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From jazz bands to show tunes and from classical works to pop acts, Steinweiss – quite literally – covered them all. Records, that had typically been sold at the back of appliance stores, had become desirable objects that could capture the imagination (and wallets) of music lovers everywhere. Throughout the forties, Steinweiss’ work dominated the world of music. performed by the Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra of New York, conducted by Artur Rodzinski, Columbia Masterworks (1944) Source: 20 Minutos Initially, Columbia was reluctant to get on board (a $2,500 investment for Steinweiss' idea was certainly a lot to ask for) yet, when they did eventually give in, record sales increased by almost nine-hundred percent, and the idea was quickly heralded as an indisputable success. Eager to do something about it, he walked into management and insisted that they adopt a new way to sell records. For him, these indistinguishable covers had to change. “To my mind, this was no way to package beautiful music,” Steinweiss remarked in the fantastic book Steinweiss: The Inventor of the Modern Album Cover. Felix Mendelssohn's Scotch Symphony performed by Dimitri Mitropoulos and the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra, Columbia Records (1943) Source: The Shellackophile Despite this novel idea, all of these collections generally looked the same and offered very few visual clues to help consumers tell each one apart. These albums could include recordings from a particular artist, a genre, a suite of classical music, or even a hits compilation. By the 1930s, some record companies were expanding on the album idea by issuing specially pre-assembled albums. A record album would offer more protection for a collector's records and allow for them to build a personal record collection. These were dark-coloured books with leatherette bindings and empty sleeves (quite similar to photo albums).
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Paul Robeson's Songs of Free Men, Columbia Records (1942) Source: eBayīy the 1920s, record labels began to offer special 'record albums'. Each record would last just three to five minutes, and each one was typically packaged in dull paper or cardboard sleeves that either had the name of the producer on it or the name of the retailer who was selling it. When the 78 RPM emerged during the 1910s, they were all sold separately. These days, we tend to take album artwork for granted, yet before Steinweiss, the record industry really didn't have much of a graphic tradition. George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue performed by André Kostelanetz and his orchestra Alec Templeton, piano, Columbia Records (1941) Source: The New York Times
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This image would go on to become the world's very first album cover. The photographer snapped a picture and, in doing so, he captured a little bit of history. As evening arrived, they swapped out the letters and then lit them up: 'Smash Song Hits by Rodgers & Hart', it proudly announced. It was a dream job, but Steinweiss already had greater things in mind.Īt the Imperial Theatre Steinweiss convinced the owner to briefly change the signage of the marquee. CBS had recently opened a new headquarters in Bridgeport, Connecticut and their advertising manager was eager to hire someone to design promotional displays and advertisements for the label. The young Steinweiss had only just landed a job at Columbia Records where he worked as the label's first art director. Looking up at the building's distinctive marquee, they both agreed - it was perfect! He quickly grabbed a photographer, and the pair headed down to New York's West 45th Street and stood outside the city's famous Imperial Theatre. In 1939 a twenty-three-year-old Alex Steinweiss (1917–2011) was working at Columbia Records when inspiration struck. Smash Song Hits by Rodgers and Hart by Richard Rodgers and the Imperial Orchestra, Columbia Records (1939) Source: Vulture