Record of the week – the japanese Do You Wanna Dance

For some reason this is the japanese Ramones pressing that is hardest to find, especially the white label promo version. It is the first single on Sire, the earlier stuff was released on Philips. Maybe this one was pressed in smaller numbers, I don't really know.
But it is a nice picture sleeve, or picture sheet, as always when it comes to japanese releases.

Songs: Do You Wanna Dance?/It's A Long Way Back To Germany

Number: Sire SFL-2324

Year: 1978

Country: Japan

Matrix number: 6078 521 A  1  1 / 6078 521 A  1  1  (machine stamped)

Watch out for fake DJ sleeve!

When it comes to Ramones records it is fairly easy to recognize and avoid fakes. They are usually poorly made and more to be regarded as unofficial reissues. But there are exceptions. It is particularly difficult when it's hard to find an original to compare to.

A record that have appeared on the market a couple of times in recent years is the Italian pressing of Needles & Pins with the DJ sleeve.

The records are the real stuff but I've long suspected that the DJ sleeves are counterfeit. To be sure I managed to get another italian record with the same type of DJ sleeve. And now I am even more convinced that many of the sleeves that you see for sale are copied, not printed on a real printing press. There is a clear difference between the two sleeves. The colors are different, which could be due to ageing, but it is also a clear difference in the sharpness. And the paper-white parts on the sleeve, the parts with no colors printed, don't look real on the fake sleeve. Look at the pictures and see what I mean.  

I would be very careful before I paid a lot of money for this single. 

Copied sleeve.

The original printed sleeve.

Record of the week – the french Sheena is a Punk Rocker

Released in 1977 the Sheena single is the third Ramones 45 from France. As with the Blitzkrieg bop single the year before the people at Philips did a great job with the picture sleeve – at least with the front side. The inspiration seems to have come to an end when it was time to do something with back side – it is once again all white.
Sheena is a Punk Rocker is backed up with Commando and not I Don't Care as on most other pressings. There is no "real" promo-version of this release, only copies stamped with promo on the sleeve. I have seen copies that are rubber stamped on the back of the sleeve and others that have an emossed stamp in the upper left corner.

Songs: Sheena is a Punk Rocker/Commando

Number: Philips 6173 525

Year: 1977

Country: France

A copy with promo stamp.

A white label promo single from Portugal

Here's another one from Portugal. And this time it's a pressing that I not even knew existed until this week – a white label promo version of the Do You Remember Rock n'Roll Radio? single.
The labels are printed with "Invendavel disco de promocao" (promo not for sale) on both sides. The sleeve is the same as the stock issue.

Songs: Do You Remember Rock'n'Roll Radio?/I Want You Around

Number: Sire/Nova SIR 4037 NP

Year: 1980

Country: Portugal

Matrix: SIR 4037-A / SIR 4037-B

Notes: White label promo

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And here is the stock version:

Songs: Do You Remember Rock'n'Roll Radio?/I Want You Around

Number: Sire/Nova SIR 4037 NP

Year: 1980

Country: Portugal

Matrix: SIR 4037-A / SIR 4037-B

Notes: Stock version

The sleeve is the same for both versions:

More info about Nova and the portuguese pressings here and here.

2 X Leave Home from Portugal

Here is another pressing of Leave Home with two different versions, the portuguese issue.
This time it's clearly two different pressings, the dead wax, the run-out groove area, on version 2 is much broader (see pictures). The sleeve and the labels are different. First and second press, I suppose.

Version 1: Glossy, laminated cover. Label with larger letters. Fold-out lyrics sheet.
Matrix number side A: 6031-A   Side B: 6031-B (almost invisible)

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Version 2: Non-glossy, not laminated sleeve. Labels with smaller letters. My copy don't have the lyrics sheet.

Matrix number side A: D 6031 A   Side B: 6031-B

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The back of the sleeve:

More info about the first pressing of Leave Home here.

More about the two australian versions of Leave Home here.

The german Leave Home – two versions

Leave Home was the first Ramones album made in Germany. Later on the record was rereleased on Sire but the first press came out on Philips and has the "Original  New York Punk Rock" sticker on the sleeve. And it has Carbona Not Glue as the fifth song on side A.
But lately I found an alternative press of this record with different labels. The most common version is the one with a black circle in the middle of the label. The other version has an all blue label with different design.
Has this to do with two different pressings plants or is it a first and a second press? I don't know but the german Rocket To Russia that was released later in 1977 has the labels with a black circle. There are also small differences in the matrix number which could indicate that all blue label version is the first issue.
Maybe someone i Germany knows more about this?
The sleeves and the inlay with lyrics are identical for both versions.

Album: Leave Home

Number: Philips 6370 809

Year: 1977.

Country: Germany.

Matrix number, A-side: 10 AA6370809 1Y  320   B  1 
B-side: 10 AA6370809 2Y  320    A  1
Notes: German first press.

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Album: Leave Home

Number: Philips 6370 809

Year: 1977.

Country: Germany.

Matrix number, A-side: 10 AA6370809 1Y  320   D  1 
B-side: 10 AA6370809 2Y  320    E  1
Notes: Alternative press with different labels.

More info about the first pressing of Leave Home here.

More about the two australian versions of Leave Home here.

Record of the week: Meltdown with the Ramones

In 1978 WEA took over the distribution from Phonogram in the U.K. and the first three albums was rereleased. In 1980 the record company put out an EP to support the albums. Four tracks from three albums with focus on slower, and up until then not very typical songs on a Ramones 45.
Maybe the company hoped for a new audience with the brand new Spector-produced End Of The Century out in the stores.
Meltdown with the Ramones was only released in the U.K.

Songs: I Just Want To Have Something To Do/Here Today,Gone Tomorrow//I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend/Questioningly

Number: Sire SREP1

Year: 1980

Country: UK

The japanese Road To Ruin

The japanese pressing of Road To Ruin from 1978 is made in the same style as other editions from the country. Thick cardboard sleeve, a lyrics and infosheet in japanese and the obi. This was the first album-release on Sire records, the earlier stuff came out on Philips. As always there is a white label promo-version along with the stock copy.
The stock copy on the pictures below was exported to the U.S. and this copy has the yellow inner sleeve with lyrics, I have not seen any other japanese albums with a printed lyrics sleeve.

Album: Road To Ruin

Number: Sire RJ-7529

Year: 1978

Country: Japan.

Notes: Stock and WLP version. 

The sleeve with obi, front and back.

The lyrics sheet, front and back.

 

The stock version.

Inner sleeve with lyrics, export version.

White label promo-version.

Record of the week – Fin Del Siglo

End Of The Century was supposed to be the big breakthrough for the Ramones. The album was released in many "new" countries, one of them Argentina.
This is the first Ramones record that was released in Argentina. The original press from 1980 was made by the local MH-label under license from Sire. There is a stock version and a white label promo version of the album. The WLP has a big promo-sticker on the back of the sleeve, see scans. All titles on the cover are translated to spanish, End Of The Century is replaced by Fin Del Siglo. The sleeve is laminated only on the frontside.
End Of The Century was rereleased in Argentina in 1984 under Sire/WEA (WEA 80098), once again with a WL promo version. The repress has a white WEA logo in the lower left corner of the sleeve.
Here is the original press:

 Front.

 Back – not laminated.

 Label.

 Innersleeve with lyrics. Spanish titles.

 The promo label.

Promo sticker on the back of the sleeve.

Ramones on Direct Metal Mastering

The final development of the vinyl mastering technology was made in Germany in the 1980's. After that the compact disc swept the vinyl away. This last way of making vinyl records was called DMM, Direct Metal Mastering. Instead of cutting the audio modulation onto lacquer DMM cuts straight into metal (copper).
The advantage of this technique is a sound with more upper frequency levels and less surface noice. But DMM records was not a big success, many felt that the records sounded to harsh. I can't hear any big differences but maybe my sound system isn't good enough...
Anyway, there are at least two albums with the Ramones that are made with the DMM technique, both are made in Germany.
The first one is Brain Drain. Chrysalis released two versions of the album in Germany, one "old school"-pressing and a DMM-version.
There are some differences between the sleeves of the two editions, besides separate catalog numbers. The "old school"-version have glossier sleeve and insert. But the biggest difference is that all the text on the back of the DMM sleeve is white instead of red, see picture below.
The other album that in a normal version and a DMM version in Germany is Loco Live. The worst record Ramones ever released, but that's another story...

Album: Brain Drain

Number: Chrysalis 1C 064-3 21725 1

Year: 1989

Country: Germany.

Notes: Labels marked with DMM. Printed inner sleeve. 

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Album: Brain Drain

Number: Chrysalis 209 998

Year: 1989

Country: Germany.

Notes: Printed inner sleeve. 

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Album: Loco Live

Number: Chrysalis 1C 064-3 21901 1

Year: 1991

Country: Germany.

Notes: Labels marked with DMM. 

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Album: Loco Live

Number: Chrysalis 066 3219011

Year: 1991

Country: Germany.

Notes: "Normal" pressing.

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