This week’s special post is the third “episode” of a series that goes through the best album covers of music history of the last 50 years. This time we’re going back to my favourite decade: the 80s. That this decade was a golden age or music is well-known, so if would be difficult to make a selection of the best albums (musically speaking), it wasn’t also easy for me to choose my favourite 25 album covers. Like music, also graphic design was evolving and so through the years artists, bands & designers became increasingly careful and accurate about the design, like they’re principal aim was to “prepare” visually the listener. Another characteristic of this decade’s album artworks was the first appearance in the early 80s of the “hand” of computerised effects, like the pixelated effect on Talking Head’s album “Remain in Lights” for example. Well.. enjoy this selection of album artworks and maybe then choose one to listen to and get inspired for some awesome 80s graphics like I did!
HOT SPACE (1982) – QUEEN
REMAIN IN LIGHT (1980) – TALKING HEADS
LET’S DANCE (1983) – DAVID BOWIE
FEAR AND WHISKEY (1985) – MEKONS
ALMOST BLUE (1981) – ELVIS COSTELLO
RECKONING (1984) – R.E.M.
SISTER (1987) – SONIC YOUTH
THE SKY’S GONE OUT (1982) – BAUHAUS
THRILLER (1982) – MICHAEL JACKSON
RAISE YOUR FIST AND YELL (1987) – ALICE COOPER
ZEN ARCADE (1984) – HUSKER DU
IMPERIAL BEDROOM (1982) – ELVIS COSTELLO
SCARY MONSTERS (AND SUPER CREEPS) (1980) – DAVID BOWIE
COMPUTER WORLD (1981) – KRAFTWERK
COME ON PILGRIM (1987) – PIXIES
SPEAKING IN TONGUES (1983) – TALKING HEADS
PSYCHOCANDY (1985) – THE JESUS AND MARY CHAIN
DOOLITTLE (1989) – PIXIES
SYNCHRONICITY (1983) – THE POLICE
JEOPARDY (1980) – THE SOUND
DEATH CHURCH (1983) – RUDIMENTARY PENI
THE COLOUR OF SPRING (1986) – TALK TALK
5150 (1986) – VAN HALEN
ASTRA (1985) – ASIA
HEARTATTACK AND VINE (1980) – TOM WAITS
