3 of the Most Famous Classic Rock Album Covers of All Time

There’s an important rule in life: Don’t judge a book by its cover. But no one said anything about albums! Yes, sometimes you can judge an album by its visual cover. From Miles Davis to Herb Albert to Britney Spears, there are any number of ways to get music fans to investigate your work.

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Below, we wanted to explore three of the most famous album covers in classic rock history. Surely, there are many to choose from, but we wanted to start any conversation with these three offerings. Indeed, these are three of the most famous classic rock album covers of all time, and I bet you know each one already.

‘Abbey Road’ by The Beatles (1969)

The album cover that launched 10,000 copycats, this simple yet supremely effective album cover from The Beatles plays on both a simple sense of symmetry and a profound sense of persona. The white lines we see every day juxtaposed with the incomparable Fab Four—it’s chef’s kiss. Since its release, many have tried to mimic it, but none have outshone the original.

‘Nevermind’ by Nirvana (1991)

The album cover that has launched one very loud lawsuit, this iconic grunge work raised many an eyebrow in the 90s. Should we be looking at that? Heck, people are still asking themselves that same question today. But here we are, talking about Nirvana’s 1991 classic yet again, complete with the cover (though the one embedded above is edited for censorship) that Kurt Cobain often defended. In recent years, the boy on the cover grew up and tried to sue the band, but to no avail. It’s still the subject of debate among fans today.

‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ by Pink Floyd (1973)

Simple. Unceremonious. Irrefutable. The front cover for Pink Floyd’s all-time album, The Dark Side Of The Moon, is emblazoned in the minds of millions of rock fans. The image sums up the psychedelic rock movement in the 70s. It’s since been on T-shirts, CDs, MP3s, streaming sites, and everywhere else. The album cover, like the music, will live forever.

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