3 Bizarre Album Covers From the 90s That Had To Be Changed To Sell in Stores

There are millions of album covers in the world. Some are famous, some are forgettable. But back in the day, when the album covers meant so much, and when music fans would judge the music inside based on what the outside cover looked like, creating something eye-catching and memorable was key.

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We wanted to examine three examples of album covers that are so bizarre they both stick in your mind and make you wonder how they came about. Let’s look at a trio of covers that were even rejected by some retail places outright. Indeed, these are three bizarre album covers from the 90s that had to be changed in order to sell in stores.

Van Halen, ‘Balance’ (1995)

Strangely, this 1995 album from Van Halen appears to show two conjoined twins sitting—er, balancing—on a see-saw. Why? Sure, it’s striking, but it’s just odd. But perhaps that’s the point. Prior to the internet taking over our lives in the 21st century and the world being uber-connected, there was less groupthink. Perhaps this album cover is the result of that. Today, it would be shot down in a boardroom immediately. Maybe that’s the good side of groupthink, maybe it’s the bad. But the cover of Balance was altered in some markets, including Japan, which cut out one of the twins from the image entirely.

The Black Crows, ‘Amorica’ (1994)

Sex sells. That seems to be the impetus behind this raunchy album cover, which is basically a crotch shot with American flag thong underwear. It certainly grabs your attention. But does it keep it for the right reasons? Not really. Striking is one thing, unnecessary is another. The image came from a 1976 Hustler magazine, after all. Some places rejected the cover, and it had to be replaced with a new and more subdued image of just the underwear.

Chumbawamba, ‘Anarchy’ (1994)

Chumbawamba saw Nirvana’s naked baby cover and said “Hold my beer.” There’s a reason that YouTube has blocked this image and put it behind an age-restricted wall. It’s not that the image that the cover portrays is bad or wrong in any way. It’s just that it’s something so personal and up close that it makes you double-take. Indeed, the original image for Chumbawamba’s 1994 LP, Anarchy, was of a baby being born. Like, literally coming out of its mother. But because this was such an intimate image, some stores would not sell the record. The image had to be replaced with just some simple flowers.

Photo credit: Ross Marino/Rock Negatives