Here’s a departure from our many years of posting interesting cover art – the inner sleeve.  I found this one today and it made me nostalgic for those innovative years during the 1960’s when the record labels hired young people to do the marketing and gave them the freedom to be creative and groundbreaking, irreverent and anti-establishment.   You can see this in the packaging, liner notes, advertisements, billboards, promotions and collateral of the time.  Unfortunately, when the business got so big and bloated in the mid-seventies, the crazies that were running the asylum got put back in their rooms and corporate suits took back the reins.   Here’s an example from the guys in the marketing dept. of Buddah Records.  (Click on the cover to enlarge!)

“Temporary Sleeve”

“We sat around for a couple of weeks, here in our offices, trying to figure out what to put on our album sleeves.  It wasn’t easy.  We didn’t want to do a hard sell, the old “show-them-the-other-album-covers” approach … and we didn’t want to get esoteric and cute.  So we blew it!  We didn’t have it ready in time to go to press.  So we did this.  A non-sleeve … the softest sell in music business history.  Just let us say, however, that the album you are now holding is only part of THE BUDDAH GROUP.”

(10 votes, average: 4.60 out of 5)

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Buddy Johnson (with sis Ella on the mic)  “Walkin”  Mercury Records  (1957) A great swingin’ record with big band, honkin’ horns and smokin’ vocals melding R&B and blues into early Rock n’ Roll!  Art design by Darrill Connelly.  Woodrow Wilson “Buddy” Johnson (January 10, 1915 – February 9, 1977).  Nice review of the album with download here at the BeBop Wino blog.

(11 votes, average: 3.64 out of 5)

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“Music for RELAXATION”  Viennese Symphonic Orchestra  Plymouth Records  Budget label EZ classical for those undiscerning hi-fi owners looking something to have on in the background.  Aural wallpaper someone once called it.  A good book for mom.  A smoke for dad.  Kids like it too!

(11 votes, average: 3.55 out of 5)

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Black Slacks and Bobby Socks  HMV Records (UK)  Beautiful cover on this 1957 Rock ‘n Roll compilation featuring Joe Bennett and the Sparkletones, Danny and The Juniors, Earl Williams, Alan Dale, Johnny Janis, Hoke Simpson, Clint Miller, Jack Scott.

(19 votes, average: 4.21 out of 5)

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Tesoro de Exitos (Treasure of Hits)  Volume 1  Spanoramic Records  The cover model is none other than Miss High Fidelity 1959!  Another girl on pillows with records on the ground.

(13 votes, average: 3.54 out of 5)

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“Habit of Loving You” and “One Fine Day”  Two compilation EP’s from Sweden on Juke Box Records.  A series that featured comely ladies with their portable players.

(11 votes, average: 4.18 out of 5)

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CBS Special Products (UK)  Specially created for Carr’s “Sports” biscuits (?)  “Themes from James Bond Films”

(11 votes, average: 4.18 out of 5)

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Little Gerhard  “Rockin’ Ghosts”  Karusell Records (Sweden) (1956)

(12 votes, average: 4.25 out of 5)

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Pladetoppen Snurrer!   1959 pop compilation on Odeon Records (Denmark)

(16 votes, average: 4.06 out of 5)

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“As You Like It”  Decca Records (UK)  (1957) Mantovani:  Around the world / Mandolin Serenade; The Beverley Sisters:  Mr. Wonderful; Frank Chacksfield:  Your Love is My Love; Winifred Atwell:  Streets of Sorrento; Cyril Stapleton:  Forgotten Dreams; Vera Lynn:  The Faithful Hussar: Edmundo Ros: Go Home Baby, Go Home

(11 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)

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