On the subject of album covers, the question was put to me on MSN of which I think is the best album cover of all time. Strangely I think that there's two that qualify, one of them (Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band) has sleeve notes but curiously Be Here Now by Oasis has nothing of the sort. These are my attempts from what I can gather.
1. The Building is Stocks Hotel and Country Club, at Aldbury, near Tring, Hertfordshire, a favourite haunt of late Who drummer Keith Moon.
2. The Rolls Royce submerged in the pool is an allusion to Keith Moon when, in celebrating his birthday, piled a Lincoln Convertible into a hotel swimming pool.
3. The Rolls Royce is a copy of that driven by John Lennon in the late 60's.
4. The number plate of the Rolls Royce (SYD 724F) parallels that of the police car on the right hand side of the cover of The Beatles Abbey Road LP.
5. The parking meter in the pool with the Rolls Royce alludes to the Beatles track Lovely Rita, about Rita the meter maid.
6. The white TV, showing the album cover, resembles that seen in The Who film Tommy
7. In the Beatles film Magical Mystery Tour, there is a scene in which Ringo looks through a telescope, as Noel does in the background.
8. The Clock leaning against drummer Alan White's right leg alludes to the station clock found in the Beatles film A Hard Day's Night
9. The Clock itself is also the label on the disc itself. There are no hands of the disc, and the Oasis logo covers the number 9 which incedentally is the position of the title track on the album.
10. Be Here Now does not feature in the lyrics to the song. In fact only What's the Story (Morning Glory)? is the only album title to appear in the lyrics of a song.
11. The Gramophone, resembles a tribute to the record label HMV, perhaps a nose up to Sony?, and whose logo features a dog (Kipper) sitting next to a gramophone.
12. The Vespa scooter behind which Liam stands is typical of 80's `mod' iconography. (The number plate - 514 FMK - who knows?!)
13. In original pictures of the cover, the calender was set to the date September 3, paralleling the day John Lennon and Yoko Ono left British shores in 1971.
14. However August 21, the release date of Be Here Now, was the day in 1988 when British legislation was passed allowing British Pubs to be open 12 hours a day, except on Sundays.
15. Also however there was a delay in shipping of the album. So the album cover was changed in accordance of the release dates in the country. 24 is France, 26 is New Zealand (both picured).
16. The Egg-Shaped Globe was rotated such that Bonehead was looking at the country that it was being released in.
17. The picture on the television is the album cover. Perhaps yet another allusion to The Who but referring to the effect used in the BBC series Dr Who.
The Abacus, Egg Timer, "Examination in Progress" sign, Cigarette butt in the foreground, Bonehead holding a gold key in guitar pose...who knows? I have no idea.
Perhaps Liam's explanation is perhaps the most apt: It's actually a bunch of rubbish we put on an album cover.
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