The complete catalogue of design collective Hipgnosis, showcasing groundbreaking cover art created for iconic rock ’n’ roll giants, including the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Led Zeppelin, and Pink Floyd The complete, definitive, and never-before-published catalogue of album covers created by the legendary design agency Hipgnosis, this volume finally does justice to the work of the most important design collective in music history. Founded in 1967 by Storm Thorgerson, Aubrey “Po" Powell, and Peter Christopherson, Hipgnosis gained a legendary status in graphic design, transforming the look of album art forever and winning five Grammy nominations for package design. Their revolutionary cover art departed from the conventional group shots favored by record companies of the day, resulting in groundbreaking, often surreal designs inextricable from the major albums of many of the biggest names in the history of popular music: AC/DC, Black Sabbath, The Police, Genesis, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney, Syd Barrett, The Who, Wings, Yes, and XTC, to name but a few. Arranged chronologically, Vinyl . Album . Cover . Art features stunning reproductions of every single Hipgnosis cover—more than 300 in total—for the first time, along with pertinent insights from the rock ’n’ roll legends whose albums are featured and behind-the-scenes photography. The text, written by Powell, and with contributions by Peter Gabriel, Robert Plant, and Nick Mason, brims with information that illuminates the album art and the compelling stories behind each cover’s creation.

"Hipgnosis was the design firm of choice for the biggest and best bands of the classic rock era. Formed by Storm Thorgerson and Aubrey Powell in 1968, Hipgnosis was a graphic design studio specializing in creative photography and working mainly in the music business designing album covers for many rock 'n' roll bands including Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Genesis, 10cc, Yes, Peter Gabriel, Black Sabbath, Paul McCartney, Syd Barrett and Styx, amongst others. For a dozen years Hipgnosis created timeless rock iconography. This is the first book to document their output in detail, focusing on over 60 package designs - from cover to label - written about in entertaining detail by the men who created them. Also included are short essays by musicians (such as Pink Floyd's Nick Mason), artists (Peter Blake) and fellow designers (Paula Scher) on their favorite covers, plus a contextual commentary by Adrian Shaughnessy, as well as unseen photographs and ephemera."--BOOK JACKET.

The most intriguing stories of creative endeavor, volatile relationships, excessive lifestyles, and bizarre events from the world of rock, as told by Hipgnosis cofounder, creative designer, photographer, and filmmaker Aubrey Powell. Founded in 1967 by Aubrey “Po” Powell, Storm Thorgerson, and Peter Christopherson, graphic design firm Hipgnosis gained legendary status by transforming the look of album art through their designs for AC/DC, Black Sabbath, the Police, Genesis, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney, Syd Barrett, and the Who. In this lively volume, Powell presents brutally honest, entertaining, and revealing insider stories from the world of rock, featuring an eclectic cast of pop stars, comedians, actors, managers, gangsters, and inspirational world gures from 1966 on. His thrilling narrative is packed with anecdotes—from the founding of Hipgnosis to surviving drugs busts—and is richly illustrated with Hipgnosis artwork and Powell’s own photographs. Drama and creativity are the common threads throughout this unique account. With candor and insightful reflection, Powell reveals how the final color artwork for Led Zeppelin’s Houses of the Holy was created; how the most iconic album cover of all time—Dark Side of the Moon—came about; and how the 2017 Pink Floyd retrospective became the most successful music exhibition ever mounted by the Victoria and Albert Museum, despite the deeply antagonistic and dysfunctional relationship between Roger Waters and David Gilmour. Throughout, Powell exposes how the trappings of fame and glory upset the balance of everyday life, bringing creativity and destruction in equal measure. Packed with exciting insider stories and anecdotes featuring famous musicians, managers, and actors, Through the Prism is a must-have for music and pop-culture fans.

'Hugely entertaining history' - Mojo Between the late '60s and early '80s, design house Hipgnosis created some of the most iconic and ubiquitous album artwork of all time. Their original lifespan coincided with the golden age of the 12-inch LP, beginning just as the Beatles' Sgt Pepper made the record sleeve the ultimate blank canvas and ending just as new technology looked set to usurp vinyl. Having originally been approached to design an album cover for their friends Pink Floyd, students Aubrey 'Po' Powell and Storm Thorgerson would go on to define the visual identity of rock and roll for the next fifteen years, swiftly gaining international prominence for their famed The Dark Side of the Moon artwork. This paved the way for other major musicians to set foot in the surreal photo-design world of Storm and Po, resulting in seminal Hipgnosis creations for the likes of Led Zeppelin, Paul McCartney, Genesis, Black Sabbath, ELO and Yes. In this authorised account, with access to previously unpublished material and exclusive contributions from David Gilmour, Jimmy Page, Peter Gabriel, Roger Waters, Robert Plant and even Aubrey Powell himself, Mark Blake goes behind the scenes of the Hipgnosis partnership to reveal the pioneering ambition and grand vision that led to their success, as well as the clashing egos and artistic differences that undermined it. The Hipgnosis story also offers hitherto-untold insight into some of music's most legendary bands, as viewed through the prism of the people who shaped their imagery and cultural legacy. With the work of Hipgnosis continuing to be referenced, reproduced and revered worldwide, Us and Them serves as a celebration, a cautionary tale and a compelling human drama, exploring the vital intersection between art and music.

"A book of designs and photographs for rock 'n' roll bands"--Page 4 of cover.

A stunningly designed review of the greatest album cover designs, spanning the classic period from the 1950s to the 1970s, Album Cover Album first hit the bestseller charts in 1977. This led to the release of six follow-up hits, inspired a host of imitations, and generated a long-playing sub-genre in art and design publishing. Album Cover Album is edited and compiled by two designers who were among the most innovative pioneers of the work that it celebrates. Storm Thorgerson's Hipgnosis earned world renown for the epic photo shoots and iconic designs that went so perfectly with the music of Pink Floyd. Meanwhile, Roger Dean's dreamscapes and unique typography became as much a part of the rock generation as the Yes albums they adorned. Album Cover Album features their selection of more than 600 sleeves in full color, and showcases the astonishing diversity and excellence of design that the medium produced in its first three decades. This new edition retains the lavish 12-inch format of the original and replays the ingeniously themed compositions of each page. The album is given a fresh spin by a new preface from Peter Gabriel and new forewords by Storm Thorgerson and John Wetton, plus a 21st-century typographic facelift. The result is a celebration of the enduring appeal of vinyl.