Best of each artist · One record per artist
Best cover
Records you recognise from across the room. One cover per artist – and the story behind the picture.
All 25Rock 10Pop 1Soul, funk and R&B 1Jazz 2Hip hop 2Electronic 2Folk, country and song 1Hard rock and metal 6
- 1 Pink Floyd The Dark Side of the Moon A prism splitting light, against black. Designed by Hipgnosis, drawn by George Hardie – and impossible to forget. Timeless classic
- 2 Joy Division Unknown Pleasures Peter Saville took an image of radio waves from a pulsar out of an astronomy encyclopaedia. Today it is on millions of T-shirts. Timeless classic
- 3 The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground & Nico Andy Warhol’s banana. On the first pressings you could peel the skin off: “Peel slowly and see”. Timeless classic
- 4 The Beatles Abbey Road Four Beatles on a zebra crossing outside the studio, photographed by Iain Macmillan in a few minutes in August 1969. Timeless classic
- 5 The Clash London Calling Pennie Smith’s photo of Paul Simonon smashing his bass on stage – with the lettering in the same pink and green as Elvis Presley’s debut. Timeless classic
- 6 Nirvana Nevermind A baby swimming towards a dollar bill on a fishhook. A simple image that became the cover of the whole nineties. Timeless classic
- 7 Patti Smith Horses Robert Mapplethorpe’s black-and-white portrait of Patti Smith in a white shirt, in natural light. One of rock’s most famous photographs. Timeless classic
- 8 King Crimson In the Court of the Crimson King Barry Godber’s screaming face. He painted only this one cover and died the following year, aged 24. Timeless classic
- 9 Bruce Springsteen Born to Run Eric Meola’s picture of Springsteen leaning on Clarence Clemons. The band’s friendship, caught in a moment. Timeless classic
- 10 The Strokes Is This It Colin Lane’s photo of a hip and a leather glove. In the US it was replaced by an image of particle tracks. Modern classic
25 artists in the list.