The Vinyl’s Cover Features An Image Of Phoenix And His Messily Braided Hair, A Photograph Taken By

The vinyl’s cover features an image of Phoenix and his messily braided hair, a photograph taken by River’s close friend Michael Stipe, the result of a road trip they took to Georgia. Driving from Nashville to Athens along with Rain and friends to see Natalie Merchant play, Stipe remembers that it was hot, “and River was sick of his hair. It was long and hanging down in his face. They braided his hair in the car. I mostly drove, and all we had to hold the braids was masking tape. When we got to Athens, he said he wanted to get a haircut, so I called Jeremy Ayers over to my house, and we set up in the backyard. I take pictures all the time, and so I photographed the haircut.”

The end result was a bowl cut. “It was super sweet and not at all an expected look, but it worked,” says Stipe. “When Jeremy was done, River looked like Dorothy Hamill or one of the kids from The Little Rascals. The next day we drove to Atlanta to see Natalie perform again, and River and Jeremy had these crazy Joan Didion sunglasses—and that bowl cut and an enormous torn up t-shirt. We looked like quite a gang”

— Flood Magazine, August 2020