Simon Halfon is a graphic designer and film producer most noted for his work with

the Jam The Jam were an English rock band formed in 1972 in Woking, Surrey, consisting of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in ...

the Style Council The Style Council were an English pop band formed in Woking in 1982 by Paul Weller, the former lead vocalist, principal songwriter and guitarist with the rock band the Jam, and keyboardist Mick Talbot, previously a member of Dexys Midnight Ru ...

, and

Paul Weller John William Weller (born 25 May 1958), better known as Paul Weller, is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame in the late 1970s as the guitarist and principal singer and songwriter of the rock band the Jam, alongside ...

. Halfon has also worked with

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment Nick Heyward Nicholas Heyward (born 20 May 1961) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He came to international attention in the early 1980s as the lead singer and songwriter for Haircut One Hundred. He and the band parted ways after their first al ...

and

George Michael George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer-songwriter and record producer. Regarded as a pop culture icon, he is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling rec ...

, among others. Halfon's most visible work has focused on solid inspiration from the design of the 1960s. He has, however, displayed examples of a more current and sleek style as well. His work on the Style Council's house music efforts was noticed by Michael, who had Halfon apply a similar approach to his '' Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1'' album in 1990.

Designs with Weller

Halfon began working for Paul Weller in 1983. Designing record sleeves for the Style Council starting with 1983's '' Café Bleu'' the Style Council sleeves had a contemporary feel with a close eye on sixties design. The Style Council made a bold turn into contemporary Rhythm and Blues in 1987. Halfon designed the

International Orange International orange is a color used in the aerospace industry and maritime industry to set objects apart from their surroundings, similar to safety orange, but deeper and with a more reddish tone. Variations There are several variants of inte ...

gatefold sleeve for their ''

The Cost of Loving ''The Cost of Loving'' is the third studio album by the English band the Style Council, released on 7 February 1987 by Polydor Records. The album was recorded over a period of three months in 1986, at Solid Bond Studios in London (owned by their ...

'' album. The shade of orange is noted for its use in "setting things apart from their surroundings", but in the case of the

Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean in California, United States. The structure links San Francisco—the northern tip of the San Francisco Peni ...

it is also seen as a master stroke of beauty. The Style Council's sleeve was a hefty gatefold containing two solid slabs of 12" vinyl EPs and was swathed entirely in the color, opening the gatefold reveals high-contrast black and white photographs of the group, a crisp visual contrast that might have been a commentary on music as well (black and white). This was Halfon's homage to Richard Hamilton's cover art for

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

' '' White Album''. Halfon borrowed from Peter Blake's "The First Real Target" for the debut single by the Paul Weller Movement. On Weller's "Out of the Sinking" single, it seems Marvin Gaye's "What's Goin On" cover may be referenced. The single came from an album (1995's ''

Stanley Road ''Stanley Road'' is the third solo studio album by the English singer-songwriter and musician Paul Weller, released by Go! Discs in 1995. The album took its name from the street in Woking where Weller grew up. Weller's cover version of the song ...

'') that made deliberate reference to the Beatles with its title and Peter Blake (''

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (often referred to simply as ''Sgt. Pepper'') is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Released on 26May 1967, ''Sgt. Pepper'' is regarded by musicologists as an early concept ...

'') cover

collage Collage (, from the , "to glue" or "to stick together") is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an assembly of different forms, thus creating a new whole. (Compare with pasti ...

(design supervised by Halfon). After "Out of the Sinking", and as the album was released for journalistic review with the Blake cover, the British press started hailing Weller's renewed stature in British rock history. Halfon has also worked with Oasis for many years designing record sleeves and taking behind the scenes photographs of the group. 2006 saw Halfon reuniting with Peter Blake to work on the cover of ''

Stop the Clocks ''Stop the Clocks'' is a compilation album by English rock band Oasis. It was released on 20 November 2006 by Big Brother Recordings. The "retrospective collection" is an 18-track double album with the featured songs chosen by Noel Gallaghe ...

''. Halfon has created record sleeves for numerous other artists including the Who, James Brown and John Lennon. He is also known for his work with George Michael, most notably 1990's ''Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1'': a simple yet iconic album cover using

Weegee Ascher (Usher) Fellig (June 12, 1899 – December 26, 1968), known by his pseudonym Weegee, was a photographer and photojournalist, known for his stark black and white street photography in New York City. Weegee worked in Manhattan's Lower Eas ...

's famous Coney Island photograph.

Film

In 2007, he produced his first feature film, '' Sleuth'', starring

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...

and

Jude Law David Jude Heyworth Law (born 29 December 1972) is an English actor. He began his career in theatre before landing small roles in various British television productions and feature films. Law gained international recognition for his role in An ...

. The film was directed by

Kenneth Branagh Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh ( ; born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Born in Belfast and raised primarily in Reading, Berkshire, Branagh trained at RADA in London and served as its president from 2015 to 2024. List of award ...

with a screenplay written by

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A List of Nobel laureates in Literature, Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramat ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Halfon, Simon British graphic designers Living people Year of birth missing (living people) British album-cover and concert-poster artists