The Cars released Candy-O on June 12, 1979. The album features the hit Let’s Go and an iconic cover.

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The album cover was painted by artist Alberto Vargas, known for his paintings of pin-up girls that appeared in Esquire and Playboy magazines in the 1940s and 1960s. The idea to hire Vargas came from drummer David Robinson, the band’s artistic director and a collector of pin-ups. The 83-year-old Vargas had retired several years earlier but was persuaded to take the assignment by his niece, who was a fan of The Cars. The painting, depicting a girl sprawled across the hood of a car, was based on a photo shoot directed by Robinson at a Ferrari dealership. The model, coincidentally named Candy Moore, briefly dated Robinson afterward.