Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: THIS GUNS FOR HIRE 5LP box (concluded)

First pressing with 4 photo-prints and second pressing

THIS GUNS FOR HIRE represents one of the earliest-known and best-sounding bootlegs from the 1984 American Tour. There are at least three variations for this title (two pressings from the original plates and one pirate copy), and according to one source [a booklet listing almost all BORN IN THE U.S.A. (BITUSA) Tour bootlegs named Last Ride In A Pink Cadillac], the first pressing contains two color photographs although no information is provided as to the actual images photo-taken. This box set is not listed in the bootleg section of Blinded By The Light (P. Humphries & C. Hunt, 1985; Plexus, London), and any other bootleg guide listing this title does not mention about the photos, except for the one called Unofficially Springsteen: The Boss A to Z (by Mick St. Michael, 1985; Choice Publishers, London).

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: THIS GUNS FOR HIRE 5LP box (continued)

GRANDE FINALE, one of the best-looking BITUSA bootlegs
in the vinyl era (above) and the description on THIS GUNS
FOR HIRE found in the accompanying booklet (below)

A comprehensive list of vinyl bootlegs from the BORN IN THE U.S.A. tour is available in the 12-page booklet called Last Ride In A Pink Cadillac, which is included in GLANDE FINALE 6LP box set comprising the entire last performance of the 1984-85 World Tour at Los Angeles Coliseum. In fact, this booklet is concise and a very useful reference to a total of nearly 100 live bootleg releases from this tour. In my opinion, the brief information given to each title and the evaluation of sound quality are overall accurate. According to this booklet, there are two different releases for THIS GUNS FOR FIRE with the identical catalog number (Paladin Records 1959): one being the original (which is further divided into the first and second pressings) and the other copied off the original first pressing. The initial copy I obtained (and mentioned in the last blog) exactly matched what is described for one of the two releases (i.e., PAL A to PAL J hand-etched in the dead waxes and housed in an indeed sturdy box), confirming its identity as a piracy reproduction of the existing bootleg.

Classic Vinyl Bootleg Revisited: THIS GUNS FOR HIRE 5LP box

Never expected to have this legendary 1980 soundboard recording officially
available when collecting these stuff more than 20 to 30 years ago...

The vinyl bootleg industry has substantially changed between THE RIVER and BORN IN THE U.S.A. eras, especially after the main activity moved from the United States to the countries of continental Europe. Not only has the sound quality generally been improved, but the sleeve artwork, often deluxe and colored, has become more professional and attractive when compared to the US bootleg standards of amateurish slick covers. 

Collecting log: More on DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN Japanese LP (1st press)

A two-page advertisement from a major Japanese music
magazine issued around the time of the album release.
This portrait picture has been used for promotional posters.

Back in 1978, the promotion of Springsteen's then new album DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN (CBS/SONY 25AP 1000) was handled here in Japan by Mr. Ryo Okada of CBS/SONY Records. As already mentioned in the past blog, upon the release of THE PROMISE box (SONY SIPC 2971-6) in 2010 to commemorate the 32th anniversary of the album, he was interviewed about the struggle of promoting this dark-toned album following enthusiastic BORN TO RUN, which is included in the booklet exclusive to the Japanese edition of the box set. In the interview, one thing he emphasizes is how he really wished Badlands (CBS/SONY 06SP 256) could be cut, instead of Prove It All Night (CBS/SONY 06SP 232), as the lead-off single to get more airplay on the radio for achieving the commercial success and spotlight on this album. This interview also contains some information that might attract interest from record collectors like me, a part of which has already been introduced in the aforementioned blog article. In the following, though trivial, I attempt to summarize the rest of such information particularly related to this LP.

Collecting log: DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN Japanese white label LP with an extremely rare promotional booklet (concluded)

In my collection, one of the Japan-pressed vinyls for DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN (CBS/SONY 25AP 1000) seems to comprise an almost complete (or full) set of promotional items. This particular copy comes with a white label promo (WLP) LP, two separately stapled fact sheets, and the promotional 20-page booklet, as well as the regular inclusions (i.e., a printed inner sleeve, a lyric sheet, and the Japan-only fold-out insert featuring liner notes by Japanese critics and the translation of lyrics into Japanese). Here, most widely circulated promotional releases of the fourth album are WLP without any other promo addition. Those with fact sheet(s) or advertising flyer(s) are less frequently found, but often appear on online auction or used record websites. However, I dare say that the WLP copies accompanied with the promo-only booklet are impossibly hard to come across.