Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: PIÈCE DE RÉSISTANCE 3LP box

The Roxy concert was not fully covered in its
entirety until the CD release in the early 1990s.

By the late summer of 1981, I obtained five vinyl bootlegs, the first three of which have been mentioned previously and purchased on the 26th of July, according to my log file. The subsequently obtained two titles were actually what had once transformed me into a Bruceleg junkie: PIÈCE DE RÉSISTANCE (3LP box) and LIVE AT THE ROXY THEATER, HOLLYWOOD 1978 (2LP). They were obtained together, following about one month of the first purchase (August 29, exactly), through mail order from the then most famous bootleg supplier in Japan, whose shop was located in Nishi-Shinjuku (West Shinjuku), Tokyo.

I happened to know these titles because this supplier openly advertised bootleg LPs, either in stock or due in stock, in some legitimate monthly magazines featuring pop/rock music and guitar instruments. I remember that PIÈCE DE RÉSISTANCE was not featured in the ad correctly but was listed with a small picture of the slick insert under the different title LIVE IN NEW JERSEY 1978 in phonetic Japanese (or Katakana alphabet), possibly to explain the content straightforwardly (oddly in Japan, it is not an uncommon but rather customary practice to change or modify an original foreign title to Japanese-friendly one, the typical example of which is found on an Obi for official releases by legitimate companies; see here on this blog). So, I did not know the correct title until the box was delivered to me.

This slick insert design is my favorite, among many others. At which concert is this particular live shot taken?

Sourced from the excellent recordings of FM broadcasted live concerts, both bootlegs sounded better than the previously obtained three. However, needless to say, far more impressive was the live performances from the legendary DARKNESS tour captured in these multi-disc sets (especially the entire concert performance heard on the box set), which had made me determined to pursue collecting these things until the end of the last century (when live recordings, before they were bootlegged, began to be distributed and freely available online in electronic format). Thus, for me, like for many Bruceleg collectors in the vinyl era, PIÈCE DE RÉSISTANCE is the most memorable and important unofficial release among the collection.

SLIPPED DISC RECORDS and generic yellow labels: Which is earlier?

Since the start of this blog one year ago, I have long hesitated to write about this classic bootleg because a fair amount of information, from "who made it" to "how the lawsuit against the bootleggers was settled," is already available through literature (like Clinton Heylin's BOOTLEG: The Secret Story of the Other Recording Industry) and online sources (like brucespringsteen.it and The Amazing Kornyfone Label). However, one simple question remained unclear that I have been wondering for a long time, which is actually shared by a fellow knowledgeable collector whom I've got to know through this blog. There are two kinds of the record labels found in the purportedly original box issues with limited edition numbers: one is a plain generic yellow just printing Record 1, 2, or 3 with side indication, while the other is called Slipped Disc Records labels with a drawing of a dancing(?) skeleton. To the best of my knowledge, no definitive answer has yet to be provided as to which is earlier. So, I'll post my thought, focusing on this.
— To be continued.

A Swedish site launched for Springsteen record collectors!

NOTE: The mentioned website is no longer available (so the links below do not work anymore).

A snapshot from the section of GREETINGS FROM ASBURY PARK, N.J.

Quite busy these days and I just can't afford to have time for my blog work. Here I just want to tell you that one of my good friends in Sweden has launched a new collector-oriented website called Springsteenrecords. Although the site is still under construction, there are already many pictures and images of rare, unique and interesting vinyl collectibles from all over the world. Take a look and enjoy the site.

Collecting log: GREETINGS first US pressing LP (KC 31903 with the matrix suffix 1A/2A)

It was a little surprise to me that, after 42 years of the release, I was able to find a well cared, beautiful used copy of the first pressing LP at a local record shop in a small town in the Far East

From last Saturday to this Wednesday, here we had 5 consecutive national holidays. So, I took a short trip to visit a local used record shop I have never been before, and found a used stock copy of GREETINGS FROM ASBURY PARK, N. J. At the first face, the sleeve was in pretty fine conditions, as pictured here, which made me think that this one was a Japanese press missing an Obi. I usually don't pay particular attention to regular releases, but I noticed that the catalog number printed on the spine started with the prefix "KC".

The suffix codes of the machine-typed matrix numbers P AL 31903 1A / P BL 31903 2A identify this to be a very first pressing (to be precise, there is a small machine-stamped "o" and hand-etched "1" before the prefix code and following the suffix code, respectively, on each side). Indeed, the dead wax codes exactly match those of another copy I own that is a promotional one with the time strip sticker on the sleeve.

Released in 1973, the first US pressing of the debut album is not so difficult to find, but dare I say it, in this condition is fairly rare including an inner sleeve (on the other hand, the Canadian first pressing LP, which carries the same catalog number as the US one, is seldom seen here in any conditions). The vinyl disc was also fine with the suffix codes of the matrix numbers "1A" (side 1) and "2A" (side 2), meaning a very early copy among the "KC" pressings. So, at the price of just 800-yen (= US $6.66 at the current exchange rate) including the consumption tax, this was really a good buy for me.

Compared to the promotional copy that I have long kept (w/ time strip sticker; pictured right), this new purchase is obviously in superior conditions.

On the shelf of the shop there were many old import and domestic LPs of Dylan, Beatles, and Stones, among others. Having some chat with the shop owner, I asked him if he had more Springsteen titles for sale. Then he brought me to a stock room where what he showed me were, to my surprise, the three Japanese promotional copies that are undoubtedly highly demanded among collectors: the second pressing of the first album decorated with the famous wrap-around Obi (CBS/SONY SOPO-124), the first pressing of the second album with the typographical error-bearing Obi (CBS SONY SOPL-239), and the KILLER TRACKS FROM THE RIVER (CBS/SONY XDAP 93030) custom 12"  release (BTW, pictures of these records are shown at the blog of his shop; see below).

Reproduced from the shop owner's blog, with permission. Note the proofreading mark on the Obi of the first issue of
the 2nd album promotional copy.

There is almost no ring wear on the front sleeve of this new
purchase (top) while the US promo copy (middle) and the
Canadian 1st press (bottom) of my old stock do show the age.

To my question asking whether he obtained these rare records from radio stations, he answered no, and continued that these days good stuff doesn't come out from radio stations. According to him, trade-in targets are copies that have long been kept as dead stocks by music critics. These records, originally distributed by record companies for reviewing purposes, were usually played only once or twice, or even remain unplayed, which makes them available in pristine condition. Moreover, these copies are advanced promo rather than regular pressings. In fact, the three promo copies he showed me were almost mint, except that the typo of the Obi of the second album has been proofread with markings (BTW, I have never seen the copies with an uncorrected, intact typo-Obi). I further asked him "what are you going to do with these rare Springsteen records?' He replied that he would hold them until the private auction he's planning to open at the end of this year. Although I already own these particular promo copies, I am interested in the final outcome of the auction. So, I will report it here when the auction ends.