244. Stephen Averill: The Art Behind U2 & Ireland’s Iconic Album Covers

Stephen Averill has spent nearly five decades shaping how some of Ireland’s most important music looks.

From his beginnings with The Radiators From Space to a remarkable creative relationship with U2 spanning Boy, War, The Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby and beyond, Stephen has helped create images that became inseparable from the music itself.

In this episode of The Ireland Podcast, Fender Jackson talks to Stephen about the art of the record sleeve: discovering album artwork as a young music fan, designing before computers, working with musicians and photographers, the relationship between music and image, and what makes an album cover become iconic.

They also discuss Stephen’s work beyond U2, the changing Irish music scene, the creative possibilities that come from limitations, and what happens to album artwork as music moves from vinyl and CD into the digital age.

Relevant Links

https://www.stephenaverill.com/

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

01:33 When Album Covers Became Art

04:07 How Record Sleeves Changed

06:11 Creating a Visual Identity for a Band

07:16 How Stephen Designs an Album Cover