The annual Secret 7″ exhibition has rolled around again. Seven records – some new, some old – are chosen and 700 hundred artists are commissioned to come up with their own sleeves for said records. Some are shown in a London exhibition and all are available to buy, with proceeds going to Amnesty International. The catch? Punters don’t know whose art they’re buying or which record it relates to until they’ve parted with the cash – hence the name. Now that the artists’ names have finally been revealed, here are some of our favourite entries from 2016.
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‘At Last’, Etta James by Juno Calypso: This image, named ‘Seaweed Warp’ and originally featured in Calypso’s 2015 exhibition of kitschy interiors of American ‘love hotels’ intended for couples, is a jokey counterpoint to the swooning soul of James’ classic 1960 love song ‘At Last’.
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‘The Less I Know The Better’, Tame Impala by Gavin Turk: Turk, who emerged from the Young British Artist scene that gave us Tracey Emin and Damien Hirst in the 1990s, gives us this cheeky chappie with a green guitar to match his scales.
‘Art School’, The Jam by Anthony Burrill: Speaking earlier this year, Kevin King said: “We’ve been getting more and more crazy interpretations of what a one-of-a-kind record sleeve can be.”
‘Imagine’, John Lennon by George Hardie: Hardie is well-established as a rock music illustrator, having created the art for Led Zeppelin’s self-titled album and Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here.
‘Imagine’, John Lennon by Thierry Noir: Fun fact: it’s claimed that German artist Thierry Noir was the first street artist to paint the Berlin Wall.
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‘Art School’, The Jam by Stuart Murdoch: Belle and Sebastian frontman Stuart Murdoch adds visual art to his CV, having also published a memoir, The Celestial Cafe.
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‘Art School’, The Jam by Nathalie Du Pasquier: King, a former employee of Universal, has said: “In terms of artists and designers, prior to starting Secret 7” I had zero knowledge. Music, I was fine, I knew where to go and I was comfortable. But when it came to designers I was not. So there was a lot of trawling sites like It’s Nice That.”
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‘At Last’, Etta James by Rob Ryan: Quite a literal interpretation of the song, this depiction sees two lovers sharing a bit of quality time in the countryside.
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‘The Less I Know The Better’, Tame Impala by Amish Kapoor: Rather an apt album title for this peculiar and quite impenetrable image, eh?
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‘At Last’, Etta James’ by Jenny Holzer: Arguably the best-known artist on this rosta, New York artist Holzer uses this image of 106-year-old Virginia McLaurin meeting Michelle and Barack Obama at The White House.
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‘Imagine’, John Lennon by Modern Toss: Whereas satirical cartoonists Modern Toss opted instead to take the piss, as is their wont. Never change, guys.
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‘Art School’, The Jam by Paul Smith: As in, the fashion designer, not the bloke in the hat from Maximo Park. He joins many world famous designers and artists who have taken part in the project in the past, including Ai Wei Wei, Gllbert & George, Yoko Ono and Sam Taylor-Johnson.
