Steve Earle. You can be forgiven if the name does not register. This is because Earle does not fit neatly into a genre and, perhaps as a result, has not enjoyed extended mainstream success. Earle’s music and style can be thought of country, rock, pop, folk or, more aptly, a combination of all of these genres. After several years of songwriting and playing in backing bands in Nashville and Texas, Earle got his big break in 1986, signing with MCA Records and releasing his debut album, Guitar Town. The album afforded Earle two top-ten hits, the title track and “Goodbye’s All We’ve Got Left”.

MCA released Guitar Town on CD in the U.S. and Europe in 1986 under catalog number MCAD-5713. The first copies of Guitar Town were pressed in West Germany by the PolyGram plant in Hanover. This is noteworthy because the majority of CDs released by MCA in the mid-’80s were pressed in Japan (by JVC or Denon). West German pressings of MCA titles are few and far between by comparison.

The West German pressing of Guitar Town has PolyGram’s trademark hub with aluminum to the center hole (i.e., no clear plastic ring). The matrix code is “MCAD-5713 2896 388 01 #”. Both the disc and inserts show “JVC-524”, which is a project number similar to DIDX or DIDP numbers seen on titles pressed by CBS/Sony or DADC. The inclusion of the JVC number suggests that Guitar Town was slated for a Japanese JVC pressing. Such a pressing of Guitar Town does not exist.

Shown below is the cover and back insert for the original CD issues of Guitar Town, along with the West German pressing.

The cover for the West German pressing of Steve Earle Guitar Town (MCA, catalog number MCAD-5713). This is the standard cover artwork for this album.

The back insert for the West German pressing of Steve Earle Guitar Town (MCA, catalog number MCAD-5713). This insert is dated 1986. “JVC-524” is printed in the bottom right corner. Despite this, there is no early Japanese JVC pressing of Guitar Town.

The West German PolyGram pressing of Steve Earle Guitar Town (MCA, catalog number MCAD-5713). There is no clear plastic ring at the center of the disc. The matrix code is “MCAD-5713 2896 388 01 #”. “Manufactured in West Germany” is printed below the CD format logo at 3 o’clock.

A fun part of collecting early CDs is the challenge of finding particularly rare pressings or pressing variations. For some titles, there are multiple early Japanese or West German pressings for the completist to track down. How did this come about? Well, back in the early days of the format, CD pressing plants had limited production capabilities. As a result, popular titles were often produced at more than one plant, possibly in more than one country, to meet the demand. Let’s get to a specific case — the original Carpenters compilation, The Singles 1969-1973. Considering the original U.S. CD release by A&M (catalog number CD-3601), there are four different Japanese pressings and West German PolyGram and PDO pressings.

The U.S. issue of The Singles 1969-1973 was pressed in Japan by CBS/Sony, Denon, JVC, and Matsushita. All of these pressings bear catalog number CD-3601. In my experience, there are variations in where the inserts were printed among these pressings as follows:

• CBS/Sony: Booklet printed in the U.S., back insert printed in Japan
• Denon and JVC: Booklet and back insert printed in the U.S.
• Matsushita: Booklet and back insert printed in Japan

From the above list, one could assume that the Matsushita pressing came first, the CBS/Sony pressing came next, and the Denon and JVC pressings were released later. This cannot be confirmed, but it is a reasonable supposition.

Another interesting consideration for early pressings of The Singles 1969-1973 is that early pressings, Japanese, West German, and early U.S. DADC, are found with sped-up versions of “Superstar”, “Rainy Days and Mondays”, and “Goodbye to Love” and the original single mix of “Yesterday Once More”.  So with this title, the collector has the challenge of finding a number of rare early pressings, all of which have unique content.

For the remainder of this post, we consider the Japanese Matsushita pressing of The Singles 1969-1973. The disc has the telltale signs of an early Matsushita pressing. It has “MADE BY MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC IND.CO.LTD.” and the Technics logo stamped on the clear plastic ring, and the matrix code is simply “3601 2”. The matrix code looks like handwriting. The disc has “MADE IN JAPAN” printed at 5 o’clock. As stated earlier in this post, the booklet and back insert were printed in Japan. There is no barcode on the back insert.

In my experience, all Japan-for-U.S. pressings of The Singles 1969-1973 are rare, but the Matsushita and CBS/Sony pressings are the rarest of the four. If you are a collector, grab any Japanese pressing you can find, as they all have the unique content mentioned above. With persistence, you should be able to find all four searching online and in used CD shops.

Shown below are the cover and back insert for The Singles 1969-1973, along with the Japanese Matsushita pressing.

The cover for the Japanese Matsushita pressing of The Singles 1969-1973 (A&M, catalog number CD-3601). This is the standard cover artwork for this compilation. The back page of the front insert indicates that it was printed in Japan.

The back insert for the Japanese Matsushita pressing of The Singles 1969-1973 (A&M, catalog number CD-3601). There is no barcode. As noted along the bottom, this insert was printed in Japan.

The Japanese Matsushita pressing of The Singles 1969-1973 (A&M, catalog number CD-3601). The disc has MADE BY MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC IND.CO.LTD.” and the Technics logo stamped on the clear plastic ring. The matrix code is “3601 2”. “MADE IN JAPAN” is printed at 5 o’clock.

When looking at early CDs, one of the more intriguing labels is CBS Records. In the 1980s, the CBS umbrella included titles across many genres under the parent label, as well as Columbia, Epic, and several smaller labels. It seems that CBS had the collector in mind, as a particular album was given distinct CD releases for the Japanese, U.S., and European markets. The original CBS CDs for these three markets were pressed, for the most part, at the CBS/Sony production plant in Japan. Early Japan-for-U.S. and Japan-for-Europe CBS/Sony pressings of CBS Records titles have been discussed here many times over, and scans of some of these discs, many of which are quite rare, appear in the Gallery.

As the demand for CDs grew globally, record labels could justify domestic or regional production, resulting in supply efficiencies and lower costs. By 1985, CBS in the U.S. replaced Japan-for-U.S. with domestic pressings from its Digital Audio Disc Corp. (DADC) plant in Terre Haute, Indiana. Similarly, CBS opened a DADC plant in Austria in 1987 to supply CDs to countries across Europe.

Focusing on Europe, the transition for CBS can generally be thought of as Japan to Austria. In reality, the transition was not always so straightforward. Recall the point of growing local demand for CDs. In Japan, CBS saw the need to direct production at its CBS/Sony plant to meet demands at home. As a result, CBS in Europe turned to various countries to meet demand. For certain mid-’80s European CBS releases, we see pressings from France, the U.K., and West Germany. Occasionally, U.S. pressings were released Europe. In this post, we consider a U.S.-for-Europe pressing for CBS.

1983 saw Billy Joel release another hit-filled album, An Innocent Man. Included on this 10-track effort are the radio staples, “The Longest Time”, “Tell Her About It”, “Uptown Girl”, “Keeping the Faith”, and the title track. An Innocent Man was originally released on CD as distinct Japanese CBS/Sony pressings for the Japanese, U.S., and European markets (recall that CBS is an intriguing label for collectors). In the U.S., the Japanese pressing was replaced by seemingly countless U.S. DADC pressings (quite easy to find used). In Europe, Austrian pressings became the norm. However, there is a very rare U.S. pressing of An Innocent Man that made its way to Europe.

CBS released An Innocent Man in Europe under catalog number CDCBS 25554. The U.S.-for-Europe CD of An Innocent Man was pressed by DADC in Terre Haute. Typical of an early U.S. DADC pressing, the disc has “Made in USA – Digital Disc Corp.” stamped on the clear plastic ring at the center. It also has “MANUFACTURED BY CBS/SONY IN U.S.A.” printed along the perimeter. The particular DADC pressing considered here has matrix code “DIDP 50077 11A4”. This matrix code is unique to the U.S. pressing in that “DIDP 50077” is not found on later Austrian pressings. By virtue of the matrix code, the U.S.-for-Europe pressing was made from the same glass master used to produce discs for the U.S. market. Only the label designs differ between the U.S.-for-Europe and U.S.-for-U.S. discs. The label design on the U.S.-for-Europe disc is the same as that found on Japan-for-Europe and early Austrian pressings of An Innocent Man.

The U.S.-for-Europe pressing of An Innocent Man is accompanied by European inserts. The same inserts are found with earlier Japan-for-Europe pressings. In fact, the back insert with the U.S.-for-Europe disc states “Made by CBS/Sony in Japan”.

Shown below is the booklet and back insert for the U.S.-for-Europe issue of An Innocent Man, along with the U.S. DADC pressing. U.S. DADC pressings exist for several early European CBS releases, and they are all very rare in my experience.

The cover for the U.S.-for-Europe pressing of An Innocent Man (CBS, catalog number CDCBS 25554). This is the standard cover artwork for this album.

The back insert for the U.S.-for-Europe pressing of An Innocent Man (CBS, catalog number CDCBS 25554). There is no barcode, which is typical of early European CBS releases. This same insert was issued with the earlier Japanese CBS/Sony pressing as noted by the statement “Made by CBS/Sony in Japan” in the paragraph at the bottom.

The U.S.-for-Europe pressing of An Innocent Man (CBS, catalog number CDCBS 25554). The disc was pressed by DADC plant in Terre Haute, Indiana. It has “Made in USA – Digital Audio Disc Corp.” stamped on the clear plastic ring at the center, and “MANUFACTURED BY CBS/SONY IN U.S.A.” printed along the perimeter. The matrix code is “DIDP 50077 11A4”.

As we approach the Independence Day holiday in the United States, let’s further the celebration by considering an early and rare U.S. pressing.  And, in keeping with the theme, let’s also consider an album that, at least in part, features the U.S.A. Behold the 1979 rock blockbuster by Supertramp, Breakfast in America. Yes, Supertramp is a British rock band (formed in London in 1969). Putting that aside, the album is America-themed, and comically at that. Take the album’s cover, which features a diner-ware tribute to New York City and a stereotypical diner waitress posing as the Statue of Liberty.

The brilliant music aside (10 excellent songs), Breakfast in America is a hit for collectors of early CDs. The album was released on CD by A&M Records in the mid-’80s in the U.S., Europe, and Japan. The U.S. and European markets each saw Japanese and West German pressings, with some of these pressings specific to a particular market. Looking at the U.S. releases, there is a very rare Japanese CBS/Sony pressing released under catalog number CD-3708 and bearing “DIDX-26” in the matrix code. Collectors should be thrilled upon finding this rarity, but a similar pressing that is also quite rare, and perhaps underappreciated, is the subsequent early U.S. DADC pressing.

The early U.S. DADC pressing is quite similar to the Japanese CBS/Sony pressing. Both bear catalog number CD-3708 and are found with inserts printed with the U.S. and with no barcode on the back insert. The disc label designs are also similar, with an obvious difference being the stated country of manufacture. Similar to the CBS/Sony disc, the U.S. DADC pressing is labeled “DIDX-26” beneath the catalog number and has “DIDX 26” in the matrix code. In typical DADC fashion, the disc has “Made in USA – Digital Audio Corp.” stamped on the plastic ring. The particular copy shown here has matrix code “DIDX 26 11”.

Shown below are the cover and back insert found with the early DADC pressing of Breakfast in America, along with the CD. As stated above, this DADC pressing is quite rare. It took me many years to track it down.

For those celebrating, have a happy and safe Fourth of July!

The cover for the early U.S. DADC pressing of Supertramp Breakfast in America (A&M, catalog number CD-3708). This is the standard cover artwork for this album.

The back insert for the early U.S. DADC pressing of Supertramp Breakfast in America (A&M, catalog number CD-3708). There is no barcode. As noted along the bottom, this insert was printed in the U.S.  The catalog number and DIDX number appear along the bottom to the right of the A&M logo.

The early U.S. DADC pressing of Supertramp Breakfast in America (A&M, catalog number CD-3708). “Made in U.S.A.” is printed at 6 o’clock. The catalog number and “DIDX-26” appear beneath the A&M logo. The disc has “Made in USA – Digital Audio Disc Corp.” stamped on the plastic ring, and the matrix code is “DIDX 26 11”.

When considering the British Invasion of the early 1960s, a band that is sometimes forgotten but should not be by virtue of their hits and wonderful melodies is The Zombies. Formed in London, The Zombies developed their sound thanks to Rod Argent’s organ and piano and Colin Blunstone’s unique vocals. Their first of three hit singles came on their debut album in 1964 with “She’s Not There”. The second hit is 1965’s “Tell Her No”. The third hit, generally considered their best known, is “Time of the Season”, which appeared on 1969’s Odessey and Oracle.

The Zombies released Odessey and Oracle in 1968. Given the release date, the album takes on a bit of a psychedelic character and represents a departure from the band’s earlier efforts. Interestingly, the album was largely overlooked until “Time of the Season” was released as a single in 1970. Sadly, The Zombies had broken up by then. On the plus side, the popularity of the single gave the album a heightened status, and over time, the remaining 11 tracks became appreciated by classic rock enthusiasts.

Odessey and Oracle is now considered a gem of the psychedelic rock era. As such, the album has been issued and reissued many times on CD over the years, in all major markets. Here, we consider the original U.S. CD issue. Odessey and Oracle was first released on CD in the U.S. in 1987 by Rhino Records under catalog number RNCD 70186. This version offers 14 tracks, with “I’ll Call You Mine” and “Imagine the Swan” tacked on at the end, therefore after the original 12 album tracks.

Collectors looking for a Japanese or West German pressing will not find one for this Rhino issue. By 1987, most CDs intended for the U.S. market were pressed domestically, as a number of pressing plants had opened to meet the rapidly growing demand. For Odessey and Oracle, the first copies were pressed in the U.S. by LaserVideo. The disc sports a red coating with black text with a black outer ring, along with the Rhino logo in aluminum characters “cut out” from a black coating.

The disc label does not actually state where it was produced, but its origin is revealed in the mirror band. There, one finds the text “MANUFACTURED IN U.S.A. BY LASERVIDEO INC.”, typical for this pressing plant. The disc is also undated, but the back insert is dated 1987. There is no barcode on the back insert.

Despite the popularity of Odessey and Oracle, the original Rhino issue is surprisingly hard to find in my experience. Shown below is the cover and back insert for this Rhino release, along with the LaserVideo pressing.

The cover for the original U.S. issue of The Zombies Odessey and Oracle (Rhino, catalog number RNCD 70186). This is the standard cover artwork for this album.

The back insert for the original U.S. issue of The Zombies Odessey and Oracle (Rhino, catalog number RNCD 70186). It is dated 1987 along the bottom, and there is no barcode. This release contains 14 tracks, with “I’ll Call You Mine” and “Imagine the Swan” included as bonus tracks.

The U.S. LaserVideo plant pressing of The Zombies Odessey and Oracle (Rhino, catalog number RNCD 70186). The label design is typical of U.S. Rhino releases from the late ’80s. Although the disc label does not state the country of manufacture, it has “MANUFACTURED IN U.S.A. BY LASERVIDEO INC.” stamped in the mirror band.

In the early days of the CD, GRP Records (Grusin-Rosen Productions) quickly established itself as a leading audiophile label of the digital era. Founded in 1978 by Dave Grusin and Larry Rosen, GRP focused on then-contemporary jazz fusion (blend of jazz, rock, and pop). Starting naturally in vinyl and cassettes, GRP embraced digital audio and began releasing CDs in 1983. Like many other labels, GRP often boasted the use of digital recordings. That brings us to our latest featured CD.

Glenn Miller goes digital: GRP’s second CD release in the U.S. was a digital recording of The Glenn Miller Orchestra, (somewhat) appropriately titled “In The Digital Mood”, a punny take on the Miller classic “In The Mood”. This recording was released on CD in 1983 under U.S. catalog number GRP-D-9502. Fittingly, “In The Mood” is the album’s first track. Overall, the recording includes 10 digital recordings by The Glenn Miller Orchestra conducted by Larry O’Brien. The back insert explains the album as follows:

“This album contains the original Glenn Miller arrangements…the only updating was in the method of recording digitally…an aural pleasure created by the melding of yesterday’s music with tomorrow’s technology.”

The back insert also states “FULL DIGITAL RECORDING” above the track list. As was common for 1983, the back insert has no barcode. The first CDs of “In The Digital Mood” to hit the shelves in the U.S. were pressed in Japan by JVC. The copy shown here bears matrix code “VDP 8 1 S10E12”. The portion of the matrix code “VDP 8” represents the catalog number of the original Japanese release of this album. Thus, the first U.S. release was produced from the same glass master as the Japanese issue. Also, the matrix code lacks hyphens separating character groupings, which is an indicator of an early JVC pressing (i.e., “VDP 8 1 S10E12” vs. “VDP-8-1-S10E12”).

Shown below is the cover and back insert for the Japan-for-U.S. pressing of “In The Digital Mood”, along with the Japanese JVC pressing.

The cover for the Japan-for-U.S. pressing of The Glenn Miller Orchestra “In The Digital Mood” (GRP, catalog number GRP-D-9502). This is the standard cover artwork for this album.

The back insert for the Japan-for-U.S. pressing of The Glenn Miller Orchestra “In The Digital Mood” (GRP, catalog number GRP-D-9502). There is no barcode. The catalog number is printed in the bottom right corner.

The Japan-for-U.S. pressing of The Glenn Miller Orchestra “In The Digital Mood” (GRP, catalog number GRP-D-9502). The disc was pressed by JVC, and the matrix code is “VDP 8 1 S10E12”. “VDP 8” is the catalog number for the original Japanese issue of this album. The disc has “Made in Japan” printed along the perimeter at 4 o’clock.

This month, we consider a 1962 jazz album from the ever-popular Blue Note catalog. It is trumpeter Freddie Hubbard’s cleverly titled Hub-Tones. The album, released when Hubbard was just 24 but already well-established, is a five-track effort. Hub-Tones opens with an interpretation of the standard “You’re My Everything” and is followed up by four tracks written by Hubbard himself.

Hub-Tones is a quintet performance, with Hubbard joined by James Spaulding on alto sax and flute, Herbie Hancock on piano, Reginald Workman on bass, and Clifford Jarvis on drums. All five tracks were recorded on October 10, 1962. Like many Blue Note albums of the era, Hub-Tones was recorded by the legendary Rudy Van Gelder and was produced by Alfred Lion.

Blue Note introduced their catalog on CD for the U.S. market in the mid-1980s. Unfortunately for collectors, few of these titles exist as Japanese or West German pressings. Those that do are generally rare. All is not lost, however. Many of these Blue Note albums were initially pressed in the U.S. by LaserVideo. These LaserVideo pressings are also quite rare. For Hub-Tones, we will look at a LaserVideo pressing. There is no Japan-for-U.S. or West German pressing of Hub-Tones.

Hub-Tones was first released in the U.S. under catalog number CDP 7 46507 2. If the catalog number format looks familiar, note that Blue Note is part of Capitol Records. Thus, early Blue Note catalog numbers follow the form of popular Capitol titles such as Dark Side of The Moon (catalog number CDP 7 46001 2). Hub-Tones, like many early Blue Note CDs, was mastered by Ron McMaster. His work is generally well regarded by audiophiles and is characterized by a smooth, natural sound. In fact, McMaster’s masters are often preferred to those in the Blue Note “RVG” remastered series currently in print.

The LaserVideo pressing of Hub-Tones bears the typical Blue Note CD label design that resembles the original LP label. The CD has blue text over aluminum (no paint coating) with “BLUE NOTE” in aluminum characters “cut out” of a blue coating. The disc states “MADE IN U.S.A.” at 8 o’clock. A DIDX number also appears beneath the catalog number even though the disc was not pressed by DADC. This is common for early Blue Note titles. The mirror band contains the matrix code and additional text as follows: “10001 MANUFACTURED IN U.S.A. BY LASERVIDEO INC. CI05531 CDP46507”.

The original U.S. issue of Hub-Tones bearing catalog number CDP 7 46507 2 is common, but the LaserVideo pressing is rare and likely will take some effort to locate. Most used copies to be found are later Capitol-EMI pressings, but the thrill is in the hunt. So keep hunting!

Shown below is the cover and back insert for the original U.S. issue of Hub-Tones, along with the LaserVideo pressing.

The cover for the original U.S. issue of Freddie Hubbard Hub-Tones (Blue Note catalog number CDP 7 46507 2). This is the standard cover artwork for this album.

The back insert for the original U.S. issue of Freddie Hubbard Hub-Tones (Blue Note catalog number CDP 7 46507 2). The artwork is similar to the back of the original LP jacket. Members of the quintet appear above the track list. The catalog number is printed beneath the Blue Note logo at the top left. Credits for this recording are listed at the bottom right.

The LaserVideo pressing of Freddie Hubbard Hub-Tones (Blue Note catalog number CDP 7 46507 2). The label design is typical of early U.S. Blue Note CDs and resembles the original LP label. “MADE IN U.S.A.” is printed at 8 o’clock. The matrix information is “10001 MANUFACTURED IN U.S.A. BY LASERVIDEO INC. CI05531 CDP46507”.

As a collector, I have obtained rare early CD pressings of my favorite albums across many genres. However, collecting also has exposed me to new music, some I had heard of and some previously unknown. In this post, we show an example of new music (new to me) in the latter category. The band is Decameron. Kudos if you had heard of them before reading this post. That is not intended to be a slight of the band. Rather, it is a simple acknowledgement of their obscure status.

Decameron were a folk rock band out of the U.K., forming in 1968. Founding members were Johnny Coppin (guitar, piano, and vocals) and Dave Bell (guitar, percussion, and vocals). Additional members joined in 1969, and the band grew further in the next few years. Between 1973 and 1976, Decameron released five studio albums. Here, we consider their final release, Tomorrow’s Pantomime.

Tomorrow’s Pantomime was released in 1976 by Transatlanic Records. Coppin and Bell are joined by Dik Cadbury, Geoff March, Al Fenn, and Bob Critchley on the album. The album cover is odd, though it follows the album title, showing a mime wearing a space helmet. The album contains 10 songs, all written by Coppin and Bell.

The original CD of Tomorrow’s Pantomime was released in 1989 by Translatlanic in conjuction with German label Line Records. The catalog number for the disc is TACD 9.00775. The disc was pressed by the P+O plant in Diepholz, West Germany. P+O was and still is part of the Pallas Group and continues to press CDs in Diepholz.

The label design of the Tomorrow’s Pantomime disc is unique, though typical of Line CDs. The disc has black text over white “graph paper”. It has a clear plastic ring at the center, and the matrix code is “9.00775 P+O-3127-A 07-89”. “07-89” suggests that the glass master to press this disc was produced in July of 1989. The disc shows a Phonogram date of 1976, the year the album was first issued, and a copyright date of 1989. The disc also states “Manufactured in Western Germany by P + O, Diepholz”. Like the disc, the inserts state Western Germany instead of West Germany.

Shown below are the front and back covers of the Tomorrow’s Pantomime booklet, the back insert, and the West German pressing.

The cover for the West German pressing of Decameron Tomorrow’s Pantomime (Translatlantic/Line catalog number TACD 9.00775). This is the standard cover artwork for this album.

The back cover of the booklet for the West German pressing of Decameron Tomorrow’s Pantomime (Translatlantic/Line catalog number TACD 9.00775). The six-member lineup of Decameron is shown. Note the catalog number printed in the top right corner.

The back insert for the West German pressing of Decameron Tomorrow’s Pantomime (Translatlantic/Line catalog number TACD 9.00775). There is no barcode. The catalog number is printed in the top right corner. The insert states “Manufactured and printed in Western Germany” along the bottom.

The West German pressing of Decameron Tomorrow’s Pantomime (Translatlantic/Line catalog number TACD 9.00775). The “graph paper” label design is typical of CDs released by Line Records. The catalog number is shown at 3 o’clock, and a copyright date of 1989 is printed below the catalog number. The disc states “Manufactured in Western Germany by P + O, Diepholz” below the CD format logo. The matrix code is “9.00775 P+O-3127-A 07-89”.