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The Great Albums

High Fives - Top 5 Good Albums with Awful Art

·1 hr 16 min·5 clips
Bill dismantles the Foo Fighters' 'The Colour and the Shape' cover, calling it ridiculously bad with pointless interior pages.
In this episode of The Great Albums Podcast, hosts Bill and Brian deviate from their usual track-by-track album reviews for a 'High Fives' special, focusing on good albums with awful cover art. They explain the format originated from Bill's old podcast, now adapted for casual, fun discussions. Each host picks five albums, starting with Brian's choice of Audioslave's 2002 self-titled record, criticizing its Hypnosis-designed cover as not fitting the music. Bill follows with Foo Fighters' 'The Colour and the Shape', detailing its computer-generated artwork and bland interior. Brian selects The Lemonheads' 'It's a Shame About Ray', noting its quintessential 1990s aesthetic with bright colors. Bill chooses Teenage Fan Club's 'Bandwagonesque', highlighting its pink cover and the trivia about Gene Simmons trademarking the money bag logo, leading to a critique of Simmons' character. Brian picks Lady Gaga's 'Born This Way', describing its cover as a poorly Photoshopped image that fans initially thought was a joke. Bill discusses The Decemberists' 'Picaresque', noting its playbill-style artwork that some find charming but others see as mismatched. Brian selects Todd Rundgren's 'Hermit of Mink Hollow', criticizing its cover as a blurry, forlorn image. Bill chooses R.E.M.'s 'Up', pointing out its weird 1990s design and how it marked a shift with Michael Stipe allowing full lyrics. Brian picks Bruce Springsteen's 'Tunnel of Love', calling its cover dorky with Springsteen looking like a car salesman. Bill ends with The Gaslight Anthem's 'The '59 Sound', critiquing its simple band photo and discussing a rule against bands putting their picture on covers, with exceptions like The Beatles. The hosts wrap up by sharing favorite album art, like Pearl Jam's 'Vitalogy' and Pink Floyd's 'Animals'. Bill concludes by announcing a hiatus in September due to health issues, aiming to return in October.

As heard by us

A relaxed summer detour through liked albums, disliked covers, and the arguments those mismatches invite.

The Great Albums uses its High Fives format for a summer special about albums the hosts like despite covers they do not, and the shift gives the episode an easy, low-homework feel. Bill and Brian skip the usual track-by-track structure and move through familiar records instead.

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Why you'd press play

You get Lady Gaga's head-on-a-motorcycle cover, Teenage Fanclub loyalty, and a low-homework music debate with the belt loosened one notch.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →
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