4 Album Covers of the 1960s That Tell a Story Worth a Thousand Words

There’s a certain art to putting together the perfect album cover. After all, for many listeners, the album cover is their first boundary to get through on the road to becoming a diehard fan of a band. These 1960s album covers, in particular, told fascinating stories. They’ve become almost more iconic than the music they promoted, too. Let’s take a look!

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1. ‘The Who Sell Out’ by The Who

The cover of The Who Sell Out by The Who is probably the oddest one of the bunch. This concept album was released in 1967 and features two of the band’s members in opposing photographs. Pete Townshend can be seen applying a giant stick of deodorant to himself, while the other shows Roger Daltrey sitting in a bathtub full of baked beans. If anything, these David Montgomery-shot photos previewed just how weird The Who could get, both visually and musically.

2. ‘Abbey Road’ by The Beatles

This cover is one of the most iconic 1960s album covers, if not the quintessential album cover from that era. The photo for Abbey Road was snapped pretty quickly, and it has since been interpreted in a number of ways by fans and music historians alike. 

Some of the members are wearing suits, some are barefoot, but all of them are walking in the same direction outside of their studio. In a way, it’s apt, considering Abbey Road would be the last album The Beatles would record (not release) before their breakup.

3. ‘The Velvet Underground & Nico’ by The Velvet Underground & Nico

This one is simple and iconic. Even if you have never listened to The Velvet Underground & Nico’s iconic self-titled record, you’ve definitely seen this cover through the years. It’s a simple, Andy Warhol-designed banana against a white background. The original cover featured a sticker that buyers could peel off. It quickly became a symbol of avant-garde music, as well as the union of pop art and rock music’s newest evolutions in the 1960s.

4. ‘Their Satanic Majesties Request’ by The Rolling Stones

A standout, psychedelic entry on our list of 1960s album covers comes from the 1967 record Their Satanic Majesties Request by The Rolling Stones. 

The cover shows each member of The Stones in colorful attire, sitting in front of what looks to be a castle straight out of an acid-inspired fantasy novel. It’s not unlike The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band cover. Michael Cooper was the photographer behind both album covers, too. This photo beautifully set the stage for the psychedelic pop and acid rock record, even if some fans thought it was a bit too out there.

Photo via the cover of ‘Abbey Road’ (1969)

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