An Ode to the Wraparound Album Cover

The most clever way to design a vinyl (in my opinion).

One of the simplest, and smartest ways to design an album cover, is the full image wraparound. It’s like a mullet, business in the front and party in the back. It can even act as a poster to be hung or framed at your leisure. There are plenty of gatefolds that have photos stretched across them, but that’s for another newsletter.

While the wraparound album cover is one of my favorite design techniques, I’ve noticed that there isn’t a common name for it. Through some digging, I found that this style came into popularity at the end of the 60s when the rock and roll revolution was taking over, specifically in 1968. The earliest wraparound covers that I’ve found are the UK pressing of The Jimi Hendrix Experience Electric Ladyland and the James Taylor eponymous debut.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience Electric Ladyland released 1968 on Track Record in the UK (the cover was banned in the US). Art Direction by David King. Photographed by David Montgomery.

James Taylor's self-titled debut album released 1968 on Apple Records. Photography by Richard Imrie.

This trend has lost a bit of its popularity with the transition of technology away from vinyl and the chunky binding of the tape and CD, making the seamlessness of the trend hard to pull off. And now, with artwork on streaming services being released digitally first, the back cover is almost an afterthought if the album even goes to press.

70s funk band Ohio Players made the full image vinyl wraparound their signature trademark. Out of their 23 LP releases, 14 utilize the trend, while the 9 others still stay true to their “sex sells” mentality. I like to think of the Ohio Players’ imagery as the “Playboy Magazine of records.” They’re cheeky in just the right way.

Ohio Players Honey released 1975 on Mercury. Art Direction by Jim Ladwig, photography by Richard Fegley, and design by Joe Kotleba.

Ohio Players Fire released 1974 on Mercury. Art Direction by Jim Ladwig, photography by Stan Malinowski, and design by Len Willis.

Ohio Players Pain released 1972 on Westbound Records. Photography by Joel Brodsky, design by Paula Bisacca.

Ohio Players Pleasure released 1972 on Westbound Records. Art direction by David Krieger, photography by Joel Brodsky,

Below are a few more of my favorite records that feature the wraparound style.

Al Kooper New York City (You’re a Woman) released 1971 on Columbia. Photo by Richard Avedon.

Bruce Springsteen, Born to Run released 1975 on Columbia. Photography by Eric Meola. Design by Andy Engel and John Berg.

Flash self-titled album released 1972 on Sovereign. Design and photography by Hipgnosis.

Flash In the Can released 1972 on Sovereign. Design and photography by Hipgnosis.

The Stooges Fun House released 1970 on Elektra. Art Direction by Robert L. Heimall and photography by Ed Caraeff.

Deep Purple Fireball released 1971 on Harvest. Cover design by Castle, Chappell & Partners Limited. 

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I’m looking for this to be a free public educational source since there is yet to be full documentation on the art history of album art. But if you have $5/ month to spare, it would be super helpful in furthering my research. Or if you think a friend might enjoy this kind of thing, the best way to pay it forward is just by sharing.