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Ended

Cover to Cover

The Gary Burden Archive
20 – 30 June 2025

"Gary didn't just design covers—he understood the music, the moment, and the people. He made our work look like it felt."
- Jackson Browne

Gary Burden (1933–2018)
Since the late 1960s, Gary Burden has been one of the most influential figures in the visual history of popular music, revolutionising album cover design and shaping the aesthetic of a generation. As a pioneering art director and designer, Burden brought depth, intimacy, and storytelling to the packaging of records, transforming them into cultural artefacts. Through long-standing collaborations with legendary artists—including Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, the Eagles, The Doors, and Crosby, Stills & Nash—Burden created some of the most memorable and era-defining album covers of all time.

"Gary Burden was the greatest album cover art director in the world. I am so thankful for the body of work we created together. He made it all worthwhile."
- Neil Young

Drawing from his deep roots in the Laurel Canyon artistic community and the counterculture ethos of the 1960s and '70s, Burden's covers reflected a spirit of authenticity and experimentation. His close creative partnership with rock photographer Henry Diltz gave rise to a uniquely warm, documentary-style visual language—one that continues to influence album art and graphic design today.

This auction presents a rare and extraordinary opportunity to acquire original mechanicals and concept designs from an artist whose vision helped define not just how we hear music, but how we see it. Each piece offers a tangible connection to a golden era of rock history, and to the man who gave it its unmistakable visual identity.

Auction highlights

Lot gallery

115 lots available

Danny Clinch (American, born 1964): Jeff Tweedy on a Tour Bus... Somewhere, 2000, printed later,

Danny Clinch (American, born 1964): Ryan Adams, NYC, 2001, printed later,

Gary Burden's Personal & Working Sketchbooks 23, 24 & 26 featuring designs for Neil Young, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Neil Young & Crazy Horse, Neil Young's solo work, Sinead O'Connor, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt, Lucan Records, Emmylou Harris, Jonathan Richman, Aerosmith, Steve Poltz, Neil Young, The Rolling Stones, and Tom Petty, Gary Burden (American, 1933-2018), circa 1999 (2), circa 2001-2003, 3

Neil Young: A group of album cover proofs for Prairie Wind, Are You Passionate, Roxy: Tonight's the Night Live and Road Rock Vol. 1, 2000s, Qty

A Group of Gary Burden's Personal & Working Sketchbooks 17, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, and 32, featuring designs for Neil Young, The Doors, Timothy B. Schmit, Neil Young and Crazy Horse, Eagles, Dixie Chicks, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Rolling Stones, Devendra Banhart, Ned Doheny, Conor Oberst, Jonathan Richman, and Graham Parker & The Rumours, Gary Burden (American, 1933-2018), circa 2000-2018, 8

Gary Burden (American, 1933-2018): The Doors: The Album Covers That Never Were artworks, 2002, 2

Jerry Lee Lewis: A group of album cover proofs and photography for Last Man Standing and Mean Old Man, circa 2006 & 2010, Qty

Neil Young: A Grammy Nomination Certificate and Medal for the Album Neil Young Archives Vol. 1 (1963-1972), 2009, 3

Neil Young: A Grammy Nomination Certificate and Medal for the Album A Letter Home (Vinyl Box Set), 2014, 2

Neil Young: A group of album cover proofs for Journey Through the Past, North Country (1971-1972), The Visitor (Neil Young and Promise of the Real), Topanga 2 (1969-1970), and Alchemy Live, 2000s, Qty

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