Cover Stories with Paul Morris, Vol. 17

May 21st, 2016


Paul Morris is a graphic designer and writer who collects album art of the 1940’s and 1950’s. He finds his examples of influential mid-century design in the used record stores of Portland, Oregon.

In this edition, Paul writes about the album cover art of Erik Nitsche, a pioneer of modern design

 

 

 

__________

 

 

The designer of this month’s selection of art is Erik Nitsche (1908–1998), a pioneer of modern design in whose career album covers were a minor chapter. He rose to prominence in the 1950s with a series of striking posters and advertising for the General Dynamics military-industrial corporation. In the 1960s he designed several series of educational books as well as children’s books that added to his renown as a master of page composition and book design.

You can find abundant information about Nitsche online. A feature from some years back by Steven Heller is a good place to start.  You can read it by clicking here.

 

_____

 

Nitsche had been based in New York since the 1930s, when he was art director for Saks Fifth Avenue and other businesses. In the early 1950s for his client Decca Records he showed what he could do with the twelve-inch square format. Below are two examples of a style that combined a classic serif typeface like Didot with a reproduction of a historical engraving that referenced the music at hand.

 

 

paul1

 

paul2

 

__________

 

 

This 1950 design for a Richard Tauber record shows a restrained use of a single typeface, set large, with a small painting of a stage below an expressive white space. The next cover is for Gershwin and shows a snazzier side of Nitsche, who normally was assigned the classical records. The car horn references the horns featured in the score of An American in Paris.

 

 

 

paul3

 

 

paul4

 

 

paul5

 

__________

 

The grim cover for a Shakespeare recording, from 1951, is one of my most recent Nitsche finds. There is an old engraving of Romeo and Juliet, but the skull and dagger of Hamlet dominate the composition. The calmer design for the two clarinet trios on the next cover combines a lacelike pattern with a balanced grouping of triangles that evokes Nitsche’s Swiss Modern background.

 

paul6

 

 

paul7

 

 

__________

 

This Music of Mexico design is something entirely different, perhaps using found images. The illustration for the Segovia concert is also bold and poster-like.

 

paul8

 

 

paul9

 

__________

 

 

These two covers from 1951 are for recordings of ballet music by a London orchestra. Using the same basic elements, Nitsche deftly shows how they can be varied in placement, sizing, and color, to create two complementary but quite different effects. Comparing them is like watching the artist’s process of revision.

 

paul10

 

 

paul11

 

 

__________

 

 

For Handel’s Water Music we have a ship done in a technique called calligraphic illustration. There is a long tradition in Europe of elaborate drawings done with a pen. Books of engravings demonstrating the roundhand style such as The Universal Penman published by George Bickham in the 17th century, showed drawings such as the one below. I don’t know if Nitsche found this image and added color, or if he had mastered the technique.

paul12

paul13

 

__________

 

The cover for Schlusnus Sings shows the artist’s hard-edged illustration style with some acorn-like shapes paired with some singular modern type. This image brings to mind his posters for General Dynamics on the theme of atoms for peace. The poster shown here achieved the goal of portraying the corporation as futuristic and progressive while not being too explicit about the product, a nuclear submarine. The details of this Cold War military project had to be kept under wraps, even as the company tried to enhance its public image. Steven Heller wrote about this and a whole series of illustrations for this client, “Nitsche’s brand of artful futurism was copied by many others at the time and might be seen today as representative of the so-called ‘Atomic Style’ that emerged in the mid- to late-1950s.” 

 

paul14

paul15

   __________

 

Two examples of Nitsche’s skill in riffing on found images from the 19th century. In the Trapp Family cover, there is an uncharacteristic droll humor. The bell-ringing contraption is shown with emphasis on the mechanisms. The artist had a lifelong interest in engineering—he art-directed an aeronautics magazine and dove into illustrating all kinds of large craft for General Dynamics. A dancing couple, the woman wearing an empire-waist dress, illustrates a collection of lieder by Brahms.

 

paul16a

 

paul17a

 

_________

 

Nitsche was born and educated in Switzerland, and was  fully fluent in abstract design. These two covers from 1954 and 1953 still look fresh, with sophisticated color choices.

 

 

paul18

 

 

 

paul19

 

__________

 

 

He grew up in Lausanne, the son of a portrait photographer. Nitsche got to know and was influenced by Paul Klee, who was a family friend. Perhaps these designs show some of that influence. The Grieg illustration is of a forested mountain, I assume. The Bach preludes are represented by what seems to be a misaligned keyboard. Whatever it is, the colors are well tempered.

 

paul20

 

 

paul16

 

__________

 

This last cover by Erik Nitsche combines a fanciful old engraving of a hot-air balloon with a trio of pastel prisms. The text is again in the stately Didot, with the intriguing figure waving a flag from the gondola basket that is only noticeable on a close second look. 

If you read more about this giant of design, you’ll find, for example, how a corporate annual report made a splash in the design world of the 1960s, or what he did for the New York Transit Authority.

paul17

 

 

 

*

 

 

Next time… album covers with designer chairs.

__________

 

 

In Volume 1 of “Cover Stories,” Paul shared his collection of covers by Alex Steinweiss, known as the father of the record album cover, and for many years in charge of Columbia Records’ art department.

Volume 2 focused on Columbia covers

Volume 3 featured jazz illustrations from the early years of the record album

Volume 4 revisited the 1950’s with images of fans holding and enjoying their albums

Volume 5 explored the work of Alex Steinweiss when he used the pseudonym “Piedra Blanca”

Volume 6 featured teenagers of the 1950’s enjoying their music

Volume 7 featured Steinweiss album covers from his prime period — the late 1940’s and early 1950’s

Volume 8 featured a “disturbing” and fascinating trend in 1950?s album art — Records on the Floor!

Volume 9 featured a selection of RCA Victor album covers from Paul’s collection

Volume 10 featured a selection of covers by Curt John Witt, the prolific illustrator for mid-century budget record labels

Volume 11 featured a selection of “glamour girl” covers

Volume 12 featured the “late Columbia” era of master designer Alex Steinweiss

Volume 13 focused on Everest Records, the last of several new labels that Alex Steinweiss helped launch

Volume 14 Paul shares some of his personal jazz record collection, concentrating on the lesser known and sometimes quirky covers that emphasize photographs

Volume 15 took a look at the art of London Records

Volume 16 Paul shared some jazz covers from the 1950’s

 

 

Share this:

2 comments on “Cover Stories with Paul Morris, Vol. 17”

  1. Wow, what a wild collection – quite beautiful! In the big someday I bet you’ll have a bazillion musicians and cover artists waiting in line to thank you for not forgetting them, Paul!

  2. Wow, what a wild collection – quite beautiful! In the big someday I bet you’ll have a bazillion musicians and cover artists waiting in line to thank you for not forgetting them, Paul!

Comment on this article:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Site Archive

Your Support is Appreciated

Jerry Jazz Musician has been commercial-free since its inception in 1999. Your generous donation helps it remain that way. Thanks very much for your kind consideration.

Click here to read about plans for the future of Jerry Jazz Musician.

Publisher’s Notes

Creatives – “This is our time!“…A Letter from the Publisher...A call to action to take on political turmoil through the use of our creativity as a way to help our fellow citizens “pierce the mundane to find the marvelous.”

In This Issue

Monk, as seen by Gottlieb, Dorsett and 16 poets – an ekphrastic poetry collection...Poets write about Thelonious Monk – inspired by William Gottlieb’s photograph and Rhonda R. Dorsett’s artistic impression of it.

Poetry

photo of Miles Davys by User:JPRoche, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons/adapted by Rhonda R. Dorsett
“Thinking of Mr. Davis on the Fourth of July” – a poem by Juan Mobili

Poetry

21 jazz poems on the 21st of June, 2025...An ongoing series designed to share the quality of jazz poetry continuously submitted to Jerry Jazz Musician by poets sharing their relationship to the music, and with the musicians who perform it.

The Sunday Poem

”The Subtle Art of Dinner Music” by Fred Shaw

The Sunday Poem is published weekly, and strives to include the poet reading their work.... Fred Shaw reads his poem at its conclusion


Click here to read previous editions of The Sunday Poem

Essay

“J.A. Rogers’ ‘Jazz at Home’: A Centennial Reflection on Jazz Representation Through the Lens of Stormy Weather and Everyday Life – an essay by Jasmine M. Taylor...The writer opines that jazz continues to survive – 100 years after J.A. Rogers’ own essay that highlighted the artistic freedom of jazz – and has “become a fundamental core in American culture and modern Americanism; not solely because of its artistic craftsmanship, but because of the spirit that jazz music embodies.”

Community

The passing of a poet: Alan Yount...Alan Yount, the Missouri native whose poems were published frequently on Jerry Jazz Musician, has passed away at the age of 77.

Interview

photo Louis Armstrong House Museum
Interview with Ricky Riccardi, author of Stomp Off, Let’s Go: The Early Years of Louis Armstrong...The author discusses the third volume of his trilogy, which includes the formation of the Armstrong-led ensembles known as the Hot Five and Hot Seven that modernized music, the way artists play it, and how audiences interact with it and respond to it.

Essay

“Is Jazz God?” – an essay by Allison Songbird...A personal journey leads to the discovery of the importance of jazz music, and finding love for it later in life.

Poetry

What is This Path – a collection of poems by Michael L. Newell...A contributor of significance to Jerry Jazz Musician, the poet Michael L. Newell shares poems he has written since being diagnosed with a concerning illness.

Publisher’s Notes

Where I’ve Been…and a brief three-dot-update...News about an important life experience, and an update about what's going on at Jerry Jazz Musician

Feature

Jimmy Baikovicius from Montevideo, Uruguay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Trading Fours, with Douglas Cole, No. 25: “How I Hear Music: ‘Feel the Sway,’ A Song in Three Movements”...In this edition, due to a current and ongoing obsession with drummer Matt Wilson’s 2006 album The Scenic Route, Douglas Cole writes another poem in response to his experience listening to the track “Feel the Sway.”

Feature

Jazz History Quiz #181...Before recording his most notable work (to that point) as a saxophonist in Miles Davis’ “Birth of the Cool” nonet, his initial reputation was as an arranger, including a stint in 1946 as the staff arranger in Gene Krupa’s Orchestra. He would eventually become one of the leading voices on his instrument for almost 50 years. Who is he?

Short Fiction

Short Fiction Contest-winning story #68 — “Saharan Blues on the Seine,” by Aishatu Ado...Aminata, a displaced Malian living in Paris, is haunted by vivid memories of her homeland. Through a supernatural encounter with her grandmother, she realizes that preserving her musical heritage through performance is an act of resistance that can transform her grief into art rather than running from it.

Feature

Excerpts from David Rife’s Jazz Fiction: Take Two – Vol. 14 - "World War II and jazz"...A substantial number of novels and stories with jazz music as a component of the story have been published over the years, and the scholar David J. Rife has written short essay/reviews of them. In this 14th edition featuring excerpts from his outstanding literary resource, Rife writes about stories whose theme is World War II and jazz

Poetry

“Summer Wind” – a poem (for July) by Jerrice J. Baptiste...Jerrice's 12-month 2025 calendar of jazz poetry winds through the year with her poetic grace while inviting us to wander through music by the likes of Charlie Parker, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Hoagy Carmichael, Sarah Vaughan, Melody Gardot and Nina Simone. She welcomes July with a poem that conjurs up the great Frank Sinatra tune…

Feature

“What one song best represents your expectations for 2025?” Readers respond...When asked to name the song that best represents their expectations for 2025, respondents often cited songs of protest and of the civil rights era, but so were songs of optimism and appreciation, including Bob Thiele and George David Weiss’ composition “What a Wonderful World,” made famous by Louis Armstrong, who first performed it live in 1959. The result is a fascinating and extensive outlook on the upcoming year.

Playlist

“Eight is Great!” – a playlist by Bob Hecht...The cover of the 1959 album The Greatest Trumpet of Them All by the Dizzy Gillespie Octet. A song from the album, “Just by Myself,” is featured on Bob Hecht’s new 28-song playlist – this one devoted to octets.

Short Fiction

“Steven and Mira: Paris May 1968” – a short story by Steven P. Unger...The story – a finalist in the recently concluded 68th Short Fiction Contest – is a semiautobiographical tale of a café-hopping tour of Paris in the revolutionary summer of 1968, and a romance cut short by the overwhelming realities of national strikes, police violence at home and abroad, and finally the assassination of Bobby Kennedy.

Interview

photo by Brian McMillen
Interview with Phillip Freeman, author of In the Brewing Luminous: The Life and Music of Cecil Taylor...The author discusses Cecil Taylor – the most eminent free jazz musician of his era, whose music marked the farthest boundary of avant-garde jazz.

Short Fiction

“Every Night at Ten,” a short story by Dennis A. Blackledge...Smothering parents, heavy-handed school officials, and a dead President conspire to keep a close-knit group of smalltown junior high kids from breaking loose. But the discovery of a song on late-night radio — one supposedly loaded with dirty words — changes everything.

Short Fiction

art by Marsha Hammel
“Stuck in the Groove” – a short story by David Rudd...The story – a short-listed entry in the recently concluded 68th Short Fiction Contest – is about a saxophonist who moves away from playing bebop to experimenting with free jazz, discovering its liberating potential and possible pitfalls along the way…

Art

photo by Giovanni Piesco
The Photographs of Giovanni Piesco: Art Farmer and Benny Golson...Beginning in 1990, the noted photographer Giovanni Piesco began taking backstage photographs of many of the great musicians who played in Amsterdam’s Bimhuis, that city’s main jazz venue which is considered one of the finest in the world. Jerry Jazz Musician will occasionally publish portraits of jazz musicians that Giovanni has taken over the years. This edition features the May 10, 1996 photos of the tenor saxophonist, composer and arranger Benny Golson, and the February 13, 1997 photos of trumpet and flugelhorn player Art Farmer.

Interview

“The Fire Each Time” – an interview with New York Times best-selling author Frederick Joseph, by John Kendall Hawkins...A conversation with the two-time New York Times bestselling author of The Black Friend and Patriarchy Blues, who in 2023 was honored with the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Vanguard Award,. He has also been a member of The Root list of “100 Most Influential African Americans.”

Interview

Interview with Jonathon Grasse: author of Jazz Revolutionary: The Life and Music of Eric Dolphy....The multi-instrumentalist Eric Dolphy was a pioneer of avant-garde technique. His life cut short in 1964 at the age of 36, his brilliant career touched fellow musical artists, critics, and fans through his innovative work as a composer, sideman and bandleader. Jonathon Grasse’s Jazz Revolutionary is a significant exploration of Dolphy’s historic recorded works, and reminds readers of the complexity of his biography along the way. Grasse discusses his book in a December, 2024 interview.

Feature

Dmitry Rozhkov, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
“Thoughts on Matthew Shipp’s Improvisational Style” – an essay by Jim Feast..Short of all the musicians being mind readers, what accounts for free jazz musicians’ – in this instance those playing with the pianist Matthew Shipp – incredible ability for mutual attunement as they play?

Community

Stewart Butterfield, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Community Bookshelf #4...“Community Bookshelf” is a twice-yearly space where writers who have been published on Jerry Jazz Musician can share news about their recently authored books and/or recordings. This edition includes information about books published within the last six months or so (September, 2024 – March, 2025)

Interview

Interview with James Kaplan, author of 3 Shades of Blue: Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans and the Lost Empire of Cool...The esteemed writer tells a vibrant story about the jazz world before, during, and after the 1959 recording of Kind of Blue, and how the album’s three genius musicians came together, played together, and grew together (and often apart) throughout the experience.

Community

Nominations for the Pushcart Prize XLIX...Announcing the six writers nominated for the Pushcart Prize v. XLIX, whose work was published in Jerry Jazz Musician during 2024.

Contributing Writers

Click the image to view the writers, poets and artists whose work has been published on Jerry Jazz Musician, and find links to their work

Coming Soon

An interview with Sascha Feinstein, author of Writing Jazz: Conversations with Critics and Biographers.... An interview with Tad Richards, author of Listening to Prestige:  Chronicling Its Classic Jazz Recordings, 1949 - 1972...  Also, a new Jazz History Quiz, and lots of short fiction; poetry; photography; interviews; playlists; and much more in the works...

Interview Archive

Ella Fitzgerald/IISG, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Click to view the complete 25-year archive of Jerry Jazz Musician interviews, including those recently published with Judith Tick on Ella Fitzgerald (pictured),; Laura Flam and Emily Sieu Liebowitz on the Girl Groups of the 60's; Tad Richards on Small Group Swing; Stephanie Stein Crease on Chick Webb; Brent Hayes Edwards on Henry Threadgill; Richard Koloda on Albert Ayler; Glenn Mott on Stanley Crouch; Richard Carlin and Ken Bloom on Eubie Blake; Richard Brent Turner on jazz and Islam; Alyn Shipton on the art of jazz; Shawn Levy on the original queens of standup comedy; Travis Atria on the expatriate trumpeter Arthur Briggs; Kitt Shapiro on her life with her mother, Eartha Kitt; Will Friedwald on Nat King Cole; Wayne Enstice on the drummer Dottie Dodgion; the drummer Joe La Barbera on Bill Evans; Philip Clark on Dave Brubeck; Nicholas Buccola on James Baldwin and William F. Buckley; Ricky Riccardi on Louis Armstrong; Dan Morgenstern and Christian Sands on Erroll Garner; Maria Golia on Ornette Coleman.