Some don't have any of these instruments
Album covers are what you see when you rest your eyes on the physical product. It should be enticing, and it should be representative of the artist and album. And it seems like somewhere in the 1960s it became a very big thing, such was the case for the album artwork we saw from Pink Floyd, the Beatles, and others. This was back when physical music sold, of course. In many cases, some of the biggest names in the art world were commissioned to work on album covers.
To discover some of the most iconic album covers around, and a little bit about how they came about, click through this gallery.
'The Velvet Underground & Nico' is the debut album by American rock band the Velvet Underground and German singer Nico. Andy Warhol designed the cover in his own signature style, which often showed mundane objects to symbolize the rise in mass production and distribution during his time.
The photograph was taken by Aubrey "Po" Powell and was meant to symbolize how when we hide our true feelings we get burnt, and thus one of the businessmen is being burnt. Think about that next time you rock out to Pink Floyd!
Bruce Springsteen released the album in 1975, and he's pictured simply leaning on his sax player. The cover art became so iconic because the album was such a huge success.
This Nirvana album was one of the most defining and influential grunge albums of all time. But recently, Spencer Elden says Nirvana engaged in child pornography when the band used a picture of him naked on the cover of the breakthrough album. He filed to sue.
The following was photographed at a Beatlemania exhibition in 2009 in Hamburg, Germany. The photo is the same as the one on the cover of the 'Abbey Road' album. The cover art shows the Beatles walking at the zebra crossing of Abbey Road in St John's Wood in northwest London.
The Clash's album cover, which is seen here on a British postal stamp, was a photograph taken when they played New York's Palladium on September 20 and 21, 1979. Pennie Smith took a photo of Paul Simonon smashing his bass on stage, and the rest is history.
The 11th American studio album by the Rolling Stones is a photo of a male model's crotch in tight blue jeans. It was assumed to be Mick Jagger, but it turns out that Andy Warhol took photos of several models. The album had hits 'Brown Sugar' and 'Wild Horses' on it.
The cover of the Beatles' album is iconic because it's their first. It includes 'I Want to Hold Your Hand,' 'I Saw Her Standing There,' and many other hits.
This was another huge album by the Beatles. The artwork was done by artist Klaus Voormann, who won a Grammy for it.
The artwork for the Pink Floyd album can be interpreted in many ways, one being that the bending of the light, and the many colors that make up the prism, signifies the fragility of life and the different areas of life (work, family, school, etc.).
The cover of this Beatles album was designed by English painter Peter Blake and his wife Jann Haworth.
This Stevie Wonder album cover is simple, not attempting to encapsulate all that's covered in the album, which is a wide range of subjects. But it does capture the warmth of the singer-songwriter's spirit.
The album cover of Bob Dylan's album 'The Freewheelin'' shows Bob Dylan and his girlfriend at the time.
'Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar!' is the debut album by American recording artist Johnny Cash.
'Jolene' is the 13th solo studio album by Dolly Parton, released in 1974.
The reason this album is so iconic is mostly because it was Streisand's debut album, won two Grammys, and sold millions.
This album cover is iconic for one reason: the music. It was Sinatra's most successful album. It actually spent two and a half years on the charts.
This was the first release on LP by American pianist, vocalist, and band leader Ray Charles.
'Children of the World' from the Bee Gees was a disco smash! It contains songs like 'You Should Be Dancing,' which went to number one in the US.
Stylized as MCMLXXXIV, '1984' featured hits like 'Jump' and 'Hot for Teacher.' Although it's not entirely clear from this photograph of the Van Halen album cover, the baby angel is smoking a cig!
This was Phil Collins' second album, which followed the same trend as his previous debut solo album cover for 'Face Value' (1981).
The woman responsible for the artwork on this iconic album was Laura LiPuma Nash, a graphic designer who had been hired at Warner Brothers. The more you know!
The self-titled album is Cher's third solo album. It features the face of a young entertainer probably unaware of the astonishing career she ahead of her.
The artwork is simple, but the bold colored typography signifies the eclectic range of songs on the album that were bold, new, and brilliant.
This was the 10th studio album by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac. It just shows drummer Mick Fleetwood and bass guitarist John McVie. It set them up nicely for their following album 'Rumours' (1977), which would be their most successful.
Sources: (uDiscoverMusic)
See also: Bandmates who hated each other
The most iconic album covers of all time
The look of good music
MUSIC Artwork
Album covers are what you see when you rest your eyes on the physical product. It should be enticing, and it should be representative of the artist and album. And it seems like somewhere in the 1960s it became a very big thing, such was the case for the album artwork we saw from Pink Floyd, the Beatles, and others. This was back when physical music sold, of course. In many cases, some of the biggest names in the art world were commissioned to work on album covers.
To discover some of the most iconic album covers around, and a little bit about how they came about, click through this gallery.