The legendary Andy Warhol had a hand in conceiving the artwork for the Stones’ formidable Sticky Fingers. The Rolling Stones: Sticky Fingers (1971) For the US edition of Blind Faith, the image was replaced with a photo of the band. Photographer Bob Seidemann’s cover image of a topless pubescent girl holding a car hood ornament was intended to symbolize the achievement of human creativity in the summer that man walked on the moon, but it caused a furor instead. Initially, the album came out in an almost plain white sleeve designed like an invitation card. The original “banned” sleeve The Rolling Stones submitted for their classic Beggars Banquet album featured a sleazy-looking bathroom wall covered in graffiti and was rejected by their record label. The Rolling Stones: Beggars Banquet (1968) Only 5,000 copies were originally pressed in the UK. Predictably, the resulting artwork provoked outrage, prompting distributors to sell the album in a plain brown wrapper.
The sleeve for John and Yoko’s avant-garde classic was shot using a time-delay camera allowing them to take nude photographs of themselves. John Lennon & Yoko Ono: Unfinished Music No.1: Two Virgins (1968) It was changed when Hendrix himself expressed displeasure. The original UK edition of Jimi’s landmark, Billboard chart-topping third album originally appeared sporting a contentious sleeve featuring 19 nude women. The Jimi Hendrix Experience: Electric Ladyland (1968) Capitol retrieved over 50,000 copies of the original cover from uneasy retailers. Intended as pop art satire, the artwork was quickly rehoused in an inoffensive replacement sleeve and topped the Billboard charts. The Beatles: Yesterday And Today (1966)Ī far cry from the Mamas and the Papas “indecent” album cover for If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears, which seemed to generate controversy because a bathroom had a toilet in it, this Beatles compilation album featured a bizarre sleeve shot of the Fab Four clad in butcher’s coats, draped in slabs of meat and dismembered doll parts.
uDiscover Music investigates the most controversial album covers of all time. However, while all manner of excess-fuelled misadventures feed the media machine in the short term, a provocatively-designed record sleeve can make the most lasting impact when it comes to riling the moral majority – and lasting notoriety is especially assured if the album cover gets banned. Ever since Elvis Presley first shook his hips, controversy has dogged rock’n’roll’s every move.
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