Welcome to the Jungle

(Above) Jungle Doctor's Case Book by Paul White (1967)

The clear and quirky design & illustration of this cover first attracted me. I expected the contents to be quaint tales of medical missions, which they are. The heavy handed preaching that sets in and clobbers the life out of the stories is tedious however. So, enjoy the cover.

(Above) Flame of the Amazon by Eric Leyland (1952)



 "What he calls fun other people call DANGER"
The inside flap of the dust jacket also proclaims:
 "The boy who doesn't know David FLAME is like the boy who doesn't know 'BIGGLES'"
...which is probably true.

(Above) Tarzan and The Jewels of Opar by Edgar Rice Burroughs (1918)

Surely, Tarzan's dust jacket artwork and design (above) is unlikely to have been concurrent with the printing of the book itself, in this case 1918. The typeface and amount of bare skin seems anachronistic, wouldn't you say?

The story itself is now culturally bizarre. Tarzan gratuitously kills 3 lions within the first half of the book and other animals are lucky to escape him. Our attitudes towards nature have evolved. The author's continual and breathless adulation of this man-lord-beast-savage - "a majestic man, a noble beast" - is also a strange testament to ideas of machismo.

But I like the covers. Enjoy!

Early 60's Record Cover Designs

above: Los 3 De Santa Cruz, Piel Canela (circa 1960)

Above: (45') The Di Mara Sisters - Cha Cha!! Mambo!! Samba!!

This sleeve design is so basic you can practically feel the designer cutting out the photo and crumpling paper for the background effect... which is probably exactly what he/she did.


Above: (45') O Simeli - Saint Jean de Luz (circa 1960)

These 3 record sleeves are examples of design for 2 & 3 colour printing, which was a cheaper printing solution till very recently.

I haven't heard O Simeli yet to discern any reason for the naive illustration style. Is it sung by children, for example? Or perhaps the artist felt it expressed the simple joy of nature.

The O Simeli cover shows the deliberate use of off-register colour, which became distinctive of much mid-century graphic design, though in this example also naively handled.
Is this an early example of a style not yet clearly defined? (I think so.)
Or rather a loose approximation of something already being done with more assertive style elsewhere? I'm curious to know and the style deserves more and clearer examples so I'll be sure to find and post some.

Off-register colour is a technique I remember fondly since I was a kid (early 1970's), synonymous with cartoons at the drive-in, the Flintstones and Pink Panther, stylised title and credit sequences, all accompanied by grroovy music.
Aah, the drive-in.

Herb Alpert Album Cover Art 1963

Esther at Stax o Wax and I disagree about the merits of this 1963 album cover art - graphic, 2D and striking while surprisingly whimsical with its procession of little figures, I love it.

Lovers' Luau - Les Paul and Mary Ford (1959)

Despite a patch of damage, there's plenty I love about this record cover: its amber hue, lurid splashes of colour, great textiles & anthropological feel.

For the full luau, visit Esther at Stax o' Wax. I'm listening, swaying & smiling right now.

60's / 70's Design - Sounds Wild

(above) 60's / 70's Album Cover, Sounds Wild.
So grrroovy. Hands in the air everybody. Havin' a good time.

(above) From Inside Spread: Zow!


(above) Back Cover.
Everybody jumping. Frolicking. Gotta love it.

Cover Art: Mangoes & Monsoons

(Above) Mangoes & Monsoons by John Kenyon; Published by Andre Deutsch, 1964; Jacket Design by Shirley Lawn.

Though packed with tasty dishes like mango beef in beer, turtle stew, porcupine in okro soup and fried grasshoppers, the cover is the most delicious.

Further flavour includes these morsels:
"Uniforms. Good stout aprons for the cook - blue for the day, white for the evening. And for whoever waits on the table (but not including yourself) a proper full uniform -long trousers, jacket in white drill, buttoned to the throat and with shiny brass buttons or, in East Africa, long white kanzus with a sash and fez to match - red, green or blue."
and
"The Language. If you are rich enough to employ a cook learn the kitchen variety - the most useful whether it is Malay, Hindustani, Swahili or Pidgin English - and learn to look angry without feeling so inside - it helps.
And if you're the type that easily gets 'het up', then have a good stiff drink early in the evening before you begin - I find cooking with a drink on the drainingboard helps."