Even if you don’t know the name Hipgnosis, you know the work. Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Led Zepplin, 10CC, a whole slew of bands that all got the benefit of amazing, surreal cover art by the geniuses at Hipgnosis, which Throbbing Gristle/Coil member Peter “Sleazy” Christopherson joined in 74.
One of the very best designs by the group, for our money, is the work Hipgnosis did on the 10CC album cover for How Dare You? which manages to tell a complete story without actually conveying any plot information whatsoever.
The CD version of this album is often given the short shrift, sometimes missing one or more panels that reveal the whole tableaux. The album version of How Dare You is the one to see as it has the entire spread of carefully crafted Hipgnosis images. Amazing. Keep your Houses of the Holy, we love 10CC better.
For the Love of Vinyl gives a detailed look at 60 Hipgnosis designs and features guest commentary from musicians including Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason. This is a pretty amazing tome, and is in fact written by the founders of the design group itself, so you know you’re getting the stories right from the source. Recommended.
The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh have in common? These films and many, many more prominently feature one of the best-loved Italian actors of the 60s and 70s, Edwige Fenech.
When you see your first Edwige Fenech movie, you’ll remember her instantly–she’s got eyes as memorable as Karloff’s and a screen presence just as distinctive. She was never the heavy in her best-known roles, and it’s a shame–she would have made a great villain. Regardless, at Turntabling, Fenech is much like Ennio Morricone; if you see either name in the credits (preferably both together!) you know you’re in for a good time even if the rest of the film is a pile of nonsense.
We’re huge fans, in case you haven’t noticed…and hope by throwing up a few choice tidbits for the uninitiated we can lure more viewers into the Cult of Edwige. Submitted for your enjoyment are three trailers featuring the incomparable Ms. Fenech, who has since the glorious days of 60s and 70s giallos has become a producer in her own right while still taking acting roles (including a small part in Eli Roth’s Hostel 2.)
This is how it all started round the Turntabling digs…we especially loved her with the short hairdo in the beginning of the film. How did she get from near-pageboy to the shiny black mane she’s famous for? In the space of a few seconds she’s transformed…but no matter, GREAT movie. There are plenty of twists, and don’t miss the great nightclub wrestling sequence that seems to be a Jesse Franco moment even though he was nowhere near this production. What is it about sleazy nightclub scenes? Italian cinema from this era is full of them. Not that we’re complaining….
The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh is chock full of the strangeness we’ve come to expect from the better movies in the giallo genre. The party scene with the paper dresses (which get ripped off in a party-crashing freakout) is a classic, and the scene where Edwige Fenech falls down in the rain (seen here) is worth the price of the disc alone. GREAT stylish visuals in this. A must-see.
All The Colors Of The Dark isn’t as glorious as the first two, but it’s still a HELL of a good time and there is so much Edwige Fenech in this you’ll wonder why you didn’t get to it sooner. She carries the movie as a woman who is being stalked, tormented, and ultimately lured into a cult full of Satan-worshipping freaks. How can you go wrong with psychedelia AND Satan?
Yes, that’s a great big old marijuana plant or two on the cover of the Joe Gibbs Reggae Christmas album.At Turntabling, we tend to sympathize with Anthony Bourdain, Don Letts, and Peter Tosh when it comes to legalization of the herb–after all, what are malt, hops, and barley? The presence of George Washington’s favorite plant on this album cover is laugh-inducing, but it doesn’t necessarily make it a BAD album cover all by itself…so what gives, Gibbs?
Is this even the SAME ALBUM? Nicely sanitized and pot-free, we’re guessing this makes the world safe for the kiddies who don’t want to come downstairs on Xmas morning to find a nice big fatty in their Christmas stocking. Well, darlings, that’s all YOU. Me, I kind of like the idea of having a glazed Christmas, thanks.
I bet poor ol’ Joe Gibbs had NOTHING to do with any of this–some record company hack or Amazon corporate doink decided that purple sticky wasn’t appropriate for Christmas. After all, it’s marketed at the kiddies, right? Can’t have the rugrats wondering why Mom and Dad are giggling so much and eating all the fruitcake.
For the record–I put very little stock in many of these “learn how to DJ” tutorials. Learn to mix and scratch like a pro? I’ve got a better idea–why not teach yourself how to mix and scratch and become a pro? Watching somebody in a goofy hat turntabling on a DVD isn’t my idea of a good time.
That said, I was intrigued by the lineup on the DJ Series Digital Scratching and Mixing DVD. This disc boasts interviews with Robert Moog, Herbie Hancock, and Wally Callerio, just to name a few. What does Robert Moog say on the DVD? I’m intrigued, since in my mind he’s the Godfather of analog synth goodness. Herbie Hancock isn’t such a stretch, but Moog is the wildcard here, at least to me.
If you’ve seen this, by all means drop a comment here–I’d love to know if the Moog thing is a goofy name-dropping ten second cameo or if it’s a quality interview worth the price of the disc to see…
by Joe Wallace