Best 1980s Rock Album Covers

The most iconic 1980s Rock album covers — every entry has its own complete story: the designer, the photographer, the concept, and why it became iconic.

24 curated covers

Born in the U.S.A.

Bruce Springsteen · 1984

Purple Rain

Prince · 1984

Remain in Light

Talking Heads · 1980

Disintegration

The Cure · 1989

Doolittle

Pixies · 1989

Surfer Rosa

Pixies · 1988

Daydream Nation

Sonic Youth · 1988

Hysteria

Def Leppard · 1987

Sign o' the Times

Prince · 1987

Appetite for Destruction

Guns N' Roses · 1987

The Joshua Tree

U2 · 1987

Raising Hell

Run-D.M.C. · 1986

So

Peter Gabriel · 1986

Skylarking

XTC · 1986

Slippery When Wet

Bon Jovi · 1986

The Queen Is Dead

The Smiths · 1986

Brothers in Arms

Dire Straits · 1985

Stop Making Sense

Talking Heads · 1984

Hatful of Hollow

The Smiths · 1984

Faster Than the Speed of Night

Bonnie Tyler · 1983

Synchronicity

The Police · 1983

Rio

Duran Duran · 1982

Ace of Spades

Motörhead · 1980

Back in Black

AC/DC · 1980