An impossibly rare unreleased alternate album cover proof for Madonna’s 1983 self-titled debut album. Recordmecca’s Jeff Gold is a former Executive Vice President/General Manager of Madonna’s label, Warner Bros. Records, and acquired this from the husband of a late co-worker.
Wikipedia notes that Madonna’s friend Martin Burgoyne designed the original cover for Madonna’s debut album, which was slated to be titled Lucky Star but ended up being self-titled. According to Seymour Stein, co-founder of Sire Records and vice president of Warner Bros. Records, Madonna discreetly asked A&R executive Michael Rosenblatt to decline Burgoyne’s sleeve design for her album because “it just wasn’t iconic enough.”
Indeed, the album was eventually released with the iconic cover shot by photographer Gary Heery and art directed by Carin Goldberg.
Proofs like this were made in small numbers for the artist, management and record company to approve, prior to mass producing album covers. As Madonna was an unknown artist at the time, rejected proofs like this would have been discarded.
Images of this cover have appeared on Madonna fan sites, though this is the first example we’ve see; we know of no other example having been offered for sale.
At the bottom is a text box from Warners’ color separator Color Service Inc., dated ‘3/29/83’, four months before the album was released, misspelling Madonna as ‘Modonna’.
The proof is in very good+ condition, with small roundish mildew stains from long ago exposure to moisture. These are primarily on Madonna’s shoulder and to the left of her face, with the most noticeable of these on Madonna’s chin and above her left eyebrow. While these are noticeable up close, they are not distracting, and this will frame very nicely. 26 1/2″ x 17″
As rare a Madonna collectible as one could hope to find.
With Recordmecca’s written lifetime guarantee of authenticity, and a letter of authenticity from the husband of the former Warner Bros. art department employee who saved this from 1983.
(Recordmecca watermarks on scans only, of course)
Visit Recordmecca.com to buy
