Best Album Covers Of All-time?

[KingLouieLouie]

I know we have a thread completely dedicated to the "worst" album covers of all-time, so I had to do the inevitable..... What to you were the "best" album covers of all time?

My favorites include:

1) "Bloody Kisses" - Type-0-Negative
2) "Revolver" - The Beatles
3) "Dirt" - Alice-in-Chains
4) "Split The Difference" - Gomez
5) "Who Sell Out" - The Who
6) "Disraeli Gears" - Cream
7) "Kid A" - Radiohead
8) "Houses of the Holy" - Led Zeppelin
9) "Blind Faith" - Blind Faith
10) "Fragile" - Yes

 

[Beaver]

Black Crowes.

 

[Beaver]

Nirvana

 

[Assface]

Sugar Ray--Lemonade and Brownies

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[azdad1978]

Sugar Ray--Lemonade and Brownies

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Nicole Eggert is hot!

 

[azdad1978]

Here's a good one

 

[thirty-two]

 

[Cardinal Bob]

Iron Maiden always had kick ass album covers. This is my favorite one.

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[CardLogic]

Best Album Covers that never were...

 

[CardLogic]

But, seriously it should be obvious...

 

[earthsci]

yes

 

[CardLogic]

yes

Are you doing a "Who's on first" routine??? That cover is from Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here. Not, Yes!

 

[earthsci]

Are you doing a "Who's on first" routine??? That cover is from Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here. Not, Yes!

Then that was pretty stupid of me to write. What I was refering to was ,"yes I am a Pink Floyd fanatic."

 

[KingLouieLouie]

Then that was pretty stupid of me to write. What I was refering to was ,"yes I am a Pink Floyd fanatic."

You're a fan of Pink Floyd as well? That's awesome....My favorite album by them happens to be "Wish You Were Here"....What other albums do you like of theirs?

As far as my favorite album cover of all-time, it happens to be one that wasnt allowed to be released....It's the original cover art to the Beatles "Yesterday And Today" AKA "The Butcher Album"...

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[CardLogic]

As far as my favorite album cover of all-time, it happens to be one that wasnt allowed to be released....It's the original cover art to the Beatles "Yesterday And Today" AKA "The Butcher Album"...

Yesterday and Today - seems quite tame by today's standards!
Actually this Beatles album was on store shelves in the U.S. for exactly one day, before they were pulled and re-labeled. The originals are very rare, saw one on PBS's Antique roadshow recently, I forget how much it was appraised at but I would guess in the 1000's.

Here is another I just discovered:

When Jimi Hendrix's double-record masterpiece was released in the U.K., its gatefold sleeve featured eighteen nude lounging ladies; Hendrix's presence was reduced to the photos of him that many of the models held strategically over their naughty bits. This label stunt -- perpetuated without Hendrix's knowledge, and subsequently raising his ire -- got it shipped in brown paper wrappers and banned from some stores entirely. In America, the artwork was replaced with a psychedelic head-shot of Jimi. Of course, neither of these variations complied with the very specific art direction Hendrix gave his labels, but the British cover did further his image as a musical maverick.

MICHAEL ANSALDO (Rolling Stone)

Edit: I apologize for removing the image, however, I was afraid that it might violate the message board's guidelines....

 

[KingLouieLouie]

Yeah...the most hilarious movie scene involving an album cover being censored was in the "This Is Spinal Tap" when the record company objected to the original cover art to "Smell The Glove".....

 

[vince56]

OK, I know I'm a total homer for these guys, but this is my favorite album of all time and I absolutely LOVE the cover art. Several of the song titles are hidden throughout the artwork...

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Their album Metropolis 2: Scenes from a Memory had a badass montage for the cover as well:

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[Cardinals.Ken]

RUSH - 2112

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[Cardinal Bob]

OK, I know I'm a total homer for these guys, but this is my favorite album of all time and I absolutely LOVE the cover art. Several of the song titles are hidden throughout the artwork...

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I have this album and never realized that about the song titles. That's kinda cool. It's a good record, but I think I like "Images & Words" better. "Pull Me Under" and "Take The Time" are just kick ass tunes. The songs on "Awake" seem to be a little more technical and complex, while I think the songs on "Images & Words" are a little more melodic. But that's just my opinion.

If you are into Iron Maiden, you can see little things in their cover illustrations that reference song titles, album titles, and lyrics too. To me, that was always something I looked forward to each time I went to buy the latest Maiden album, and one of the benefits of Vinyl albums over CDs (larger covers = larger drawings).

 

[CardLogic]

by KingLouieLouie
Edit: I apologize for removing the image, however, I was afraid that it might violate the message board's guidelines....

No problem, KLL. After I posted I thought the same, but figured it was really kinda tame. We are really too hung up on simple nudity in this country. But I do understand.

Ken, RUSH - 2112??? I gotta ask what about that cover do you find remarkable? I like Rush, but that cover is fairly mundane!

 

[vince56]

I have this album and never realized that about the song titles. That's kinda cool. It's a good record, but I think I like "Images & Words" better. "Pull Me Under" and "Take The Time" are just kick ass tunes. The songs on "Awake" seem to be a little more technical and complex, while I think the songs on "Images & Words" are a little more melodic. But that's just my opinion.

If you are into Iron Maiden, you can see little things in their cover illustrations that reference song titles, album titles, and lyrics too. To me, that was always something I looked forward to each time I went to buy the latest Maiden album, and one of the benefits of Vinyl albums over CDs (larger covers = larger drawings).

Images & Words was the catalytic album that DEFINED modern Progressive Metal. Awake was my favorite because it was heavier, darker, meaner than I&W, and the song topics really touched my life as a man struggling with my own faith. It was a more consistent album too. I really wasn't into the more Rush-like songs on I&W (like "Surrounded"), however I love that album as well. "The Mirror" and "Lie" on Awake are what got me playing 7-string guitar years ago, and they're two of the most powerful, groove-oriented songs I've ever heard. The main riff and guitar solo to "Lie" are to die for. Some of John Petrucci's best moments are on Awake.

The sound of Awake is still relevant even today. I use Awake as a comparison when I'm mixing/mastering a recording.

 

[Cardinal Bob]

Images & Words was the catalytic album that DEFINED modern Progressive Metal. Awake was my favorite because it was heavier, darker, meaner than I&W, and the song topics really touched my life as a man struggling with my own faith. It was a more consistent album too. I really wasn't into the more Rush-like songs on I&W (like "Surrounded"), however I love that album as well. "The Mirror" and "Lie" on Awake are what got me playing 7-string guitar years ago, and they're two of the most powerful, groove-oriented songs I've ever heard. The main riff and guitar solo to "Lie" are to die for. Some of John Petrucci's best moments are on Awake.

The sound of Awake is still relevant even today. I use Awake as a comparison when I'm mixing/mastering a recording.

Cool! With all this in mind, I believe I will listen to "Awake" tonight while I'm putting our dining room back together after our minor flood last evening! Thanks!

One of the few good things about living near NYC (a city I really can't stand) is that Dream Theater seem to play here a lot (being as they are locals), and I get to go see them at least once a year. My wife doesn't like their music much, but she likes going to see them because she's blown away by each player's mastery of their instruments. I told her I only thought that guys went to shows to watch in amazment as master musicians played!

 

[Cardinals.Ken]

Ken, RUSH - 2112??? I gotta ask what about that cover do you find remarkable? I like Rush, but that cover is fairly mundane!

Mundane to us now, but upon it's release and for years afterward, it was quite controversial.

In my opinion, it is a very powerful image. Just the sight of an album cover emblazoned with a flaming pentagraph was enough to generate the necessity to have to buy it!

And it's an excellent album as well.

 

[Chaz]

I always liked this one.

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[Cardinals.Ken]

I always liked this one.

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Tell me Chaz, was it the heat of the moment, telling you what my heart said?