The Dream Producer

SwampdaWamp: Winner of Best CD Cover at the 2007 Charlotte Music Awards

Gig Michaels, lead singer of SwampdaWamp, contacted 3-Dreams Media in the summer of 2006 to create a web site for his newly formed band. At our initial meeting, he played his demo songs for me as musicians like to do in order to get me to believe in his dream and, thus, give him a price break on both the CD art and the website.

That’s typically how it works with new bands. They want their photographers and artists to believe that they’ll make it big with their music and they’ll either bring you along for more highly paid work with their suddenly-famous band or at least you’ll have a claim to fame by having worked with them.

The fact of the matter is that very few aspiring bands actually get famous so working for future considerations with musicians is generally not financially rewarding. But we took on the project because we really liked the songs and thought the music was some of the best southern rock to come out in a long time.

Our first step was to create a band logo — an identity that the band could use that was instantly recognizable. Being a Yes fan, I’ve always liked Yes’ consistent use of the classic Yes logo and artwork of Roger Dean. We knew we could create an identity that appropriately reflected a southern blues rock style appropriate for a band named SwampdaWamp.

Once we had the logo, we started work on the CD art. Based on conversations with the band, we created a cover with the logo coming out of a foggy swamp. In the swamp was what appeared to be a rock until you opened the CD, where a really big gator would be revealed. This was the cover until the band made a deal with producer Joe Boyland in Nashville to produce and re-record their debut CD. Joe thought the cover was not colorful enough to attract buyers’ attention. So we went back to the drawing board, literally.

Artist Jee An began drawing a colorful Peter Max inspired swamp springing out of the logo. As we moved forward on the project, the producer and band kept tossing us their ideas and asking for changes in the art and direction long before it was finished. As it changed and evolved, the print deadline was getting ever closer. They loved the art, but kept Jee busy making requested changes and trying new backgrounds right up until the deadline. When we finally settled on it a week before the print deadline, the producer decided that he just wanted the  logo over a bright background on the cover. And he wanted changes in the logo which he defined. So the artwork designed for the cover went on the inside of the CD.

Personally, I think the artwork on the inside made the best cover. But the band and the producer were quite happy when they won the 2007 Best CD Cover at the inaugural Charlotte Music Awards. And, yes, we were happy too.