An album cover is the front packaging art of a commercially released studio album or other audio recordings. The term can refer to:
the printed paperboard covers typically used to package:
sets of 10 in and 12 in 78 rpm records
singles and sets of 12 in long-play records
sets of 45 rpm records
the front-facing panel of:
a cassette J-card
a CD package
the primary image accompanying a digital download of the album.
For all tangible records, the album art also serves as a part of the protective sleeve. From Wikipedia
