One of the (if not THE) most-recognized band logos in the rock era, John Pasche’s “Tongue and Lips” design was first introduced to fans in 1971 as part of a record package that, according to a decree by VH1 in 2003, was the “#1 Greatest Album Cover” of all time. It is included in every book/article that chronicle the “best-and-most-influential album covers” as it was also a seminal (and quite controversial) work by artist Andy Warhol, featuring a Warhol photograph of a man (from the waist down) in tight jeans, the zipper of which was fully-functional.
In the words of designer, John Pasche
The design concept for the Tongue was to represent the band’s anti-authoritarian attitude, Mick’s mouth and the obvious sexual connotations. I designed it in such a way that it was easily reproduced and in a style which I thought could stand the test of time. The first use of the logo was the inner sleeve for the Sticky Fingers album. The outer sleeve was designed by Andy Warhol, hence the mix-up with the credits (Ed. Note – many have attributed the logo design to Warhol, so we’re happy to clarify this here today!). The logo was not fully registered in all countries and a German jeans company registered the logo in Germany for their own products. This situation - and the fact that the tongue was getting used by unauthorized manufacturers of badges and t-shirts - prompted the proper registration and a merchandising agreement with myself to capitalize on the success of the logo.
The simplicity of the design lent itself to many variations which were done by other designers and not myself. Due to it’s immediate popularity, the Stones kept with it over the years and I believe that it represents one of the strongest and most recognizable logos worldwide. And of course I’m proud of that. The Stones ultimately bought the copyright but I still own the hand drawn & painted artwork which, by the way, is now on sale for £200,000.
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