>> Send this page to a friend

45 RPM

A Visual History of the Seven-Inch Record
Princeton Architectural Press Edited by Spencer Drate
Introduction by Chuck Granata
Texts by Eric Kohler
and Bob Grossweiner
and Roger Dean
and Art Chantry

7.5 x 7.5 in; 240 pp ; 225 color illustrations
Paperback
Published in October, 2002
ISBN 1568983581
ISBN13 9781568983585
Sorry, this book is out of print. Please contact alibris.com for limited availability.

$18.95  

45 RPM -- Singles, 45s, 7-inchers-they have many names, but come in only one package: a square of folded cardboard with a miniature poster on either side. The gold standard of Top 40 playlists for some four decades after their introduction in 1949, these small albums have long been the favorites of DJs and collectors, who prize them for their genius of small-scale graphic design.
45 RPM is the first ever collection of 7-inch sleeves. Organized chronologically, it juxtaposes more than 200 albums, from all genres of music, chosen for their inventive design. It includes albums by such legendary artists as Paul Anka, the Beatles, the Boston Pops, the Clash, Donovan, Dizzy Gillespie, Jerry Lee Lewis, Dean Martin, Curtis Mayfield, Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley, the Ramones, REM, the Rolling Stones, the Sex Pistols, Frank Sinatra, Talking Heads, and many others.
Music historian Chuck Granata provides a general introduction to the history of the 45, its place in the music business, and the designers who created the covers.
Each decade of design is introduced by a specialist in that period: Eric Kohler on the 1950s, Spencer Drate on the 1960s, Roger Dean (designer of the acclaimed albums for the band Yes) on the 1970s, Bob Grossweiner on the 1980s, and Art Chantry on the 1990s and contemporary design.

Spencer Drate is an author and designer for the music industry whose clients have included John Lennon, the Beach Boys, U2, Bon Jovi, Bob Marley, Billy Joel, and many others. His books include Designing for Music and Cool Type. He is a member of the Grammy Award Committee for record design and lives in New York City.

Eric Kohler lives in New York City and specializes in the music and design of the ’40s. He has created CD covers for Blue Note, Sony, and others.