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Does cover art of an album or recording influences your purchase?

For me, album or recording cover art definitely influences physical media purchases, where the physical object is part of the experience.

Cover art may never be as powerful as the music itself, but it carries its own quiet weight. It represents love, life, death, and the essence of a particular time in a musician’s journey. It captures what the music feels, without needing a single note.

Many are works of art and have become as famous as the music they stand for—Andy Warhol's covers, for example, including the banana he designed for The Velvet Underground. And there are many more! 

On flip side, If you’re buying based purely on artist or recommendation, cover art may not matter. But for exploration, vinyl hunting, or curating a vibe, it remains quite influential.

I’d love to hear what album covers have etched themselves into your memory or even convinced you to listen before you knew the artist. 

Thank you! 

lalitk

Showing 1 response by simonmoon

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simonmoon
577 posts
 

More so during the pre-internet era than now. 

Being a big prog fan back in the 70’s, prog albums tended to have cover art* that was a big clue as to the musical content of the of the recordings.

And this was especially helpful when so much world class prog started to be imported to the US from non-English speaking countries, and from more obscure bands. 

Recognizing cover art that hinted at progressive music on the disc, helped me find some of the best prog on the planet, from bands that most people know nothing about. 

*And no, I am not referring to the silly cliché notion that prog was loaded with themes of wizards, dragons, elves, etc. 

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