While Sarah Harris celebrates only her 21st birthday this coming Saturday (May 3rd), the Bluegrass world is going gaga over her family’s (Trinity River Band) latest album cover!
To say that it has “wowed!” the industry is an understatement of the most magnitude. When the album cover artwork was released to the media three weeks ago, immediate reactions were over the top of the positive scale.
Initial comments from different members of the Association of Bluegrass Disc Jockeys, such as, “This album cover speaks volumes…”“…For me it was the expression on her face that caught my attention…” and “Attention all Bluegrass artists, let this inspire you and your management to step it up to this level!” caught the family by surprise. Even though they liked the concept enough to make a last minute switch from the originally planned and more traditional cover design, they still weren’t convinced that the bluegrass industry and the fans were ready for something this different.
Fan reactions from comments posted on the group’s Facebook page don’t seem to differ from the broadcaster’s impressions, such as,“I love this album and can’t wait to show it off to the world…” “…A truly high end professional grade project that don’t get any better than…” Even other musicians are saying things like,“Best cover ever.”
At a time in the bluegrass world when many albums, and some may say “too many,” have been released with minimalistic design and minimalistic color schemes to the point of almost monochromatic or sepia tones being the limit of color, Trinity River Band’s BETTER THAN BLUE album comes as more than just a breath of fresh air. It may be that little whisper of air to an industry that seems to have been trapped in the darkest parts of the album design dungeon.
Because we often focus on, or call attention to, that which may need some improvement in one way or another, we asked the Harris family if we could put the spotlight on this album to show as a hallmark of excellence and a model that can be held up as the benchmark for others to strive for in their own attempts to be creative in their marketing and packaging.
We’re glad to say that Sarah and her family were quick to agree to being the subject of our weekly editorial page, but only if we’d mention the team effort that it took to get what Sarah calls a “happy accident.” First on their list of folks they’d like to give credit to is Anthony Ladd of Kneelindesign who sent them a proof, well after plans had been underway for a completely different design, with a message that said …….. read more here at (Prescription Bluegrass)