Been an eternity since a cover art post.
What better reason to dust off some interesting album covers than the current ‘Dune’ series?
So don your hat and sandals, slop on some sunscreen and let’s get sandy!
THE ALBUMS
Gong — Shamal [Virgin 1975]
Helmet — Dead To The World [Ear Music 2016]
Uriah Heep — Head First [Bronze 1983]
Dave Greenslade / Patrick Woodroffe — Pentateuch of the Cosmogony [EMI 1979]
Feature Image: John Williams — Travelling [Cube Records 1978]
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Despite loving the jazz-fusion era of Gong (from which Shamal comes) the only one of these albums I’ve written about is the Greenslade/Woodroffe, a rare example of a VC panning. You can read the post here.
Don’t know much of Uriah Heep in the eighties and never heard any Helmet. Am I missing out? And what about the dune-covers? Any reactions?
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vinylconnection.com.au 
Helmet are brilliant, really riffy mean, percussive music.
I love the John Williams cover.
I’d add the Harvest ‘Picnic – A Breath of Fresh Air’ compilation.
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OK, thanks. Will have a listen sometime.
Harvest ‘Picnic – A Breath of Fresh Air’ looks like a tasty compilation, but I was avoiding beaches in this set (hence no Neil Young). So perhaps the Harvest comp will have to wait until my 24 part series on Bette Midler’s ‘Beaches’?
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I’ve set aside the whole of next Nevervember to read your Bette Midler post.
Doesn’t Dopesmoker have a Dune-like planet on the cover?
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It does. Good get.
Thanks to you and Victim, part two is now assured.
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I was thinking Tush’s Hemispheres, but that’s more rocks with maybe some sand in the background.
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And by Tush I mean Rush….
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I prefer Tush.
In fact, I think I’ll henceforth refer to the Canadian prog trio as Tush.
That has quite possibly made my day.
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There is unrest in the trousers
There is trouble with the tushes
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And birds in The Trees too?
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I like Heep, they are always just this side of silly, I have however not heard anything newer than Abominog which I thought was a great album as a teenager, I think the live radio broadcast of them at the TT Races was what won me over.
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‘Just this side of silly’ is pretty bloomin’ accurate.
TT Races, you say? I know them not.
Tiny Tots? Transverse Tarantulas? Tummy Tickle? Thirsty T-Rex?
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isle_of_Man_TT
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ROBIN TROWER: DAY OF THE EAGLE (The Best of Robin Trower)
(I assume this was just a ruse to draw me out…)
Also: Tinariwen: Elwan & ZZ Top: El Loco
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Yes. YES! And, er, loco!
(Whatever it takes, mate)
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‘Elegy’ by Nice. Great record and great early Hipgnosis cover.
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Nice one! How could I forget that?
Part 2 is gonna be longer than part 1!
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And another thing…though you’re quite harsh about ‘The Pentateuch’ record you’re on the money. Packaging though was magnificent as you said. Loved all of Greenslade’s group records, less love for his solo ‘Cactus Choir ‘ and pretty much zero for Pentateuch. Still play the original four as well as his Colosseum work.
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Same story hear, Chris, same story here.
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Some goodies here. The Helmet one reminds me of an album by yon Eagles lot.
Aside from Sleep’s Dopesmoker and the Top, I reckon Wishbone Ash’s Classic Ash is a good contender.
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Yep. The Ash is in the can already, J!
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I’m not sure if I have any desert covers – though that did not hinder my enjoyment of this collection in the slightest!
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I love tie-ins! Well dune!
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🤣
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[…] however, we are indebted to VC readers whose responses to part one included the albums you see […]
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My browser seems to have gobbled up the John Williams image…I see only 4 covers…?! The only artist I’ve heard of here is Heep, though doubt I’d recognize any of their stuff if I heard it. I just love that they’re named for a character in a Dickens novel! The Gong and Helmet covers remind me of the dunes at Erg Chebbi, in Morocco, a spot I visited close to 20 years ago.
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Ah, it depends on how you are browsing the site. The Williams is a ‘feature image’ – it appears via the Reader or on the VC home page.
Uriah Heep (as you say, wonderfully named) were an early ‘heavy rock’ band with lots of organ. Their first album (which featured in a VC album cover post this year) was called ‘Very ‘eavy, very ‘umble’.
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Just toggled into Reader and am glad I did. That Williams image is terrific!
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[…] its musicianship and slightly eccentric songs. The cover has appeared before, as part of the ‘Dune‘ series, which spawned two cover art posts. (The second of which is […]
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