Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7

Top 20 Most Shocking Banned Album Covers

Let’s go back in time to present the 20 most shocking banned album covers of all time.

13) Lynyrd Skynyrd – Street Survivors (1977)

Three days after this album’s October 20, 1977, release, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s plane crashed en route to Baton Rouge, LA. The accident claimed the lives of the pilot, copilot, Skynyrd’s assistant road manager and three band members: singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines and backup singer Cassie Gaines. Out of respect for the survivors and the victims’ families, the original cover image—featuring the band in a ring of fire—was replaced with a respectful, though funereal, band image.

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Street Survivors (1977)

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Street Survivors (1977)

14) Mama Lion – Preserve Wildlife

The wildcard of our list, Mama Lion’s Preserve Wildlife cover featured the singer nursing a lion cub. In a move to prevent confusion, as much as objection, the final version of the album was issued with a cutaway cover that obscured the cub-to-jug action.

Mama Lion - Preserve Wildlife

Mama Lion - Preserve Wildlife

15) Pantera – Far Beyond Driven (1994)

The original art for this groove metal gem included an anus being impaled by a drill bit. After the album was banned under new censorship laws, Dime & Co. went with the now-classic skull-impaled-by-drill bit motif. Perhaps that was just their way of telling the government it had its head up its ass.

Pantera - Far Beyond Driven (1994)

Pantera - Far Beyond Driven (1994)

Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7

Share this