Ranking Stevie's Album Covers
 

Something I thought would be pretty fun, rank Stevie's album covers from worst to best.

8) Street Angel

http://stevie-nicks.info/wp-content/...ngel_cover.jpg

It's bottom of my list just because... it's simply hideous. It's SO BLAND. The typography is vile and all the pink just completely washes Stevie out. In my opinion, it's the only TRULY awful Stevie album cover. She normally nails them.

7) The Other Side Of The Mirror

http://www.israbox.com/uploads/posts...20a52110.l.jpg

Oh such a good album cover... spoiled by such terrible hair and that awkward pose. I love the colours and the concepts, but it's a little too 80s for me. I recognise that it's awesome, but the others are better.

6) Rock A Little

https://maggiefelisberto.files.wordp...ttlecover.jpeg

Such a great image, so classic Stevie. What terrible typography. If it had nicer typography (I'm big on typography...) it would probably be in my top three. I hate having to squint to read the "Rock A Little" part.

5) In Your Dreams

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/517aI0%2Bl6rL.jpg

I said this when it came out, I'll say it again now. THAT. BLOODY. BUBBLE. It ruins the whole thing for me. If it wasn't for that bubble, this would be #1 for me, no question. It just irritates the life out of me. Gorgeous colours, gorgeous typography, simply lovely.

4) Trouble In Shangri-La

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51-9OR7NuoL.jpg

Gorgeous colours, gorgeous typography, so refreshingly epic after the nightmare that is Street Angel. Where SA feels bland and boring, TISL feels vibrant and crisp.

Shame about the thong thing... Ruins the almost-perfect Stevie image.

3) The Wild Heart

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41PwwztQEiL.jpg

Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. Simply adore this cover. The colours are just stunning, the typography (although I have issues with "The Wild Heart" inside a heart thing...)

I love the three Stevie images, they're just perfect. As a History teacher, I wonder if she was inspired by the portrait of Charles I which shows him three times. Probably not, but I love the idea.

2) 24 Karat Gold

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon....1zw7eX0IQL.jpg

Oh, how I ADORE this album cover. I have the vinyl on my bedroom wall and many a person has commented on how striking they find it. It's so effective, and she chose a simply gorgeous image of herself to use as well. The typography is excellently placed and simply gorgeous.

1) Bella Donna

http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb2...ella_Donna.jpg

Cliché I know, but whatever. It remains her best album and best album cover. The colours, the dress, the typography, the simplicity, the parrot! It's all stunning. I cannot fault it at all.

1. Trouble in Shangri La
2. The Wild Heart
3. 24 k
4. In You Dreams
5. The Other Side of The Mirror
6. Rock A Little
7. Street Angel
8. Bella Donna

I like your list. I'd probably put Wild Heart at the top of mine.

The thong thing I'd never noticed before. And I have
to say that I can't imagine a post '85 Stevie wearing them.
Unless she had layers and layers of granny panties underneath.

That was an awkward pose for the mirror.

Well, most of our answers to this question came from THIS thread from a little over a year ago...

http://www.ledge.fleetwoodmac.net/sh...k+album+covers

Perhaps the moderators can merge these?

Stevie's album covers have always been, compared to others, pretty damn good but there are two which REALLY stand out for me and are iconic and those are Bella Donna and Rock a Little. I have the RAL album cover on my wall in my bedroom and I just love looking at it. The amazing shape of her outfit and the stark contrast between the black outfit and white background, amazing.

I also LOVE the Trouble in Shangri-La cover, just fantastic, and also I think the TOSOTM album cover is great too and I love the red against black. This time last year when the 24KG cover was released I was so excited and thought it looked great. It still does, especially on vinyl.

The only ones that don't stand out for me are Street Angel and In Your Dreams. Overall though her covers are fantastic. If there were Grammy's for best album covers then she would've won a couple of times IMO.

I remember when they released the cover photo for IYD and there was a lot of debate on this forum whether it was actually HER or some sort of younger look-alike, because her face appeared to be airbrushed to bits. A lot of people also blamed the "light bubble" that surrounds her to be a major reason why she kind of looks weird in that photo. Some thought it was a combination of the two.

I'm not much of a fan of that album cover either and agree with what somebody said on another thread that maybe they should have gone with the "Secret Love" cover photo or even the DVD documentary photo of her wearing the top hat superimposed over the spiral staircase in her home. After all, a huge bulk of the project WAS recorded there.

Since this thread is generally about Stevie's album covers I want to count all of them:

11) 1998 – The Enchanted Works of Stevie Nicks
http://s4.postimg.org/z9ykym4jx/9069.jpg
Just one word: lazy. I like minimalism but seriously, does this looks like the summary of a majestic music career? Even if it's a greatest hits they should have at least put some effort in it.

10) 2007 – Crystal Visions - The Very Best of Stevie Nicks
http://s23.postimg.org/9a669ibdn/Ste...talvisions.jpg
Now this is more like it. Simple but not simplistic. Some beautiful pictures of a beautiful Stevie from a beautiful photoshoot. Simple, nice and delicate style for the font, that reminds me a bit of art nouveau. But that's about all.

9) The Other Side of the Mirror
http://s14.postimg.org/68eshw84x/the...fthemirror.jpg
What happened to her face? And to her arms? The concept and the colors are beautiful but everything has been ruined by the gross editing on her appearance, that in my opinion was really unnecessary to begin with but turned out damaging. For all this reasons added to the one that the pose is a bit predictable, I've always thought that the back picture would have been an amazing cover for this album instead.

8) Timespace - The Best of Stevie Nicks
http://s1.postimg.org/7wwxrn47z/500x500.jpg
This is actually nice even if it's nothing special. I love Stevie with darker hair and the vivid and higly saturated colors are very Pop-Art/Andy Wharol style.

7) Street Angel
http://s24.postimg.org/ulrfkzmt1/894...8931a110_L.jpg
Again I think that this is actually nice. Simple, minimalist and refined in its light colors, it fits well with the down-to-earth nature of this album. Actually the picture is better than the album itself.

6) In Your Dreams
http://s12.postimg.org/o9yc5bugt/517a_I0_l6r_L.jpg
This cover is very pretty. You can see that it's been thought and there's a sort of concept behind it; Stevie's vintage gown, the white horse, the forest, the light filtering through the foliage: indeed everything looks "dreamy". The only thing that bugs me is that the editing of the foto looks a bit unnatural.

5) Rock a Little
http://s10.postimg.org/owlkylvh5/rockalittlecover.jpg
Again with the vintage allure, but this time it worked magnificently. The high contrast Black-White-Red color scheme resembles the one of The Other Side of the Mirror but here the colors are more pure and regal, and the contrasts are essential.

4) Trouble in Shangri-La
http://s22.postimg.org/tn7zjyltd/51_9_OR7_Nuo_L.jpg
This cover is beautiful. The colors are honeyed, like veiled by a suffused gold light and the image of Stevie against the ocean is evocative. The oriental details reminding of the album title looks like they are finely watercoloured. This truly looks like a triumphant comeback.

3) 24 Karat Gold: Songs from the Vault
http://s18.postimg.org/xwedbmli1/24_..._The_Vault.jpg
Everything I've said for Trouble in Shangri-La can be said for this album cover too. The colors are subdued, soft and golden. Stevie is gorgeus. It's mystical, retrò, peculiar. I've been delighted to find out that she had this hidden talent for photography and this cover is the proof.

2) The Wild Heart
http://s2.postimg.org/s0psihxpl/41_Pwwzt_QEi_L.jpg
This cover use such a strong imagery that seems to jump right out from the subconscious. While the images are amazing and dreamlike, the colors are intense, sumptuous, rich of mysterious shadows.

1) Bella Donna
If I had to describe this cover with just one word, it would be simply "iconic". The colors are fine, ethereal and delicate, emphasized by the stark contrast with the darkness of the background, and Stevie is the image of daintiness and femininity. It represents perfectly the statement: "Come in out of the darkness".

Wow this is a tough one. I think they are all good but the way the words Stevie Nicks is written on the cover makes an impact just as much as the photo. I LOVE the Wild Heart Photo and words the way they are dripping down with a moon heart in between. Just too cool for words. Bella Donna is awesome too. But the back cover makes me like it more. The close up of Stevie's dark and mysterious eyes looking through a tambourine is just draw dropping IMHO. I don't care for the way the words Stevie Nicks is written on RAL. I also don't care for the picture. But it does stand out to be her only album where she is almost smiling LOL. I guess that is another reason I don't care for it. Stevie has always been mysterious to me and that photo and look just does not fit her persona. Trouble is a great album with just her back. I love Street Angel too the way she is looking down. Great job there! The others are just meh to me ;)

People complain mostly about OSOTM but the RAL photo has always struck me as strange, with that elfin, doll head. Her body seems elongated (which is great), then her head seems smashed down.

Wild Heart is #1 for me, I think.

Michele

Both Street Angel and Enchanted look like someone got a hold of Adobe Illustrator and said "hey! I can be a designer!". Then they proceeded to get some stock fonts, used a couple filters and imported a scan of a generic CDROM feather JPG. :D

"The Bubble" or lense flair or whatever it is, is what we used to call "retarded" back before it was not ok to say "retarded". like "omg. that is SO retarded". :distress:

The best ones are Wild Heat, Bella Donna. They are iconic.

We can blame Stevie's 'talented' :rolleyes: brother Chris Nicks for these 2 covers. He was also responsible for designing some atrocious tour books and tour shirts! :distress:

I don't get the love for Bella Donna. It always looked very cheap to me.

Great minds think alike! I definitely think that cover is the most avant garde of any of the others. It's also a shout out to Sulamith Wulfing - her favorite artist.

Puke. You'd think if one were going to ride on the coattails of their famous sibling, then they would at least take some time to further their education in art/graphic design to make sure the product is outstanding, noteworthy and, at the very least, aesthetically pleasing. But no.

I also blame Stevie herself. You give a relative a job because he/she is good at it, not simply because you're related. :distress:

One of worst things Chris Nicks designed was a 'Street Angel' tour shirt. He literally photocopied the CD cover (including the surrounding jewel case!) and had that printed on the shirt. WTF?! :eek:

And not to forget - the unintentionally hilarious 'Lucky Charms' rainbow and pot of gold design that he did for one of Stevie's tours. :laugh:

I dunno about cheap, but I always thought (and still do) that she looks rather sweaty or greasy on the front cover (especially her forehead) and her hair was most definitely at its most attractive of all her styles. The tamborine/porthole to the sorrows of the world photo on the back is quite nice though.

and that horrible wig

Guess she was going for dewy. Luckily, she wasn't moist on the OSOTM cover, because that would have made the pose worse.

Michele

ROFL. I have a friend who HATES the word "moist"... just creeps her out. :eek:

I don't think I'd go with 'moist' for the BD cover... 'damp' maybe. Morning after all night coke binge, maybe. :eek:

Actually I've always noticed that Stevie's head is indeed a bit too big compared to her tiny body.
Maybe on that cover they tried to fix the disproportion but messed up the result.

Somehow I doubt that's a wig.
But seriously, this would have been a much better cover:
http://s3.postimg.org/qibpjl7mb/nicksfix049.jpg

I know, but honestly, it's more defensible if it's a bad wig rather than an overly poufed and sprayed bird's nest. Whoever styled it should be shot. :eek:

:laugh:

Makes me think of the SNL sketch about "Shwetty Balls"

They say a lot of celebrities have disproportionately large heads. And I don't mean that figuratively. I mean physically :laugh: . Too.

Michele

I hadn't thought about that
 

I had to search it, and I don't know what to say other than they're nuts (pun intended):

My ranking, least-to-most-favorite:

Street Angel. So bland, so boring, so insecure, so pink.
The Other Side of the Mirror. It's not awful, but that pose is awkward and Stevie looks artificially gaunt. Love the dress, love the red streak in her hair, love the checkered floor. The back cover would have been a better front cover.
Bella Donna. Iconic, just not great, to me. Too black. There's too much vast space occupied by nothing. Stevie looks like she has coke sweats and has been awake too long.
The Wild Heart. This one has lost it's lustre to me over the years. I like the idea of it, but it's aged poorly and looks artsy-craftsy.
Rock A Little. This one is iconic to me. There's energy in that shot, and it's fits the music.
In Your Dreams. I like this shot. I love the white horse and it's Rhiannon reference.
24 Karat Gold. For a polaroid shot that looked like a throwaway, it made a surprisingly great album cover.
Trouble In Shangri La. Just so good in so many ways. It's that girl from the cover of Rumours, looking back at the sea after all these years.

Street Angel - boring
The Other Side of the Mirror - I prefer the picture on the back and this one: http://i.imgur.com/UTcBn9P.jpg
24 Karat Gold: Songs from the Vault
In Your Dreams
The Wild Heart
Trouble in Shangri-la
Bella Donna
Rock a Little

Street Angel is definitely the worst for me. Hands down.
OSOTM could have been better.
Rock a Little was too minimal for me, considering I've never seen Stevie as a minimalist. I do like the image on the back, however.
They get better from there, though.

Wild Heart isn't my all-time fave, but I think it's beautiful.

I think there's something special about the Crystal Visions, Shangri-la, and 24K covers. Those are my top three in no particular order.

The image on the back of the Bella Donna record is also one of my faves, with Stevie's face framed by the tambourine.

In Your Dreams is just an album that's close to my heart because I don't think I would have found the courage to shrug off rules and start writing the way I wanted to write without that album (I was barely 18 when it was released). It's like "Who needs a white knight to save the day? Here's your fairy godmother of rock and the white horse."

Why all the hate for Street Angel cover..?

I think it's beautiful. It perfectly represents the feeling of the album and that period of her life. It's fragile, innocent, introverted, simple, distant, raw, unfinished looking. It looks like a glimpse into her soul while she was struggling with K.

Anyway, my top list!

BEST: 1. Trouble in Shangri-La

2. In Your Dreams

3. Street Angel

4. The Wild Heart

5. Bella Donna

6. 24K Gold
What the heck is on her head? Her face looks like a horse in this pic. It has a charming atmosphere, though.

7. Rock A Little
Nothing wrong with the typography here. LOVE how it's so hard to read. Very unique and interesting. However, it's too bland for my taste.

8. TOSOTM
That hair...holy crap...horrible cover.

Damn that's beautiful. Should've been on the cover instead of that crazed ape shot.

I showed the OSOTM cover to one of my dear, sweet friends and she told it me it looked like Stevie was taking a **** :eek:

1. 24 Karat Gold - Really gorgeous picture and font, although the camera on the side and the big round hat throw me off a little

2. The Wild Heart - I love the cape and different poses

3. Trouble in Shangri-La - Love the dragon S, the dress and scenery. Just awesome

4. Bella Donna - Great dress but like others have said, Stevie looks sweaty and tired

5. OSOTM - I love the red contrasted with the black and white floor but it's an awkward pose and that damn 80s hairstyle :eek:

6. In Your Dreams - It's pretty and the horse is a nice if random touch but it's just overall not that interesting

7. Rock A Little - Stevie looks badly airbrushed and like IYD it just doesn't catch my eye

8. Street Angel - Just a cheap, rushed looking photo. Don't like the light pinkish, almost white background

Worst to best IMO:
Street Angel (bland)
In Your Dreams (looks too touched up, to me it's bland also despite the fantastical bent)
Rock a Little
The Other Side of the Mirror (it's got a lot wrong with it but it always fascinated me a little)
24 Karat Gold (warm, evocative)
The Wild Heart (very evocative)
Trouble in Shangri La (lovely)
Bella Donna (iconic)

What is the "thong thing" some of you are talking about on the TISL cover?
Love that cover btw!

The one thing that always bothers me about the WH cover is that the "middle Stevie" is brighter than the two on the left and right - the contrast is off.

That may have been done on purpose. The inspiration for the cover was from a painting Stevie loved. The painting may have the same effect. I just love the moon heart and the way Stevie Nicks is written and dripping. So cool for 1983!

It is intentional. The photographer, Herbert Worthington III, told me personally that the standing Stevie with her hands on her chest is the proud, strong Stevie, the middle Stevie is the spirit and soul mate of her dear friend Robin who had passed away, the sitting Stevie represents the little girl inside her.

Ohhhh ok, thank you very much for that information! :nod:

Thanks for the info, I knew I'd heard it was the 3 sides of 'Stevie' . I know a couple of yrs ago someone was selling (on eBay) Polaroids during various Stevie LP cover photo sessions and there were a couple of outtakes from the WH and Stevie is wearing a white shirt underneath the cape and a black appears velvet skirt. She's holding the cape up and her arms out this photo is in the middle and on the bottom right corner is similar to the WH cover 3rd photo. On the left side Stevie is sitting like the right side but she's looking at the camera smiling. Its a very different look than the actual cover we got. Who knows how many versions there could be of it. There's also one with just 2 Stevie's on it and its one of her standing with more of her hair out of the cape at the top and her arms are in her cape, at the bottom RT there's another Stevie looking up at the standing Stevie and her arms are out of the cape so you can see the white sleeves. There really cool photos. I only have photo copies but sorry don't know how to post them. Maybe someone else here has seen them --wished I could've gotten those and the others the seller was selling but they were taken down. There was more than those I don't recall all of them. They were really cool.

My favorite is probably the Wild Heart followed by BD/Mirror/24 K Gold the others are OK now Enchanted would've been better if the Blue Lamp photo on the inside would've been the actual cover because I love that photo session. I wish we could see more from that session --and the many others. Not crazy about the TISL like the outtakes better and same for the SA photos the outtakes are better than what was used. :shrug: