Keith Hirsch’s CD Resource

The latest disc to be featured here is an unusual Target CD that I found recently at a book/media sale for just $4.  It is a West German Target pressing of Linda Ronstadt Greatest Hits that was issued for the Columbia House Music Club.  This disc is likely among the earliest to be issued through Columbia House, and I assume it is quite rare.

The disc is on the Asylum label and bears catalog number E2-106.   The E2 prefix is typical of a Columbia House release, and the ‘E’ stands for Elektra, the parent label of Asylum.  This catalog number is derived from the one used for the retail release, which is 106-2. 

Pictures of the disc and back insert for the Columbia House issue are shown below.  The disc is very similar to the retail West German Target pressing.  A key difference is the catalog number, as already mentioned.  Additionally, the Columbia House disc lacks the “GEMA” symbol beneath the CD format logo at 3 o’clock.  The Columbia House issue has “MADE IN WEST GERMANY BY POLYGRAM” printed along the perimeter of the disc, but it also has “MADE IN W. GERMANY BY PDO” stamped on the play side near the center hole.  Thus, it was pressed at the West German PDO plant (Philips-DuPont Optical).

The back insert lacks a barcode, which is typical of early Columbia House releases.  It was printed in the U.S.  It has “Manufactured by Columbia House Under License” printed along the bottom edge.

This is the third unusual Target pressing of Linda Ronstadt Greatest Hits that I have obtained.  The other two are a West German pressing bearing catalog number 64106-2 instead of the common 106-2 and a U.S. PDO pressing with catalog number 106-2.  Both of these are early retail issues.  There also exists a U.S. Target pressing for Columbia House with catalog number E2-106.

The West German Target CD of Linda Ronstadt Greatest Hits for the Columbia House Music Club (Asylum, catalog number E2-106).  The disc has “MADE IN WEST GERMANY BY POLYGRAM” printed along the perimeter and “MADE IN W. GERMANY BY PDO” stamped on the play side near the center hole, thus indicating that it was pressed at the PDO plant.  The matrix code is “7559 64106-2 2893 039 02 #”.

The back insert for the West German Target CD of Linda Ronstadt Greatest Hits for the Columbia House Music Club (Asylum, catalog number E2-106).  As indicated, it was printed in the U.S.  Note the text “Manufactured by Columbia House Under License” along the bottom edge.  There is no barcode, as is common for early Columbia House issues.

Part 4 in this series of Phonogram label entries covered the Vertigo label. This post was entered below on January 31, 2009.

After a three-month hiatus, I thought it was high time to continue with the Phonogram series of label variations.  Featured here is the Casablanca label.  This label is particularly interesting, as it offers collectors three distinct and eye-appealing designs among West German pressings.  The earliest design is the “pink swirls”, for lack of a better description.  As is typical for other Phonogram labels, this design was utilized for only a select grouping of the earliest Casablanca titles, and discs with this design are very rare.

The second design is the “yellow, black, and silver swirls”.  While discs with this design are more common than those with the pink swirls, they are still relatively rare.  Some Casablanca titles were first issued with this design.  The third and final design, and by far the most common of the three, is the “yellow and silver rays”.  Many Casablanca titles were first issued with this design.

The three label designs are shown below for West German pressings of Donna Summer Walk Away: Collector’s Edition, The Best of 1977-1980 (catalog number 810 011-2).  The matrix code for all three discs is “810011 2 01″.

Note: Two of the three designs highighted here were also used by Phonogram for certain titles on its Charisma label.  The earliest design is the “purple swirls”, which is the pink swirls design featured here with a color change and a few other subtle differences.  The second design is the yellow and silver rays.  The Charisma label will be the subject of a future post.  Stay tuned!

The first label design for a West German pressing of Donna Summer Walk Away: Collector’s Edition, The Best of 1977-1980 (Casablanca, catalog number 810 011-2).  The disc shows the early “pink swirls” label design.  As is typical for the earliest design for a particular Phonogram label, the disc has “MADE IN W-GERMANY” printed in the interior portion of the label.

The second label design for a West German pressing of Donna Summer Walk Away: Collector’s Edition, The Best of 1977-1980 (Casablanca, catalog number 810 011-2).  The disc shows the “yellow, black, and silver swirls” label design.  Note that the disc has “MADE IN W.GERMANY BY POLYGRAM” printed along the perimeter, which is typical of later designs for Phonogram titles.

The third label design for a West German pressing of Donna Summer Walk Away: Collector’s Edition, The Best of 1977-1980 (Casablanca, catalog number 810 011-2).  The disc shows the “yellow and silver rays” label design.  Note that the disc has “MADE IN W.GERMANY BY POLYGRAM” printed along the perimeter.  This particular disc also has “MADE IN W. GERMANY BY PDO” stamped on the label side near the center hole, indicating that the disc was pressed at the Philips-DuPont Optical plant.

I had previously posted in my Target CD Gallery here that Japanese pressings of Atlantic titles made for the U.S. market were only issued as Non-Target CDs.  As is evidenced by the CD featured here, I now know that this is untrue, and I have corrected my Gallery entry accordingly.  Shown here is a Japanese Target CD of Bette Midler No Frills, released in the U.S. by Atlantic under catalog number 7 80070-2.  The disc was pressed by Sanyo and has the expected “MANUFACTURED BY SANYO JAPAN” stamped in the mirror band.  As shown below, the disc has a rather ordinary black target design with no color coating (appropriate given the album title).  Sanyo pressed similar Target CDs of other WEA titles for the U.S. market.  Examples include Fleetwood Mac Rumours (Warner Bros., catalog number 3010-2) and The Doobie Brothers Minute by Minute (Warner Bros., catalog number 3193-2).

The back insert for the Midler Target CD says “Printed in Japan by Sanyo”.  It appears at this time that this is a very rare Target CD pressing.  In fact, this is the only copy I am currently aware of, and it remains the only Japan-for-U.S. Target CD I have come across on the Atlantic label.  There is also a Japanese Non-Target pressing of No Frills that was pressed by Sanyo.  The disc has the same layout as the Target CD except that the Target design is missing.  I saw a copy on eBay in late 2008 and have not seen another copy.

I only learned of this Target CD recently.  It is rare nowadays that I learn of a new Target CD, but I naturally wonder if other undiscovered rarities are out there.

The Japanese Target CD of Bette Midler No Frills (Atlantic, catalog number 7 80070-2).  The disc was pressed for the U.S. market and is the only such Japanese Target CD on the Atlantic label currently known.  It was pressed by Sanyo, as evidenced by “MANUFACTURED BY SANYO JAPAN” stamped in the mirror band.

The back insert for the Japanese Target CD of Bette Midler No Frills (Atlantic, catalog number 7 80070-2).  Note the text “Printed in Japan by Sanyo” at the end of the copyright paragraph in red.

The disc featured here I obtained recently and is a bit of an oddity. It is an early Japanese Matsushita pressing of Chicago Chicago 16. The disc is on the WEA label, not Warner Bros., which signifies that it was issued in Europe and possibly other foreign markets (i.e., outside the U.S.). This is supported by the fact that the disc and inserts feature the European catalog number, 299 235. One rarely sees Japanese pressings of WEA titles outside the U.S., and additionally, early Matsushita pressings of WEA titles are particularly uncommon.

The disc is shown below. The bright green text is another unusual feature of this early pressing. As stated above, the disc is an early Matsushita pressing. This is evident from the text stamped on the plastic ring — “MADE BY MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC IND.CO.LTD.”  The Technics logo is also stamped on the plastic ring, as Matsushita is the parent company to Technics.

As noted in the picture, the disc says “MADE IN JAPAN BY MATSUSHITA” along the perimeter at the bottom. Note the space between “JAPAN” and “BY” and, at 12 o’clock, the space between “RESERVED” and “UNAUTHORIZED”. These spaces indicate that WEA used a text template from a Target CD, as the spaces would be filled by perimeter target squares. One sees the same spaces on Japanese Non-Target Sanyo pressings of WEA titles for the U.S. market. These Sanyo pressings have black text. All in all, this Chicago disc bears a resemblance to those early Sanyo pressings.

The inserts with this disc were printed in Japan. The back insert says “Printed in Japan by Matsushita”.

The Japanese Matsushita pressing of Chicago Chicago 16 (WEA, catalog number 299 235).  The disc was issued in Europe and possibly other foreign markets.  Note that the U.S. catalog number, 23689-2, appears in small print beneath the European catalog number.  The disc has “MADE BY MATSUSHITA ELECTRIC IND.CO.LTD.” and the Technics logo stamped on the plastic ring.  The matrix code is “W A-23689″ in a crude, “hand-written” font.

Part 3 in this series of Phonogram label entries covered the Mercury label. This post was entered below on October 29, 2008.

With the fourth entry in this series, we turn our attention to the Vertigo label.  Two primary designs were used for Vertigo CDs pressed in West Germany in the 1980s.  The designs fit the label name.  The first design, used only for the earliest Vertigo titles released on CD, I refer to as the “blue-spiral” label.  One normally finds this design only for titles with a catalog number of the form 800 xxx-2.  The second design, which is considerably more common, is the “orange-wave” design.

Titles that were first released with the blue-spiral label were subsequenly issued with the orange-wave label.  Later Vertigo titles made their first appearance on CD with the orange-wave design.  The orange-wave design was used in Europe for many years.  Later French and German pressings can be found with this design, for example.  In fact, significantly later pressings with a clear plastic ring at the center of the disc are even found with the orange-wave design.  Finally, some Philips titles were also pressed in West Germany with the orange-wave label.

For some titles, there are variations of the blue-spiral label.  The earliest such discs have blue text and say “MADE IN W-GERMANY” within the label’s interior.  Subsequent pressings with the blue-spiral design have black text and say “MADE IN W.GERMANY BY POLYGRAM” or “MADE IN W.GERMANY” in silver along the perimeter.

Shown below are three West German pressings of Dire Straits Love Over Gold on the Vertigo label.  Two show the blue-spiral design, while the third shows the orange-wave design.  The catalog number for all three discs is 800 088-2.  All three discs share the same matrix code — “800088 2 01″.  It should be noted that these Love Over Gold CDs were issued outside of the U.S.  For simplicity, I refer to these discs as European issues. Note that Dire Straits’ catalog has been issued by WEA in the U.S. 

The first West German pressing of Dire Straits Love Over Gold for the European market (Vertigo, catalog number 800 088-2).  The disc shows the early “blue-spiral” label design.  Note the blue text and “MADE IN W-GERMANY” on the interior portion of the label.  Also note the aluminum ring at the center.

The second West German pressing of Dire Straits Love Over Gold for the European market (Vertigo, catalog number 800 088-2).  The disc shows the early “blue-spiral” label design.  Note the black text and “MADE IN W.GERMANY BY POLYGRAM” in silver along the perimeter.  Also note the blue spiral extending to the center ring as compared to the first pressing shown above.

The third West German pressing of Dire Straits Love Over Gold for the European market (Vertigo, catalog number 800 088-2).  The disc shows the later and more common ”orange-wave” label design.  This disc carries over some elements of the second blue-spiral design shown above, namely the black text, “MADE IN W.GERMANY BY POLYGRAM” along the perimeter in silver, and the label motif appearing in the center ring.

Back in September, I posted a feature on the original Japanese CD issue of Herb Alpert’s famous album, Fandango.  You may find the write-up here.

I cited the Japanese disc as being one of just two legitimate issues of Fandango on CD.  The second one is featured here.  It is the rare U.S. issue with A&M catalog number CD 3731.  In my experience, this disc is even less common than the Japanese issue.

There are two pressings of the U.S. issue of Fandango, a Japanese pressing and a U.S. pressing.  Shown is the U.S. pressing.  The disc was pressed by Denon.  The matrix code is “CD3731 9/88 1DA1″.  This suggests that the disc was pressed in September 1988, which is later than I would have expected.

When comparing this U.S. issue to the Japanese issue, two differences are noteworthy.  First, the U.S. disc has “Fandango” reproduced to match the original album artwork.  By comparison, the Japanese disc has “FANDANGO” printed in plain block letters.  Second, the U.S. issue has the “aad” SPARS code (analog-analog-digital) at 6 o’clock, whereas the Japanese issue has A&M’s “AM+ Audio Master Plus Series” logo in this spot.  A&M dropped the AM+ logo from U.S. issues in the late ’80s.  The fact that the U.S. Fandango disc does not have this logo further supports the notion that it was pressed in 1988.

Shown below is the U.S. pressing of Fandango and the accompanying back insert.

The U.S. issue of Herb Alpert Fandango (A&M, catalog number CD 3731).  The disc was pressed in the U.S. by Denon.  The matrix code is “CD3731 9/88 1DA1″, suggesting that the disc was pressed in September 1988.

The back insert for the U.S. issue of Herb Alpert Fandango (A&M, catalog number CD 3731).

In the spirit of the holiday season, I thought I would share information on a rare Christmas CD that it took me quite awhile to obtain.  It is the original European issue of the classic Carpenters album Christmas Portrait.  The disc was pressed in West Germany and was released by A&M under catalog number of 394 726-2.  What makes this disc unique is that it represents the only issue on CD to mirror the LP issue with 17 tracks.  When Christmas Portrait was to be issued on CD, Richard Carpenter had intended to release a “Special Edition” with 21 tracks — the original 17, plus four more.  For one reason or another, the original LP version was released on CD in Europe and was pulled off the shelves quickly and then replaced with the Special Edition.

In other markets, all issues of Christmas Portrait are the Special Edition.  It is quite easy to distinguish the rare European issue from the Special Edition.  Of course, one should check the number of tracks on the disc.  Also, the Special Edition is so labeled on the cover.  One other interesting difference is that the original European disc lacks the choir track on “Ave Maria” (track 17), while the choir track appears on the Special Edition.  “Ave Maria” appeared without the choir track on the LP due to the fact that the tapes containing the choir parts had been lost.  Some years later, these tapes were found, and the Special Edition has the choir track added in.

Shown below are pictures of the rare European disc and the accompanying cover.  For me, the holidays are not right without a Carpenters Christmas CD of some kind playing in the background.  This particular disc is extra special to me due to its rarity and the history behind it.

Happy Holidays!

The cover for the original European CD of Carpenters Christmas Portrait (A&M, catalog number 394 726-2).  The catalog number appears in the lower right corner.  The poster in the painting lists the 17 tracks on the disc, which match the 17 tracks on the original LP.  The considerably more common Special Edition, which was released subsequently in Europe and also in all other markets, is labeled “SPECIAL EDITION” at the top of the poster.  The poster then lists 21 tracks.

The original European issue of Carpenters Christmas Portrait (A&M, catalog number 394 726-2).  As noted along the perimeter, the disc was pressed in West Germany by Polygram.  The matrix code is “394 726-2 01″.  Note that 17 tracks are listed.  A West German PDO pressing with 17 tracks also exists.  The disc is identical to the one above except that it has “MADE IN W. GERMANY BY PDO” stamped on the play side near the center hole.

Lately, I have been entering a new post here on a monthly basis.  The last post was entered below on October 29th, so one would expect a new post at the end of November.  That was my original plan, and I was going to post a rare Christmas CD in keeping with the holiday season.  Well, I am here early because I have a rare disc that I feel is worthy of being highlighted here but does not fit the holiday theme.  I also did not want to until after the holidays to share it, so here it goes.  Where did the one-month rule come from anyway?

The subject of today’s post is the very rare Japanese pressing of Ozzy Osbourne Bark at the Moon for the U.S. market.  I found this disc at a used CD shop recently.  Prior to finding the Japanese pressing, I thought that it might have existed, but I had never seen one.  Of course, I was shocked when I saw it staring at me in the bins.  I would love to know just how many copies were pressed.

The catalog number for Bark at the Moon is ZK 38987, and it was issued on the CBS Associated label.  The back cover of the booklet and the back insert have a copyright statement that begins with “Disc manufactured in Japan…”  This is why I had always assumed that the Japanese pressing existed.  Common U.S. pressings are found with a back insert modified with “Now Made In The U.S.A.” stamped next to the barcode.  The Japanese pressing lacks this stamp on the back insert.  The same observation was highlighted in the July 27, 2008 post below showing the Japan-for-U.S. pressing of Janis Joplin Pearl.

Shown here is the Bark at the Moon CD and the back insert.

The original Japanese CBS/Sony pressing of Ozzy Osbourne Bark at the Moon (CBS Associated, catalog number ZK 38987).  Note that the disc states “MANUFACTURED IN JAPAN” along the perimeter at the bottom.  There is no text stamped on the clear plastic ring, and the matrix code is “DIDP-20044 41″.

The back insert accompanying the original Japanese CBS/Sony pressing of Ozzy Osbourne Bark at the Moon (CBS Associated, catalog number ZK 38987).  Note that it does not bear the “Now Made In The U.S.A.” stamp in the white space next to the barcode.