St. Louis Blues Logo Evolution: Comparing Designs Over the Years
A design-focused guide to St. Louis Blues logos over the years, comparing the Blue Note mark, typography, color changes, and practical implications for vector logo use.
Contents
- The essential answer
- 1967–1979: The original Blue Note
- 1979–1984: Cleaner geometry and outline emphasis
- 1984–1998: Red, blue, and the contrasting edge
- 1998–present: The Gateway Arch and the modern primary mark
- Typographic and collar versions
- Comparing the major versions
- What this means for vector logo use
- Choosing a version by intended use
- Gaps and cautions
The essential answer
The St. Louis Blues logo is built around the Blue Note, a slanted winged musical note that has remained the club's core identifier since the team entered the NHL in 1967. Later versions preserved that concept while refining its outline, adding a contrasting keyline, and introducing the Gateway Arch as a background element in the modern mark. This guide covers the observable design changes and their implications for people reviewing logo versions, comparing redesigns, or preparing vector logo assets.
1967–1979: The original Blue Note
The original logo presented a blue musical note with a strong diagonal slant and a wing-like flag extending from the note stem. The form was relatively heavy and compact, which gave it a solid presence on the era's uniform and print applications. The exact illustrator credit is not consistently documented in available records; the verifiable point is that the Blue Note became the team's visual shorthand immediately and has stayed connected to the Blues throughout the franchise's identity.
1979–1984: Cleaner geometry and outline emphasis
In the late 1970s the mark received a crisper treatment. The note became more sharply drawn, with tighter curves and a clearer separation between the note head, stem, and flag. The changes reduced visual clutter at small reproduction sizes and made the outlines easier to maintain in printed materials. This stage is best understood as a refinement rather than a replacement: the underlying note silhouette remained recognizable.
1984–1998: Red, blue, and the contrasting edge
A significant update placed a red outline around the blue note. The color pair increased contrast against white backgrounds and strengthened the logo's legibility in broadcast and merchandise contexts that had become more visually crowded. The note also became more stylized, with the flag reading more clearly as a wing or speed element. In design terms, the added red border functioned as a keyline: a surrounding outline that helps a flat mark hold its shape against unrelated background colors.
1998–present: The Gateway Arch and the modern primary mark
The current primary logo places the winged note over a stylized Gateway Arch shape. The Arch adds a local reference to St. Louis and gives the mark a wider horizontal presence. The composition combines two stacked elements: the blue note with a yellow-gold outline and highlight, above an arch curve in blue or navy. The color palette expanded beyond the simple blue-red relationship, introducing gold as a separating tone and highlight color.
Typographic and collar versions
Alongside the note, the team has used wordmark lockups and alternate versions. Some applications combine the note with the team name in a custom lettering style; others isolate the note for cap, helmet, or small-space use. These variants are not separate franchise identities but different asset configurations of the same Blue Note system.
Comparing the major versions
| Version|Primary element|Key colors|Practical character |
| 1967–1979|Heavy slanted winged note|Blue|Compact and bold; simpler print reproduction |
| 1979–1984|Refined note with tighter curves|Blue|Cleaner edges; better at small sizes |
| 1984–1998|Stylized note with red outline|Blue and red|Strong contrast and broadcast legibility |
| 1998–present|Note over Gateway Arch|Blue, gold, navy|Wider lockup; stronger local reference |
What this means for vector logo use
For vector work, the relevant differences are outline complexity, color count, and minimum size behavior. The earliest mark is the simplest to redraw because it has fewer overlapping shapes, but its heavy silhouette can feel dated outside archival or heritage contexts. The 1984–1998 version provides strong contrast with only two main colors, while the current mark offers the most complete identity system but demands careful handling of the Arch curve, the gold keyline, and the spacing around the combined lockup.
Choosing a version by intended use
- Archive or historical article: use the earliest recognizable Blue Note for period accuracy, but verify the intended season rather than assuming the debut mark applied for two decades.
- Simplified small-space use: choose the 1979–1984 refined note or a legible note-only variation; avoid the full Arch lockup at tiny sizes.
- Broadcast or merchandise-like contrast: the 1984–1998 version shows how a contrasting keyline helps the note separate from busy backgrounds.
- Modern brand-style presentation: use the current note-over-Arch primary only when the vector asset is clean, the gold outline is intact, and the available width allows the horizontal composition to sit without crowding.
Gaps and cautions
This guide describes observable design features; it does not infer that every visual detail was a documented brand intention. Specific designer names for the early marks are not consistently verifiable in the supplied records, so no credit is asserted. A vector file's filename or availability does not automatically establish its geometry quality or the right to reuse the Blues logo in new products; permission questions require separate verification from the rights holder.