DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN US LP variations: A revision to Decoding Two- or Three-Letter Matrix Hand Etchings on the Early Pressings — "PPP" was NOT a code for Columbia Records' Pitman but for another New Jersey pressing plant!

The oldest American company for children's
music turned out to have helped Columbia's
Pitman plant for pressing Springsteen's 4th
album (image taken from Discogs). 

Early vinyl copies of Springsteen's original albums up to THE RIVER (Columbia PC2 36854), the fifth released in October 1980, were pressed at three record-pressing plants Columbia Records owned and located in Santa Maria, CA, Terre Haute, IN, and Pitman, NJ. However, DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN (Columbia JC 35318), his fourth, was the exception due to the temporary suspension of production at the New Jersey factory caused by labor strikes between April 2 and May 17, 1978, when this long-awaited album was slated to be released in late May (cf., The album was slightly delayed to be released on June 2). As a result, several pressing plants of non-Columbia Records were subcontracted to the Pitman to prevent the inevitable shortage of album supply, mainly in the East Coast market.

As summarized in this series before (for example, see 5/23/2021 and 4/23/2022), those pressing plants counted five, back then owned or run by the following companies: 

• North American Music Industries (NAMI) in Scranton, PA (3/21/2017)
• MCA Records in Pinckneyville, IL (3/18/2017)
• MCA Records in Gloversville, NY (7/29/2017)
• Keel Manufacturing Corp. in Hauppauge, NY (6/30/2017 and 10/2/2017)
• Goldisc Recording Products, Inc., in Holbrook, NY (5/23/2021)
  

Until very recently, I thought this line-up was sufficient to represent all the subcontracted plants, but that was wrong. Last month, an American lady kindly provided quite interesting information on this topic in her comment (posted on 7/20/2022) to one of the series articles (3/21/2017), which was unheard of to me (and probably to you, too), revealing the sixth subcontracted pressing plant that got involved in the album production.

Now it's clear that the hand-etched PPP refers to Pitman-subcontracted
Peter Pan Records pressing. Shown is SIDE TWO of my personal copy 
with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1AD 1AF TML-S/2AC TML-S.

As you read her comments posted to the article between July 20 and 21, this is a scoop ("When Columbia Records' plant in Pitman NJ was on strike in 1978, they subcontracted the bulk of pressing to Peter Pan Records of Newark pressing plant on Towbin Ave in Lakewood, NJ"). Her husband was the plant manager at "Pete." He owns the framed gold record "stampers" for Darkness on the Edge of Town. She even kindly sent me pictures of this one-of-a-kind collector’s item. Although I could not find any relevant information anywhere on the net, there is absolutely no doubt that New Jersey's Peter Pan Records, one of the largest and most successful children's specialty record labels in the U.S. (quoted from Wikipedia), had lent its hands to Columbia Records. So then, the question arises: What do the record labels and dead-wax matrix codes look like on the "Pete" pressings?

Vinyl discs from these unusual record plants are easily distinguished from each other, and also from those pressed at the three Columbia Records plants. That's because, repeatedly told here, each vinyl pressing usually carries a hand-inscribed code on the dead-wax matrix space, such as PN and PMI. As deciphered before (summarized on 5/23/2021), these two- or three-letter codes specify where it was manufactured, as shown below, with the common first P referring to the subcontract to the Pitman:

• PN = Pitman-subcontracted NAMI
• PMI = Pitman-subcontracted MCA Records, Illinois
• PMN = Pitman-subcontracted MCA Records, New York
  
• PK = Pitman-subcontracted Keel Manufacturing Corp.
• PV = Pitman-subcontracted Viewlex, Inc. (which owned Goldisc Recordings Products, Inc.)

In addition to the above, there was yet another hand-etched code, PPP, which was the most unclear about what pressing plant it specified. Previously, I assumed this triple-letter code for the Pitman based on some circumstantial evidence (11/19/2018 and 5/15/2021). However, because of the lack of definitive proof, I simultaneously raised a question against my hypothesis ("I cannot figure out why two different symbols, machine-stamped 'P' and hand-etched 'PPP,' were alternatively used to indicate the same pressing plant"; 5/15/2021).

Previously and erroneously assigned Pitman Pressing Variants One and Two (see 5/15/2021 and 4/23/2022) are now corrected here for Pitman and Lakewood pressings manufactured at Columbia Records and Peter Pan Records, respectively.

According to Discogs and a few other net sources, the pressing plant in New Jersey's Lakewood City was originally run by Audio Manufacturing Record Co. It was then taken over in the mid-1970s by Peter Pan Records, whose LP copies were hand-etched "PP" on the run-out space. Having known its involvement in pressing DARKNESS, I instantly decoded it as below, simply applying the logic explained above:

• PPP = Pitman-subcontracted Peter Pan Records

Originally and erroneously in this blog, the PPP-inscribed pressings were reported as "Pitman Pressing Variant Two" (see 4/23/2022), featuring the red Columbia labels where both Springsteen's name and album title are split into two separate lines. The label design is overall the same as that of the "genuine Pitman" pressings with a "P" dead-wax stamp (formerly referred to as "Pitman Pressing Variant One" on 4/23/2022). Still, the Pete- and Pitman-pressing labels are noticeably different and easily distinguished by the spacing between the album title and track list, as already pointed out (5/15/2021) and shown in the pictures immediately above.

Here from the previous version (5/23/2021), I have revised and updated the summary table for the relationship between pressing plants and dead-wax matrix information of the early U.S. vinyl pressings for DARKNESS LP. Note that this work is still in progress, and your feedback for revision, corrections, and updates is always welcome. Finally, I greatly appreciate the comments from that American lady, not only for providing invaluable information but also for letting me aware of my incorrect assumption to be fixed.

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN US LP variations: Notes on the late pressing labels and deadwax

Even a barcode-bearing, very late issue comes with the hype sticker
as viewed in the mirror (This one is a Pitman pressing with the matrix
numbers G2C/G1C). See my thoughts on DARKNESS stickers posted
previously (8/24/2020 and 8/29/2020).

The DARKNESS label variation continues. Here are some notes for the U.S. late pressing, although I don't own as many copies as the early pressing. With the shutdown of the pressing plants in Santa Maria, CA (1963 to 1981), and Terre Haute, IN (1953 to 1982), in the early 1980s, vinyl releases after that from Columbia Records were manufactured at the old Pitman factory, NJ (1960 to 1986), and the newly launched facility located in Carrollton, GA (1981 to 1991). As the major differences from the early releases, at first, these late issues came in the sleeve with the small tracklist/white credit on the rear side, often accompanying the barcode on the upper right corner. Second, the inner sleeve is made of thin paper with poor-quality pictures. Finally, the discs do not carry TML-M or TML-S stamps on each side of the dead-wax space.

Left : An early Pitman pressing (see 4/23/2022). The label image is taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1AD/2AA.
Center : A late pressing from Carrollton. Taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers G2A/G2A.
Right : A late Pitman pressing with a "upside down" triangle symbol (printed on SIDE ONE label only). Taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers G2H/G2F.

One of the late pressings (matrix G2A/G2A) in my possession comes  
in a stickered sleeve and is cut by Chet Bennett, as authenticated by 
the inscription of his first name on both sides (shown is SIDE TWO;
encircled with dashed line). Another hand-etching CBS GA refers to
CBS Records' plant in Carrollton, GA. 

As shown immediately above, the label design of the late releases (center and right) was further changed from that of the first Pitman pressing (left), which came out very late among the early issues based on the matrix numbers (see the previous post on 4/23/2022). The artist's name is reverted to the original single-line format (as found on Santa Maria and Terre Haute pressings; see 4/23/2022), while the album title is yet differently split into two lines. The sole difference between the two late-issue labels is whether an inverted-triangle symbol is present or absent, as mentioned previously (3/4/2018). Interestingly, among collectors circle, it has long remained unsolved what this symbol means or refers to (for example, see the long-surviving thread titled "Symbol on mid-80s CBS Records releases... ???" on Steve Hoffman Music Forums).

Chet Bennett's cutting (bottom) results in about a two-time larger
dead-wax width on SIDE TWO than that of the original pressing
mastered by Mike Reese (top). Another late pressing (middle;
handled by an unknown mastering engineer) also has a slightly
wider dead-wax than the original.

I don't know if there are more examples of U.S. label variations for the standard DARKNESS pressings, except for the audiophile releases such as old Half-Speed Mastered and recent Plangent-processed remastered reissues. A possible variant could be the red-label repress without the yellow Columbia rim, just like the very last pressing of BORN TO RUN LP (see 9/13/2015 and 12/18/2016). I have thus far not seen any such copy for the fourth album, though.

One last note: Although DARKNESS was originally mastered by Mike Reese at The Mastering Lab (as indicated by the run-off groove stamps TML-M and TML-S), another notable sound engineer cut the masters for the late issue. Chet Bennett had worked at CBS Records in the 1980s and redone some of Springsteen's titles, such as this and THE RIVER (see 12/22/2019 for his inscription on the DISC ONE/SIDE ONE dead wax). Bennett's pressings are easily recognizable, as he generally inscribes his first name on vinyl discs, and particularly for the DARKNESS LP, the SIDE TWO dead wax is considerably wider than those of the early and other late pressings (see the images on the right). It might be interesting to compare and listen to the two mastering engineers' sounds if you own both analog records.

— Back to Summary of the early pressing labels.

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN US LP variations: Summary of LABEL variations found in the early pressings

NOTE: THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN REVISED AND UPDATED.

1. As of August 21, 2022, this article was revised and updated in light of new information reported on 8/20/2022. The major change focuses on one of the two Pitman pressing variants, "Pitman pressing ー Variant Two (listed below as no. 9)," which turned out to be a product of Peter Pan Records' pressing plant in Lakewood, New Jersey. Accordingly, it was renamed "Lakewood pressing" (or could be alternatively called "Pete pressing").
   
2. As of February 23, 2023, this article was corrected in response to the comment by wbhist (see here), who provided an accurate size of the stamper ring for Lakewood/Pete pressings as well as the three Columbia pressings (i.e., Pitman, Santa Maria, and Terre Haute). Although this post originally reported that these pressings shared the same diameter size, as in the comment, I confirmed that Pete's diameter [2.75" (69.9 mm)] is slightly longer (by approximately 1 mm) than the others [2.703125" (68.7 mm)]. Moreover, the ring size of the Hauppauge/Keel and Holbrook/Goldisc pressings was also found to be a bit more than 69 mm and, thus, the same as the Lakewood pressings (2.75"). Accordingly, all the relevant information has been corrected.

Typical early (upper) and late (lower) DARKNESS releases.
The differences are evident in the photo-image quality of
the inner sleeve (left half) and the rear-side lettering of
the outer sleeve (right half). Note that there are "hybrid"
copies with the combination of the late-outer and early-
inner sleeves (but no alternative combination has circulated).

Hunting the early U.S. pressings* of his fourth official album, released in June 1978, provides a unique opportunity for expanding your collection of Springsteen's vinyl albums relatively at low costs. In the spring of that year, the Pitman factory in NJ, one of the three vinyl-pressing plants Columbia Records owned (cf., the other two are located in  Santa Maria, CA, and Terre Haute, IN), ceased the operation temporarily due to labor disputes until right before the album release date (originally scheduled late May). Therefore, the company needed to take action to compensate for the anticipated shortage of the album supply in the East Coast area.

According to my survey results thus far, six unusual pressing plants that would have otherwise never handled Columbia label's products got involved in the album production. These five were located in NY (three), NJ (one), PA (one), and IL (one). Consequently, the standard copies issued in 1978 display more variations in record label and dead-wax stamp/inscription than any other his albums released before or after, as featured in the blog series "DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN US LP variations." 

Eleven months ago, in the last post in this series (5/23/2021), I made a concise summary table for the run-off groove/matrix information of these vinyl pressings. This post mainly focuses on the label variations (thus far counting nine entries), as listed below in an order based on matrix codes on SIDE ONE (the current list starting from 1A to 1AG).

*The early U.S. pressings, as defined here, meet the following conditions:
   1.  Most, if not all, early copies in circulation came in the sleeve with no hype sticker (see 8/24/2020 and 8/29/2020) on the front, and the rear side features the large-letter tracklist and black-letter credits on the upper and lower of the left corners, respectively (see the photo images on the top right). Especially, I have never seen any copies pressed at five non-Columbia plants, which are housed in the small-letter tracklist sleeve.
   2.  The inner sleeve is thicker paper with higher resolution images than that for later pressings.
   3.  The main matrix numbers are hand-etched PAL-35318 and PBL-35318 on SIDE ONE and TWO, respectively.
   4.  Each side of a vinyl disc is stamped TML-M or TLM-S (meaning The Mastering Lab-Master or Slave lathe; see 3/18/2017) on the dead-wax space.

1. Santa Maria pressing

Location of pressing plant: Santa Maria, California
Pressing plant owner: Columbia Records

Label printing and stamper ring
  (1) Rim-text color: orangish yellow**
  (2) Artist name/Album title: single line/single line
  (3) Stamper ring: single, large (Ø = 68.7 mm)

Deadwax stamp and inscription (straight, stamped; oblique, hand-etched)
  (1) Confirmed SIDE ONE/TWO matrix codes : 1A, 1B, 1C/2B, 2C
  (2) Plant-specific matrix code: 1S, 2S
  (3) Plant-specific matrix symbol: (none)

Note: Probably, the most abundant pressing before the Pitman plant resumed the operation on the right tracks upon resolving the labor issues on May 17th (cf., the DARKNESS album is released on June 2nd), and possibly even after that until 1981, when this West Coast facility shut down. The label image is taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1B/2B.

2. Terre Haute pressing

Location of pressing plant: Terre Haute, Indiana
Pressing plant owner: Columbia Records

Label printing and stamper ring
  (1) Rim-text color: bright yellow**
  (2) Artist name/Album title: single line/single line
  (3) Stamper ring: single, large (Ø = 68.7 mm)

Deadwax stamp and inscription (straight, stamped; oblique, hand-etched)
  (1) Confirmed SIDE ONE/TWO matrix codes : 1D, 1E, 1H/2E, 2H
  (2) Plant-specific matrix code: 1T, 2T
  (3) Plant-specific matrix symbol: (none)

Note: Indistinguishable from the Santa Maria pressings by label design and stamper ring, although, as an exception, I've once seen a 1T-etched disc with the Pitman label (see below). As far as I've seen, many of the white label promotional copies in circulation are from this pressing plant. The label image is taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1D/2E. Check also 12/30/2017.

3. Scranton pressing (also known as NAMI pressing)

Location of pressing plant: Scranton, Pennsylvania
Pressing plant owner: North American Music Industries (NAMI)

Label printing and stamper ring
  (1) Rim-text color: bright yellow**
  (2) Artist name/Album title: single line/single line
  (3) Stamper ring: single, middle (Ø = 38 mm)

Deadwax stamp and inscription (straight, stamped; oblique, hand-etched)
  (1) Confirmed SIDE ONE/TWO matrix codes : 1G, 1H/2S, 2T
  (2) Plant-specific matrix code: PN
  (3) Plant-specific matrix symbol: ☖ (The U.S. Capitol building)

Note: Easily recognizable by the middle size-stamper ring that is unique to this pressing plant. Before NAMI, Capitol Records owned the Scranton plant, which explains why the American Capitol is symbolized and stamped on the dead wax (Capitol sold NAMI the pressing plant in 1973). The label image is taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1G/2S. Check also 3/21/2017.

4. Gloversville pressing

Location of pressing plant: Gloversville, New York
Pressing plant owner: MCA Records

Label printing and stamper ring
  (1) Rim-text color: bright yellow**
  (2) Artist name/Album title: single line/single line
  (3) Stamper ring: single, small (Ø = 25 mm)

Deadwax stamp and inscription (straight, stamped; oblique, hand-etched)
  (1) Confirmed SIDE ONE/TWO matrix codes : 1J, 1K/2Q, 2R
  (2) Plant-specific matrix code: PMN
  (3) Plant-specific matrix symbol: ⧈-G-⧈

Note: One of the two vinyl-pressing variants manufactured at MCA Records' plants located in NY and IL. Both share the small stamper ring and are distinguished by different letter fonts printed on the labels and unique matrix codes/symbols on the deadwax space. The label image is taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1J/2Q. Check also 7/29/2017.

5. Pinckneyville pressing

Location of pressing plant: Pinckneyville, Illinois
Pressing plant owner: MCA Records

Label printing and stamper ring
  (1) Rim-text color: bright yellow**
  (2) Artist name/Album title: single line/single line
  (3) Stamper ring: single, small (Ø = 25 mm)

Deadwax stamp and inscription (straight, stamped; oblique, hand-etched)
  (1) Confirmed SIDE ONE/TWO matrix codes : 1L/2N, 2P
  (2) Plant-specific matrix code: PMI
  (3) Plant-specific matrix symbol: ◈-P-◈

Note: Another pressing with the small stamper ring from the MCA Records' plant in IL. The Pinckneyville pressing adopts a different font from all the others for label lettering, representing the most distinguished among the DARKNESS labels. The label image is taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1L/2N. Check also 3/18/2017.

6. Hauppauge pressing (also known as Keel pressing)

Location of pressing plant: Hauppauge, New York
Pressing plant owner: Keel Manufacturing Corp.

Label printing and stamper ring
  (1) Rim-text color: bright yellow**
  (2) Artist name/Album title: single line/single line
  (3) Stamper ring: dual, large (Ø = 69.9 mm); very small (11 mm)

Deadwax stamp and inscription (straight, stamped; oblique, hand-etched)
  (1) Confirmed SIDE ONE/TWO matrix codes : 1AB/2K, 2W, 2X
  (2) Plant-specific matrix code: PK
  (3) Plant-specific matrix symbol: Union Jack flag

Note: By appearance, almost indistinguishable from the Santa Maria and Terre Haute pressings, except for a minor difference in the stamper ring, which is dual, consisting of the large and extremely small ones. The former ring is marginally larger (by 1 mm) than the regular Columbia pressings, while the latter is found only on SIDE ONE but not on TWO. The Hauppauge/Keel discs are well-known for Union Jack symbol(s) etched in the run-off groove area. The label image is taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1AB/2K. Check also 6/30/2017 and 10/2/2017.

7. Holbrook pressing (also known as Goldisc pressinqg)

Location of pressing plant: Holbrook, New York
Pressing plant owner: Goldisc Recordings Products, Inc.

Label printing and stamper ring
  (1) Rim-text color: bright yellow**
  (2) Artist name/Album title: single line/single line
  (3) Stamper ring: single, large (Ø = 69.9 mm)

Deadwax stamp and inscription (straight, stamped; oblique, hand-etched)
  (1) Confirmed SIDE ONE/TWO matrix codes : 1AC/2J
  (2) Plant-specific matrix code: PV
  (3) Plant-specific matrix symbol: GOL

Note: Virtually identical looking to the record labels of Santa Maria and Terre Haute pressings and only distinguished from these copies by the presence of two hand-etched inscriptions, PV and GOL, on the dead wax. For this reason, the Holbrook/Goldisc pressings are not easy to identify and rather difficult to find. The stamper ring is the same size as the Hauppauge/Keel pressings, a bit longer than those pressed at Santa Maria and Terre Haute plants. Check also 5/23/2021.

8. Pitman pressing  (originally listed as "Pitman pressing ー Variant One")

Location of pressing plant: Pitman, New Jersey
Pressing plant owner: Columbia Records

Label printing and stamper ring
  (1) Rim-text color: bright yellow**
  (2) Artist name/Album title: Double line/Double line
  (3) Stamper ring: single, large (Ø = 68.7 mm)

Deadwax stamp and inscription (straight, stamped; oblique, hand-etched)
  (1) Confirmed SIDE ONE/TWO matrix codes : 1AD/2AA
  (2) Plant-specific matrix code: P
  (3) Plant-specific matrix symbol: (none)

Note: Although the stamper ring is the commonly seen single large, the label design significantly differs from the others. Notably, Springsteen's name and the album title are printed differently on the labels in a double line each (cf., the later pressings change his name in a single line; see 3/4/2018). The label image is taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1AD/2AA. Check also 5/15/2021.

9. Lakewood pressing (can also be called Pete pressing)
(originally listed incorrectly as "Pitman pressing ー Variant two")

Location of pressing plant: Lakewood, New Jersey
Pressing plant owner: Peter Pan Records

Label printing and stamper ring
  (1) Rim-text color: bright yellow**
  (2) Artist name/Album title: Double line/Double line
  (3) Stamper ring: single, large (Ø = 69.9 mm)

Deadwax stamp and inscription (straight, stamped; oblique, hand-etched)
  (1) Confirmed SIDE ONE/TWO matrix codes : 1AF, 1AG/2AB, 2AC
  (2) Plant-specific matrix code: PPP
  (3) Plant-specific matrix symbol: (none)

Note: Labels of another New Jersey pressing look very similar to those of the Pitman pressing. The major difference is the spacing between the album title and tracklist, which is noticeably wider by about 10 mm. The minor difference is the stamper ring which is slightly larger by 1 mm than the Pitman. Some copies (with the matrix code 1AG) do not carry the plant-specific code PPP on SIDE ONE. The label image is taken from my personal copy with SIDE ONE/TWO matrix numbers 1AD 1AF/2AC (SIDE ONE's matrix code 1AD preceding 1AF is crossed out). Check also 11/19/2018, 5/15/2021, and 8/20/2022 (most updated).

**A first, I thought the rim-text color was specific to regional printing factories (accordingly, pressing plant-specific), but its tones can vary depending on the printing lot, so it may not be a good guide to distinguish these pressings.

This survey is, as always, still work-in-progress. There may be more label variations or exceptions. In addition, the matrix-number information must be fulfilled to represent comprehensive, thorough data collections. So, I welcome any addition, correction, question, or suggestion.

— To be continued to Notes on the late pressing labels.

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).

The Side One matrix numbers of a Holbrook press have an error crossed out and corrected. The Columbia logo on the label rim is blacked out on my copy due to trademark issues in some countries, including Japan (see 06/09/2016).

Without examining dead-wax inscriptions, these unusual pressings are roughly distinguished from Columbia's standard discs (pressed at Santa Maria and Terre Haute, in this case) by checking letter fonts and pressing/stamper rings on the record labels (BTW, I will summarize these aspects of the U.S. DARKNESS discs soon). However, vinyl copies bearing the PV code are quite difficult to distinguish by this measure from other discs pressed at Santa Maria, Terre Haute (see 12/30/2017), and Keel plants (see 06/30/2017 and 10/02/2017). The PV hand-etching always occurs on the run-out space with another inscription, GOL, referring to Goldisc Recording Products, Inc., Holbrook, Long Island, New York. So, two Long Island-based plants (another being Keel) played a part in compensating for the album supply. 

The hand-etched "GOL" company signature on
the dead-wax space appears on the opposite
side of the label from the matrix numbers
(shown is that of Side Two).

Side One:  PAL-  PBL-35318-1AC  PV   TML-S          GOL
Side Two:           PBL-35318-2J    PV   TML-M         GOL
       (oblique, hand-etched; straight, stamped)

What PV exactly encodes is not clear. Assuming that the common first letter P means Pitman as the other codes, I guess that the following V stands for Viewlex, Inc., which owned Goldisc until early 1979 (source: Discogs; Note that DARKNESS is released early June 1978). Thus far, I cannot come up with any other idea to explain this code.

Considering the above and the last post (05/15/2021), the table below updates the previously summarized relationship between dead-wax inscriptions, pressing plants, and plant owners (11/19/2018).

Note that this summary was based on the vinyl copies in my possession. So, perhaps there are more entries, especially to matrix number suffixes (but I don't think more pressing plants to be added). For example, I'm still unable to dig out Santa Maria's -A1/-A2 pressings, although reportedly, such copies exist according to the relevant entry on the Discogs website informing "First stampers for this record are -1A/-2A. This alone should determine pressing time frame" (for example, check here).

Seriously, I suspect that this Discogs description is wrong and consider no such regular copies circulating, as I explained in the comments to the post on 11/19/2018. To quote my remarks here:

According to Dave Marsh's BORN TO RUN book (Chapter 15), SIDE 2 of the LP, once completed mastering, had to be remastered immediately before the release of the album because the first track, The Promised Land, was remixed to put Miami Steve's guitar solo back in. So, I guess SIDE 2, before subjected to remastering, would carry the matrix suffix 2A.

In short, my point is that the earliest matrix number most probably ends with -1A/-2B (which I own), but not -1A/-2A (which I haven't seen by far), for the vinyl pressings circulating and available to the market.

Finally, as always, this is a work in progress. If you have any revisions, corrections or additions, please let me know.

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).

As reported in a series of blog posts under the above subject, a unique aspect of the U.S. vinyl release of DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN (Columbia JC 35318) is that several pressing plants of non-Columbia Records participated in producing the early pressings*, the situation otherwise scarcely seen in pressing other Springsteen's original albums, except for the CBS Special Products edition of THE RIVER (see 09/10/2014 and 12/23/2017). This particular case resulted from the temporal closure of the Pitman factory in New Jersey, one of the three major pressing plants that supplied the company's products to the East Coast markets, due to the labor disputes and strikes in Spring of 1978. The fact is reflected by unusual dead-wax symbols, markings, and hand-etchings, such as PN, PMI, PMN, or PK, each of which encodes a pressing plant where a given vinyl disc is manufactured. The details of these plant-specific codes have been summarized in the blog posts on 11/17/2018 and 11/19/2018.
*In brief, the early pressings are characterized as follows: (1) The rear sleeve features the large track listing and black font credits on the upper and lower of the left corners, respectively; (2) the inner sleeve is made of thick paper with higher resolution images; (3) the main matrix numbers are hand-etched PAL-35318 and PBL-35318 on Sides One and Two, respectively; and (4) each side of a vinyl disc has a machine stamp TML-M or TLM-S (The Mastering Lab - Master or Slave lathe).

Typical examples of three dead-wax markings for the Pitman-
pressed DARKNESS U.S. LP. From left to right: P stamp, and
triple and single P hand-etchings. See the main text for details.

Soon after the settlement of the labor issues (i.e., the strike ended May 17), the Pitman plant was back to operation and joined in pressing the DARKNESS LP from the end of May or early June that year. In a previous post (11/19/2018), I came to a conclusion that such vinyl copies pressed at this Garden-State plant are identifiable by PPP, a dead-wax triple-P hand-etching. However, this was drawn only from circumstantial evidence. Moreover, there are no known examples of the triple-letter code used for other albums by Springsteen and probably also by other artists under the Columbia label (not available online as far as I searched through Google). So, I tried to obtain definitive proof for the presumed Pitman's code on his fourth official album.

Having re-examined the dead-wax inscriptions, I took note of the crossed-out letter 1AD, followed by an additionally inscribed code 1AF or 1AG, which is the matrix number suffix found on Side One of the presumed Pitman pressings I own (For an example image, see 11/19/2018).

Three different suffixes, -1AD, -1AF, and -1AG, are
found on Side One matrix numbers of the early
Pitman pressings. Note that -1AD was once inscribed
but crossed out on -1AF and -1AG discs.

Side One:   PAL-35318-1AD 1AF       TML-S     PPP
Side Two:   PBL-35318-2AB   　       PPP      TML-M

Side One:   PAL-35318-1AD 1AF       TML-S     PPP
Side Two:   PBL-35318-2AC   　       PPP      TML-S

Side One:   PAL-35318-1AD 1AG                  TML-M
Side Two:   PBL-35318-2AB  　        PPP      TML-M

        (oblique, hand-etched; straight, stamped)

My idea was simple, expecting the existence of unmodified 1AD pressings that might support my presumption or provide a clue to solving the identity of these PPP-inscribed vinyl discs. So, I tried to find out  such copies.

From my experience, it was (and still is) the Santa Maria pressing that I came across more often than any other pressings when hunting early U.S. exports of the DARKNESS LP here in the Far East (So, this Californian pressing represents the most abundant in my DARKNESS U.S. LP collection). The highest hit probability was probably because this pressing plant played the predominant role in the early phase (Spring 1978) of the album production while the Pitman was inoperative transiently. The relatively close geography of the West Coast to Japan would also explain this, considering the export distance and cost. Anyway, I managed to get a copy with the non-crossed-out 1AD-suffix code and looked into the dead-wax markings and inscriptions. At first glance, I could not recognize any special or unique characters there, including PPP. However, close examination led me to find out a "P" machine-stamp on both sides, just like the test pressing and white-label promotional release of BORN TO RUN U.S. LP (see 05/21/2017), confirming the vinyl copy of the Pitman origin.

Side One:   P 　PAL-35318-1AD     TML-M
Side Two:   P 　PBL-35318-2AA     TML-S

Both Sides One (right) and Two (left) dead-wax areas of the -1AD/-2AA pressing (with the "narrow" spacing labels; see the top image) are stamped with P denoting the Pitman pressing. I usually use naked eyes for visual inspection of the dead-wax markings. In this case, however, the pressing-plant-specific stamp was pressed so faint that I needed the help of modern technology (i.e., USB microscope) to confirm its existence.

Based on the above observations, I conclude that all the vinyl pressings with 1AD, 1AF, or 1AG on Side One, and 1AA, 1AB, or 1AC on Side Two, came from the Pitman plant. However, I cannot figure out why two different symbols, machine-stamped "P" and hand-etched "PPP," were alternatively used to indicate the same pressing plant. Maybe, the Pitman temporarily changed the pressing-plant-specific symbol for this particular album, from the standard single-letter stamp to the triple-letter hand-etching, to conform to the style (PN, PMI, PMN, and PK) of the other plants that made up for the album shortage?  Indeed, as mentioned above, I have not seen the triple-letter code used for any other albums by Springsteen or other Columbia label's artists. I also notice that the two variants show a few but notable differences in both Sides One and Two record labels, especially the spacing between the album title and tracklist (see the image on the top for Side One). So, these "early" Pitman editions can be further divided into two kinds regarding label design and dead-wax plant-specific marking. And as a final note, a "P" hand-etching found on some vinyl copies of DARKNESS denotes the late Pitman pressing (An example is shown on 03/04/2018). 
 

→ See here for the updated information.