Record sleeve
Brian Ward
Category
Musical instruments, devices and recordings
Date
13 Jan 1972 - 6 Jun 1972
Materials
Cardboard
Measurements
315 x 315 mm
Place of origin
London
Collection
Sudbury Hall Museum of Childhood, Derbyshire
NT 672557.2
Summary
A cardboard record sleeve for the vinyl record ‘The Rise and Fall Of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars’ by David Bowie. The front cover of the album features a coloured photograph of Bowie dressed in a green jump suit standing outside a green door with a sign reading ‘K. West’ above him. He has a guitar strapped across his shoulder and has his left foot raised on some steps. The records title is printed in the top left corner in yellow and red letters and there is an RCA/Victor logo printed in the top right corner. Printed within the logo are the records catalogue numbers (SF.8287 and LSP 4702). The rear of the sleeve has another coloured photograph of Bowie standing in a phone box. Down the left hand side on the rear of the sleeve there are printed details of the song titles contained on the record, the names of the musicians who play on it and other recording and production credits. At the bottom of these credits is the printed instruction ‘TO BE PLAYED AT MAXIMUM VOLUME’. There is an RCA/Victor logo printed in white in the bottom left corner, again with the record catalogue numbers printed within it and a Gem Production logo in the top right corner. The photographs for the record sleeve were taken by the photographer Brian Ward in Heddon Street, London on 13th January 1972. They were originally taken in monochrome but were recoloured by the illustrator Terry Pastor. ‘K. West’ was a furriers shop situated at 23 Heddon Street and the site has become a popular tourist destination for Bowie fans although the shop relocated in 1991.
Provenance
Cardboard sleeve for a vinyl record, The Rise and Fall Of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars, recorded by David Bowie and released by RCA on 6th June 1972. Sleeve photographs taken by Brian Ward on 13th January 1972 and recoloured by Terry Pastor. Purchased by the National Trust Museum of Childhood via Discogs on 30th March 2020 as part of the Collecting Cultures 'Exploring Childhoods' project.
Makers and roles
Brian Ward, photographer RCA Records , record label Terry Pastor (b.1946), artist