Run-D.M.C.

The cover of Run-DMC's debut is a stark black-and-white photograph of Joseph "Run" Simmons and Darryl "D.M.C." McDaniels in hats, one of them in thick-rimmed glasses, staring straight out at the viewer under the group's name in bold red.

The Hollis, Queens trio, with Jam Master Jay on the turntables, stripped rap down to booming drum machines, scratches and shouted rhymes, and added rock guitar on "Rock Box." Run-D.M.C. was released on 27 March 1984 and became the first rap album certified gold.

The photo introduced a new image for rap. In place of the costumes of the disco era, the group wore what young men in Queens wore every day, and that plain, tough street style, soon completed by Adidas, fedoras and gold chains, became the uniform of hip-hop for the rest of the decade.