What is the single greatest album cover of all time? Why did you pick it?

The Vinyl Record Day website recently ran a poll to determine the top ten album covers of all time. What is your pick for the single greatest cover, whether it be for an LP, CD, or high-rez audio disc?

What is the single greatest album cover of all time? Why did you pick it?
Here it is
90% (97 votes)
Don't have one
10% (11 votes)
Total votes: 108

COMMENTS
Dan Petri's picture

Jethro Tull's Stand Up I picked this one because of the wood cut cover art and the pop-up interior.

Anonymous's picture

What's an album?

dermot's picture

never mind the bullocks by the sex pistols years ahead of its time unlike micky

RD Meenach's picture

Bob Dylan: Highway 61 Revisited. A breakthrough composition that challenged sensibilities, redefined pop culture icons, and fit the music perfectly.

Jess Kiddeen's picture

The Beatles: The Beatles

Lasse's picture

Nirvana: Nevermind

Mark Gdovin's picture

I don't know if it is the greatest, but who from my "acid" generation can ever forget the cover of King Crimson's In The Court of the Crimson King? In one of my dorms in college somebody had amazingly faithfully painted a 1o' wide mural of the same in the hallway. But there are so many others to choose from, the wonderous ones from the Yes albums, sensual ones like Al Dimeola's Kiss My Axe. Truly too many to choose from.

G.  Smith's picture

Little Feat: Waiting for Columbus. Makes me feel good just looking at it.

Margaret C's picture

I always find myself studying the Ronnie Lane's and Pete Townsend's Rough Mix album cover. The pictures of memorabilia can keep the mind turning over thoughts of past experiences and times. It's a great album as well.

Patrick Cocke's picture

Leon Thomas: Blues and the Soulful Truth

Andrew Spaulding's picture

Gryphon: Red King to Gryphon 3

Bill Peace's picture

Roxy Music: Country Life

keith's picture

The Beatles: Sgt. Pepper, because of all the rumors surrounding the images.

PGaron's picture

Mahler, Symphony No. 3 by James Levine, Chicago Sym. Orchestra. The LP cover, by Maurice Sendak, is a wondrous and strange outdoors scene, picking up themes from the symphony.

Butch's picture

Yessongs

Kurt's picture

Joni Mitchell's Hejira. Hauntingly beautiful black & white photographic images artfully portray the album's quixotic theme of finding freedom, temporary escape, ephemeral romance, and self-discovery by taking to the open roads of the North American continent. A close second, in my opinion, would be Miles Davis's Decoy. This stunning sepia toned, black & white, close-up image of Miles Davis captures not only the beauty of this great jazzman; but also moving is the photographic detail of the keloid-accentuated, embouchure scars on his lips. Such a timeless image.

Michael Carr's picture

Parliament's Mothership Connection LP 1975.

Lee McLean's picture

Jethro Tull's Thick As a Brick. This cover is a fathfull replica of an entire newspaper (with some very entertaining text!). I'm surprised this one didn't rate well. Also noteworthy are some of the Tull's other albums. Stormwatch and Broadsword and the Beast (with its fabulous calligraphy) in particular. Aqualung's pretty striking too. Another one I'm surprised didn't rate more highly is The Small Faces' Ogden's Nutt Gone Flake. Also, any one of Yes' Roger Dean covers could have been in there (my favourite is "Relayer"). Another personal favourite is Joni Mitchell's Hejira (many of her covers are noteworthy too, especially as she does the artwork herself!).

Carter's picture

You know the one, it had a working zipper.

C.  Healthgut, M.D., FACS's picture

Exile on Main Street

Mike Healey's picture

Santana: Abraxas. You can get lost in a cover like this!

Craig Pittman's picture

Cream: Wheels Of Fire

Ken's picture

Dark Side of the Moon

Javier's picture

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is still tops! "Meet The Beatles" though is a close second!

Amir FaSaad's picture

Bitches Brew

two cents's picture

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

David Olegar's picture

Frank Zappa "Weasels Ripped my Flesh"

Daniel Sloan Brown's picture

Yes: Tales From Topographic Oceans

Kevin O'Toole's picture

'Hejira' by Joni Mitchell

Aaron Wand's picture

Pink Floyd: Wish You Were Here

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