vinyl LP front cover with working zipper
conceived by Andy Warhol, design by Craig Braun
album cover photo by Billy Name
photo of album cover by Styrous®
Sticky Fingers was released on this date, April 23, in 1971, 48 years ago! WOW! I just can't believe it! I have loved every album The Rolling Stones have produced, some more, some less but Sticky Fingers is at the top and on my 'desert isle' list (link below).
Each song is outstanding in one way or another. What is a better song to dance to than Brown Sugar? For psychedelic drug trips, Moonlight Mile is among the best there is. And has there ever been a more beautiful song of devotion to love than Wild Horses?
Then there is the cover! The original cover artwork was conceived by Andy Warhol and photographed and designed by members of his art collective, The Factory.
Sticky Fingers sits quite firmly in my, "Just the cover, Ma'am" category as well (link below). The album's artwork emphasizes the suggestive innuendo of the Sticky Fingers title, showing a close-up of a jeans-clad male crotch with the visible outline of a large penis.
vinyl LP front cover detail with working zipper
conceived by Andy Warhol, design by Craig Braun
album cover photo by Billy Name
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
The cover of the original vinyl LP release featured a working zipper and perforations around the belt buckle that opened to reveal a sub-cover image of cotton briefs. The vinyl release displayed the band's name and album title along the image of the belt; behind the zipper the white briefs were seemingly rubber stamped in gold with the stylized name of American pop artist Andy Warhol, below which read "THIS PHOTOGRAPH MAY NOT BE—ETC."
conceived by Andy Warhol, design by Craig Braun
album cover photo by Billy Name
photo of album cover interior by Styrous®
conceived by Andy Warhol, design by Craig Braun
album cover photo by Billy Name
detail photo of album cover interior by Styrous®
conceived by Andy Warhol, design by Craig Braun
album cover photo by Billy Name
detail photo of album cover interior by Styrous®
The artwork was conceived by Warhol, the photography was by Billy Name and the design was by Craig Braun (link below). Braun and his team had other ideas, such as wrapping the album in rolling paper - a concept later used by Cheech & Chong in Big Bambu - but Jagger was enthused by Warhol's cover with a zipper. Execution was then handled as Warhol sent Braun Polaroid pictures of a model in tight jeans.
vinyl LP back cover
conceived by Andy Warhol, design by Craig Braun
album back cover photo by Billy Name
photo of album back cover by Styrous®
After retailers complained that the zipper was causing damage to the vinyl (from stacked shipments of the record), the zipper was "unzipped" slightly to the middle of the record, where damage would be minimized.
The album features the first usage of the "tongue & lips" logo of Rolling Stones Records, originally designed by John Pasche in 1970 and modified by Craig Braun (link below) in 1971. Jagger suggested to Pasche that he copy the outstuck tongue of the Hindu goddess Kali, and while Pasche first felt it would date the image back to the Indian culture craze of the 1960s, seeing Kali made him change his mind. Before the end of that year his basic version was faxed to Craig Braun by Marshall Chess.
original "tongue & lips" logo
designed by Craig Braun
The black and white copy was then modified by Braun and his team, resulting in today's most popular red version, the slim one with the two white stripes on the tongue.
new "tongue & lips" logo
designed by John Pasche
The "tongue & lips" logo was used for the vinyl LP record sleeve and the record labels.
record sleeve with Rolling Stones
photo of record sleeve by Styrous®
For the initial vinyl release the album title and band name is smaller and at the top on the American release. In the UK release the title and band name are in bigger letters and on the left.
left to right: Charlie Watts, Mick Taylor, Bill Wyman,
Keith Richards, and Mick Jagger
Viewfinder links:
Net links:
Craig Braun
Festival Peak ~ How an Album Cover Defined the Rolling Stones
RolllingStone Magazine ~ Sticky Fingers 1971 review
Corey Tippin
Festival Peak ~ How an Album Cover Defined the Rolling Stones
RolllingStone Magazine ~ Sticky Fingers 1971 review
Corey Tippin
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