I have a blog out there with the 100 best album covers of all time. You can check it out right here.
On the other hand, I also used to be a very frequent contributor to a Facebook group dedicated to bad album covers. The problem with those, however, is that there are so damn many of them.
Well, one way to whittle them down is to narrow the selection to only the best groups and artists. In other words, the worst of the best.
So, here they are, in no particular order – the worst album covers from 20 of the best bands and singers of all time.
Beatles – Introducing the Beatles
The Beatles came up with many album cover firsts. This one, however, is pretty much totally lacking in anything. It was 1963, though, so something like this was pretty much par for the course back then.
This one was released by Vee-Jay, and competed with Capitol’s Meet the Beatles. It was the subject of much legal wrangling, and was distributed for less than a year. That said, it includes such hits as “I Saw Her Standing There,” “Misery,” “Love Me Do,” and “Twist and Shout.”
Rolling Stones – Beggars Banquet
Simplicity is a virtue. It can also, though, be mind-numbingly boring.
The band had originally wanted to use a picture of a seedy, graffiti-covered bathroom, but was rejected by the record company. That shot would, however, subsequently feature on all future re-releases.
The album itself represented a return to the band’s blues-based roots. It included the hits “Sympathy for the Devil” and “Street-Fighting Man.”
Who – The Who By Numbers
It’s not a terrible idea. The result, however, is rather amateurish and a bit childish. It was, in fact, actually drawn by bassist John Entwistle.
The album itself was long in the making. A follow-up to the operatic Quadrophenia, it was a lot more stripped down and personal. “Squeeze Box” is the big hit on this one.
Led Zeppelin – Coda
Back to boring …
Interestingly, this one was done by Hipgnosis, hands-down the best album cover designers ever. I mean, nice font, but the whole effort seems a little dialed in. It was actually the last cover Hipgnosis designed.
It also just so happened to be the band’s last album as well. In fact, it came out 2 years after they had broken up. It features rejects from studio sessions & some live cuts, and was basically an attempt to make some money off all the bootlegs out there. Personally, I haven’t heard of any of the songs.
Pink Floyd – Meddle
It’s a baby bird. No, it’s a baby sea turtle. Wait, I think it’s some kind of fungus …
According to the designer, it’s an ear, under water. Interestingly, this is another design from Hipgnosis – in particular, from resident genius Storm Thorgerson. Even he didn’t like it however.
I’d never actually heard of this one before. Seems it’s a transitional effort between the Sid Barrett days & the later Waters-inspired masterpieces. I’m afraid I’m not familiar with any of the songs.
Bob Dylan – Self-Portrait
Self portrait, Bobbie Zimmerman, 5th grade, Mrs. Murkey
Yup, he painted it alright. Don’t quit your day job Bob, okay?
This double album was not one of Dylan’s greatests. It’s got a lot of covers, and is still in the country vein of Nashville Skyline, his previous album. Dylan claims he wanted to confound “the public's expectations of him, and to counter the ‘spokesman of a generation’ tag which had been placed on him throughout the 1960s” [Wikipedia, not Dylan]. Sure, Bob, sure.
Bruce Springsteen - Nebraska
Well, here’s another one of those what-is-it covers.
Turns out it’s a shot from inside a car, driving down some country road in, I’m guessing here, Nebraska? The photographer is David Kennedy, who’s got over 150 credits on discogs.
Critics point out that the pic actually does a pretty job of fitting the album’s dark, spared-down, downbeat mood. They also agree that Nebraska is one of The Boss’s best efforts. It was actually recorded by Springsteen, solo, in his bedroom.
Fleetwood Mac – Mystery to Me
One, I don’t get it. Two, it’s just kinda ugly as hell, even a bit gross. Yeah, it’s a mystery to me too.
The back cover isn’t helping any here either.
The designers are a bit of a mystery as well. I’m getting hits to a design group called Modula, but they only have 2 credits on discogs.
This album was recorded long before the days of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham. The single “Hypnotized” is not bad.
Grateful Dead - Go to Heaven
Geez, did everybody go disco?
Interestingly (and thankfully), this was not a disco album. That said, “sales were disappointing, due in part to the cover art” [Wikipedia]. Band chronicler Blair Jackson commented that the band looked like "hippie versions of John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever.” Bassist Phil Lesh noted that "the cover, featuring us in Saturday Night Fever disco suits against a white background, reinforced the impression that we were 'going commercial'.”
So, who and what was behind this disaster? Well, would you believe it was Bob Weir?
“This cover was my idea. The record was going to be called Go to Heaven, and when you turned it over, we would be wearing either red suits or these same suits, except all beat up, and it would be ‘Go to Hell.’ We’d be hanging out on some door stoop with empty bottles and all that. But the guys didn’t have the patience to do the back cover. They were like, ‘Enough. Fuck it. We did the cover!’ So all we got was this.”
I’m not enough of a deadhead to really comment on the music on this one. Though it was largely panned when it came out, it has had some staying power and is appreciated more so today.
Queen – The Miracle
Eww! It is a clever idea, I’ll give ‘em that. The result, unfortunately, is just super-creepy.
Hard to believe, but the back cover is even worse:
It was all designed by one Richard Gray, who used what was then ground-breaking, super-sophisticated software (and could be easily done by any 9th grader with Photoshop today).
I’m not a big Queen fan, so really don’t have anything to say about this one. It sounds like it’s just more of the same semi-operatic stuff we’ve all come to know and love. Suffice it to say, though, there’s no “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “We Are the Champions,” “We Will Rock You,” etc.
Eagles – Live at the Civic Auditorium
"It's like, how much more black could this be? And the answer is none. None more black." - Nigel Tufnel
The designer was John Kosh, who created some major covers over the years. Clients include the Beatles, Rolling Stones, the Who … Not sure why he’s channeling Nigel on this one.
This was the group’s last album before they broke up, then reformed 14 years later. That said, it did go to #1 as well as garner a Grammy. Hits includes the title track and “Heartache Tonight.”
Beach Boys – That’s Why God Made the Radio
I guess they musta just run outta ideas.
Sure enough, this was their 29th studio album. It was released in 2012, 51 years after the band formed.
AI is telling me that the cover “highlights a wooden boardwalk or pier with classic blue and white railings, bathed in warm, bright sunlight.” Huh. I coulda swore it was waves.
I must admit I do like the typography. No, not the title, dummy – that couldn’t possibly be more boring. The band name, of course.
Hard to believe, but this one actually charted, reaching #3.
Allman Brothers – Idlewild South
Meet the Beatles it ain’t.
I really couldn’t find that much on the design of this one. Credit does go to one Jimm Roberts, a Florida-based photographer. It looks like he’s got about 20 credits total on discogs.
It was the band’s second album. Though it enjoyed “little commercial success,” it does include the hit “Midnight Rider.” It was later repackaged, along with At Filmore East, into Beginnings.
U2 – Innocence + Experience: Live in Paris
A light bulb? That’s it? You’re coming up with something creative for one of the biggest bands of all time, and all you can think of is a light bulb?
Supposedly, it’s an homage to Andy Warhol’s classic cover for The Velvet Underground & Nico. I’m not sure what exactly the connection was, but the light bulb “was used as a prop at the beginning of shows on tour to represent U2's early, innocent days.”
As a live album, it includes lots of big hits – “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” “I Will Follow,” “With or Without You,” “Where the Streets Have No Name” … It was recorded less than a month after the fatal terrorist attack at Bataclan.
Radiohead – Amnesiac
Mark Rothko would be proud.
The designer here was Stanley Donwood, who did most of Radiohead’s covers. The scratchy little squiggle in dead center is a "weeping minotaur." According to Donwood, it’s a “tragic figure,” and represents the maze of modern life, Thom Yorke’s depression after OK Computer, something, something, something.
Recorded at the same time as Kid A, Amnesiac is slightly more accessible. It’s actually kinda hard to believe, but it went #1 in UK and #2 in the US, and is certified platinum.
Coldplay – Live 2003
Wait a minute. It’s just a bunch of lines. I feel ripped off.
The designers were a group called Blue Source. They’ve got not quite 450 credits out there on discogs! Now, these include artwork for groups such as The Aloof, McAlmont & Butler, Schtum, Goya Dress … as well as for a couple of bands I’ve actually heard of.
As a live album, it’s got a lot of hits – “Shiver,” “Yellow,” “Clocks,” “The Sceintist” …
Oasis – Stand by Me
Sexy!
We’ve got 3 possibilities for this one:
- It was created by Microdot, who designed a lot of Oasis’s stuff. The couple are the grandparents of the girlfriend of the founder Brian Cannon.
- It’s by photographer Brian Johnson.
- It’s stock photography.
What does it all mean? Haven’t a clue.
This is an EP, with only 4 tracks. The title track got to #2 in the UK. Personally, I’m not familiar with any of the 4.
The Band – Music from Big Pink
Well, well, well Seems like this is another lil’ Bobby Zimmerman original. Supposedly, band member Robbie Robertson asked him to "come up with something."
According to Wikipedia, the cover “was intended to establish the group as having a different outlook from the psychedelic culture of 1968.” Hence the elephant, sitar, and guy with a pot on his head.
The album is, of course, one of the greatest ever. It includes hits such as “The Weight,” “Tears of Rage,” “I Shall Be Released,” and more.
Prince – 20Ten
Yes, the album was released in 2010. Why, then, does it look like something straight outta the ‘70s?
The designer is Debbie McGuan, who’s got a whole 8 credits out there on discogs. Turns out she started out as a clothing designer, sending some unsolicited ideas to Prince. The actual cover drawing is by Anthony Malzone (he’s got 1 other credit).
This was Prince’s 35th studio album. According to Wikipedia, “reception was mixed.” I can’t stand Prince, so really can’t say much about the album itself.
The Doors – Other Voices
Hey, where’s Jim? Nobody want to look at these guys. We want Jim! We want Jim!
Well, he was dead. So, there’s that.
Yup, this is the first album the band released after the Lizard King’s timely demise. They would only do one more, Full Circle.
Ron Raffaelli is credited as the photographer on this one. Not sure if he contributed to the rest of the design as well.
No hits as far as I can tell. Which is kind of surprising when you consider such primo possibilities as “Variety Is the Spice of Life,” “Ships W/ Sails,” “Down on the Farm,” and “I’m Horny, I’m Stoned.”
