To the best of my knowledge, there are only three “connect-the-dots” album cover designs: (1) John Entwistle‘s brilliant cartoon rendering of the four band members for The Who By Numbers released in 1975;
(2) Neil Diamond‘s aforementioned Shilo cover from 1970 — one that the ABC Arts of Australia, you might recall, would utilize as a vehicle for an art contest in 2009;
(3) Sonny James‘s refreshingly unformidable connect-the-dots cover for 1972’s Traces compilation LP.
James would pantomime his rousing version of “A World of Our Own” — originally recorded by The Seekers — for this 1960s televised performance:
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Forget the song:
Check out the gargantuan bass guitar wielded by the guy on the porch
Zero to 180 finds it hard to believe there have only been three connect-the-dots covers — and all of them released in the 1970s, curiously enough. Are there others?
While it is true that, three decades later, hip hop artist, J.J. Brown, would take the baton with the release of his 2009 album, Connect the Dots, Brown – regrettably – would deprive his fans the joy of completing the puzzle themselves.
Billboard
May 28, 1966
Honorable Mention
Honorable mention, of course, goes to Jethro Tull for Thick as a Brick‘s elaborate fictional newspaper concept that also included a clever, though puerile, connect-the-dots feature for the kiddies.
P O S T S C R I P T
Billboard
Oct. 25, 1975
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