SIMPLICITY OF EXPRESSION

Review / Drummer Billy Cobham usually brings high energy on most of his albums, Simplicity of Expression is no exception. Here he experiments with some latin influenced tunes, and fuses the sound with jazz…I think he was successful for the most part. Unlike some other drummers, Cobham had what it took to create a solid album, from the arrangements, to the songs with vocals. Some of the vocalists on this lp had interesting voices, which drew me in. Take note to the frequent change-ups and influences from other genres of music.

Design / I really dig this cover. The graphic crop of the background image just beneath the eyes is interesting, followed up by the exact same image in the foreground to reveal the full facial “expression”. Another cool thing about the image double is that the color of Cobham’s shirt was altered to blue. The type treatments are on point as well, understated due to the focus on the photography, but detailed and nicely set on the top left and right corners. Notice the intricate detail of the capital letters.

Info / Artist: Billy Cobham / Album: Simplicity of Expression / Year: 1978 / Label: Columbia

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