DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN US LP variations: trivial thoughts on the hype stickers (Part 2 of 2)

Two DARKNESS sticker variations with the U.S. release.
The purple version is rarer than the red one.

As one of the six focused series ("DARKNESS US pressing LP variations"), I've been blogging on collecting the U.S. pressings of DARKNESS LP (Columbia JC 35318), particularly focusing on the early vinyl copies*. When this album was pressed in Spring 1978, unusual pressing plants of non-Columbia Records participated in the manufacturing process due to the temporary shutdown of one of the three Columbia's plants (i.e., its Pitman, New Jersey plant; see 03/18/2017). So, my motivation for the collecting effort has been to get in-depth knowledge on how many variations exist for the early release concerning vinyl-pressing plants. As already explained in detail in the past blog posts on this series, such variations can be distinguished by examining dead-wax matrix numbers and other markings, stamper ring, and label design, including typesetting, of a given vinyl disc, which often exhibits pressing plant-specific signatures.
*One of the essential features of the early copies is to have either TML-M or TML-S stamped on each side's trail-off dead wax.

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN US LP variations: trivial thoughts on the hype stickers (Part 1 of 2)

Hype stickers, generally affixed to the front side of an album sleeve, are used by record companies to highlight specific tracks on an LP, such as single-cut releases, or to get attention to other attributes like multi-disc numbers and featured guests on the recording sessions. I don't exactly know from which Springsteen's LP a hype sticker is featured on the very first or original U.S. pressing (I'm talking about those specific to an album but not generic ones such as "The Nice Price" stickers). The likely album one would mention is probably DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN (Columbia JC 35318), which, if still sealed or shrink-wrapped, occasionally accompanies the rectangle round-cornered sticker that simply says    INCLUDES  "BADLANDS"  35318    in red on the white background.

The album's first single cut is Prove It All Night, but a bit strangely, the front sticker mentions the second single release only.

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: BORN TO BE THE BOSS original black vinyl pressing (Part 2 of 2)

The copy in my possession (the yellow one) is not currently
with me as I keep it back in my hometown (parent's home).
So, I don't have further details, but what I wrote here.
(Image of the matrix number on SIDE 1 is taken from Eddy's
Bruce Springsteen Lyrics website)

Following the original black-vinyl pressing, the next that came up was the picture-disc edition, subtitled SPRINGSTEEN SUMMER '85, printed on the leather-like sticker glued on the clear plastic bag holding four discs. Strangely, the bag depicts multiple wavy lines (at least three variations in wave color, yellow, red, and light blue), which makes it hard to see picture discs inside. My purchase log recorded that I bought a copy (the yellow one), right in the summer of 1985 (1985/08/23), at the aforementioned imported record shop in Kyoto (Part 1; BTW, back in 1985, a copy of this set was quite expensive). The four picture discs were made from stampers that were different from those used for pressing the original vinyls since hand-etched matrix numbers don't match up between the two (black vinyl, BS 1 to BS 7; picture disc, TT 1A to TT 1G; note that SIDE 8 is blank without matrix codes on both versions). This clearly indicates that the picture-disc set is not a reissue of the original but a pirate pressing. Each picture disc has "PRINTED IN AUSTRALIA" printed on both sides, even though the original is believed to be Swedish origin.

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: BORN TO BE THE BOSS original black vinyl pressing (Part 1 of 2)

Two editions are distinguished only by vinyl colors. Then, which one came first?

The classic bootleg review continued — speaking of the official live archive series, the most significantly upgraded recording I can think of, which had previously been bootlegged on vinyl, is the final of the six concerts at Wembley Arena, London, from the European leg of THE RIVER tour (06/05/1981). BORN TO BE THE BOSS, originally from Sweden and consistently named so for the bootlegs of this show, appeared thrice on quadruple LP in the 1980s under the Holsten Team Records label, and twice on double CD and triple CD-R in the early 1990s and around 2000, respectively, by Templar and Piggham Records. These CDs are sourced from vinyl sound with pop and clicking noise, and both vinyl and CD versions lack The Promised Land from the first set (which is included in the archive release). Therefore, although I'm not so sure (as I'm not a tape collector), these underground releases originate from the same single audience tape that has probably not circulated among collectors. This situation is essentially the same as those of FOLLOW THAT DREAM and TEARDROPS ON THE CITY, the two other famous Swedish bootlegs that also document the 1981 European tour performances (in Stockholm).