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

When buying vinyl the only things that matters to me are 1) I have to like 70-80% of the entire album to consider purchasing it because I like to listen to at least one side of the album at a time, most often the whole record. 2) It must be the best sonic pressing available and be in at least VG+ condition, preferably in NM condition. 

Having these strict parameters helps to limit my discography to my absolute favorite albums while allowing me to shell out the big bucks for those really expensive ones. Even with these parameters I’ve found that I haven’t listened to a lot of albums in my discography for years and I have less than 400 albums.

Cover art has absolutely no influence on what I add to the collection.

It may have when I was a lot younger and frequently under the influence of drugs when I was at the record store. 

After rethinking that, I am thinking probably not.  Back in the days that I owned a TT I didn’t have a whole lot of disposable income, so the LPs that I bought were ones that I bought because I liked the music or thought I would like the music.  But I’d say most of them had great cover art (Who’s Next, Wish You Were Here, Michael Stanley Band double live, Days Of Future Passed instantly come to mind).

No.

My daughter who does not collect Vinyl asked for an original Beatles Sgt. Pepper album because it was a marketing first. I was able to find an early edition mono copy for her. It was discussed in her marketing class at FSU. A couple notables for me are the Stones -Some Girls and Skynard’s Street Survivors as both were removed and replaced for different reasons. I’ve always appreciated the 60’s and early 70’s psychedelic art, The Vargas Car’s covers and the interactive ones like Zepp’s - In Through the Out Door. I was fortunate enough some years back to see the Summer of Love anniversary exhibit at the museum in SF’s Golden Gate Park. They had a huge black light poster room and all the equipment and the masters that produced the posters from that era. Cheers , Mike B. 

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.