“I like to mess with reality…to bend reality. Some of my works beg the question of is it real or not?” - Storm Thorgerson
In the Fall of 1979, fresh out of High School, I landed a job at at the local record store. Licorice Pizza—named for an Abbot & Costello gag—was hiring Christmas help, and what started as seasonal employment grew into a five year stretch. The store was intoxicating, with the smell of glossy album sleeve printing, shrink wrap, and of course the beautiful vinyl of an era gone by. Out in the bins that wound their way through the store, lay an unexplored galaxy of every music imaginable, housed by beautiful designs that stoked the imagination.
Our assistant manager had a famed room, one that I was to visit just once. Spared of any furniture, the walls were lined with albums—thousands of albums, speaking all manner of musical language. Translating on their behalf, was the coveted Luxman turntable, with a bamboo needle that conveyed true warmth with the sound. I slid into the headphones, and floated away on endless waves of Brian Eno’s Music for Airports. I’m not sure how much time elapsed. It might have been hours; it could have been days. Nevertheless, it was an epiphany that would forever amplify my love of music.
Brand X’s 1977 release ‘Livestock’ was the first album that I bought unheard. I was taken by its cover, which depicted a limousine door suspended in space, out along a rural road. Two shapely legs protruded from the door, which opened up to a car that did not exist. The image was so spare and witty; the double entendre so clever, that I had to know what was inside. I was not disappointed. Looking for a fresh challenge, Phil Collins had partnered with a group of British jazz musicians, and the product was incendiary. The cover art had depicted so very well, music that was clever, conceptual, and well—different. Before long, I realized that much of the cool design work was coming from across the pond.
Hipgnosis took form in 1968, when British art students Storm Thorgerson and Aubrey Powell were approached by Pink Floyd to design the cover for ‘A Saucerful of Secrets’. Having studied film and photography, both knew their way around a darkroom, and their ensuing style would exploit that knowledge to the fullest, creating images that defied reality. Initially, the two gained access to the darkroom at The Royal College of Art. By 1970, Thorgerson and Powell opened their own studio, and would design such iconic covers such as Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ and Led Zeppelin’s ‘Houses of the Holy’. Their name, like their design, reflected a penchant for double meaning, with Hipgnosis being a homonym cobbled together from the words Hip and Gnosis (Gnosticism).
In 1974, Thorgerson and Powell were joined by designer and photographer Peter Christopherson, (founding member of Throbbing Gristle). In 1982, some 14 years after its inception, Hipgnosis closed its doors with nearly 200 albums to their credit. Their art had graced the covers of such artists as T. Rex, Peter Gabriel, ELO, AC/DC, Yes, XTC, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Todd Rundgren and many, many more. Their work would influence the development and functionality of Photoshop, and would pave the way for the surreal, treated and layered imagery with which we are so familiar today. Ask any designer what first turned them onto design. Chances are, they will get a wistful look in their eye, recalling countless hours spent laying on the bedroom floor, lost in the intersecting worlds of music and design.
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So the question remains, what pairs well with Hipgnosis? Clearly, something layered, complex and clever. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the beautiful, the talented, the multi-faceted 2006 Turley Pesenti Vineyard Zinfandel. This Paso Robles based winery makes some of the very best Zinfandel California has to offer. Year in and year out, it’s their Pesenti Vineyard designation that really sings to me. This wine is dense and extracted, with waves and waves of juicy raspberry, cherry, blackberry, spice, pepper, cedar and balsam. The nose is enormous, the color opaque, and the finish sails on and on.
Filed under: Design, The Fibonacci Design Group, LLC, Uncategorized, Zinfandel Tagged: | Aubrey Powell, Brand X, Brian Eno, Dark Side of the Moon, Hipgnosis, Houses of the Holy, Led Zeppelin, Licorice Pizza, Livestock, Music for Airports, Peter Christopherson, Photoshop, Pink Floyd, Records, Storm Thorgerson, Vinyl
G-Mann – It appears we have more in common then we knew, which is a good thing.
I too worked at LP in their heyday at the Canoga Park store, across from Topanga Plaza. I was not on the payroll, but just a kid in the mid-70′s creating some signage for their latest releases. I was paid via 45′s, LP’s, posters and some very cool promos … but I’m rambling here.
Your blog post hit home in many ways of a youthful past that I loved and miss when buying music today. When I first opened Led Zeppelin’s “Physical Graffiti” (couldn’t get this one for free on the day it was released in ’75), I remember carefully taking out the record sleeve as if it was a priceless work of art, which it was and still is. In fact, looking at it right now, it still has the original shrink wrap on it, along with the Licorice Pizza price tag of $7.99.
As you mentioned, many of the albums Hipgnosis created were works of art in both regards. If you don’t already, you should own a copy of the book “The Works of Hipgnosis: Walk Away Rene.” I would give you mine, but as I recall, I worked very hard (on something) to receive a free copy from my good friends at LP back in 1978. :-)
Still listening to vinyl, but not nearly often enough,
- Howard
Howard, why am I not surprised? Licorice Pizza was the perfect hybrid of commercial and indie record stores. I’ve reconnected—through FaceBook—with a few of the people I worked with some 29 years ago. That was a great time in life, and CD’s are no replacement for vinyl. The other perk, was the plethora of free tickets that flooded in the door every time a label rep came to visit. I remember getting last minute tickets to see Talking Heads’ ‘Remain in Light’ concert at The Greek Theater, and then meeting Terry Bozzio backstage. I recognized him from Frank Zappa and UK, and thought he was a nice guy.
Isn’t it sad that so many album covers today are pretty pictures of pretty performers? Nothing enticing to grab you… I still love the Nirvana cover with the baby underwater swimming. How can you resist playing?
Thanks for a walk-down-memory-lane post!
As an interesting side note, the baby on the cover of the Nirvana album is the son of our friend Renata. He’s now an adult, and works for Shepard Fairey’s studio.
I’m pretty sure Jonie B and I must have taken LP slicks, cut them up, and collaged them over shrink-wrapped LPs at the South Pas store, too. Ha!
Greg, I imagine the only pairing done to Hipnosis covers back then was with Mickey’s Big Mouth or boxed wine…
Too true, Oopsie! I picture you and Jonie B. cutting up warped returns of Cliff Richards or The Gap Band. And yes—Mickey’s Big Mouth, or the Long Island Ice Teas we made from the 32oz-ers procured from the Del Taco drive thru!