The alt-rock band Wilco released a new album last week. It’s titled Star Wars and is probably a fine listen if you’re into that sort of wispy indie-rock thing. More importantly, the 11-track project comes complete with artwork that stars a very distinguished and imperial-looking white feline.
Riffing on Wilco’s bold cat-centric statement, here’s a roundup of other notable artists who’ve featured felines on their album covers.
Klaxons, Surfing The Void
For their second album, Brit band the Klaxons decided to showcase singer Jamie Reynold’s cat dressed up in a space suit. Genius comes in many forms.
Carole King, Tapestry
A classic ’70s singer-songwriter project deserves a classic cat on the cover — and Carole King was only happy to oblige when rock photographer Jim McCrary suggested using her kitty as part of the shoot.
Best Coast, Crazy For You
The Los Angeles-based indie pop duo used group member Bethany Cosentino’s own cat on the cover of its 2010 debut. The feline’s name is Socks.
Jimmy Smith, The Cat
Hammond B3 master Jimmy Smith released The Cat in 1964 — a fiery jazz project he cut in tandem with the legendary composer Lalo Schifrin. It was only fitting that the album’s swinging grooves were paired with a slick black kitty for the cover.
Blink-182, Cheshire Cat
The debut album from rocksters Blink-182 was titled after the canny feline character in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. When it came to the artwork, band members plumped for an intense-looking Siamese on the cover.
Lil B, Keke
Oddball Bay Area hip-hop artist Lil B adopted a cat that he named Keke. Music ensued. Listen here with caution.
About Phillip Mlynar: The self-appointed world’s foremost expert on rappers’ cats. When not penning posts on rap music, he can be found building DIY cat towers for his adopted domestic shorthair, Mimosa, and collecting Le Creuset cookware (in red). He has also invented cat sushi, but it’s not quite what you think it is.
