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I’d argue against the inclusion of some of these covers – The Frivolous Five are obviously having a little joke at their own expense, and it works. And, y’know, there’s a bit of “Ha ha, seventies fashions sucked” and/or “LOL XTIANS!!!ONE!” which I think we could all do without. And then there are the simply tasteless. (Warning: unpleasant image.)
The ones that fascinate me, however, are the metal covers – especially the ones with a bit of money behind them. I’m guessing that neither Heavy Load or Battleaxe had much in the way of a budget for graphics, so someone in the band gave their semi-talented 13-year-old male cousin a box of colored pencils and told him to go nuts. They’re awful, but at least there’s some enthusiasm there.
But Black Sabbath were on a major label at the time (Warner Brothers or Capitol, I think), and that’s the best they could come up with? Nobody had the courtesy to let the guy in the red spandex know what an awful mistake he was making? And Man O’ War… Dudes. Seriously. What was the thought process?
Yeah, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that a photo of a nude 12-year-old (? pre-pubescent, anyway) girl with a strategically-placed bit of broken glass over her vagina sorta goes beyond the pale. It's not conservative morality so much as it is just a deeply bad idea, on a lot of levels. If saying that means that I'm "caving", well, I can live with that.
That's how effectively brainwashed by the Moral Majority you are then; so much so that you do not even recognize it.
At one time, pissing off the moralists was a growth industry. In the late 70s, though, the moralists gained the upper hand in the high schools and have been closing down on freedom of expression ever since with their labeling. "If you can't win on the legal front, then get them before they are old enough to argue otherwise."
Look at that picture again. That model could be (have been) just as easily 18 as 14. If you really believe she was 14 or younger at the time, then congratulations, you now have child porn in your cache.
Do you seriously think she was eighteen when that shot was taken? Really?
Freedom of expression is one of the greater aspects of our culture. With that freedom, as with all freedoms, comes responsibility. Just because I can yell "FIRE!" in a crowded movie theater doesn't mean it's a good idea. And just because a band can put a symbolically sexually violent image of (what is presented as) a nude child on the cover of their album doesn't mean that's a good idea either.
You either see that or you don't. I'm too tired at this point to try to explain it any further tonight. I guess I just prefer to pick my battles, and this one ain't worth fighting.
Just before I toddle off to bed: I guess I just prefer to pick my battles, and this one ain't worth fighting refers to the free-speech aspects of the cover, not the argument over whether it was creepy or not.
photo by splunge
photo by TheophileEscargot
photo by Kronos_to_Earth
photo by ethylene
