Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: FIRE ON THE FINGERTIPS (concluded)

While I am convinced the UK heavy vinyl as the initial pressing by doing my own amateurish analysis, there has still been confusion about the relationship and timeline of early repressings and pirated copies of this bootleg. For example, I do not still figure out what makes clear distinction between Releases B and C (see the previous post on Oct. 24), assuming that both editions do really exist. Since the advent of the online auction, copies of FIRE ON THE FINGERTIPS has almost regularly turned up on eBay UK or USA markets in various forms, and occasionally auctioned off by seemingly knowledgeable sellers judged from their item description. So, when I found such sellers, I used to request them for the detailed information on the vinyl and sleeve, or about how they obtained their own copy, even if I had no intention to raise a bid.
 

Release D (HR-133): the genuine first American pressing?
Note the dead wax matrix area which appears to be much
wider than the other pressings. Images taken from the actual
auction in 2003 (which I didn't join).

Back in 2003, one seller in the US responded to my query message with some interesting information. His copy was obviously Release D (see the rightward photos from the actual auction), which is specifically characterized by the different matrix number (HR-133 A/B) and, when compared to the heavy UK vinyl or the red-colored US pressings, by the wider dead wax space on the vinyl disc (i.e., the space between the edge of the label and the edge of the grooves of the last track). The other features unique to this release are the vinyl color which is bloody red, and the sleeve picture which is more contrasted than that of the original UK release (a sign of rephotographed images). The modified image contrast seems to be common among copies of the "wider" dead wax edition (e.g., compare the sleeve of #8 with any other sleeve in the first picture shown in the last post on Nov. 9).

According to him, this one is the genuine absolute first American pressing after one month of the original UK release. He said that he obtained the copy from the people who made it (“They used to sell at the monthly Capitol Records swapmeet out there right after they issued it”). Because this refers to the legendary swapmeet that was held in the parking lot of the Capitol Records tower in Hollywood from late 1960s throughout 1970s, if he is believable, this version of the bootleg is most probably made by West Coast bootleggers. He continued, “That pressing was sold out within 2 swapmeets (two months), and then they made the 2nd one on black vinyl with the wrap around insert of the same sleeve image." If so, certain slick cover edition is one of the early repressed copies. "Then about three months later, a different bootlegger made it again on red vinyl which was mastered from a copy of the original UK or US vinyl (not the tapes),” he further added. Again, if his story is true, at least three different versions (two independent pressings and one repressing) came out in the US in half a year following the original UK release.
 
My interpretations of what he responded to me are summarized as follows: (1) Release D preceded Release B or C; (2) Release D is mastered from the tape, but not from the UK-pressed predecessor vinyl; (3) the early copies of Release D exist in two forms, the original blood red vinyl in the printed sleeve (as the picture shown above) and the black vinyl repressing in the fold-out slick cover; (4) Release B or C is possibly a pirated copy rather than an independent pressing as, according to him, it is not mastered from the tapes but from the vinyl. Although it is almost impossible nowadays to verify his tale, the information is detailed and certainly interesting.
 

Wider dead wax vinyl pressings in various colors. The width of
dead wax space is indicated by a yellow double-head arrow.
These images are picked up from eBay.

Final note: The detailed bootleg guidebooks commonly explain that the Release D vinyl disc is pressed in various colors (again, check the previous post on Oct. 24). Indeed, I've seen on eBay a variety of colored vinyl with the wider dead wax space (the examples are shown in the photo collage on the right). I measured the width of the dead wax space that is about 20 mm on both sides of the heavy UK vinyls (Release A, UK-4). On the other hand, each side of the Release D disc (HR-133) has the space that is more than double the width of the UK disc, about 48 mm and 42 mm for Side 1 and Side 2, respectively. Generally, on different pressings of the same title using the same master tapes, the width of the dead wax space is a factor that can affect the sound of the vinyl in positive and negative ways. From my understanding, the narrower dead wax space (as a result of the wider groove) may result in more dynamic sound, but tends to cause distorted sound toward the center of the disc (i.e., the final track of each side is most seriously affected by the distortion). When compared the sound between the heavy UK vinyl and wider dead wax HR-133 pressings, to my ears, the UK vinyls do sound better although my copy of Release D is apparently a repress (it comes in a warp around slick insert cover and the matrix HR-133 is scratched out).