album design / concept and design
Once more we were excited to get the chance to work with a prolific label (E1 Entertainment, formerly Koch Records) and provide the design for another of Joe’s own solo projects. The Joe Locke Group is a hand selected quintet of extraordinary musicians, featuring the phenomenal Geoffrey Keezer (piano), Clarence Penn (drums), George Mraz (bass) and – a revelation to many people as one of the most beautifully soulful voices – vocalist Kenny Washington.
This album is moving and uplifting at the same time. I always considered it a worth successor of the 2001 and 2003 “Storytelling” releases.The freedom of working on an album design with only the featured solo artist as a creative collaborator means a highly satisfying experience for the designer. Too many labels insist on their house designer to provide the artwork with often little to no involvement of the person or band whose music it will represent. Loyalty to branding and corporate identity of a label and an original, individual album packaging don’t need to be mutually exclusive. Even more so am I feeling lucky that the collaborations of recent years have presented me with enough artistic trust by label bosses to allow the design to reflect the vision of the artist and my own expression of the music and the nature of the project.
Joe Locke‘s ‘For The Love Of You’ was no exception. The mood and sensitivity of the music felt best in a soft yet accessible design. We used a watercolour approach mixing original abstract paintings and strokes with photo filters and vibrant overlays. One of our main objectives however was to allow for the liner notes to remain clean and readable, without letting them overpower the design. I can’t remember ever having to undergo this amount of test prints to assure all areas have enough contrast to avoid awkward reading experiences and the classic cases of designer-ignorance towards the words of the artist.
The jewel case insert:
The tray card and CD body:
You can get ‘For The Love Of You’ here in Joe Locke’s Online Music Store.
