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):

Matrix numbers of the original U.K. pressing.

The Demo Tapes (D1 D2)
Side one: Street Queen/Southern Son/Henry Boy/If I Were The Priest/Vibes Man
Side two: Song Of The Orphans/She's Leaving/The Song/Arabian Nights/Cowboys Of The Sea
Source: Music publishing demos. 'Southern Son' and 'Henry Boy' are definitely from Laurel Canyon—possibly the others are too. Circa 1972, unknown studio(s).
Cover: Deluxe black and white 
Sound: Excellent
Remarks: Original pressing was numbered. Re-pressings have come on blue vinyl with a blue cover, and on blue and yellow vinyl with a green sleeve. Not to be confused with the John Hammond demos.

Although not explicitly stated in the description, "D1 D2" refers to the matrix numbers of the vinyl disc. The information provided in the book, combined with details from other sources I have known since purchasing it, led me to realize that my copy is a U.S. pirate edition of the original U.K. release, most likely released in early 1982 — three or four years after "E" TICKET and FIRE ON THE FINGERTIPS surfaced in the late 1970s.

You can clearly see the loss of detail in the front-sleeve photo of the U.S. edition, which was just a straight copy of the original U.K. release. Both the U.K. and U.S. labels are blank on the flip side. As far as I’ve seen, all U.K. copies carry stamped six-digit numbers (Two of the nine copies shown here are in my collection).

Like the original U.K. pressing of FIRE ON THE FINGERTIPS, the 500 numbered copies were — and still are — hard to come by. This stands in marked contrast to PIÈCE DE RÉSISTANCE, another numbered classic bootleg that still appears frequently on eBay, no doubt owing to its relatively larger pressing run. I found my first U.K. copy years after picking up the U.S. pirate edition mentioned above, at a collector's shop in West Shinjuku, Tokyo — the mecca of bootlegs in Japan. The U.K. edition is easy to distinguish from its U.S.-pressed counterparts, including the colored-vinyl versions, by differences in sleeve and label design, and by the presence or absence of the numbered stamp on the cover. The sound quality also sets it apart — the original U.K. disc sounds better, with noticeably less hiss, though my U.S. copy is still quite listenable.

If you’re a fan or collector of classic vinyl Brucelegs, you’ll likely want to track down a copy for its historical significance or for the sound source itself — one of the finest available for bootlegs originating from acetate (or from tapes derived from it), as I once did.

I ordered a copy from Tower Records.

Just a quick thought (with mixed feelings): I listened through all the tracks from NEBRASKA ’82: Expanded Edition, released worldwide yesterday (10/24/2025). As expected, the two vinyl discs — Electric Nebraska and Outtakes — would have been enough. While I’m glad these recordings have finally been brought out from the vault, I still find it hard to appreciate the idea of performing album tracks strictly in their original sequence (not necessarily this case); it doesn’t add much interest for me. As for the remastered original album, it was clear from the outset that no major improvement could be expected, given the nature of the source recordings. Frankly, the remaining two discs and the Blu-ray feel like unnecessary extras.

— Continued to Part 3 / Back to Part 1.