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.

First, the clear vinyl edition, as shown above. The dead-wax matrix numbers are WILI A / WIL 2 (Note that I consistently express hand-etched matrix inscriptions in the oblique throughout the blog posts), but one might read the Side One hand-etching to be WIL/ A ("WILI A" versus "WIL/ A" when compared in the normal font). Anyway, these inscriptions on the clear wax are identical to those of the early, picture-disc edition. Quite interestingly, the disc is accompanied by two 12" round-paper sheets printing what exactly appears on both sides of the picture disc. I think most collectors would agree that this particular copy is likely to be a test press for the picture disc.

   How to make a picture disc. A blob of vinyl (PVC) is placed   
    between two picture sheets which are sandwiched by thin    
films of PE or PVC for pressing. Though I'm not sure, this
setting probably has to be done manually, explaining why
picture discs are generally more expensive than standard
discs. PE, polyethylene; PVC, polyvinyl chloride.

One more (shown below) is a copy of the picture disc with a black rim, although I've seen that the transparent edge is more common with many copies in circulation, including mine (recently, however, I saw the black-rim version sold at an online auction here). At a glimpse, I thought it was an unevenly discolored copy. Still, it was actually pressed with a black vinyl blob that was sandwiched between the two picture-paper sheets. As illustrated in the right figure, most of the vinyl part (black colored, in this case) is covered by picture sheets with only its peripheral visible. The dead-wax hand-etchings are WIL-1 and WIL-2 on Sides One and Two, respectively, which match exactly those of the late black-vinyl edition but not the early picture-disc edition (see the last post on 2021/04/17).

The black-rim pressing, another variant. The dead-wax code (WIL-1) shown is for Side One ("other side").
Photos provided by courtesy of the same collector as above.

Having been informed of the above two pressings I don't own, I put my thoughts together on this nice bootleg, as follows.

• The early edition appeared in late 1983 or early 1984, with the dead-wax matrix numbers WILI A (or WIL/ A) / WIL 2. Clear vinyl was used to press the picture disc, which explains why the rim of the disc is transparent and why the presumed test pressing is of clear vinyl. As far as I know, no black-vinyl version exists for this early edition.
• The late edition was perhaps out one or a few years after the release of the original picture disc (that's what I've seen). Both picture and standard discs were pressed on black vinyl, and that's why the picture disc had a black rim. These discs were not made using original stampers because the matrix numbers are different (WIL-1 / WIL-2 ) and because probably the master tapes also differ (for example, the difference in the last part of Held Up Without A Gun is apparent).
• Based on the hand-etched inscription on the dead-wax space, the same bootlegger(s) presumably produced both early and late editions. 

It's always fun for me to delve into old vinyl bootlegs, especially when valuable and useful information is provided just like this time. Finally, I thank the fellow collector for sharing information on his one-of-a-kind collection.

— Back to Part 1 or Part 2.