U.K. Duo Edy Forey Picked 11 Breakthrough Album Covers

Santana, Kamasi Washington, Marvin Gaye and more

Vocalist Edy Szewy and keyboardist Guilhem Forey:

Have you ever noticed that all the greatest albums in history had excellent album covers? The cover is an integral part of the album’s eternal identity. It uploads to the brain like a file to a computer and stays there locked in, inseparable from the vibe of the music. On occasion, we wanted to listen to a record just based on the sleeve. But on the flip side, it also happens that one likes the track until one sees the cover art. A picture is worth a thousand words. So it’s serious business. 

For us, album covers that convey a lot of meaning—ones that are complex and layered and have you guessing—are usually the ones we respect the most. It doesn’t always mean “busy”—minimalism can accomplish that just as well. Cover art that is too digital, overtly polished, sterile or has someone fronting is not our style. Traces of authentic humanity are essential. If album covers had genres, we would go for the Soul section. The color, the vibe has to complement the music and tell us about the artist. It was fun to browse through our music collection and pick the favorites, and to see how they impacted our artwork in the end. 

Herbie Hancock

Head Hunters (1973)

One can’t separate good music from the cover—this one right here is iconic for a good reason. Just can’t help but remember it. Vibe, vibe, vibe. It’s weird, it’s funky, it’s smooth and it’s jazzed up. The fact this creature’s head has some kind of pincher-horns on top makes it look suspicious, but then you have the tunes to put you at ease.

Michael Jackson

Dangerous (1991)

You get to stare at this artwork for ages trying to demystify what’s going on here. The eyes themselves aren’t particularly appealing—they’re rather unsettling—but the opulence of detail, gold, lights, mystery, and symbolism makes it an eye candy, and the skill of the artist Mark Ryden is world-class excellent. It only semi-glues with the New Jack Swing soundtrack, but then again, this is a “King of pPop” album cover—doesn’t matter how it glues, as long as it’s grandiose.

Santana

Supernatural (1999)

Forey here. When I saw this album I knew it was gonna be a lush and mystical musical experience. I was 13 and had no idea who Santana was, but I got this album from the record store just based on the cover. I proceeded to wear this album out everyday for about a year. The last song of the album The Calling changed the way I connect to music—the window to the divine—and I heard my musical calling loud and clear from that point on.

A Tribe Called Quest

Midnight Marauders (1993)

Right, even before you played it, you knew you were gonna get something groovy, ballsy and quirky. Is this a penis, or is this a gun? Once you get hit by the beat you don’t really mind either. The vibe of the cover is as opinionated as the rap and carries muchos vibe. Edy’s soundtrack while in college. Aesthetically, the mix of black and white and color is right up our street. Somebody please explain why is there a multi-clock frame? Maybe because it’s timeless. Must be as it still sounds fresh thirty years on.

David Axelrod

Song of Innocence (1968)

Forey’s choice. Much vintage art in a kaleidoscope. Can’t go wrong with this. There’s a nostalgia about things that passed that permeates this cover, but it’s a warm and flowery jazz nostalgia. Artwork, music, the title—it’s a perfect match. So smooth yet so eventful, sonically and visually.

Kamasi Washington

Heaven and Earth (2018)

Probably the only HD photo choice in our selection. There’s something so old-soul about Kamasi Washington though, so it fits right in. The aesthetics are of calm, easy, spiritual variety; the outfit is funky—check the sneakers—so it points to the more energetic tracks on the album. Blue is both for Blues, and for heavenly things. A window to the great beyond available here on earth.

George Duke

The Aura Will Prevail (1975)

More Blues, more drawing, more artsy choices. Funky is the word, and the background of the image looks like oil in water—maybe that’s because George Duke spoke of himself as a pianist with “grease’” Groove grease, that is. The jewel-y and gemstone-y type accents are fine by us, especially because Edy likes bling.

Marvin Gaye

I Want You (1976)

Edy’s choice. This cover was first a painting by Ernie Barnes, born a few years before the music itself. Marvin asked to use it for his album as it matched with the sexy but such chill-chill soundtrack. Sure, the bump and grind aspect of this is a bit much, nevertheless this cover is unlike any other. A true classic, and so, so ’70s.

Sade

The Best of Sade (1994)

This one rocks because among the vast majority of female-centered album covers, there tends to be a lot of posing, a lot of pouting, a lot of ooh and aah. This one has none of it—it’s natural yet with all the lady charms included. Can’t go wrong with a black and white theme. Classic Sade sound, classic cover.

George Duke

Face The Music (2003)

Perfect pianist album cover. There’s so much vibe. The love of music is in the face of the pianist, the warmth of Fender Rhodes is in the color scheme, the finesse of the grand piano is in the shadow work. Good vibe, soul, and you know you’re getting an authentic extension of George’s soul.

Edy Forey

Culture Today (2024)

I guess with all those above, it’s clear we were inspired by the art of hand drawn vinyl covers, pre-digital revolution, as well as the idea of music as the means of bringing heaven to earth. The dualistic nature of reality with its beauty and danger is all in here. Everyone picks up on Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel “Creation of Adam” reference—and that’s right on. More subtle is the Bauhaus lettering and border—a nod to the evolution of art, from classical, through modernist, to today. We’ve chucked all the groove we absorbed growing up into the music itself, loosely indicated by the city in the distance, where jazz, soul, blues and hip-hop make the urban living groove good.