Collecting log: a copy of the legendary bootleg LIVE on Coral Records, purportedly autographed at a Philly stop during the 1978 tour (Part 2 of 3)

As another example of an autographed classic bootleg, a signed copy of "E" TICKET is reproduced on the back cover of The Bruce Springsteen Bootleg Bible Vol. 1 (by Tony Montana, Montana Production Inc., USA, 1985), with the comment: "This copy was autographed by Bruce backstage at the Spectrum Philadelphia Aug., 1978." Image sourced from the blog on 05/16/2015.

Obviously, the main question regarding this particular copy of the classic bootleg is whether Springsteen’s signature is genuine or a forgery. Although he is known to have refused to sign bootlegs over the years, the available anecdotes suggest that he may not have been as reluctant to sign them early on—especially before the famous 1979 lawsuit* against California bootleggers Vicki Vinyl and Jim Washburn.
*For more on that lawsuit, see my previous blog posts on specific bootlegs like "E" TICKET and PIÈCE DE RÉSISTANCE.

Springsteen’s early attitude toward bootlegs is covered in some detail, for instance, in two substantial books by Clinton Heylin: Bootleg: The Secret History of the Other Recording Industry (St. Martin's Griffin, New York, 1996) and E Street Shuffle: The Glory Days of Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band (Penguin Group [USA] Inc., New York, 2013). A few passages are particularly suggestive. Springsteen reportedly reacted with delight when he was handed one of Lou Cohan's bootlegs in 1976, exclaiming to E Street Band member Garry Tallent, "We’ve been bootlegged! We’ve finally made it!” (E Street Shuffle, p. 188). He also remarked in a 1978 interview that many bootleggers were, at least in their own eyes, fans rather than profiteers, and that bootlegging was “more like a labour of love” (Bootleg, p. 136).

Collecting log: a copy of the legendary bootleg LIVE on Coral Records, purportedly autographed at a Philly stop during the 1978 tour (Part 1 of 3)

Autographed copy of LIVE on Coral Records, the bootleg LP at the center of the 1976 lawsuit, shown with reference copies of reports from the August 14 and August 21 issues of Billboard (article text obscured; see 08/15/2016 for details).

It has somehow been almost six months since my last blog post. Over the past few months, as has happened from time to time before, I have been—and still am—extremely busy with my job. This time, however, the workload was heavier than usual, which largely explains the long silence on this blog (yes, I’m still working and haven’t retired yet!). Fortunately, I have no shortage of material to write about; I have simply reached a point where I can catch my breath and finally resume posting.

Recently, two very different things brought me back to the mid-1970s, the period around Springsteen’s first national breakthrough in the U.S.

Collecting log: You Can Collect, But You Better Not Fold? — Japan's early 3-inch CD singles in snap-packs (including promotional sample copies)

My recent hunting in the domestic market yielded three rare "sample" copies of very early 3-inch CD singles, originally issued in Japan-only snap-pack packages. Here, “snap” refers to the perforated section of the long cardboard sleeve that could be bent along the crease and folded into a compact square. For collectors, intact (unsnapped) packs are obviously the most desirable, but casual purchasers — and radio-station staff handling sample copies — typically followed the package’s instruction and snapped them for easier storage, as shown here. The inset shows the rear side of each release. 

With the Japanese currency (yen) remaining weak against the U.S. dollar and international postage becoming increasingly expensive, my overseas-focused collecting has fallen to an all-time low — these days, I actually find more pleasure in uncovering bargain finds on the domestic market. To be honest, I was never especially keen on domestic releases (as I explain here), and a major gap in my Japanese collection lies in CD singles — both commercial editions and promotional samples.

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: THE DEMO TAPES original U.K. release limited to 500 numbered copies (Part 3 of 3)

As introduced at the beginning of Part One (10/12/2025), music writer Clinton Heylin regarded "E" TICKET, FIRE ON THE FINGERTIPS, THE DEMO TAPES, and SON YOU MAI KISS THE BRIDE as among the definitive studio vinyl bootlegs — a view that is hard to dispute. What I find intriguing about his selections is that, although Springsteen is a quintessentially American artist, all but "E" TICKET are said to have originated in the U.K.

THE LAUREL CANYON DEMOS (shown at the bottom), which appeared in 1989, was probably the first — if not one of the very first — Springsteen bootleg CD titles. MUSIC PUBLISHER'S DEMOS 1972 (shown at the top) included four additional related tracks from the VISITATION AT FORT HORN LP. These early-era underground CDs of his demo recordings were straight- forward transfers from the original bootleg LP or its pirate copy.

While I'm not entirely certain whether SON YOU MAY ... actually came out there (so they can safely be considered non-U.S. bootlegs, at least), FIRE ON ... and THE DEMO TAPES were reportedly sourced from acetate discs originally circulated within the British music industry around 1973. These discs were intended to generate interest among British artists, producers, and record companies, and to secure cover versions or releases that could help establish Springsteen's reputation outside the U.S.

In June 1988, Record Collector, a leading U.K. music magazine, looked back on the early years of his career in a feature article by Peter Doggett titled Bruce Springsteen: Asbury Park to E~Street (no. 106, pp. 3–6), and reported as follows (excerpts from p. 5):

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: THE DEMO TAPES original U.K. release limited to 500 numbered copies (Part 2 of 3)

Though it isn't as nice a package as the Swedish lps*, we also really like a new boot called The Demo Tapes. This is a repress of a European boot and the material is just fantastic. The songs are very early demos, pre-Hammond tapes**, and the songs rank with the best Bruce has ever written. If you like the early acoustic stuff, you'll love this record. The album is reasonable and is easily found.

—Excerpted from the On Vinyl column entitled More new bootlegs than you can imagine, Backstreets, no. 3 (1982).
*Referring to the two Swedish bootlegs, FOLLOW THAT DREAM and TEARDROPS ON THE CITY.
**Not pre- but post-Hammond demos, mostly recorded between May and August, 1972 (cf., The so-called "John Hammond Demo Session" occured on May 3, 1972).

The red label bears a stamped "MADE IN USA." As is now widely known, any version of this bootleg pressed in the U.S. — identified by "LIMITED EDITION OF 1000" on the front sleeve — is merely a pirate clone of the original U.K. release. This copy (matrix numbers
BSD-A / BSD-B) is likely the earliest U.S. pressing.

The first copy I obtained July 1982 was a relatively thick black vinyl (158 g) with blank red labels (though stamped on one side) and hand-etched matrix numbers: BSD-A and BSD-B on SIDES ONE and TWO, respectively. It came in a black & white sleeve with "LIMITED EDITION OF 1000" printed diagonally on the bottom right corner, but lacking any stamped or handwritten numbering. However, according to Blinded By The Light (P. Humphries & C. Hunt, Plexus, London) — the bible to Springsteen collectors published a few years later in 1985 — this bootleg was numbered and described as follows (transcribed from p. 138):