Phil Thomas Katt and I were about half way through getting Bait & Switch recorded, mixed and mastered when I realized there wasn't an album cover. I asked my wife, Susan, who has massive experience in graphic design and advertising for help. Let me state this clearly: Susan is a multi-award winning graphic designer with decades of experience in advertising, who is my wife. She loves Elton John and David Bowie. How lucky could I get?
When I tried to explain to her what "Bait & Switch" was about she took a month or so to really think about it. What she offered as a solution was plainly incredible.
Look at the graphic! That's me on the One Dollar Bill, right? If you look closely, you'll see at the bottom, just above "Bait & Switch" there is a worm. To the left and right of the worm are sardines! They replace the typical "flourishes" on the the dollar. Above the sardines are planks off a boat. And of course, there I am in the frame, with my fish hook necklace wearing a sand dollar button down shirt with sunglasses sporting a used car salesman smile. And behind me is the Emerald Coast, complete with clouds. To make matters worse, I have a thing about violet sunglasses...so there they are. And finally, the whole thing is on a 3 foot by 3 foot piece of plywood. A very far cry from a dollar bill. The art summarizes being sold one thing, but getting something else. Would you accept this "dollar" as legal tender? No! So, the graphic worked! It had Bait, it had Switch and I loved it. It connected to Elton John and David Bowie's artwork, too. To date, only one fan has a copy of this art. We make it 12"x12"so we can deliver it to you via Walgreens (suitable for framing).
If you are interested in more of Susan's art, let me know. We'll make it available to you in a special offer because you obviously support us. But we don't want to clobber you with emails.
So, that is the art story. Every album must have cool art. Susan delivered.