In which we look back at some of the most memorable stories of classic album covers.
To honor the recently announced 2013 nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, we decided to compile our favorite album covers by all 16 artists, from Cat Stevens to Yes.
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The best album Stevens ever record, and fittingly his finest album cover. A fairy tale-like piece of art, created by Stevens himself, that runs counter to the darker themes explored throughout the record.
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Encapsulates the entire Chic aesthetic: glamorous, sultry, decadent, and refined. If you only know Nile Rodgers from "Get Lucky," go get this record now.
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The disembodied heads of each member of Deep Purple, inside a fireball shooting through outer space. What more could you want from an early-'70s album cover?
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I can't tell if Hall and Oates are meant to be angry or just completely overwhelmed by an entire career of sexual tension, but this cover is a sweaty, fleshy slice of amazing.
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Considering this is an album of songs written for a film that doesn't exist, the album cover couldn't be much better. It incites intrigue and plenty of pointless deep readings about "what it really means, man."
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This was originally meant to be much more revealing, but Ronstadt was uncomfortable with the amount of skin she was showing during the photo shoot. So she threw on a robe and photo grain was added to the picture after it was taken to obscure the clarity.
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This legend needed nothing more than a simple profile shot to let you know that he was the baddest mother around. Anyone who writes something like "Rumble" deserves it.
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Completely taps into the genesis of hip-hop, striking in its minimalism.
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What could be a better cover for your breakout gangsta rap album than an image that taps into the collective fears of white America?
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A stone-cold classic, apparently inspired by Cobain and Grohl watching a program on water births. When the album was packaged, the naked baby's penis was covered by a sticker, which, at Cobain's request, said, "If you're offended by this, you must be a closet pedophile."
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A hand-drawn psychedelic epic, complete with handlebar moustache, dashiki, and afro.
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From the art-design group Hipgnosis, who had created covers for Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, ELO, and others, this cover boasts a wonderful effect of Gabriel clawing through the LP, perhaps in an attempt to escape the days when he often dressed as a flower on stage.
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Both hilarious and somehow poignant, the cover for funk band the Meters' Struttin' is a wonderfully trippy ode to the assuredness and independence of roosters.
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Consisting of a photo taken on top of Bob and Tommy Stinson's mother's house, this album cover truly captures the essence of the Replacements: part disconnected cool, part winking deconstruction of the self-seriousness of rock and roll.
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Just completely over-the-top, nonsensical psychedelia. One can only imagine how many college sophomores lost hours to this cover in between bong hits.
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Considering the indulgent nature of their music, there's something staggering about the simplicity of this cover. Coupled with the title of the record, it's eerie and unsettling, perhaps because it boasts a color scheme similar to the poster for Rosemary's Baby.
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