As we have already ventured all the way back to the 60ies this week let’s have a quick look at the cover of Jimmy Hendrix’ third and last studio album, Electric Ladyland, which was released in 1968. The British cover, that is. Hendrix had quite explicitly asked for a specific picture taken by Linda Eastman (later McCartney) depicting the Jimmy Hendrix Experience sitting on the Alice in Wonderland sculpture in New York’s Central Park, surrounded by children. However, his American label, Reprise, used a blurry concert-picture of his head in yellow and red instead – and British label Track Records used a picture of 19 naked women. Hendrix was not amused and several record dealers did not sell the album or only wrapped in brown paper, calling it pornographic by nature.
The cover would be referenced a couple of times over the years, for example by German Punk-Rockers Die Toten Hosen, who used a similar cover for their 1993 Best-Of album “Reich & Sexy”. Or, earlier the same year, by the British New Wave band The Beloved, whose video for “Sweet Harmony” made quite a stir. Contrary to Hendrix’ album cover they used high contrast, over-exposure, hair and extremities to cover all private parts and singer John Marsh called it “as asexual as you can get”, but at least Beavis & Butt-head are on tape as liking it for all the “nude chicks”…
