There are many people out there who are interested in, or collect, Andy Warhol’s record cover art. So many,it seems, that I think we should formally inaugurate a Warhol Record Cover Art Club.
Thanks to this blog and my list of Andy Warhol covers on http://www.rateyourmusic.com I have come in contact with many experts and, surprisingly (at least to me), I have been credited with a degree of specialist knowledge on the subect.
My Andy Warhol record cover collection started in 1967 at One Stop Records in South Moulton Strreet, London when I saw the American import LP “Velvet Undergound & Nico” and bought it for the princely sum of £3.15s. I had been to the Warhol exhibition at the Tate Gallery the previous year and really liked Warhol’s art. Although My copy was an early pressing it did not have the famous “Torso” cover. A couple of years later, my brother gave me a bunch of American LPs including “White Light/White Heat”. So, suddenly I had two Andy Warhol covers. Everyone knows that one item is just an item, but TWO items makes a collection. Other records with Andy Warhol cover art followed sporadically. I bought The Rolling Stones’ “Sticky Fingers” and “Love You Live” albums when they came out and I remember finding French re-issues of Kenny Burrell and Johnny Griffin Blue Note LPs. I was given Diana Ross’ LP as a Fathers’ Day present in 1982 and in the early 2000s started to search for other Warhol covers via the Internet. I found Ebay to be a great source of information and – in those days – early Warhol covers could still be bought cheaply. I started buying and selling covers and improving my collection only collecting items in good condition. Once into buying Warhol covers, I met up with Guy Minnebach, another collector, who helped me find several rare covers from sources outside Ebay.
When planning the “Happy Birthday, Andy Warhol!” exhibition in the spring of 2008, it felt obvious to enlist Guy’s help in providing the covers that I still did not have. I will never forget his generosity in sending me several very rare covers so that thery could be photographed for the exhibition! We had never met, only been in contact over the Internet. He trusted me! In exchange, I tipped him off about an original “Giant Size $1.57 Each” being auctioned in Japan.
On the subject of the “Giant Size $1.57 Each”; I had a limited edition of 10 made for the “Happy Birthday, Andy Warhol!” exhibition. Frank Edwards, another inspirational and knowledgeable Warhol collector has one of these (as well as the exhibition catalogue – which is in Swedish!). Another collector and detective is Kevin Kinney, who finds covers in seemingly unlikely places and must have a huge collection of cover variations.
Ken Halperin, a collector of many cover artists has given enormous help in identifying cover artists other than Warhol. A new acquaintance is Fredrik Lindberg, who is relatively new to collecting Warhol covers. I hope he gets his RATFAB soon!
I would like to take this opportunity to thanks all the people who have contributed to my collection or provided information and guidance over the years. It’s a project still developing. More covers will almost certainly come to light.
So, join the club!