What are your favorite album covers?
Everyone’s seen Pink Floyd’s prismatic Dark Side of the Moon and the zany congregation featured on Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles. The iconic walkway of Abbey Road and the naked baby on Nirvana’s Nevermind are also world-famous.
After a few lonely months in quarantine at the Sydmar Lodge Care Home in Edgeware of north London, a group of retirement home residents decided to spend some time in quarantine recreating iconic album artwork.
Here’s resident Roma Cohen as David Bowie’s iconic persona Aladdin Sane, from his album Aladdin Sane.
Some might think this is David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust, but that character appears on different albums, most notably Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, which is also excellent. Aladdin Sane is a little more avant-garde, released years after Ziggy Stardust.
Robert Speker, activities director for Sydmar Lodge Care, was eager to put his photography skills to the test, stating,
“As this situation is on-going it could be months before the situation changes for them and the need to keep them happy, entertained, and full of spirit has never been more crucial. It’s been my job and privilege.”
Here’s a charismatic senior recreating Madonna’s Madonna, a pop classic.
Here’s another American classic – Born in the U.S.A. by Bruce Springsteen.
Fun fact – most people view Springsteen’s song “Born in the U.S.A.” as a rallying patriotic piece, but the truth is that it’s incredibly critical of the United States, especially given the nation’s involvement in the Vietnam War.
Resident Martin Steinberg got in costume for this recreation.
Wait a second! Is that a Danish flag in the background!?
Everybody loves Queen, a band known for its iconic harmonies and operatic theatrics.
Some of the staff at Sydmar assembled to pose for Queen’s album Queen II.
The shadows really add some visual nuance. I kinda want to hear the Carers perform “Bohemian Rhapsody.”
Fun fact, “Bohemian Rhapsody” appears on Queen’s 1975 album A Night at the Opera. Queen II was released the year before.
93-year-old Vera took some time to pose for Adele’s iconic 21.
The angle and expression are absolutely perfect.
Another senior posed for Blink-182’s pop-punk classic Enema of the State, featuring a blue butterfly tattoo and all.
The resemblance is uncanny.
And here’s a perfect recreation of Johnny Cash’s phenomenal album, American IV: The Man Comes Around.
Again, the lighting adds so much depth to both images.
Is that the real Johnny Cash on the left? I almost couldn’t tell.
Any Michael Jackson fans in the house?
Here’s a recreation of his iconic pop opus Bad, leather jacket and all.
Toba David is pretty bad, not gonna lie.
The iconic cover of The Clash’s London Calling also makes an appearance!
Side note: London Calling is perhaps the greatest punk album of all time and a personal fave.
The image of the guitar about to be smashed is iconic!
Quarantining definitely isn’t easy. It’s great that the residents and employees of Sydmar Lodge Care Home have found a unique, creative way of staying busy. One of the harshest challenges of the ongoing global pandemic is staying mentally occupied.
The BBC even took notice, making their recreations a global phenomenon and viral sensation!
Alright, so what do we have here? For the curious, here’s a list of albums they’ve recreated so far:
- David Bowie – Aladdin Sane
- Michael Jackson – Bad
- Madonna – Madonna
- Blink-182 – Enema of the State
- Elvis Presley – Elvis Presley
- Queen – Queen II
- Bruce Springsteen – Born in the U. S. A.
- Taylor Swift – 1989
- Johnny Cash – American IV: The Man Comes Around
- Adele – 21
- The Clash – London Calling
So which are your favorites? What are your favorite album covers, in general? What do you suggest they make next?
Feel free to check out more of their art below. I certainly hope they keep up the fantastic work!
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