Gallery: Cover Songs: Here's What Famous Albums Would Look Like as Novels
01purple-rain
Sometimes great albums also tell great stories – Pink Floyd's *The Wall*, Nine Inch Nails's *The Downward Spiral* – but they hardly ever get the full-on novel treatment of their own. [The Record Books](http://ceegworld.com/the-record-books/), an art series reimagining famous albums as novels, is looking to change that – or at least create a good cover version of it. Created by Christophe Gowans, a freelance graphic designer who lives in London, The Record Books creates a different kind of narrative for classic albums like Michael Jackson's *Bad* and Radiohead's *OK Computer*, making each album a cover to a non-existent novel. Prince's *Purple Rain*, for example, becomes [a sci-fi tale](http://ceegworld.com/2012/04/22/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-purple-rain/) of Earth on the brink of collapse from – yes – acid rain that is saved when the peach is discovered to be the only plant unaffected. (See above.) Kanye West's *My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy*, in turn, is the [diary of a 9-year-old boy](http://ceegworld.com/2012/05/18/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-my-beautiful-dark-twisted-fantasy/ ) with a misleading title, because "his most extreme fantasy extends to driving a Royal Mail overnight delivery train without wearing his glasses." The Beach Boys' sonic epic [*Pet Sounds* becomes](http://ceegworld.com/2012/05/23/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-pet-sounds/) simply a children's book to acquaint pre-schoolers with barn animal noises. Sort of. "They're so much fun for a designer to do, it's a bit like mining for gold," said Gowans, who makes his creations in Illustrator before aging them with Photoshop tools. "When you find the right combination of title and book genre, it's such a rush." Most recently, Gowans tackled [Depeche Mode's *Violator*](http://ceegworld.com/2013/02/24/the-record-books-%e2%80%a2-violator/) (about a lesbian TV star who goes on a blood-sucking rampage for reality TV) and Nine Inch Nails' *The Downward Spiral* (a fictional autobiography of adult film star Tyrone "Nine-Inch" Nails), and is currently planning some variation on a Guns N' Roses album as well as a Van Halen book cover. He also recently started selling some of the images as [prints and postcards](http://www.rockpot.co.uk/) (send that *Downward Spiral* number to your mom!). Check out some of Gowans' favorite Record Books in the gallery here. __Above:__ *Purple Rain* by Prince ------------------------ *Purple Rain* got a movie, not a book. So Gowans worked up a sci-fi tome. "Growing up, these second-hand bookshops were full of these slightly-narrower-than-our-paperbacks American pulpy sci-fi beauties," he adds of his inspiration for the design.
02horses
*Horses* by Patti Smith ----------------------- "The [quintessentially jarring image](http://ceegworld.com/2012/05/01/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-horses/)," Gowans said. "Diametrically opposed to the intention of the original album. No effort required on my part."
03bad
*Bad* by Michael Jackson ------------------------ This [piece of fictional schlock](http://ceegworld.com/2012/05/15/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-bad/) is about a private eye who tracks down the "Shamone" Killer. It also has a killer cameo. "That's me on the cover," Gowans said. "I'm bad. I'm bad. I'm really, really bad."
04bat-out-of-hell
*Bat Out of Hell* by Meat Loaf ------------------------------ A [young boy escapes Hell's Kitchen](http://ceegworld.com/2012/06/11/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-bat-out-of-hell/), New York to join the circus and develops a killer routine where he hangs from the high-wire by his toes. "I love those old embossed/debossed/gold leafed/etc. book jackets of old," Gowans said.
05in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea
*In the Aeroplane Over the Sea* by Neutral Milk Hotel ----------------------------------------------------- Neutral Milk Hotel's critical darling of an album gets turned into [a 1970s safety manual](http://ceegworld.com/2012/06/01/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-in-the-aeroplane-over-the-sea/). "Designers love icons," Gowans said. "Each one is a song on the album."
06my-beautiful-dark-twisted-fantasy
*My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy* by Kanye West ------------------------------------------------- Even though it's supposed to be [the journal of a 9-year-old](http://ceegworld.com/2012/05/18/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-my-beautiful-dark-twisted-fantasy/), "my friend Roz did the handwriting," Gowans said. "She's 30."
07are-you-experienced
*Are You Experienced* by The Jimi Hendrix Experience ---------------------------------------------------- In a pretty comical turn, Gowans turned Hendrix's masterful psychedelic rock record into [a self-help book](http://ceegworld.com/2012/05/22/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-are-you-experienced/) for young professionals. "Work experience was, I guess, not the kind of experience Jimi was originally referring to," Gowans joked.
08born-to-run
*Born to Run* by Bruce Springsteen ---------------------------------- Springsteen's collection of American anthems becomes the [autobiography of a young man](http://ceegworld.com/2012/05/04/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-born-to-run-2/) who raises to Olympics glory in track and field. "I love when the meaning of the title changes so subtly," Gowans said.
09the-boy-who-knew-too-much
*The Boy Who Knew Too Much* by Mika ----------------------------------- Mika's album becomes the autobiography of a sensitive Kansas boy. In his notes for the book, Gowans claims its appeal gets cut down when the fictional author [urinates on a competitor's face](http://ceegworld.com/2012/05/17/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-the-boy-who-knew-too-much/) on *I'm a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!*. "\[This is\] my favourite bit of design in the series," Gowans said.
10a-day-at-the-races-a-night-at-the-opera
*A Day at the Races* and *A Night at the Opera* by Queen -------------------------------------------------------- This pair of Queen records got a [crime novel remix](http://ceegworld.com/2012/06/25/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-a-day-at-the-races-a-night-at-the-opera/). "I have read every Agatha Christie," Gowans said. "This harks back to how her books looked when I was buying 'em."
11abbey-road
*Abbey Road* by The Beatles --------------------------- In a nod to the original inspiration for the Record Books project, Gowans said he "allowed myself one [classic British Penguin paperback](http://ceegworld.com/2012/07/25/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-abbey-road/) from the 'orange spine' period." The result was this take on the Beatles masterpiece *Abbey Road*
12whats-the-story-morning-glory
*(What's the Story) Morning Glory?* by Oasis --------------------------------------------- This classic of 1990s dorm rooms gets transformed into a [church leaflet of sorts](http://ceegworld.com/2013/02/03/the-record-books-%E2%80%A2-whats-the-story-morning-glory/). "Well, Liam and Noel did seem to think they were gods," Gowans explains.
13new-boots-and-panties
*New Boots and Panties!!* by Ian Dury ------------------------------------- Ian Dury's 1970s new wave joint becomes a little book of children's rhymes. "Ian Dury could have written a KILLER Dr. Seuss book," Gowans points out.
14this-is-happening
*This Is Happening* by LCD Soundsystem -------------------------------------- Gowans turned LCD Soundsystem's 2010 dance epic into "the most deadpan generic newspaper headline in the world."
15xy
*X&Y* by Coldplay ----------------- Gowans' take on Coldplay's 2005 album is a little misguided. "Oh dear," he said. "Apparently I've got the chromosomes the wrong way around."
