The Greatest Albums You' ll Never Hear untangles the twists of fate, the fights and the sheer bad luck that prevented these sonic gems from being pressed.

A Pink Floyd album with no instruments. A Sex Pistols record more incendiary than Never Mind The Bollocks. A sci-fi rock opera by Weezer.

Rock ' n' roll history is littered with intriguing albums that never saw the light of day, let alone the charts.

Self-destructive ambition, intra-band turmoil, record-company politics and even death have all played their part in creating a fascinating sub-genre of mythic masterpieces. Spanning more than half a century of music from all genres, these tales take in legends such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and David Bowie, cult heroes like Brian Eno and Frank Zappa, and contemporary artists, including Green Day and Dr Dre.

Each ill-fated record is accompanied by an imagining of the cover that might have been. These original artworks have been brought to life by a team of acclaimed designers and illustrators, including Vaughan Oliver (Pixies, Bush, Cocteau Twins), John Pasche (The Rolling Stones, The Who, Jimi Hendrix) and Bill Smith (Genesis, The Jam, Led Zeppelin).