OK, it's no secret that just about every celebrity mug that graces a magazine cover gets an extra layer of reconstructive surgery thanks to the miracle of Photoshop. Most of the time, the idea is to turn the subject into a hyper-flawless sex goddess, or erase some dude's ugly zit -- but every so often, designers go into a trance and can't stop until they've literally created an inhuman monster.

We could kinda understand why an art director might try to push the envelope to make pre-surgical Ashlee Simpson look skinnier, or airbrush out some cellulite off of Phoebe Price's thighs -- because sex sells. But why go through the trouble for Eddie Van Halen on the cover of Guitar World?

We're guessing that the demographic for GW is males ages 12-17. It's not like teenage dudes are going to care if Eddie looks like he's been partying too hard for the last 3 decades. In fact, Keith Richards is enjoying a whole new modeling career thanks to his saggy burn-out look.

Not only is Eddie's face all smoothed out and his hair less grey, but it looks like they literally cut out his head and placed it on a model's body. Oldest trick in the book. Click here to check out what Eddie really looks like these days.

[via Jezebel]