Collecting log: recent miscellaneous purchases under COVID-19 (2021)

The small 20th-anniversary logo is printed
on the main booklet and outer slipcase for
the promo-only multi-CD set picked up here.

The controversial and tumultuous Tokyo Olympics was over, and as exactly predicted, we suffered from the fifth wave of COVID-19, the worst so far that has hit all over Japan. Although I live far from the Metropolitan area, the number of infected people was seriously significant and peaked at the highest ever in late August. As a result, the national state of emergency here was extended by the end of September, limiting my collecting activity low and hunting exclusively on the internet until recently. It was just two weeks ago that I was able to visit a "physical" record store for the first time since the post-fourth wave period in late June this year. Nevertheless, I obtained some interesting items that may be worth blogging about as miscellaneous collectibles. In this post, I show two such examples (CD and vinyl albums) released here in the 1980s from CBS/SONY Inc. (Tokyo, Japan), both of which are promotion-only compilations featuring or involving Springsteen. These were new to me and have not thus far been listed in the Discogs database and most probably in others as well.

BORN TO RUN US pressing LP variants: the short-lived, CX-encoded noise-reduction disc released in the early 1980s (Part 2 of 2)

Large round sticker glued on the
shrinkwrap on the front side of
CX-encoded LP sleeves.

When exactly was the CX version of BORN TO RUN released? According to Billboard magazine ("CBS Steps Up Push On CX LPs," Nov. 13, 1982), CBS Records had a plan to concentrate on the label's strong-selling artists and groups for CX alternates. Among those included were Meat Loaf, Claude Bolling, Boston, Billy Joel, Willie Nelson, Aerosmith, Johnny Cash, and Bruce Springsteen. Early next year, the magazine reported that a then-latest catalog listed 137 titles available ("CBS Stresses CX Commitment," Billboard, Jan. 29, 1983). Subsequently, around May 1983, the CX catalog was approaching the 200 mark, 30% of which were classical titles (although I do not know whether the listed number of CX titles was indeed manufactured or included the future releases yet not pressed). At the same time, ironically, the record company started to mull the abandonment of CX as a commercial disc configuration ("Doubt Cast On Future Of CX," Billboard, May 21, 1983) for the reasons shortly described in the last post (09/30/2021).

BORN TO RUN US pressing LP variants: the short-lived, CX-encoded noise-reduction disc released in the early 1980s (Part 1 of 2)

This special vinyl edition is the one I previously mentioned as a major lack in my LP list of various U.S. BORN TON RUN releases when I replied to the comment posted by an anonymous visitor (to the blog article on 07/29/2016). It is one of about 70* new and reissue titles of various music genres from Columbia Records' unsucceeded project in the early 1980s to introduce a novel noise-reduction technology to the analog audio sound, called "Compatible eXpansion (CX)" encoding system, originally developed by CBS Laboratories in the late 1970s. 
*According to the information available on Wikipedia; however, the number differs depending on the sources.

A small CX identification sticker is not pasted on the shrink warp,
but directly glued on the lower right corner of the rear side of
the gate-fold sleeve (Columbia JC 33795).

The "CX"-encoded disc program would allow vinyl sounds better not only by reducing record surface noise but also by extending dynamic ranges. The "CX" is said so because a CX-encoded disc could even sound normal on any regular audio device (with an acceptable level of dynamic range compression), although you can benefit from the noise reduction/dynamic range expansion process if your playback system is equipped with add-on CX-decoder hardware.

Collecting log: THE WILD, THE INNOCENT & THE E STREET SHUFFLE U.S. LP — Why are the first pressings with "ROSALITA" hype stickers so scarce?

Two examples of the stickered copies in my possession. Left: The album title appears cream-yellow on both front sleeves (though the purple stickers are colored differently), indicating that these copies are the second pressing (Columbia PC 32432). Right: Company logo and catalog number printed on each rear sleeve (upper) and the Side Two matrix number of the “bright purple sticker” copy (lower).

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: THE GREAT WHITE BOSS — Making a comparison of the various editions (Part 3 of 3)

Three issues of the double-disc edition differ in the record label designs (hereafter referred to as Issues 1, 2, and 3, from left to right). I guess that Issue 1 (with weird illustrations on the labels) is the original pressing, and the other two are repressing.

Compared with the triple-vinyl box sets (see 07/26/2021), the double album version of THE GREAT WHITE BOSS has been more widely circulated since the early 1980s and is even nowadays relatively easy to find at second-hand shops. This concise edition was probably released originally between late 1979 and 1980 (or 1981), as its front sleeve features a stage shot from the second night (September 22, 1979) of the Musicians United for Safe Energy (MUSE) Concerts For a Non-Nuclear Future (NO NUKES; 04/25/2019 and 11/12/2020). A documentation log of my collection records my first copy (Issue 2: see below) purchased at an import branch of the chain-music store called Jeugia in Sanjo Street, Kyoto City, November 1981.

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: THE GREAT WHITE BOSS — Making a comparison of the various editions (Part 2 of 3)

Original Hangman (left) and later Blockhead (right) editions in my possession.
As previously shown (07/22/2017), the former consists of two semi-transparent
blue LPs (the Bottom Line part) and one opaque lilac 12" EP (three live tracks
from New York City '73 and Boston '77), all sides of which carry Hangman labels. 

The triple-record box edition of THE GREAT WHITE BOSS is the third vinyl release that bootlegs the radio-broadcasted live at the Bottom Line in the summer of 1975. The track configuration of the first two discs (Sides 1 to 4; the Bottom Line part) is the same as that of a preceding LIVE AT THE BOTTOM LINE 8/15/75 but differs from that of Coral Records' LIVE. Thus, I'm not so sure, but I guess that this bootleg is a copy of one of the two predecessor releases, although obvious edits include fade-in/out and removing snippets of disk jockey's talks on some tracks. 

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: THE GREAT WHITE BOSS — Making a comparison of the various editions (Part 1 of 3)

Vinyl bootleg copies of the legendary Bottom Line concert had been more common and readily
available under this title than any other, such as the infamous LIVE on Coral Records. Here,
four copies are compared, two each from the triple-vinyl box (above) and double LP set (below).

The title was presumably named after GREAT WHITE WONDER, the first documented vinyl bootleg of the rock era released in 1969. Maybe, this one is not an essential vinyl bootleg. It is neither the first nor definitive release among those that capture the legendary Bottom Line live broadcasting in New York City, August 1975 (see 08/11/2016 and 08/15/2016). However, the album title THE GREAT WHITE BOSS probably represents one of the most familiar among hundreds of live Brucelegs in the vinyl age, along with the landmark releases like PIÈCE DE RÉSISTANCE or LIVE IN THE PROMISED LAND. That is probably because, compared with its predecessors (i.e., LIVE on Coral Records and LIVE AT THE BOTTOM LINE 8/15/75), this version has been widely circulated as several variants that differ in disc number, labels, cover art, etc. So, I had long considered adding it to the blog's classic vinyl bootleg category.

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN US LP variations: Holbrook pressing (manufactured by Goldisc Recording Products, Inc.) and an Update to Decoding Two- or Three-Letter Matrix Hand Etchings on the Early Pressings

NOTE: Vinyl discs reported here with the hand-etched matrix code "PPP" was found not to be pressed at the Pitman factory. Please check the updated information in the blog entry from 8/20/2022.

Left, the Billboard magazine (Issue 05/27/1978) article reporting the
labor issues at the CBS pressing plant in Pitman, New Jersey, settled
on May 17, 1978 (Note that Billboard has released the magazine
issues into the public domains Google Books and Internet Archive).
Right, six dead-wax codes unique to the early vinyl copies of 
DARKNESS pressed in the U.S. (All images taken from my collection).
Each code, except for PPP, specifies a non-Columbia Records' plant
that pressed a given disc.

PN, PMI, PMN, PK, and PPP reported previously, and here PV — Having been interested in deciphering these dead-wax hand-etched codes associated with the U.S. early pressings of DARKNESS LP,  I may finally be able to take a break for this subject by posting about the remaining last probable one. The above six dead-wax codes were uncommon for vinyl pressings made by Columbia Records since the code-specified pressing plants normally had not worked under the company's operation, except for PPP, which denotes Columbia's Pitman, New Jersey pressing plant (see 11/19/2018 and 05/15/2021). The unusual pressing plants that joined in the album production, due to Pitman's labor issues, included those back then run or owned by North American Music Industries (NAMI) in Scranton, Pennsylvania (coded for by PN), Keel Manufacturing Corp. in Hauppauge, New York (PK), and MCA Records in Pinckneyville, Illinois (PMI), and Gloversville, New York (PMN).

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN US LP variations: Pitman pressing — Early edition

NOTE: One of the two vinyl discs reported here, with the hand-etched matrix code "PPP," was found not to have been pressed at the Pitman factory. Please check the updated information in the blog entry from 8/20/2022.

Two label variants for the early Pitman pressings mainly differ in the spacing between the album title and tracklist, with slightly different production credits [left, P-stamp version; right, triple-P (PPP) hand-etching version; see the main text for details]. However, both print Springsteen's name and album title into two separate lines, which is basically a unique feature of the early Pitman discs (although I once saw a copy of the Terre Haute pressing with the narrow "18 mm-spacing" label). Note that only the album title is split with the late pressings (see the label image on 03/04/2018).
CORRECTION: The label on the right is of vinyl copies pressed at another plant in New Jersey (see 8/20/2022).

Collecting log: a plain white test pressing for TUNNEL OF LOVE U.K. limited edition picture-disc LP (Part 2 of 2)

It was January 2003 when I got what was advertised as a "test" pressing for the picture-disc edition of this album at $29.00 from an eBay seller in Bethpage, New York (disc's images shown previously in the following posts on 03/01/2015 and 01/01/2020). It came in a plain white sleeve but not in a clear plastic bag used for the regular picture disc. This pressing is indistinguishable from my copy of the commercial version in almost all aspects but the plain white appearance.

The commercially available picture disc (upper) and its plain-white test pressing (lower) share the same dead-wax inscriptions and stamps on each playing side (left, Side One; right, Side Two).

Collecting log: a plain white test pressing for TUNNEL OF LOVE U.K. limited edition picture-disc LP (Part 1 of 2)

The lineup for the officially released U.K. picture disc vinyl pressings. If my memory is correct, the last known picture disc to be manufactured is The Ghost Of Tom Joad / Straight Time (live) EP (Columbia 663031 7), released in 1996 (bottom, second from the left). Sadly, my copy of the flag-shaped I'm On Fire / Born In The U.S.A. (CBS WA 6342) has fully developed discoloration (middle row, far right), although Dancing In The Dark / Pink Cadillac (CBS WA 4436) shows no such symptoms (bottom, far right). 

A picture disc rarity continues. The last blog (2021/04/20) introduced a test pressing for an old picture-LP bootleg from the early 1980s (courtesy of the fellow collector from Italy). Here's an example of such a rare pressing for an official picture record from the late 1980s. As you collectors know, all the official picture discs of Springsteen in the album and 12"/7" single formats, including shaped discs, were released from the CBS U.K. Records label, except for the U.S.-issued DARKNESS promo LP. Note that in the mid to late 1980s, several picture discs featuring Springsteen's interviews also floated around the market, mostly originating in the U.K. These picture discs might not technically be illegal, but certainly, grey-area products since they were neither issued from the CBS label nor authorized by Springsteen (i.e., Interviews are not necessarily protected by copyright laws).

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: RESTLESS NIGHTS ー THE RIVER outtakes LP ー original picture-disc and later black-vinyl editions (Part 3 of 3)

It's always nice to hear from "The Boss" collectors around the world. Soon after I posted Part 1 on this topic, I received a private message/response to the blog post from a fellow collector in Italy. We enjoyed communicating with each other, and he provided me with interesting information on this particular bootleg. Although I don't write about what I don't own in my blog, I thought that what he showed me would interest collectors visiting here, especially fans of old vinyl-bootleg stuff (i.e., This bootleg subject was originally going to be two parts, not three). So, here they go.

Do you think this is a test pressing for the studio-outtake bootleg LP released decades ago? I guess YES. Note that the two lower photos are not of the picture LP but the paper sheets that are to be set inside the picture disc. The clear disc seems to be slightly discolored like my picture disc (see 03/27/2021). The dead-wax inscriptions (WILI A on Side One) look double due to an optical effect of the transparent disc. Photos provided by courtesy of a fellow collector in Italy.

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: RESTLESS NIGHTS ー THE RIVER outtakes LP ー original picture-disc and later black-vinyl editions (Part 2 of 3)

Weeping peach (Prunus persica cv. Genpei-shidare)
blossoming in my small garden.

Springs has come, and it's really nice to see that beautiful flowers blossom here and there. In Japan, the fiscal year begins on April 1st. So, everything must be refreshed and restarted now. However, the situation around COVID-19 has not been improved. Even worse, we are now severely facing the fourth wave reinforced by the spread of the U.K.-variant virus (N501Y) with a high transmissibility mutation. I just can't believe that the Government still insists on holding the Tokyo Olympic/Paralympic Games as planned after less than 100 days from now, despite almost all Japanese people still being unvaccinated (i.e., those vaccinated so far account for only 0.76% of the national population, as of April 5th). Although this has nothing to do with the blog, I can't help mentioning the current unusual situation, wondering how we look to you living outside Japan.  

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: RESTLESS NIGHTS ー THE RIVER outtakes LP ー original picture-disc and later black-vinyl editions (Part 1 of 3)

This cool-looking picture disc was one of the most extensively played vinyl studio
bootlegs on my turntables, until the release of the TRACKS 4-CD box set in 1998
that contained six of the nine RIVER outtakes on the bootleg.

It's always fun for vinyl collectors like me just to look into unique artworks and descriptions found on bootleg LP sleeves, including slick insert covers. Vinyl picture-disc records are more enjoyable, since this fascinating format is better suited for the display by framing and hanging on the wall. In fact, there were already several bootlegs in this format out there when there was still only one official picture disc (for the DARKNESS promo) and before the flood of vinyl Brucelegs, including various colored and picture discs, during and the post BORN IN THE U.S.A. era. 

Collecting log: Blinded By The Light U.S. 7" singles (Part 4 of 4) ー Puzzled by the booklets accompanied by the Play:Back issues

Play:Back booklet Issues 16 (left) and 17 (right). The former contains articles on Springsteen and Andy Pratt, and their songs are released together on a Play:Back 7" EP (Columbia AS 45) in January 1973. However, it is the latter (where neither artist is mentioned explicitly) that is accompanied by most record copies in circulation if they still retain a booklet.

Collecting log: Blinded By The Light U.S. 7" singles (Part 3 of 4) ー Puzzled by the booklets accompanied by the Play:Back issues

Generally, Springsteen's first official 7" single is regarded Blinded By The Light / Angel (US Columbia 4-45805), released close to a half-century ago today (02/23/1973) and cut in a shortened length (3 : 58) from the debut album GREETINGS FROM ASBURY PARK, N. J. (US Columbia KC 31903). The white-label version of mono/stereo coupling was also issued for promotional purposes. Both editions have earned their status as collectors' items, with the regular stock being extremely difficult to obtain due to the scarcity and a high cost (sometimes reaching a four-digit U.S. dollar price on the collectors' market). However, as you collectors know, the phrase "first official 7" single" is not true in a strict sense because more than a month in advance of the regular release (01/12/1973), the full-length, unedited version (5 : 05) already appeared on a special 7-inch sampler (US Columbia AS 45) as part of Columbia/Epic Records' program called Play:Back.