BORN TO RUN U.S. Pressing LP Variants: The late-1970s Scranton pressing by North American Music Industries, or simply NAMI (Part 2 of 2)

The hand-etched "PN" refers to a vinyl record pressed at NAMI in
Scranton, subcontracted by Pitman when the Columbia Records plant
suspended operations due to a labor strike in the spring of 1978.

Scranton or New American Music Industries (NAMI) pressings of the BORN TO RUN LP (Columbia PC 33795) were unique among the several U.S. editions with the "PC"-prefixed catalog number that were commercially released in the 1970s (see 07/29/2016). As shown in the Part One post (04/12/2025), these copies differ noticeably from those pressed at Columbia Records’ three plants — Pitman, Terre Haute, and Santa Maria — particularly in the size of the stamper ring on the labels and the presence of the dead-wax stamp (☖) symbolizing the U.S. Capitol Building, both the same as those found on Scranton pressings of DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN (JC 35318; see 3/21/2017 and 04/23/2022). The stamp likely reflects that Capitol Records had previously owned the Scranton plant before its takeover by NAMI in late 1973 (see Scott's comment from 03/18/2017). The plant continued operating until around 1980.

The deadwax information on my copy is listed below. I have also examined several Scranton pressings with clearly legible matrix numbers, using images sourced from online databases and auction listings. So far, all examined copies display identical matrix stamps and etchings.

SIDE ONE:   P AL 33795-1H              PN         ☖
SIDE TWO:   P BL 33795-1AA X        PN         ☖          Straight = stamped; oblique = hand-etched.

Another disc with the matrix number 1H on SIDE ONE was pressed
at Pitman, as indicated by a faint "P" stamp preceding the number. It
came in the penultimate "PC" sleeve (see 07/29/2016), which features
the single-lined producers' credit on the rear (not shown) and bears
the price code X698 (denoting a $6.98 retail price) on the bottom of
the spine. The last known "PC" sleeve used for the Scranton pressing
eliminated this code (see 04/12/2025). The gold stamp indicates that
the record was discounted by Columbia for sale at U.S. military bases.

The matrix numbers 1H /1AA confirm that this is a later release, as the earliest pressings from Columbia's three plants carried matrix numbers 1A /1A for Pitman, 1B /1B for Terre Haute, and 1C /1C for Santa Maria (see 05/21/2017). Additional hand-etchings include "PN," the pressing plant-specific code previously interpreted as "Pitman-subcontracted NAMI" (see 11/17/2018 and 08/20/2022), whereas the meaning of the "X" that immediately follows the SIDE TWO matrix number remains unknown to me. 

Note that "1H" is not exclusive to Scranton pressings. The same stamped matrix number appears on SIDE ONE of a Pitman copy in my possession (see images at right). However, SIDE TWO of this copy bears "1L," and neither side includes the matrix stamps or hand-etched markings typically associated with NAMI's Scranton plant, as described above.

SIDE ONE:   p   P AL 33795-1H
SIDE TWO:   p   P BL 33795-1L       The preceding "p" stamp is the hallmark of Columbia's Pitman-plant pressing.

At a glance, Scranton pressings of this masterpiece can be distinguished from standard Columbia-plant pressings (Pitman, in this case) by two key criteria: the stamper ring size on the labels and the width of the trail-off (deadwax) area. Matrix numbers for each side are listed in parentheses following the pressing plant name (oblique, hand-etched; straight, stamped). The pronounced differences in deadwax spacing — particularly on SIDE ONE — may affect the sound quality of this side, especially the final track, Backstreets.

Different matrix numbers, stamps, and etchings indicate different master cutting during vinyl record production, which often leads to variations in the width of the deadwax area on vinyl discs. You can find examples of such deadwax metric variations in my blog posts — for instance: 05/05/2022 for DARKNESS U.S. discs; 01/01/2020 for THE RIVER U.K. copies; 09/29/2019, 09/30/2019, and 10/10/2020 for various BORN IN THE U.S.A. pressings; and 11/14/2014 for a classic bootleg. In this respect, the Scranton pressings show notable differences compared to the earliest Columbia pressings: interestingly, the deadwax space is substantially narrower on SIDE ONE but wider on SIDE TWO — a detail that has drawn the attention of audiophiles (not me, though).

One of my early Pitman pressings, used in the deadwax-space
comparison above, came in a gatefold sleeve with the infamous
"John" misspelling, where the correction sticker was hilariously
misapplied in a conspicuously wrong spot.

The most likely reason the Scranton factory owned by NAMI became involved in manufacturing BORN TO RUN was that Columbia Records’ Pitman plant — the primary facility for pressing and distributing their products, particularly for the East Coast market — was temporarily shut down due to strikes during a labor dispute from April 2 to May 17, 1978 (see 3/18/2017). Among Springsteen’s albums, DARKNESS was the most seriously affected by this labor issue. This long-awaited release — his first in three years, following BORN TO RUN and the settlement of the lawsuit against his former manager — was originally scheduled for late May to coincide with the album-promotion tour that began on May 23.

As a result, early copies of the DARKNESS LP were pressed not only at Columbia's Santa Maria and Terre Haute plants but also at six atypical facilities located in Pennsylvania, Illinois, New Jersey, and New York — all owned by companies other than Columbia Records, including NAMI's Scranton plant (for summary posts, see 04/23/2022 and 08/20/2022). Popular back-catalog titles from the Columbia label — BORN TO RUN, in Springsteen’s case — were likely repressed at these non-Columbia plants for a time in 1978 until Pitman resumed normal operations. 

However, I have so far confirmed such pressings only from Scranton, which probably reflects a prioritization of the new album’s production over that of the older one. If you come across the third album copies — or first and second, too — from any of these unusual pressing plants, such as Pinckneyville and Lakewood factories (then run by MCR Records and Peter Pan Records, respectively), please let me know.

— Back to Part 1.

Thoughts on My Father's House on NEBRASKA LP: Asian pressings and its relation to the Japanese discs (Part 1 of 2)

Asian NEBRASKA LP releases. Upper (left to right): three Japanese editions and a Taiwanese copy. Lower: Korea (left) and Hong Kong (right) pressings.

As I reported previously (see 7/13/2019), the initial vinyl pressings of NEBRASKA from several countries have an error on the side-two label, misprinting the playing time for My Father's House longer (5 min 43 sec rather than 5 min 3 sec). These examples count at least eight, including the U.S. and U.K. releases, although only the Brazil pressings truly contain the long version of the song (see 7/22/2019). The same misprint is found in two releases from Asia (i.e., South Korea and Hong Kong). I also have a Taiwanese copy that lists the track length as 5 min 5 sec. These Asian records, but Hong Kong's, are generally not my collecting targets because of the uncertainty of authenticity. However, this album is the only exception for me to collect from these countries.

Upper: Side B labels of Japanese (left) and Hong Kong (right) discs. Although the two
discs share identical matrix numbers (see 10/2/2016), the diameters of stamper rings
differ significantly, strongly suggesting that these discs were pressed at different
locations (probably in Japan and Hong Kong) using the same stampers (read 5/2/2021
about stamper ring). Lower: Album credits on the rear sleeve of the Hong Kong pressing.

 

Among the three Asian pressings I own, the Hong Kong release is the most superior in every aspect, guaranteeing its legitimacy (see 10/2/2016). This is no wonder since CBS/SONY Japan had the branch office there (see 9/22/2014 and 9/25/2014). Although not coming with an obi originally, it looks almost the same as the Japanese edition sharing the same catalog number (CBS/SONY 25AP2440). As reported previously (see 10/2/2016), the dead-wax matrix numbers are undistinguished from the Japanese codes, telling where the stampers came from. The major difference is the inner sleeve, which is not stiff and thick but thin like the U.K. issue, and the label design also differs slightly but not radically. These indicate that the Hong Kong issues were not the Japanese export but manufactured there.

The South-Korean LP is unique in that the sleeve spine is unusually white (upper) and that the rear sleeve credits contain Hangul descriptions (lower). Why is the catalog number OC 38358 but not QC 38358 (U.S. number)?  A typo?  The Jigu Records' company logo is printed right to the CBS logo. The inset shows the side B matrix inscription.

The South-Korean LP [KJPL-0598 (OC-38358)] also resembles the official Columbia/CBS releases. Nevertheless, their differences are more pronounced than those between Hong Kong and Japanese releases. For example, in addition to the CBS trademark, the rear sleeve prints a unique logo of a domestic record company on the bottom with part of the credits expressed in Hangul letters (that I cannot understand totally). Moreover, the album does not come with the inner sleeve but contains an English lyric insert with liner notes (full in Hangul) on the reverse side. The matrix numbers are inscribed by hand on the dead wax, completely different from those of the Japanese and U.S./European discs (side 1, KJPL-0598-A; side 2, KJPL-0598-B). According to the label and sleeve credits, this album is licensed to Jigu Records in South Korea, manufacturing various releases under license from foreign companies (as the Discogs entry claims). 

Left: The Side 2 record label of the Korean pressing. The date of "APPROVED BY THE GOVERNMENT" indicates its release year (not in 1982). Center: The lyric sheet misspells Springsteen's first name (upper); the liner notes on the reverse side close with supposedly the date of finishing writing (lower), supporting the release year as 1988 or later. Right: The vinyl disc comes in a unique, semi-transparent protective sleeve mentioning both international and domestic record companies.

One more note to the Korea LP is about its release date. The record labels print what is interpreted as such dates, 82.10.18 and 88.12.8 (cf., In the U.S. and Japan, the original release date is September 20 and October 9, 1982, respectively). A similar date, "1988.11.3," together with the supposed writer's name, concludes the accompanying liner notes (I neither read nor understand Hangul, though). Based on the above, the copy I own was probably released in late 1988 or after that. However, all the other misprinted copies from various countries are the first pressing out in 1982, most probably due to confusion arising from Springsteen's final decision to use monaural recordings for the album mix rather than the pseudo-stereo version (featuring the long version of My Father's House). So, for me, it is incomprehensible why the misprint was still created in the Korean edition six years or more after the album's original release.

Asia used to be, and perhaps still is, a grey zone in copyright infringement. In 1993, Billboard magazine reported that the Korean Government began its drive to fight piracy and improve the protection provided by the country's intellectual property law (by Byung Hoo Shu in the March 13 issue). The article also pointed out that Korea's rampant piracy problem was unique, presumably "practiced more by the legally registered companies than the elusive pirates." Provided that the Korean album was released in the late 1980s, I'm still uncertain whether or not this vinyl issue is official.

By contrast, a Taiwanese copy of mine looks like a pirate rather than a legitimate release, at least based on the LP sleeve and labels on the wax. However, I came across an interesting finding on the disc's dead wax, especially in relation to the Japanese pressing.

— To be continued to Part 2. 

 

Collecting log: THE "LIVE" 1975-1985 and THE LEGEND COMES ALIVE, Japanese 5-LP box and custom promotion-only compilation LP w/ info sheets (Part 3 of 4)

Is there anything my collection is missing?

Because of a multi-disc box package, LIVE/1975-85 was downsized to be issued as a single LP commercially in South America (Argentine, Brazil, and Venezuela) and for promotional use only in North America (the U.S. and Canada), continental Europe (Holland and Spain), and Asia (Japan). Notably, the four pressings from the three Latin Americas and the Far East exhibit substantial differences in title, sleeve design, and track selection/configuration from the standard North American/European edition (although the Dutch issue is unique in that it includes the original booklet and is serially numbered on a front sleeve golden sticker). The cassette-tape counterparts to these LP samplers were also released in three of these four countries (except Venezuela) and Uruguay. For the extremely rare Japanese cassette, check the previous post (07/12/2015).

Misprints and wrong information on the back cover and record label as marked
by green (see the main text for the erroneous Japanese description). Although
the flawed tracklist, where Tracks 1 and 3 are in the wrong position and
correctly to be reversed, was fixed later with the overlaid sleeve sticker,
I've never seen the vinyl discs with the correction made on the label.

Among these LIVE album compilations, the Japanese LP, better known for the subtitle THE LEGEND COMES ALIVE (CBS/SONY XDAP 93156), is probably the most popular and widely recognized variation because of the unique, sepia-tinged portrait sleeve on front, with the full album tracklist and release details on the rear for the domestic market. It is also well-known that the LP back cover carries three printing errors [a "SPRING STEEN" misspelling, the incorrect Side-Two track order (on the record label as well), and the wrong photo credit], although it seems to me that his surname was misspelled intentionally in favor of graphic design. Additionally, there is yet another erroneous description in Japanese that the BORN IN THE U.S.A. tour ended on September 30th, 1985. Of course, it's the date for the penultimate concert, from which eight tracks are culled and included on the box set, but none from the last show (10/02/1985). These errors probably reflect the situation of the company that needed to urgently complete the production of the promo LP and standard box set (see Parts One & Two of this series), which might have caused the negligent or careless proofreading.

The spine says just LIVE 1975-1985, inconsistent with what is printed on the front sleeve.

Although promotion-only releases are generally rare, THE LEGEND COMES ALIVE is relatively easy to find at not-so-expensive rates, as you see that it has frequently turned up at domestic and international auctions online. This is primarily due to the relatively large pressing number to promote the then much-anticipated live album. However, before the internet became a common and convenient tool to deal with second-hand goods as individuals, I remember that a copy of this promo sampler often cost collectors at least 10,000 Yen or more [a source in 1987 reporting that it was initially priced at 50,000 Yen (over $300 as of the exchange rate in December, 1986) in the U.S.; see the second image on 05/17/2020].

Maybe a fully intact copy for the Japanese edition of the promotion-only LIVE compilation. This copy is the only one among the four in my possession, with these paper sheets put together. The others came with a Japanese booklet or a 12-inch square polystyrene portrait panel the regular copies had, which I don't think were originally included in the promo package.

In the vinyl era, CBS/SONY Inc. (Japan) released three promotion-only LP/12" EP compilations that feature Springsteen exclusively, and the LIVE excerpt was the third and final one. The company also distributed advanced LP pressings to the two original albums released before and after the live anthology, as summarized below.

• LAST AMERICAN HERO FROM ASBURY PARK, N.J. (YAPC 95)
  A 10-track selection from the first three albums, released in 1978.
• The Killer Tracks from THE RIVER (XDAP 93030)
  A 4-track excerpt from THE RIVER, released in 1981.
• BORN IN THE U.S.A. (28AP 2850)
  An advanced promotional release in 1984.
• THE "LIVE": THE LEGEND COMES ALIVE (XDAP 93156)
  A 10-track excerpt from THE "LIVE" 1975-1985, released in 1986.
• TUNNEL OF LOVE (XDAP 93174)
  An advanced promotional release in 1987.

All the five titles above came in unique sleeves. The fully intact copies contained a lyric sheet (or its photocopy), information sheets, or flyers, making them highly collectible among vinyl collectors worldwide. As for THE LEGEND COMES ALIVE, although I'm not so sure, one of the copies in my possession holds all (if not all, almost all) the paper stuff originally enclosed. These are two kinds of paper sheets, which are missing or not included from the beginning in most circulating copies.

Official CBS/SONY's hand-written memo notifying the
tracklist error and requesting the on-air release date
not to broadcast before November 6th. A combination
of two large "Kanji" characters between double
angle brackets means "CORRECTION" in English.

One is a folded, stapled three-page info sheet in black and white with green color, while the other is a one-page official CBS/SONY note sheet with the company logo. The former illustrates the basic track information, such as track listing (page one), album overview and track length/configuration in LP/CD/cassette formats (page two; mostly duplicate of the rear sleeve with additional info on the single cut release), and a short description for each track (page three). The latter calls recipients' attention to the error on the Side-Two tracklist and the date when radio stations are allowed to play the album (11/06/1986, three days before the official sale). The track-listing error on the rear sleeve remains unfixed, most probably because the correction sticker was not ready when the early batch of the LP was shipped to music critics and radio stations for marketing purposes.
— To be continued to Part 4.

Collecting log: an ABBA's LP error pressing with BORN TO RUN tracks on one side

I remember ABBA was already a big star when I was a junior high
school student, just beginning to listen to popular Western music,
mainly on the radio.

Shown left is unusual or uncommon to this blog, which is totally unrelated to Springsteen's music or recording products. It's an ABBA's album from the mid-1970s called WATERLOO (Epic U.K. pressing, EPC 80179). Needless to say, ABBA is a pop supergroup from Sweden, known for several worldwide hits like Dancing Queen as a notable example. WATERLOO is their second album, originally released in 1974 that brought about their breakthrough in the U.K. and the U.S. So, why is it mentioned here? Well, it's time to confess something. I'm a secret admirer of ABBA, accumulating a huge collection of this popular band that far surpasses my entire Springsteen collection...

Although ABBA's WATERLOO LP (upper) from the U.K.
contains six songs on Side 1 as printed on the record
label, only four tracks are recognized on the vinyl
pressing that looks exactly the same as Side 1 of
a U.K. copy of BORN TO RUN LP (lower).

Nope, not really. This vinyl album is my first and only purchase of their records. In fact, I had never expected to do so until I knew that this particular copy of the generally cheap-priced album turned out to be a one-of-a-kind to Springsteen collectors. As far as I examined, the LP sleeve is normal with no apparent errors or defects, and the vinyl disc carries proper Epic Records labels on both sides. However, when played on a turntable, Side One starts off with Thunder Road and finishes with Backstreets. So, this side contains all the four tracks from the first side of BORN TO RUN LP, instead of ABBA's six tracks that include the title tune (a U.S. Top10 Hit). Side Two normally plays their pop songs.

Then, I was curious about how this handling mistake happened for two vinyl releases from different record labels during the manufacturing process. So, as usual, I digged into the matrix numbers of the error pressing (oblique, hand-etched; straight, machine-stamped):

• Side 1:    B          CBS-S-69170-A4         ? *
• Side 2:    A          EPC.S.80179.B4

Absolutely no differences in the Side One matrix numbers between ABBA's
mispressing (left) and a U.K. repressing of Springsteen's third album (right).
Note that two stamper rings are pressed in the same way between the two.

This copy of WATERLOO is apparently not an original U.K. pressing. According to the Discogs database, the original (with the matrix numbers EPC-S-80179-A1/B1) was issued with yellow labels, but not orange shown here, which was used between 1976 and 1979. I figured that this vinyl pressing corresponds to a late-1970s reissue, as the Side One matrix numbers match completely with those of BORN TO RUN LP (CBS 69170) from a self-titled U.K. box set of his first three albums (CBS 66353), which was released November 1979. I own three copies of the box set where all individual copies of the repressed BORN TO RUN album share the identical matrix numbers on both sides, as follows:

• Side 1:    B         CBS-S-69170-A4         Ty**
• Side 2:    D         CBS-S-69170-B2         timtom**

* ? remains to be deciphered (as I was not able to figure it out). 
**For "Ty" and "timtom" hand-etchings, refer to four consecutive blog posts from 12/22/2019 to 01/05/2020. "Ty" is quite difficult to read on this disc, so that it might be different letters.

Single-letter stamps on the dead-wax of U.K. CBS pressings.

Side Two matrix number suffix (B4)
and orange Epic labels indicate that
this ABBA's LP is a repressed copy.

The machine-stamped single letters such as A, B and D***, as found at the 9 o'clock position to the matrix numbers (at 12 o'clock) on these vinyl discs, are stamper indicators used at CBS Pressing Plant of Aston Clinton, located in the Buckinghamshire county of England. Back then, Epic recordings were issued and distributed by CBS in the U.K., as printed on the center bottom of WATERLOO's back cover ("Epic is a product of CBS Records"). Therefore, most probably, these two contrastingly sounding, best-seller albums were simultaneously repressed by CBS at their Aston Clinton plant in the late 1970s, which somehow resulted in this incredible pressing error of hybrid combination between sugar pop and classic rock.
***The letter "A" is often faintly stamped, so it also looks like a three-dotted triangle or a capital Greek Lambda (∧). Likewise, "B" seems to be read as "D" in some cases, and vice versa.

By the way, I have never seen the U.K. edition that corrects the "JOHN"
misspelling on the rear sleeve. Shown is a reissue from the 1979 box set.

Certainly a one-of-a-kind pickup, but not necessarily for everyone who is interested in vinyl record collectibles of Springsteen. I have no idea as to whether this mispressing would appeal to ABBA collectors. Probably not. What's your guess?

Collecting log: Top 3 collectible acquisitions in 2019 (Part 3 of 3)

The final of the three parts of this subject reports last year's unexpected purchase of a U.K. 7-inch vinyl record which fellow "Boss" collectors often regard as a holy grail. So, this post may deserve the commemorable 150th to this blog which, since Fall 2014, has exclusively focused on Springsteen's official and unofficial collectibles, especially of vinyl pressings, in my private possession. There are still many missing, though, from my collection. If interested, here are links to Part 1 and Part 2.
 
#1: Sherry Darling / Independence Day U.K. withdrawn white label promo 7" vinyl (CBS 9568)

Unfortunately, the color sleeve is just a regular one, listing Be True correctly,
instead of Independence Day, as the backside track.

There is an old Japanese proverb "Early risers earn 3-mon" (where "mon" is an old Japanese currency unit), which has essentially the same message in English as "The early bird always gets the worm." This purchase was just like that and completely unexpected to me. One usual morning last November, I woke up early, just made a quick online survey, and found it being sold at an unbelievably low price. It was just 63 minutes after the seller had put it up on auction. So, luckily and most probably, I was the first and only one who ever saw it online. Needless to say, the copy was sent out here to the Far East, currently sitting on my record shelf.

The withdrawn promo disc has the A1/B1 suffix code
in the hand-etched matrix numbers (upper). On the
other hand, the matrix number is machine-stamped
with the suffix code B2 on Side B of the corrected
regular pressing (lower); the hand-writing number
on the right of the stamp is wrong and scratched 
out (for the details, see 12/25/2019).

Surely, no detailed information on this 7" vinyl is necessary for collectors visiting here. Briefly, in February of 1981, CBS in the U.K. prepared to release Sherry Darling as the latest and second single from THE RIVER. As first publicly described in the discography section of the Blinded By The Light book (P. Humphries & C. Hunt, 1985, Plexus, London), the printed-up, white-label promotional copies (only 100, reportedly) were urgently withdrawn and scrapped due to the irregular B-side track. The Lost In The Flood collector's web page reports on how the mispressing occurred. When this single was ready for pressing in the U.K., the master tape for Be True, the correct B-side which was back then an unreleased non-album track, was not available there. So, an album track Independence Day was chosen instead as the flip side.

Based on what I've seen over the past few decades, until the mid-2000s, this mispressing had hardly attracted outstanding attention from collectors, and unlike its current status, had not been regarded as an exceptionally high-valued collectible. In fact, I knew back then only two examples that wrote about this 7" in print: one was the aforementioned Blinded By The Light book and the other was the Warehouse Catalog #44 which I received from the Backstreets Records in Spring 1997.

The latter included the auction catalog entitled "57 Channels Of Auction Gems" where this record was introduced in the middle of the auction lineup, as the 29th item with a minimum bid set at $175. Thus, certainly not viewed and treated as something like a top gem or a holy grail. To my understanding, what made it so famous and widely known to collectors owes to Top 40 Worldwide Springsteen Rarities, the featured article in No. 329 issue of the U.K.'s Record Collector magazine (November 2006). In the article, it is ranked in the first place on the rare collectible list. Moreover, a mint copy is valued £2,500 and £2,000, respectively, with and without the equally misprinted color sleeve (for which, by far, only two copies have reportedly been confirmed to exist).

Mastering Maestro's signatures are commonly found
on the dead-wax space of all the U.K. singles off
THE RIVER (see 12/25/2019).

Like most of the copies in circulation, the record sleeve of mine is the same as that of the regular copy (not listing the wrong B side). As reported in four consecutive posts in this blog from late last year (12/22/2019) to early this year (01/05/2020), all the U.K. 7" and 12" singles cut from THE RIVER were mastered by Grammy-winning engineer Tim Young. This mispressing is not an exception to this fact and his signatures are clearly inscribed on each side of the dead-wax space (side A, timtom ; side B, Ty ).

Finally, although unlikely, I suspected the small possibility of this being a counterfeit. This was because, despite that the seller knew of the wrong B side [to quote item description: HOWEVER, it is RARE because it is backed with INDEPENDENCE DAY (not 'Be True') with 

Nicely done, indeed (not in my possession).
Is there timotom or Ty hand-etching on the disc?

a release date of 13th February 1981], the price was set extraordinarily low (the reason for which still remains a mystery). In addition, to me, this vinyl format has not been the main target of collecting and hunting. And importantly, you may remember that there have been precisely manufactured, but almost probably unofficial white-label copies of Two Hearts / Ramrod  7" vinyl in circulation, which suddenly appeared on collectors' market some years ago and claimed to be issued in the U.K. for promotion only with the catalog number CBS A1845. So, unusually I decided to ask for expert opinions on this particular copy I obtained, which I had seldom done before, and my thanks are due to Roberto in Italy for his generous help on the authentication.

Collecting log: The early 1980s U.K. vinyl pressings with "timtom" or "Ty" handwritten matrix inscription (Part 1 of 4)

Whoever credited (see the inset taken from the lyric sheet), the
master lacquer of this vinyl pressing is cut by someone else.
Shown is a U.S. repressed copy of THE RIVER Disc 1, where the
matrix inscription "chet" means that the master-cutting engineer
is Chet Bennett who worked for CBS Records in the 1980s.

As you see in this blog, one of my favorite activities to do when hunting a vinyl record, whether official or bootleg, is to check the dead-wax space for the matrix numbers and associated stamps or inscriptions. This can allow us to know fundamental information regarding production of a given record, such as the generation of the pressing and location of the pressing factory. The initials of a mastering engineer are also hand-etched or stamped, though not always. Of course, we can know who is responsible for mastering and cutting, from production credits that are usually printed on the inner or outer sleeve, or accompanying lyric sheet. Such credits, however, generally remain not updated when the record is repressed and someone else acts for the original engineer to cut master recordings. So, the presence of the initials for the original mastering engineer is regarded as a proof for an original pressing. Known examples of such initials on the dead-wax space of Springsteen's vinyl albums are KP for Ken Perry on THE RIVER (always coupled with the machine-typed "MASTERED BY CAPITOL"), D.K. for Dennis King on NEBRASKA (as part of the stamp "Atlantic Studios D.K."), and RL for Robert "Bob" Ludwig on BORN IN THE U.S.A. (in association with a "MASTERDISK" stamp). The above three are all U.S.-based mastering engineers. Then, is there any non-U.S. engineer who has left his/her signature on a lead-out space of vinyl records pressed and released outside the U.S.?

A Grammy-winning engineer cut several of Springsteen's U.K. releases in
the early 1980's. This U.K.-only 12" EP has two typical his signatures,
timtom on Side A (lower right) and Ty on Side B (upper right).

Tim Young is a famous British sound and mastering engineer. He's probably best known as the first to win a Grammy Award among non-U.S. mastering engineers in 2008, for his contribution to LOVE, the sound track compilation originally recorded by the Beatles. He's also well known for his reputable works of vinyl lacquer cutting at CBS studios, London, in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. Those vinyl records include LONDON CALLING (The Clash), METAL BOX (Public Image Limited) and PRETENDERS (The Pretenders), to mention a few. Although seldom mentioned as his representative works, if you carefully examine your U.K. copies of Springsteen's titles, you may find "timtom" or "Ty" hand-etching on certain vinyl pressings. These matrix inscriptions are two of several typical signatures used by him.

One of the earliest acquired items in my collecting career starting in the 1980s (two each of the misspelled and corrected releases). 

Perhaps it was when I started collecting official releases, in addition to bootleg records, that I first noticed these signatures on some U.K. pressings. One of such official collectibles I obtained in the mid-1980s included a 12" EP copy of The River - Born To Run / Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) (CBS A13-1179) with a classic misprint error "East Street" twice on the rear sleeve. Back then, however, I didn't care about these matrix things and it was much later that I became interested in what they meant by and what I could know from them. According to the Lost In The Flood website, there are three variants for this U.K.-only release, first in the misspelt picture sleeve, second in the corrected sleeve, and third in a die-cut company sleeve. I own the first two both of which are identical in all respects of their discs including the matrix codes:

     Side A:  CBS • S • A • 13 • 1179 A1       timtom
     Side B:  CBS • S • A • 13 • 1179 B1          Ty

Then I was just curious about whether these signatures were also inscribed on the other U.K. releases related to THE RIVER and his other albums and singles pressed there in the 1980s. 
— To be continued.

Collecting log: BORN IN THE U.S.A. LP ー Matrix numbers of the earliest U.S. pressing and an error copy with off-centered labels (Part 4 of 5)

Another flawed copy of the album from my
collection is the U.K. first pressing, as indicated
by the matrix number CBS-86304-A1, which
comes with the blank label on Side One.

As mentioned in the last post, the original or early copies of BORN IN THE U.S.A. LP (Columbia QC 38653) manufactured in the U.S. have wide deadwax on Side One, which in addition to the matrix hand-etching RL, is a feature associated with the vinyl pressings mastered by Robert "Bob" Ludwig at Gateway Mastering Studios, Portland, ME. On the other hand, the later pressings with narrow deadwax, where his initials are absent, are not cut by this Mastering Maestro, despite whom the album production credits refer to as mastering engineer on the album inner sleeve. This fact just made me wondering about the deadwax width of various copies of the album pressed in countries other than the U.S. Here for making comparison, I picked up several of the copies randomly from my collection.

Two horizontal dashed lines of green color on top of the image indicate the width of deadwax space of the early U.S. pressing. Not sure if the Italian and Mexican copies shown here correspond to a very early pressing released in each country (matrix numbers are CI 86304-1L-16-5-84 and 50-04-16122-1B-1, respectively, on Side One).

Initially, I thought that the "wider deadwax" pressings were confined to the early U.S. copies with the matrix RL inscription because Ludwig had nothing to do with lacquer master cutting for non-U.S. pressings (i.e., mastering and cutting of the lacquers for vinyl pressing were done independently in individual countries after master recording tapes were received from the US Columbia Records). In fact, as shown above, the (supposedly early) copies released in the U.K., Italy, and Mexico show variation in deadwax space with narrow width.   [By the way, in Japan and probably in other countries, Direct Metal Masters (DM or DMM) were used instead of master recording tapes for pressing the subsequent two albums, LIVE/1975-85 (Columbia C5X 40558) and TUNNEL OF LOVE (Columbia OC 40999). So, there are probably no differences in the deadwax width (and sound quality) between non-U.S. and U.S. pressings for these albums. The deadwax of such pressings is commonly inscribed with MASTERDISK which often accompanies a DM or DMM hand-etching.]

Both Filipino and Dutch pressings carry a MASTERDISK stamp on each side of deadwax space, an indication of the U.S. origin of master lacquers that were utilized for vinyl pressing in these countries.
 

Upper: The Filipino LP is known for the modified front sleeve that
uses orange fonts for artist name and additionally mentions 
five featured tracks beneath the album title/artist.
Lower: The deadwax carries the matix number information 
just like that of the early U.S. pressings
(RL inscription is encircled).

Contrary to my thoughts, however, "wider deadwax" pressings do exist, except for the U.S. release. The composite image right above shows Dutch, Filipino, and ex-East German pressings whose deadwax space is comparable in size to or even wider than that of the early U.S. copy. Notably, the Made-In-Philippines disc is machine-stamped with MASTERDISK and inscribed with RL in addition to the unique Filipino-specific codes with the prefix QCL (see below). According to Discogs, there is a U.S. (Pitman factory) pressing with the same matrix numbers (suffixes, -3AA/-2AL; both stamp and initials present), indicating that the lacquers, metal mothers, or stampers were most probably imported from the U.S.

     Side One:  P AL-38653-3AA   MASTERDISK  RL   QCL-22110-A
     Side Two:  P BL-38653-2AL   MASTERDISK  RL   QCL-22110-B
                      (hand-etched, italics; stamped, upright font)

What does the inscription NL refer to?  Initials for an unknown mastering engineer?  Nah, I guess Netherlands (totally no evidence, though). BTW, my Dutch copy comes with a red sticker which is specific to the initial pressing?

The Dutch pressing also has the machine stamp, but instead of Ludwig's initials, a two-letter code, NL, is inscribed on both sides of record's trail-off area. It may represent the initials of yet unknown mastering engineer who did cut this Dutch pressing. I suppose a different case: the U.S. Columbia Records (hence, Bob Ludwig or his colleague at Gateway Mastering Studios) prepared lacquers, mothers, or stampers specially for the Dutch pressing, just because of my speculation that the two matrix inscriptions, INT and NL, could mean "International" and "Nether Lands," respectively. No evidence and pure speculation, though.

     Side One:  B    PAL-38653-INT   MASTERDISK  NL    01-86304-4A-1 A
     Side Two:  A    PBL-38653-INT   MASTERDISK  NL    01-86304-6B-1

The ex-East German disc, on the other hand, has obviously no relation to the U.S. pressings in terms of master cutting, as it has machine-stamped unique matrix numbers (8 56 222-1B    I 86  I  C/8 56 222-2A    I 86  I  C for my copy).

Then, how about the Japanese pressings?
— To be continued.