I was looking through my collection of vinyl albums recently and started thinking about the artwork on each album. For many of these records, there was serious thought put into the album’s design and the resulting cover became a true work of art. There are many albums that are iconic not only for the music recorded within, but also for the cover art. Here are ten album covers throughout history that would look pretty sick on anyone’s wall.

 

10. The Clash - London Calling - 1979
    This picture is so great simply because it embodies all that is rock’n’roll. The photo of bassist Paul Simonon was taken earlier that year while the band was on tour, and they loved the shot so much, they thought it would make a great album cover. It’s also worth noting that the text is homage to Elvis Presley’s debut album.

 

9. Neutral Milk Hotel - In the Aeroplane over the Sea - 1998
    This is a weird one, but an iconic indie cover. Singer/guitarist/lyricist Jeff Mangum made his love of old-timey pictures an influence for the cover. With the help of R.E.M.’s staff designer, Chris Bilheimer, Mangum morphed an old European postcard into one of the strangest works of art you’ll ever see.

 

8. Nirvana - Nevermind - 1991
    If you’re a nineties kid, you know this cover. Lead singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain thought up the cover while watching a television show about water births. After finding out that stock photos of babies in water are ridiculously expensive, they simply got their own photographer to take a picture of his friend’s baby! Simple, yet effective.

 

7. Herbie Hancock - Head Hunters - 1973
    This is another weird one, but definitely a fun cover to look at. The crazy clock/insect thing is apparently a crossover between an African mask and a tape recording machine. Pretty trippy.

 

6. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication - 1999
    Let’s get even trippier! While the bright colors make for a cool design, there may be something deeper going on. This album is known to be singer/songwriter Anthony Kiedis’ analysis of Hollywood, and it’s possible the cover signifies how backwards he felt the music industry was at the time.

 

5. Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin - 1969
    Yeah, that’s the Hindenburg blowing up. While some may think of the cover as having bad taste, there’s a lighter side to the story. Before Led Zeppelin was formed, singer Jimmy Page was speaking with eventual rock legends Jeff Beck, Keith Moon and John Entwistle about forming a band with them. Moon made a joke that, “It would probably go over like a lead balloon,” to which Entwistle chimed, “a lead zeppelin!” Page eventually named his band after that exchange and used that cover as a tribute to the origin of Led Zeppelin.

 

     What’s funny about this cover is that it’s not anything like the cover that Hendrix originally imagined. The legendary guitarist wanted the cover to reflect his American Indian (aka: Native American) heritage, but the record company used the wrong type of Indians! It’s still a pretty sweet painting, regardless.

3. Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here - 1975
    Taken at Warner Bros. studios in California, this picture holds a deeper meaning. It represents the idea that people generally sell out to business executives because of their fear of “getting burned” by the business. Oh yeah, and that’s an actual guy on fire in the picture. He’s wearing a flame-retardant suit, but it still makes a pretty cool picture.

 

2. Muse - The Resistance - 2009
    While not much is known about the meaning of this cover, it’s still something very pretty to look at. Singer/songwriter/guitarist Matt Bellamy’s love of space is obviously influential, but we don’t know who the man is that’s standing or how he’s traveling or watching Earth. It’s mysterious and beautiful at the same time.

1. The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band - 1967
    This is easily the most wild album cover to ever be printed. Cardboard cutouts of a multitude of important historical figures join The Beatles in the most fabulous outfits they’ve ever worn. Random items such as a television and a trophy surround the band with beautiful flowers spelling out the band’s name. The picture becomes an organized mess, and one of the most iconic album covers of all time.