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Topic: Light + Shade cover unveiled< Next Oldest | Next Newest >
bee Offline




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Posted: Aug. 24 2005, 16:48

I actually don't mind that photograph of Phil Collins, because I love black and white portraits. I had not realised the Peter Gabriel picture was by the same photographer. It also puts me in mind of the inside sleeve cover of the album Platinum, close up and monochrome. Mike with wavy hair too! Like that, also!! :)

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Blue Dolphin Offline




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Posted: Aug. 24 2005, 16:58

Whoa! Please... relax! Relax!!! :/

I think you misunderstood me. I didn't say Mike is ugly! What I'm trying to say is that it is probably not so wise to put his face so close, completely filling the cover. Just from a marketing point of view, I don't think it will sell so well in this way. Like I said before I like the pictures on his website better. That would have been my choice.

And believe me: I'm one serious protestor when it comes to plastic surgeon. I love the mother nature way.


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-The mark of a good musician is to play one note and mean it-

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TOBY Offline




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Posted: Aug. 24 2005, 17:10

All the Platinum inside and outside sleeve photography was by Trevor Key so guess its only natural they look kind of similar. I think he did the cover portraits for all Phil collins solo stuff. Like I said in a post elsewhere he was a highly regarded photographer in his time.

You don't really get any sense of Mike's age form the cover of Light and Shade, and that may be part of the thinking behind it. Its a shame Mike can't get a portrait of himself looking confident, cool, content and.. dare I say it..even happy. He's looked good in the past maybe he's just not happy about getting old, plain and simple.
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bee Offline




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Posted: Aug. 24 2005, 17:23

Sorry Blue Dolphin, I'm a little bit too sensitive I think!! I understand what you say now!

bee


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moonchildhippy Offline




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Posted: Aug. 24 2005, 19:24

Quote (willy @ Aug. 24 2005, 16:53)
Poor Mike. Seems his so-called "fans" firstly don't like the name 'Quicksilver'. Then they don't like the name 'Light and Shade'. Then all they do is criticise the cover. Do any of you destructive critics actually like anything to do with Mike Oldfield? You seem to want him to fail at every turn.

I do like the title "Quicksilver"  and for that matter Light and Shade.

I do intend to buy Light and Shade.  If I was a "casual"  fan,  getting into Mike for the first time  and I saw the cover in a music store I would maybe be put off buying it,  OK I shouldn't judge music by the CD cover, without hearing it, if I did that I would never have heard Incantations, a great album.

Mike doesn't need to hide behind that awful wire mesh  :( ,  it distorts his face.   I wish Mike would let his natural beauty show through.       When I say beauty I'm not going by physical appearance alone, but also an inner  beauty,  the creative talent,  Mike's personality,
 
Mike is no longer the shy  young man,  who bought a house in semi rural Herefordshire to escape the publicity surrounding the phenominal success of Tubular Bells.  Ommadawn is amongst  Mike's best album covers, (along with TSODE and Crisies).  With Ommadawn, Mike's face is clearly visible and not hidden away   :) .  I too would hate to see him fail.


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It finally happened, I'm slightly mad , just very slightly mad

If you feel a little glum to Hergest Ridge you should come.


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BRING OUR TROOPS HOME NOW!!
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Dave Parry Offline




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Posted: Aug. 24 2005, 19:38

Mike looks like he means business and it makes a change to have his picture on an album rather than cosmic chill-out art.  It's a bit like a speaker grill and Mike is emanating from behind it, not sure what the ring is for - perhaps it's symbolic of the tune "Ringscape"?

Why are people moaning ? :laugh:


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Blue Dolphin Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 07:51

Oops, I think I owe an apology to Mike and the designers for "trashing" their cover design of Light and Shade.

Because of the small format pictures we've seen I thought there was a big photo of Mike's face put in front of the cover behind a grid. But at http://www.oldfield.de there is a large high res format of the cover, where we can clearly see that there isn't a photo "behind" the grid but the grid forms the photo of Mike. On the background there is a sea.

In the future I will wait till I've seen a good high res picture before I will make my comments. Sorry again.


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-The mark of a good musician is to play one note and mean it-

Mike Oldfield - 1980
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hiawatha Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 08:41

Now it looks more like one of those plastic fences that comes in a roll rather than a fishnet stocking.

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Where the Falls of Minnehaha
Flash and gleam among the oak-trees,
Laugh and leap into the valley."
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Chicular Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 08:53

Looks like we have over 80 minutes of music on Light + Shade.  Excellent
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TOBY Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 13:52

It looks marginally better up close but only marginally. Some of the problem lies with the original source photograph, he still looks rather evil and menacing, not the image he wants to convey I'm sure.
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Holger Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 14:50

Quote (Blue Dolphin @ Aug. 26 2005, 13:51)
In the future I will wait till I've seen a good high res picture before I will make my comments. Sorry again.

I think it would be an even better idea to wait until one sees the actual printed cover.
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hiawatha Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 15:28

The actual printed cover is bound to look worse/smaller/more lo-res than a high-res computer scan. This is the CD era.

With CD's passing away, the question of cover art becomes less important.


--------------
"In the land of the Dacotahs,
Where the Falls of Minnehaha
Flash and gleam among the oak-trees,
Laugh and leap into the valley."
- Song of Hiawatha
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Sir Mustapha Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 15:29

I don't see an improvement in the bigger photo.

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Alan D Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 15:54

Quote (Sir Mustapha @ Aug. 26 2005, 20:29)
I don't see an improvement in the bigger photo.

Neither do I. It remains sinister and threatening.
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TOBY Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 16:03

It's an interesting debate whether or not cover art/packaging becomes less important as more and more people legally and illegally download mp3's. Personally I've always been of the view that the opposite is the case, that having a wonderfully packaged CD would actually make people want to buy it instead of nicking it off the net. Its maybe a short term view however because I suppose in ten years time EVERYTHING we watch/listen to will be downloaded in some way. I suppose there will always be the need for some sort of presentaional artwork, be it in the form of a website or whatever, I hope so anyway, i'd hate to see album artwork die out.
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hiawatha Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 16:34

Quote (TOBY @ Aug. 26 2005, 16:03)
whatever, I hope so anyway, i'd hate to see album artwork die out.

The "album cover" could return in a spectacular way with evolving technology.

Imagine a near-future iPod like device with a display at least as good as that on a Sony PSP (instead of the "it's worse than the original Game Boy" display of the current iPod). Music playing could be accompanied by a display of a graphic on the screen. This graphic could possibly have limited animation (assuming that we stay short of an outright video). If you play "Tubular Bells" you could get a display of the album cover, with the ocean waves moving.


--------------
"In the land of the Dacotahs,
Where the Falls of Minnehaha
Flash and gleam among the oak-trees,
Laugh and leap into the valley."
- Song of Hiawatha
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The Big BellEnd Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 17:53

pop quiz, what was the last mike oldfield album you did'nt buy because of the cover?

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TOBY Offline




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Posted: Aug. 26 2005, 18:21

Well I was tempted to walk out of the store empty haned when I saw the cover of Voyager. :D
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Sysiyo Offline




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Posted: Aug. 27 2005, 04:07

I did, twice. Then in the end I decided to buy it regardless of the cover, but getting past it took some effort.
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raven4x4x Offline




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Posted: Aug. 27 2005, 04:59

Quote (The Big BellEnd @ Aug. 27 2005, 06:53)
pop quiz, what was the last mike oldfield album you did'nt buy because of the cover?


I've never done that, and I don't intend to. Of course there's absolutely no doubt that I'll buy Light and Shade the first instant that I can, but I don't think I'd ever conciously think "I don't like that cover, I don't think I'll buy that one". I don't think that's fair to the album.


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131 replies since Aug. 21 2005, 17:32 < Next Oldest | Next Newest >

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