Sun. Jun 15th, 2025

 U_Roy,_front

They sure don’t make them like they used to.

Album covers that is. In fact, they don’t even make albums. Indeed, is anyone besides me even buying compact discs anymore?

It’s never wrong to remember how incredible actual albums used to be.

Even a mediocre album could be salvaged by a cool cover. Like so:

zap

Or the crappy album with the incredible cover:

DeepPurpleInRock

Or the incredible album with the crappy cover:

Mighty_DiamondsRight_Time

Or the crappy album with the crappy cover:

queen

And then the album where form meets content and all elements are in harmony:

king_crimson_-_larks_tongues_in_aspic_-_front_[covertarget_com] TH_-_Remain_In_Light

John_Coltrane_[1957]_Blue_Train

BREW

BB

 mez

animals

caraan

All of which provides me with an excellent excuse to talk about U-Roy’s Dread in a Babylon. Now that summer is officially over (sigh), we need reggae more than ever.

This one features a fantastic cover, and is indeed a tremendous album (one that is –like the man who made it– overdue for reappraisal, and appreciation).

And as great as the front of the album is, it’s the back cover sequence where things get truly dread.

uroy_dread

Extreme close-up on those awesome images:

Going…

U_Roy,_back_1

Going…

U_Roy,_back_2

Gone!

U_Roy,_back_3

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By Sean Murphy

Subscribe to my Substack Award-winning author Sean Murphy in conversation with creative thinkers, spanning the literary, music, art, politics, and tech industries. As a cultural critic, professor, founder of a literary non-profit, Sean is always looking to explore and celebrate the ways Story is integral to how we define ourselves, as artists and human beings. This Substack newsletter and weekly podcast peels back the layers of how creativity works, why it matters, how our most brilliant minds achieve mastery. Join us to explore how our most successful and inspired storytellers engage by discussing craft, routines, brand, and mostly through authentic and honest expression. Subscribe at seanmurphy.live Connect with me Website: seanmurphy.net Twitter: @bullmurph Instagram: @bullmurph Facebook: facebook.com/AuthorSeanMurphy LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sean-murphy-4986b41