In 1939, Alex Steinweiss was employed at Columbia Records as the first art director for the firm and decided to spruce up and repackage vinyl records. We all know the result, album cover art has turn out to be an crucial component of music and pop culture. (Prior to Steinweiss’s creative influences, records were usually stored in plain, undecorated packaging)

For collectors, album cover art can sometimes be as useful as the vinyl record it holds. For instance, one of the most famous album covers of all time, the Beatles “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” cover was one of the most inventive at the time and included cut out inserts and lyrics. The price 1 would pay for a copy of this album is influenced by no matter whether or not it has the original contents and they are intact.
There are a lot of album covers that included posters of the band as well and other “perks” for the buyer and all these elements factor into the resale cost and collectiblity.

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There have been several dynamic and world-famous album covers. Contemplate the Beatles’ album “Yesterday…and Today” (1966), also referred to as the “butcher block album” because the Beatles had been pictured on the front cover wearing white butcher coats surrounded by bloody meat and cut up dolls. The album was speedily pulled by Capitol Records following the company received many complaints from reviewers and DJ’s. The firm recalled the concern and ordered a new cover but did not want to waste the several hundred thousand that had already been printed. Capitol then hired component-time helpers to eliminate that photo from the cover and paste on the new photo for the cover. But, it appears that there were several lazy employees and to save time, they just pasted the new cover on top of the old cover and the 1 that was supposed to be removed. The result is 3 diverse versions of that specific album and a collector’s dream, the diverse versions of the album are worth numerous thousand dollars (costs vary-check a record price guide to ascertain precisely what album you may have to get the precise price).

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Album cover art has also spawned numerous internet sites in which to view renowned covers and designs, readers’ favorites and leading ten lists. One such site, www.superseventies.com offers a comprehensive look at some of the most well-known covers from the 1970′s such as the Sex Pistols “Never Mind The Bollocks,” the Eagles “Hotel California,” Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side Of The Moon” and the Rolling Stones’ “Sticky Fingers” among other people. Moreover, www.superseventies.com provides their reader’s favorite seventies album covers (far more than 300) with detailed descriptions and reviews of each distinct release. This is a excellent way to spend a rainy day, as you discover some of the greatest album cover art of the 70′s.

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Album cover design is an art form and enables the musicians higher manage more than the content and another crucial avenue in which to express themselves. In my humble opinion (and I share this opinion with countless others), with the advent of the CD, the music acquiring public lost a national treasure, album cover art. It is part of pop culture and recorded music in general. Sure, Cd’s supply you a “stripped down” version of the original cover art, but it certainly pales in comparison to the real thing. I am confident Mr. Steinweiss would totally agree with me.