The Fine Art Of Jazz Album Sleeves

Jazz and fine Art were made for each other....probably...because...something about the art of Jazz, yes, you know, lends itself to visual representation...I mean...improvised splashes on canvas...abstraction in sound and paint...Matisse and all his Jazz...the hot Harlem hybrid buzz of a new century...Archibald Motley...cubism...Cubano Bop New York expressionist club nights...the sonic collage of musical quotes...not forgetting Art Tatum, Art Blakey and Art Farmer...ho-ho...so I've assembled a few examples of Art used on Jazz record sleeves...

Who else but Pollock was fit for being framed on the first big Free Jazz statement of the century?

Warhol kind of blue during his alien mad man ad man graphic phase...

Brubeck went to college....for hip thinkers partial to unsquare dancing in 7/4 time...keen to put Art on a few covers...just to reinforce the point...

As for original Art covers, the king, David Stone Martin...

Here the title says it all...California cool...although somewhat bedraggled looking as if knackered from hours spent walking around galleries...

Again...the modern Art of Jazz sophistication in the pose...and the chutzpah of placing yourself on a plinth!

Donald Byrd in Mondrian modernism long after Broadway boogie-woogie was over...

We know what you mean, Cannonball...you're hip...

Oh, what's going on here...well, there is a piece of modern art involved...and she's definitely thinking 'I need that new Miles Davis album and this job will pay for it and then some...'

One of my favourite examples...Alexander Calder mobilised to serve the cause of further reinforcing the idea that Jazz and Art are worthy brothers in arms...

And if you want to read the definitive guide to Jazz music...don't buy my book...but it's come down in price considerably since most idiotic/desperate sellers realised they'd never get more than a tenner for it...even though the contents are priceless...here...