Dark Side of the Moon 1st issue matrix no. question

The labels would have been provided by EMI surely? From the same batch as the Hayes pressed ones.

Thanks Steve for the Pye info - so what we have is that its (probably) not pressed at Hayes and that its a contract pressing that seemingly went to European markets (hence the FOMA sticker) and could have been pressed by Pye.

 

Another possibility is that this strange copy was pressed at ICP (Industrial Commercial Plastics): a Leicester-based pressing plant; the style of their run-off markings has some features as following: the matrix numbers are in a typeface, the letters and numbers are rather thin, and the bar on the letter 'A' is rather low, as can be seen from the pics uploaded above...

 

Sometimes, EMI would have provided labels, but often contract pressing plants were provided printing plates or artwork to use if necessary for label manufacturing and/or jacket manufacturing.

 

I don't know if ICP ever did EMI contract work. Pye did, Decca is known to have, and Orlake is known to have done so. ICP is not to be ruled out though.

 

...and naturally, the possibility that this copy was pressed abroad (not in the UK) does exist, too!

 

My friend Stefano Tarquini just told me that he (naturally!) has both of these strange solid blue copies: the A B one without lacquer, mother and stamper and the A2 B2 one without mother and stamper (yes, it does exist, too). Both of them have the FONA sticker, exactly such as the copy we're talking about!
He told me that he bought them from Denmark!

Now we have some more elements: maybe that these strange copies were pressed in Denmark??

 

That's a new one on me Stefano!! Hmm Leicester - I don't suppose that they were anything to do with Gedmal Galvanic - the company that used to process metalwork for independents and also overspill from major labels/plants?

 

Gedmal Galvanic can be identified by the initials "GG" in the matrix: established on October 1974 and dissolved on October 1993.
ICP was a different pressing plant.

 

I know Gedmal well, but they were not a pressing plant - they just processed metalwork. They also had a cassette duplicating business for a while. I just wondered if the directors also ventured into pressing... One ex-director of Gedmal started the Statetune plant in Wellingborough.

 

ICP matrix etchings are similar to the Pye ones; but based on my opinion there is the possibility that this strange copy was pressed not in the UK but abroad...

 

It did not have the black inner bag. I found one myself and exchanged it.

A friend of mine bought 'Wish You Were Here' from the same collector before I saw it. That's the way it is. I checked his copy back then and it has no mother/stamper either but it was still wrapped in opened black plastic w. sticker intact. Does anybody know about this version? I don't remember the details of the label. I can get some pics of the record at some point.

Thank you all who are participating in this!

 

I am Danish and boutgh it from here.
There are more stories here of strange presses and/or mispresses being sent to Denmark.
The Blue Letter Jimi Hendrix - Electric Ladyland was sent here too. People say it isn't a first-first press but a color mispress that they sent out of the UK because it was, well, a mispress. But I don't know if this is true - I've just been told. Maybe someone has the full story.

 

It would be interesting to know how many pressing plants there were in Denmark in the early 70s .... I just invited here the user @Jae, maybe he can give some additional information about this strange copy ....

 

I'm sorry, for clarity I should have written something more along the lines of a "pronounced ridge" at the edge of the labels. The ridge on mid '69 to mid '73 EMI Hayes pressings is somewhat subtle, at least on the LP's I have from that era.

The mystery DSOTM's label looks to have a more substantial ridge, appearing similar to the ones on UK Pye and Polydor pressings I own. That's what seems to be depicted in the picture, to my eyes.

By the way, that's great to know you determined the dates for that EMI label ridge, I had noticed it before, and simply associated it with the last of the Gramophone rim label pressings. Actually, I just checked and my three A3 B3 UK DSOTM copies also have that little ridge (or bump) on the edge of the labels. One copy only has it on one side. And those A3 B3 copies have EMI rims.

Many thanks for the information.

 

For reference purposes, here is a picture of McCartney's first solo album, pressed in Denmark in the early 70s. This Danish pressing is made from UK supplied metal parts, and has UK Hayes style deadwax, but without mother or stamper codes.

Note that there is a subtle ridge at the edge of the label. The other side, by the way, has a completely flat label. Anyway, this label ridge looks different to me than the picture of the OP's mystery LP. Of course, I could be completely wrong...

 

Well: now it would be interesting to see if in the early 70s in Denmark there were some pressing plants that had UK PYE style deadwax.

 

Yes the end of the EMI ridge co-incides nicely with the end of the Gramophone co rim text ( as does the heavier pre-oil crisis vinyl - a good marker ) however nothing is that straight forward, old label stock sees some labels carry on with the gram rims sometimes well into 1974, probe, T rex, Asylum, Purple for example, equally you can get some EMI rim text with the ridge but not many, the end of the gram rims is a good marker. As for the start date, almost all Abbey Roads have it so the exact start date may be Sept 69 but i prefer mid 69 as a cover all in case Sept is too precise !!...ps sometimes it can be quite pronounced, but mostly it is quite subtle !

 

it is interesting in that i have never seen a UK EMI contract with those style matrix etchings before, however there are several contracts pressed for EMI that have hand etched matrices from the early 70's...

 

Looks like I must wait a while for the sun...

 

a bright halogen lamp will do...........

 

I would bet that wax is not translucent; now I'm almost convinced that this edition wasn't pressed in the UK.

 

I agree and if it wasn't translucent it still yet could be PYE, however it is worth checking as if it u translucent then it would DEFINITELY be PYE...

 

But where? It has UK labels, UK sleeve but that FONA sticker - if it was pressed in Denmark (that is, locally) should it not have some identifying feature ( like the McCartney LP has) like' Made in Denmark' on the label. Were records still manufactured in Denmark in 1973? - clearly they were in 1970.

 

THERE Are certainly Carribean and USA contracts for EMI at this time mostly using UK printed labels ( there are some USA printed labels but still with UK cat numbers ) however this is not one of those. There are some contracts yet to be identified, I have one for imagine which i think may Holland or Denmark pressed....its all out there

 

Thank you fot all these news...
Stefano forgot to say that I have also a solid prism label with A-3 B-2 with lacquer, mother and stamper. Cover and label are the same.