I've never planted squash. I've seldom eaten or craved squash. Furthermore, it's much too late to grow squash this year. And yet...
...when I see the pastoral cover of Jay Ungar and Molly Mason's "Harvest Home" CD, I feel the need to plant squash...
...and harvest wheat...
...and say Hello to the cows grazing behind the barn...
...and thank the owners of the farm on the cover, even though it's not real, for indulging my wishes to plant squash, harvest wheat, and say Hello to the cows on their land.
An elementary school art teacher once told our class that sometimes, the cover of a report you submit for a class might make a difference in the grade you receive. Similarly, I think beguiling album cover art occasionally nudges listeners to purchase an album. I knew I liked Ungar & Mason's moving "Thanksgiving Waltz" instrumental, but the album's cover illustration of trees in Autumn finery, a bridge over a river, a stately house, and said barn cinched my decision to buy "Harvest Home."
Sometimes, it isn't just the music that draws you in.
