Inside Gatefold Cover Mock-up for Unreleased Rolling Stones Album, late 1972

This gatefold features images by photographer Annie Leibovitz, who captured these images of the Rolling Stones during the band’s 1972 North American tour in support of their latest release, Exile on Main St. This collage of photos was scheduled for the cover of an additional Stones’ album featuring live recordings from the 1972 tour; however, no such album was ever released. Instead, the six photos comprising this collage were featured in the July 6 and August 3, 1972 editions of Rolling Stone magazine accompanying reports of the Stones’ summer tour.   

The Rolling Stones visited 32 cities during their 1972 North American tour with Stevie Wonder as the opening act throughout the run.  The tour spanned the months of June and July and was notable for the group’s use of their private jet, which was featured in Robert Frank’s notorious documentary film Cocksucker Blues (see lower middle photo), and for the large arenas (see upper left photo) and small Southern cities—like Norfolk, Virginia; Knoxville, Tennessee; and Tuscaloosa, Alabama—that were included on the tour’s itinerary.  

The Rolling Stones are a British rock band, formed in 1962 that gained mainstream prominence with hits such as “(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction,” “Get Off of My Cloud,” and “Paint It Black.” The band has received multiple Grammy nominations and Awards and is included in the Billboard All-Time Top Artists chart.