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Marcy Playground Artwork Pulled From Butthole Surfers
11/03/1999 5:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Craig Rosen
(11/3/99, 5 p.m. ET) - The Butthole Surfers got a shock upon seeing the cover artwork on the new Marcy Playground album, Shapeshifter, as it was originally conceived for their long-finished, but yet-to-be-released album After The Astronaut. The artwork, created by artist Mark Ryden and based on a sketch by the Surfer's Paul Leary, features an Indian chief and an alien cowboy around a campfire. A representative of the Surfers' management confirms that the band originally conceived it while they were still with Marcy Playground's current label, Capitol Records. After the Surfers left Capitol for Hollywood Records, the band received their original master tapes, but not the artwork, which the label later offered to Marcy Playground for its album without explaining its origin, reports the Austin American Statesman. Leary has been engaging in an ongoing conversation with Marcy Playground on the bulletin board of the band's website (www.marcyplayground.com), where he doesn't slag the band, but its label, saying, "I hope MP is happy with their label. Still can't believe their label would do that. How does something like that go down? 'Hey, I got a great idea! Let's use Paul Leary's idea for Butthole Surfer album art, and make it Marcy Playground's.' Welcome to the music business." MP singer Mark Wozniak responded in kind, saying, "We're just as baffled and mortified as Paul. Originally, I suggested to the label that Mark Ryden should do our cover art because I admired his work. What we got from Mark, via the Capitol art department, was this piece. It was perfect for us, because the 'Shapeshifter' theme is based on a Native American legend. There was never any mention that Mark had painted it for the Surfers. I can't apologize enough for Capitol Records' lame maneuver (we will take it up with them first thing Monday), but I can, at least, genuinely say that I am honored to have a record cover partly designed by Paul Leary of the Butthole Surfers. Best regards to the band, Paul." A spokesperson for Capitol declined comment. The Butthole Surfer's After the Astronaut is due out in 2000 on Hollywood Records. The label had no comment on what the artwork for the album would look like. Features on Marcy Playground and the Butthole Surfers are available on LAUNCH.com. A transcript of an exclusive chat with Marcy Playground is also available. -- Barry Jeckell, New York Got news tips, comments, or questions? Send them to newstips@launch.com.
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