Project: Grass Roots - Mark Alan Wade
Mark's Sketch
Last July I was listening to Mark Wade in a jam session up in Evart, Michigan. As always, it was a great privilege Awestruck, I asked him if he had a recording of the tunes he was playing. He told me they were on his upcoming CD and that he was currently taking pre-orders. I wandered over to the vendors area and pre-ordered "Grass Roots".
I'm always taking note of CD cover art and the sign advertising this particular CD was just...so-so. I remember thinking to myself, "This would have been fun to work on, but it's being released in a couple weeks. I'm sure it's too late."
It was a welcomed surprise when I heard from Mark about a week later asking if I might be interested in a rush project. This really turned out to be a nice project for me. Mark sent me a sketch of what he was envisioning for the cover and I went to work creating it.
I did three initial concepts. He took a poll and chose one of the three. Then we went back and forth with revisions. One of the elements I like about the finished product was actually Mark's suggestion. I made the letters look like weathered wood at one point and he thought it might look cool to put images of a dulcimer in the letters instead. I got out my iPhone and took a few photos of my instrument (conveniently the same model as his) and masked them into the album title. It's subtle, but a nice touch that I probably wouldn't have come up with on my own.
First Round Concept - Click to Enlarge
Final Cover Art - Click to Enlarge
Before I agreed to do this project, our mutual friend Dan told me Mark was "really easy to work with." He wasn't kidding. Any designer knows how often a client has a project, tells you what they want, gives you everything you need, and is available for feedback.
I'd NEVER pre-ordered a CD before this one. So that should be an indication of what a phenominal collection of music it is. Check it out here!