Geoff,
Is that a electrical receptacle that the microphone is plugged into?
–MD
Looks like it - good joke on the part of the photographer, I think…
From Wikipedia: The cover picture is one of the most famous images of Grace Jones and was created by her then-partner Jean-Paul Goude. The impossibly graceful arabesque is actually a montage of separate images, following Goude’s ideas on creating credible illusions with his cut-and-paint technique. The body position is “anatomically unlikely”.
I guess that is what you would call a Hot Mic - 
–MD
I remember SWMBO drew a copy of this and made me a TShirt. My nickname at School was Gong once but they never though it would become cool lol
The Benevolence of Sister Mary Ignatius is the debut album of the Lee Thompson Ska Orchestra , a British ska band around Lee Thompson , saxophonist of Madness . The album was released in June 2013 and is named after Sister Mary Ignatius Davis , a Jamaican nun who taught music to underprivileged youngsters, including the later members of the Skatalites, until old age
Do rear covers count? (Steely Dan – Countdown to Ecstasy.)
I always loved the unexplained hand in the middle of the console.
That view is slightly different (and more obvious) than the actual cover:
Apparently it was Roger Nichols, their producer’s hand.
Haha. Never noticed that before. Lol.
Thanks for sharing.
Storm Thorgerson of Hipgnosis was responsible for just so many classic designs of the 70’s onwards. Sadly he passed away fairly recently but his legacy will live on for many many decades! A really surreal eye… worked very well with Prog Rock…
And so on…
I think some herbal supplements were involved when I noticed it, but once seen it becomes the centre of focus.
(And you’re absolutely right about Hipgnosis.)
What I love about the album art is that over time, it reinforces a loved album’s worth immeasurably, the coupling between the visual and aural senses is unique.
It gets such that the sight of an album’s art can instantly decide on whether a play is invoked or it can dredge up so many memories and life connections. Even a seemingly mundane or poorly/cheaply put together album cover can become part of our psyches over the decades and come to embody completely with the music within…
My favorite cover picture. Where should I start? Maybe at the time when I started to get interested in music. It started when I got my first self-earned money. I did not buy a moped or a used car from that. I saved 5 months salary, then I had about 1000 DM (~ 500 $). I bought a dual turntable, an NAD amplifier and 2 fat JBL speakers.
My heroes at the time were undoubtedly Emerson Lake & Palmer and Pink Flod. I was fascinated by the music that was represented by the album cover. The world was made up of Art Rock and Psychedelic Rock. And of course there was Genesis, King Crimson, and others. Music as unique as the cover pictures.
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
ELP - Tarkus
ELP - Brain Salad Surgery
Pink Floyd - Ummagumma
King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King
YES - Tales From Topographic Oceans
Of course, Jethro Tull should not be missed with 2 albums pictures. Aqualung
And the surrealistic silhouette of Ian Andersen
The album cover of a great soundtrack should not be missing either. Ennio Morricone - Once Upon a Time in the West.
Not to forget: Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells
But luckily, time did not stop. And so there are always albums that are just good and where the album cover fits the music. And somehow I have a weakness for surrealist pictures:
Jean-Michel Jarre - Oxygene. The electronic masterpiece par excellence.
Talk talk. Music with a longing that is hard to grasp with words.
Andreas Vollenweider. Balm for the ear and soul.
Keren Ann - I like this pastel-colored picture with the butterflies.
Anna Depenbusch. Also a very creative album cover.
The cover of the album by the Hoff Ensemble does not promise too much. A winter dream.
For some women, of course, it is easier to make a great cover picture because of their looks. Cassandra Wilson. What a woman, what a voice.
Mariah Carey. A gifted voice and at least on this cover the woman with the longest legs ever. The ultimate all-time hottie. Even if the praise is also attributed to the Photoshop artist. But the truth is secondary, it’s the illusion that matters.
Maybe not Sade’s best album, but the cover is more than good. A dream from the past.
Other albums whose cover images are unique and which signal the music perfectly. The Rolling Stones GRRR. A rock statement. You just have to see the cover and you know what it’s all about.
Gregg Belisle-Chi - Tenebrae. Sometimes I think I’m the only one who knows this album. Lost guitar sounds of avant-garde jazz. With a dense, surreal beauty. The cover stands for the music.
Quite different, however, Rain Sultanov & Isfar Sarabski - Cycle. Lower the blinds, close the door and the windows, turn the amplifier up and start the music. This is mind blowing.
And so I could (almost) go on forever. But the question is, which is now my favorite album cover. Here is the answer:
Santana - Abraxas. The original cover picture is not sharp and darkened (probably because of the decency). The label wanted to be over-cautious here.
Carlos Santana has created his masterpiece here. The no less ingenious cover shows its full complexity only when you see it in the original resolution. The picture impresses with its seemingly surreal, psychedelic art and its complex painting style. A masterpiece by Mati Klarwein. Annunciation (1961). Source: Mati Klarwein Artgallery
Wow, you picked some corkers there…