The Beatles’ Banned Butcher Cover

In 1966, The Beatles released an album cover that shocked the public. The image showed

the band in butcher coats, holding raw meat and dismembered dolls.

It was meant as satire. A protest against how their American label chopped up

their albums for profit. Fans did not get the joke. Stores refused to

sell it. Radio stations complained. The label panicked and recalled the album almost immediately.

Thousands of copies were pulled from shelves. To save money, a new cover was

pasted over the original. Years later, collectors peeled it back and found

the banned image underneath. Those copies now sell for tens of thousands of dollars.