What lies behind a name? Or in this case, behind an album title? It could be so many things, and rock music, in particular, is overflowing with intriguing, strange, cryptical, or plain weird album titles.
While some artists give their albums titles that they just made up, or ‘for the heck of it,’ to grab the attention of potential listeners, others give it detailed thought, expressing their creative process, a potential hidden meaning(s), and are complementing both the music and the album cover, even if it is just a single image accompanying a stream.
Yet, quite a few of those albums with intriguing album titles (to say the least) have no less intriguing stories behind them, and 17 of such album titles below, certainly do.
These strange album titles have more than meets the eye
Surrealistic Pillow, Jefferson Airplane (1967)
If there ever was an album title that captures ‘the sign of the times’ in rock music, it is this one, created, along with the album, at the height of the psychedelic era, particularly the San Francisco sound, as it was called then. The bands from the Bay Area shared their music among themselves, and Airplane members shared the music for the album with Jerry Garcia and The Grateful Dead. Commenting on one of the tracks, Garcia said that it was “surrealistic as a pillow,” and the band picked it up!
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, The Beatles (1967)
As it turns out, the idea for this, one of the most popular albums by the Beatles lies mainly with McCartney, whose idea was that The Beatles should perform under an alter ego band. While it seems two of the members were not initially too keen on the concept (Lennon and Starr), the name, the concept, and the music stuck, luckily for everybody.
Aoxomoxoa, Grateful Dead (1969)
For one of not so many Grateful Dead studio albums the band came up with another name that is a true reflection of sixties psychedelia. It doesn’t mean anything, really, but you can read it the same way, both forward and backward. Artist Rick Griffin and band’s lyricist Robert Hunter thought that it truly reflected the spirit of the band, and it probably does, if you drop the meaningless part.
Ummagumma, Pink Floyd (1969)
All members of Pink Floyd had a strong connection to the university city of Cambridge, England, and the word itself was quite common in the city slang at the time, used for sexual intercourse. Yet, the band members never really agreed on the true origin of this slang phrase as the title for this album, probably adding an extra touch of mystique to the whole thing.
Burnt Weeny Sandwich , Frank Zappa (1970)
Zappa was one of the masters of cryptic and strange album titles from Uncle Meat and Weasels Ripped My Flesh to Bongo Fury. This one, though, according to Zappa himself, was supposed to be straightforward - he liked the idea of an overcooked hotdog between slices of bread. Frank, there is no sexual connotation there at all.
Lick My Decals Off, Baby, Captain Beefheart (1970)
No wonder Zappa and Don Van Vliet, aka Captain Beefheart, were close friends (and collaborators), as Van Vliet also had a penchant not only for off-kilter music but also for album titles that graced his albums. While the title of his masterpiece Trout Mask Replica might be somewhat explained by its cover, not so much for this, its follow-up (and no less a masterpiece); the connotations are not missing there, though.
Eat a Peach, The Allman Brothers Band (1972)
This album was released a few months after Duane Allman’s tragic motorcycle accident. The initial working title for the album was The Kind We Grow in Dixie, with the cover image as it was when it was released. Drummer Butch Trucks liked the image but not the title, so he mentioned late Duane's quote concerning the Vietnam War: “Every time I’m in Georgia, I eat a peach for peace," himself partially quoting writer/poet T.S. Elliot.
Houses of the Holy, Led Zeppelin(1973)
For the title and cover of this album, the band was quite inspired by Arthur C. Clarke's sci-fi novel Childhood's End. The title itself was actually a lyrics line in "Over the Hills and Far Away," and it seems was meant to conjure otherworldly transcendence.
Larks' Tongues in Aspic, King Crimson - (1973)
Many consider this album a true prog-rock masterpiece with its instrumental combination of every musical style available, and it was considered quite exotic music at the time. To convey that exotic element, Fripp and Co. named this album after an exotic food dish that actually does exist.
Never Mind the Bollöcks, Here's the Sex Pistols, Sex Pistols (1977)
How do you come up with an album title that is as striking and shocking as the music included in the album? Well, it seems God Save The Sex Pistols wasn’t shocking enough, so, according to rock critic John Savage, band guitarist Steve Jones came up with the title he actually picked up from the band's early fans for one of the key punk rock albums of all time.
The Electric Spanking of War Babies, Funkadelic (1981)
George Clinton, the man behind many band mutations and one of the kings of all things funk, had also a penchant for intriguing lyrics and album titles as well. According to one interpretation, this album title refers to the government's use of media to spur unwanted wars.
Locust Abortion Technician, Butthole Surfers (1987)
When you name your band The Butthole Surfers, you certainly are not a fan of something regular or ordinary. To fit in with their music, lyrics, and live performances, the band had to have equally intriguing (and shocking) album titles, this one surely being the pick of the lot.
Scumdogs of the Universe, Gwar (1990)
Heavy metal punishers Gwar placed their whole image and music behind a self-created mythology of them being alien warriors sent to Earth to punish all of humanity, scumdogs coming from the universe, no less, as surely fitting the idea general idea.
Pork Soda, Primus (1993)
You just can’t be a good friend with Tom Waits and come up with some ordinary album title. Primus leader and bassist extraordinaire Les Claypool made up this album title simply because it just sounded good. Maybe somebody will come up with real pork soda someday, but it is a serious question whether even the hardcore fans of the band will give it a try eventually.
When the Pawn.., Fiona Apple (1999)
Everybody abbreviated the title of this album, which is a complete poem by Apple, which she wrote after reading a negative story about her in one of the music magazines. The full title goes: When the pawn hits the conflicts he thinks like a king / What he knows throws the blows when he goes to the fight / And he'll win the whole thing 'fore he enters the ring / There's nobody to batter when your mind is your might / So when you go solo you hold your own hand / And remember that depth is the greatest of heights / And if you know where you stand then you know where to land / And if you fall it won't matter 'cause you'll know that you're right.
Frances the Mute, The Mars Volta (2005)
This album itself is a concept one, and it is based on a diary the band's late sound technician, Jeremy Ward, found, referring to a search for the diary writer’s biological parents. The title of the album was a part of the diary too.
Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, Kendrick Lamar (2022)
There is some sharp and pointy music, lyrics, and album titles from Lamar, but he isn’t forthcoming about what his album titles mean. According to some interpretations, this one by Esquire magazine, Mr. Morale refers to "the moral clarity of the Conscience,” and the Big Steppers are "the moral corruption of the Culture."