Shusei Nagaoka

Shusei Nagaoka (長岡秀星, Nagaoka Shūsei, November 26, 1936 – June 23, 2015) was a Japanese illustrator. He is best known for his music album cover art in the 1970s and 1980s. Artists for whom he illustrated covers include Electric Light Orchestra, Earth, Wind & Fire, Deep Purple, Space, Maze, George Clinton, Kitaro, Rose Royce, Caldera, and Pure Prairie League. His early works has included in helping designing of the 1970 Osaka Expo and has been selected as one of the 200 years of American Illustration. He has received several awards, platinum and gold albums, several magazine articles, interviews and has been televised for his artwork. He has also released several books for his artwork and had one of the first artwork launched into outer space and orbited via Russian Mir Space Station in 1991. Some of the other companies, and people he has worked with in the past includes: NHK Television, TBS Japan, National Geographic, Playboy Magazine, Hustler Magazine, Penthouse Magazine, Shigeo Nagashima and Sadaharu Oh to name a few.

Selected work

• Spitfire - Jefferson Starship, 1976
• All 'N All - Earth, Wind & Fire, 1977
• Sunbear, Sunbear, Soul Train Records, 1977
• Deliverance - Space, 1977 (US edition)
• The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1 - Earth, Wind & Fire, 1978
• Out of the Blue - Electric Light Orchestra, 1977
• Just Blue - Space, 1978
• When We Rock, We Rock, and When We Roll, We Roll - Deep Purple, 1978
• Can't Hold Back - Pure Prairie League, 1979
• I am - Earth, Wind & Fire, 1979
• Raise! - Earth, Wind & Fire, 1981
• Pleasure Principle - Parlet, 1978
• New Horizons - The Sylvers, 1977