While driving through the hills of Cincinnati, I came across a record store and decided to pop in to see if there were any good deals to be had on jazz, blues or classic rock albums. Then I remembered that my recently re-acquired record player doesn’t spin effectively. But while I was there, I was reminded of how much I missed album covers. Just like the recent post about book covers, I find the cover art on music releases is a lost art form. So I got to thinking what were, to me, some of the most iconic album covers of all time? Well there is a chore, trying to figure that one out but I did manage to come up with a few. And who knows, maybe when I get back home I can find a vintage record player to spin those classics on.
Side Note: This article was originally published on 2023/10/10 from my old website.
Side Note II: I’ve moved away from expensive LPs to more cost effective and better quality compact discs.
Every year I will create a Christmas playlist and it seems almost every year the same songs end up on it. Well, they are called classics for a reason, aren’t they?
It’s that time of year when publishers, artists and generally most in the media like to focus on the “Best Of” for that calendar year. So, I thought it would be a good time to roll out the first ever Denbow Awards.
Books
Cloud Cuckoo Land
Project Hail Mary
The Plot
Strange Beasts of China
Apps
Obsidian
Feedbin
Geocache
Hipstamatic
Games
Asphalt 8
Alto’s Odyssey
Both games are from Apple Arcade and, for me, the only games I really play. If it wasn’t a part of the Apple One subscription, I wouldn’t play them, but they are both excellent ways to enjoy some downtime.
Film
Ghostbusters: Afterlife is the only movie I have seen in theaters this year. A nice continuity from the original actors’ story line and to the next generation.
Matrix: Resurrections- I haven’t seen this yet, but I am eagerly anticipating this, so we’ll call that a win.
TV
WandaVision- Disney Plus
Foundation- Apple TV
Tech
iPad Pro M1 2021
Music
I tried to break the Apple Music algorithms by listening to different genres. You can click here for the Audio Denbow radio station and Apple has set up their annual review of most played songs for me on Replay 2021.
Podcasts
My podcast listening has been limited, but I’ll note my two favorites here anyway. Smartless and Camp Monsters.
“SmartLess” with Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, & Will Arnett is a podcast that connects and unites people from all walks of life to learn about shared experiences through thoughtful dialogue and organic hilarity. A nice surprise: in each episode of SmartLess, one of the hosts reveals his mystery guest to the other two. What ensues is a genuinely improvised and authentic conversation filled with laughter and newfound knowledge to feed the SmartLess mind.”
“These are the stories of impossible encounters with impossible creatures in the wildest corners of North America. We’ll travel the country, sit around campfires and talk about that thing that ran across the trail in the middle of the night, just beyond the beam of your flashlight. Come closer to the fire. Let’s hear the next legend.”
And that’s it! The first annual Denbow Awards show has come to a close. It’s been a good year for entertainment and technology, and I cannot wait to see what is in store for 2022.
Holy wow, these new earbuds are brilliant. Gyroscopes and accelerometers in AirPods work together to track your head movements so it sounds like you’re in the center of songs. Combine this with Apple Music’s offering of lossless, Dolby Atmos and spatial sound and I imagine these things will be in my ears all day.
