BORN TO RUN US pressing LP variants: white label promo (1)

Although it still takes big money to obtain a copy of the script cover (for example, the latest eBay auction ending on January 25 has involved a total of 11 bids with the final amounts of US $1,107.00), you can easily find and get, at a much cheaper cost, the white label promotional (WLP) issues of BORN TO RUN LP US pressings. As pointed out in the previous post, based on the matrix information, the early promo and regular LP copies are made with the same pair of stampers that is originally used for pressing the script cover test pressing. So, if you pursue the best original sound (not remastering!) available for the vinyl album, an early WLP copy may be the choice unless it is exhausted due to aging and overplaying at a radio station.

Collecting log: Fire (live) / Incident On 57th Street (live) US 7" vinyl with production error

This 7" single from the US, which is released 28 years ago in 1987, features my favorite live performance on the flip side and is the first collectible I obtained this new year. At first glance, it may look like a test pressing, but this 7" single is actually a regular pressing without the paper label on Side A of the vinyl disc.
 
I have several 7" and LP discs with production errors from tiny to serious, such as a misspelling or typo (like African copies of THE RIVER), a blank record label,  mixing-up side A/B labels, and unbelievable manufacturing mistakes (such as an inner sleeve of a New Zealand copy of THE RIVER). However, this type of error (i.e. a disc without a label) is new to my collection. These erroneous releases in my possession will be shown sometime in a future.

BORN TO RUN US pressing LP variants: the script cover

The lyric sheets and track-list card are not genuine but photocopied

When it comes to the vinyl album of BORN TO RUN, it's not avoidable for a serious collector to mention the promotional package of the advanced test pressing, or much more famously known as the script cover. Nowadays you can find the copies that occasionally turn up on eBay in varying conditions, and actually I've seen two copies in the last two weeks, with the one being still on the auction at this moment. But before internet ages, it was quite tough to locate, and even more difficult to acquire an excellent copy, especially for collectors like me living outside the US.

BORN TO RUN US pressing LP variants

Various copies of this classic album with
more than half being the US pressings

Although THE RIVER is my favorite record, the greatest LP to me is always BORN TO RUN. Unfortunately, this classic album has been often mentioned as one of the all-time worst-sounding recording. Especially its muddy sound made me seeking for better sounding pressings, mostly targeting early US vinyl copies including the "Script" cover and "John" Landau misspelt copies. Anyway, I have collected this classic album over the years during which I noticed that there are several variations, even though trivial or minor, among the US vinyl copies with respect to the album credits on the double sleeve, the record labels, and of course, the matrix codes on the wax. So, I'm planning to start off this year with this topic. However, since it's busy season now in this country getting towards the end of this fiscal year (yes, here the fiscal year ends March), I'm afraid if I can keep up the blog work ...

 — To be continued.

Collecting log: TOP 3 collectible acquisitions in 2014

Seeing the New Year soon, I have checked back the recent collecting log and selected what are considered as Top 3 collectibles from what I have obtained through this year. The (subjective, self-satisfied) results are listed below with a short note for each collectible.


Murder Incorporated / Because The Night (live) / Pink Cadillac / 4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) 
(Holland Columbia 661313 6)

    This 4-track 12-inch vinyl is pressed in Holland for export to France in 1995. Housed in a black & white cover whose design is identical to that of the 7-inch vinyl (COL 661313 7; backed with Because The Night) or 5-inch CD-EP (COL 661313 2; the same configuration as the 12") under the same title. Like the CD-EP, it comes with a black sticker on the front sleeve saying in French "titre inédit avec le E Street Band" (new song with the E Street Band). According to the Lost In The Flood collector's page, for unknown reasons, this release was hastily withdrawn. Seldom seen on eBay indeed, and equally tough to find as the 7-inch counterpart.