Extraordinary Records

The visual of vinyls The most daring of record designs Now available as part of TASCHEN's Bibliotheca Universalis series, this dazzling catalog of vinyl brings new meaning to the "album art." Produced in collaboration with Colors magazine, it brings together over 500 remarkable records from the collection of Alessandro Benedetti and Peter Bastine.

The book forms a junction between photography, music, and design, celebrating vinyl not only for the integrity of sound recording, but also for its artistic potential as a material form. With featured artists including Pink Floyd, Prince, Michael Jackson, Bon Jovi and beyond, it offers compelling insight into the most intricate details of a performer's visual identity, from a flamboyant color to a futuristic mirror effect.

The discs are arranged thematically to span monochrome vinyl; unusual vinyl (including silver, gold or mirror vinyl as well as extremely rare glow-in-the-dark vinyl); multicolored vinyl; etched vinyl (where music is pressed onto only one side); shaped vinyl (cut into forms that are different from the classic round disc); and picture discs (where a photograph or design is stamped onto the surface of the record).

About the series: Bibliotheca Universalis-- Compact cultural companions celebrating the eclectic TASCHEN universe at an unbeatable, democratic price! Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, the name TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible, open-minded publishing.

Bibliotheca Universalis brings together nearly 100 of our all-time favorite titles in a neat new format so you can curate your own affordable library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia. Bookworm's delight -- never bore, always excite!