Seeing debut album art work in a new light - Kevin Buckle

Part of the National Album Day celebrations, a mural by local street artist Paul Curtis who has re-imagined Elvis Costello’s debut album My Aim Is True outside the record store, in Liverpool

Today is National Album Day which, if I’m honest, I’ve not been a big fan of, but this year is focusing on debut albums, which I thought was more interesting than previous themes.

Shops were asked to nominate a debut album and a local artist that would be able to reimagine the artwork of that album for a mural. I decided to make a suggestion as there was space outside the shop for a mural and of course Avalanche has a long history of working with the artist Gerry Gapinski.

I tried to pick an album that would give Gerry something to work with and would be recognised by all ages. The Fratellis Costello Music is still a big seller at Avalanche and seemed a perfect choice.

Much to my surprise the idea was chosen for a Scottish mural with the record shop 81 Renshaw in Liverpool also selected for the debut Elvis Costello album My Aim Is True.

The Fratellis' Costello Music album cover

The Gerry Gapinski mural reimagining Costello Music can be seen as you take the escalator down from the Waverley Market Waverley Bridge entrance in front of Avalanche Records.

Gerry has kept the fifties feel of the original and based his mural on the Jack Vettriano painting, The Singing Butler. The mural shows the servants who are holding the umbrellas in the original painting dancing themselves and perfectly captures the feel of an alternative record sleeve.

Releases for National Album Day vary from debut albums by The Damned and The Clash to Black Sabbath and Wu-Tang Clan. Scottish bands are represented by Travis’ Good Feeling which has a “fan thank you” sleeve.

I’ve been asked for my favourite Scottish albums many times and if I had to choose a top three debut albums during my time at Avalanche they would be, in no particular order, Belle and Sebastian’s Tigermilk, Withered Hand’s Good News and the self -titled album by There Will Be Fireworks.

The Fratellis Album Cover re-imagined. With Avalanche Records Waverley Mall Edinburgh.

To some extent the thrill of debut albums arriving in the shop has been lost as they are promoted now so heavily in advance, but before the internet, if a shop didn’t receive an advance copy then it would only get to hear the album from a new band when the stock arrived.

We were once asked to sell a debut album before its official release date just to gauge the reaction of our customers. The band had been licensed to the independent label Hut Records, which was wholly owned by the major Virgin Records but had its own independent distribution.

We dutifully played and sold the album which got a great reaction, that we reported back to the label. That album was Smashing Pumpkins’ Gish and I think I can safely say that such a thing could never happen now.

The debut album by the Wedding Present came out exactly 35 years ago this week and they were left without an Edinburgh gig on the Friday before the album’s Monday release after being double booked at The Venue with Australian band The Triffids. I got a phone call asking if I could help as I was curating the freshers week gig at Edinburgh University that night. I said yes, of course.

On reflection the first ten years of Avalanche from the mid-eighties to mid-nineties were much simpler times!