was nineteen and had tender sensibilities ; now I can't even remember what the cover was, though I think I bought it myself (double prickle of embarrassment).

― Ellie, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

we can also expand the question if you like to include bands themselves who are embarassing. not from a quality standpoint (although that might factor into it), but from a equally "offensive"/"repulsive" history/reputation/aesthetic.

― jess, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

On the other side of this coin, I used to praise customers at the record shop I used to work at if I liked their choices. One day, a customer berated me for praising him, saying: 'And what do you say to the people whose taste you don't like?' Very altruistic, I'm sure. As for your question, there's a Marcos Valle album which has such an irritating cover that I can't imagine ever buying it. In addition to being a cheap, crap cover (supping cocktails by a pool) it also suggests I'm not going to like the music. Maybe I shouldn't be so prejudiced, but I feel disinclined to investigate.

― Daniel, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Supping cocktails by the pool

That should be the cover of the next Nick Cave album.

― Billy Dods, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

if i could buy a Jonathan King Box Set in HMV this week I would. (Seriously: I detested him for decades before it was popular or profitable, well profitable, but now I am somewhat unsatisfied w.this stance...)

I am however kind of assuming I will have to get it off forcedexposure.com in a year or so

― mark s, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

My local Virgin has a J King box set. Think its 6cds or something. There is no track listing on the outside merely a self-aggrandising blurb by King about how ace he's always been. Scarily, think it includes unreleased demos too.

Don't think I could bear the torture of listening to any of it even for comedy reasons.

― mms, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Supping cocktails by the pool -
That should be the cover of the next Nick Cave album.

...and the title.

― Dave225, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Bummed has the naughty bits on the inside sleeve. You must have peeked.

― g, Friday, 11 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Gentle Giant's _Acquiring The Taste_ has, ironically, the most tasteless cover I've ever seen in my life. Truly off-putting, and not in a cool or hip way. Just awful.

― zoombob, Sunday, 13 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

'Doggystyle', Snoop Doggy Dogg. What a dreadful, tasteless, moronic, cretinous, unfunny cover. If it was in brighter colors it might've been crass and tacky enough to raise a smile, but as it is it's just nauseating. Some acquaintances shook their heads in disappointment at how I could buy something that looked so ugly and stupid, and what's more, I had to agree with them.

― dave q, Sunday, 13 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Actually, the same goes for almost all of Snoop's covers. Who is this Joe Cool retard? Is he an actual graphic artist (i.e., other people besides Mr. Dogg pay him to do stuff too), or just a member of the posse or what?

― dave q, Sunday, 13 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

http://www.peanutscollectorclub.com/joecool2.gif
=
http://www.snoop-dogg.com/images/pics/2.gif
?

― jess, Sunday, 13 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I put off buying the Strokes album because of the cover of the import version...not that I found it offensive so much as just plain dummmmb. Maybe it's old age paranoia setting in prematurely, but I hate covers that would make me feel like a dirty old man bringing them up to the counter. Or a horny teenager, for that matter. At any rate, the fractal cover is much nicer, thank you.

― Sean Carruthers, Sunday, 13 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Though I love most of those records, every goddamn Beach Boys album cover is embarrassing -- except for "Surf' Up" and "20/20". Maybe I'll excuse "Holland", "Wild Honey", and "Pet Sounds".

The most embarrassing, though, is the Velvet Underground's "1969: The Velvet Underground Vol. 1". I mean, at least if the hinder was attractive...

― Brian MacDonald, Sunday, 13 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I thought they were particle trails, not fractals.

― Josh, Monday, 14 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I was once quite embarrassed buying Prince's Lovesexy.

Woolworths shopgirl #1: He's got quite nice legs, hasn't he?

Woolworths shopgirl #2: Yeah, for a GIRL.

Tim Hopkins once told me that as a general rule when buying 70s reggae albums, the more embarrassingly lurid the sleeve, the better the record.

― N., Monday, 14 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

You're most likely right, Josh. I was so relieved not to have to buy the other version that I didn't even pay close attention to what those patterns actually were.

― Sean Carruthers, Monday, 14 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The original pressing of Smell the Glove was pretty offensive. I'm glad Polymer Records pulled the plugs on that one.

― Dave225, Monday, 14 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Shit sandwich.

― Sean Carruthers, Monday, 14 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Emerson, Lake, & Palmer's "Love Beach" is the answer to ALL threads, but especially this one.

I was fairly embarrassed bringing Hawkwind's "Space Ritual" up to the counter, but I did it. Also, covers with scantily-clad women that make you look like a perv living vicariously through your record collection (cf. Roxy Music's "Country Life").

I draw the line at Guru Guru's "Hinten", though. Come on, one must have some standards!

― Joe, Wednesday, 16 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Or, for goodness, what's so embarrassing about a painted German arse?

Though, I think the following's the winner...there's a Dennis Coffey record out there which has an "action" photo of an African American woman clinging to her basket of fried chicken..("Finger Lickin' Good" is it?) Darla actually appropriated this as the cover of one of their gazillion "Darla has a treat for you" comps...

― Brian MacDonald, Wednesday, 16 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Was that the one with the two girls covered in chocolate and cream? That cover made me feel all fluttery inside.

― electric sound of jim, Wednesday, 16 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

What's so embarassing about the "Space Ritual" cover? What's extra- cool about it is that it opens up to become the biggest fold-out I've ever seen.

― Sean, Wednesday, 16 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

― Devin, Wednesday, 16 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

― Hahaha, Wednesday, 16 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Gangsta Boo, the loving female that gave the world such jems as Suck A Little Dick and Nasty Trick.
Their was an album cover of a supposed fetus in a toliet from I think Necropolis records. Can't remeber the band name for the life of me.
Im not offended by those Cash Money record covers as their just too hilariously stupid. There was one with some gangstar on the cover and bombs all over the sky that was a riot.

― Mr Noodles, Wednesday, 16 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Hey, no-one's mentioned the Royal Trux one with the somewhat revolting toilet pic on the cover.

― electric sound of jim, Wednesday, 16 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

three years pass...

http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000024W6H.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 16 April 2005 01:24 (twenty years ago)

I never even noticed the butt shot on that record until my mother pointed it out one day in the car. She then looked through the booklet and found the gay porn story about the sewage worker. It was all kind of awkward.

― jason., Saturday, 16 April 2005 02:29 (twenty years ago)

I bet. As I described on another thread, I was working a late shift at the office earlier in the week and had wrong assumed everyone had gone home. I put on Horse Rotorvator really loudly, and a copy editor came into my office -- looking alarmed -- during "The Anal Staircase". Ummmm....awkward.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 16 April 2005 02:32 (twenty years ago)

the good thing about being Italian it is that your mother generally can't understand the lyrics. i could listen to all the most offensive songs without any problem - my mum even liked that really obscene marc almond song called "catch a fallen star".
but you had to be careful with album covers...

― Marco Damiani (Marco D.), Saturday, 16 April 2005 14:12 (twenty years ago)

twelve years pass...

https://img.discogs.com/XXjp7s-om7h_t-0b0VXB7oNKxn4=/fit-in/529x529/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-2128727-1281057934.jpeg.jpg

I'm a little disappointed in subtle and lyrical jazz guitarist Jim Hall for doing a "feeding her the sausage" album cover.

― the last famous person you were surprised to discover was actually (man alive), Tuesday, 5 September 2017 02:13 (eight years ago)

jim o rourke is good at this

― Week of Wonders (Ross), Tuesday, 5 September 2017 02:28 (eight years ago)

New Morrissey album to thread.

― Dan Worsley, Sunday, 10 September 2017 17:26 (eight years ago)

Who I am kidding, as if I'm going to buy a new Morrissey album.

― Dan Worsley, Sunday, 10 September 2017 17:27 (eight years ago)

three months pass...

http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000024W6H.02.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

can't believe no one has defended this since alex posted it in 2005. it's a great cover, makes me want to check out music by scatology

― Karl Malone, Tuesday, 12 December 2017 16:00 (eight years ago)

compare it to this album cover from acclaimed tastemakers LCD Soundsystem

https://i.imgur.com/uGKNltY.jpg

― Karl Malone, Tuesday, 12 December 2017 16:01 (eight years ago)

I still cannot believe that LCD cover is real and not just one of those generic placeholders that sites like to use on upcoming big releases w/ no available cover art

― frogbs, Tuesday, 12 December 2017 16:29 (eight years ago)

^^ nailed it. it's a stock image.

― ♫ very clever with maracas.jpg ♫ (Le Bateau Ivre), Tuesday, 12 December 2017 17:04 (eight years ago)

Which is way more embarrassing than the Coil cover fuiud

― ♫ very clever with maracas.jpg ♫ (Le Bateau Ivre), Tuesday, 12 December 2017 17:04 (eight years ago)

jim o rourke is good at this

― Week of Wonders (Ross), Monday, September 4, 2017 10:28 PM (three months ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

hard disagree on this one, the Drag City records have awesome covers

― flappy bird, Tuesday, 12 December 2017 19:56 (eight years ago)

When I was a teen I would've been pretty embarrassed if my parents found eureka tho. Sure they're good covers ya

― In a slipshod style (Ross), Tuesday, 12 December 2017 20:59 (eight years ago)

my contribution to this thread would be every single Gary Numan album. it's kind of charming how consistently bad they are, even to the present day.

― frogbs, Tuesday, 12 December 2017 21:07 (eight years ago)

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