Best record sleeve designers

Hipgnosis (1968-1983)
In 1868 Storm Thorgerson and Aubrey Powell were asked by friends in Pink Floyd if they could design the album cover for their second album "A Saucerful of Secrets". This led to additional work for EMI Records. They moved to their own self-made studio in 1970 after they finished the Royal College of Art where they developed their artwork at first. They called themselved Hipgnosis and were later joined by Peter Christopherson. They became very succesfull during the 70s and 80s.

Peter Gabriel - Peter Gabriel (1977)

Full image of artwork for Led Zeppelin's - Houses Of The Holy

ELO's debut album by Hipgnosis

Roger Dean (1968-)
In the beginning of his career he designed new things like the so called "Sea urchin chair" after he graduated from the Royal College of Art in Londen in 1968. That same year he designed his first album cover for a band named GUN. In 1971 his career took a major step forward by becoming the album cover designer for the progressive rock band Yes. The first Yes album cover he designed was "Fragile" and when the next Yes album "Close To The Edge" came out he also designed the legendary Bubble logo for Yes. From that moment on he designed for many progressive rock bands including Gentle Giant, Asia and Uriah Heep. He also designed the logo for the computer game Tetris in 1984.

Yes - Fragile (1972)

Yes - Relayer (1974)

Sea Urchin Chair (1968)

Roger Dean's first album cover for Gun's debut album from 1968

Peter Saville (1978-)
The graphic designer who co-founded Factory Records in 1978. Read more in my earlier post.

OMD - Architecture & Morality (1981)

Peter Blake (1932-)
Peter is a pop-art artist who also designs album covers. Read more in my earlier post.

Pentangle - Sweet Child (1968)

Beatles - Sgt. Pepper 's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

Guy Peellaert (1934-2008)
Guy came from Belgium and he was a set designer and cartoonist influenced by psychedelica and popart. He success started when he started designing album covers and movie posters in the 70's. His most famous works are the album cover for David Bowie's "Diamond Dogs" and "It's Only Rock'n'roll" from The Rolling Stones. Bowie and the Stones were the only big names he designed album cover for.

David Bowie - Diamond Dogs (1974)

The Rolling Stones - It's Only Rock'n'Roll (1974)

Ed Trasher (1932-2006)
Ed was an American art director and photographer. In 1957 he began working at Capitol Records as an assistant, later becoming the Head Art Director and photographer. He designed album covers and movie posters.

Joni Mitchell - Clouds (1969)

The Jimmi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced (1967)

Grateful Dead - Anthem Of The Sun (1968)

Mick Rock (1948-2021)
Legendary photographer who photographed many famous musicicians. He became famous as the "The Man Who Shot the Seventies".

Lou Reed - Transformer (1972)

David Bowie - Pinups (1973)

Mick Haggerty (1948-)
Haggerty is most well-known for his album covers, but that is not the only art he creates. Haggerty experiments with photography, typography, and point of view to create his work.