When I was a teenager, my brother Michael turned me on to Gene Krupa. It was a lasting passion - not so much for Krupa but for various forms of jazz drumming. However, it had another effect: the cover of Clef records back then had design and art work by David Stone Martin, a master of line and wash illustrations, as shown here with the Billie Holiday and James P.Johnson covers. His album covers are now up on the Internet at http://www.birkajazz.com/archive/stoneMartin.htm

Apart from David Stone Martin, I have always been drawn to the artwork of Ben Shahn and Jonathon Shahn ... Draw these styles together and you have the early cover work of Andy Warhol before he became THE Andy Warhol. The Griffen and Burrell ciovers are his.

CDs do have cover art, but today's artform for music is more the video. Progress I hate to call it, but time stands still for nobody - and technology dictates more changes today than a Zappa concerto!

So, I hope you enjoy these postcards from my past musical passions.