Johnny Mathis Christmas LP question

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Chris Desjardin, Jan 23, 2004.

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  1. Chris Desjardin

    Chris Desjardin Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Ware, MA
    Guys, does anyone know if this is an original, 6 eye label first pressing? I emailed the seller and this is waht he said:

    Hi, Chris, thank you for your interest in my auction item! I know that this is a 1959 pressing because I looked up the album number,(Columbia CS 8021),in my copy of the Goldmine LP Price Guide for record albums. This book lists LP records from the 40's to the 90's, listing values and years they were released based on the numbers printed on the album covers. When a record is re-issued, it's given a different number. Also there's usually something printed on the cover like: "Previously released as. #.."etc., or "some material previously released", etc. This album bears the original number of the 1959 release date. The price sticker with the bar code was evidently placed on stock that was stored for many years somewhere. If you send me your name and address, I'll send you photo copies of the page from the PriceGuide showing this information. You will also see that a "Near Mint" used copy of this recordng is valued at $25.00. This is a perfect unopened copy of the Original issue. Album cover and record are like the day the recording was issued. Thank you for your inquiry-let me know if you have any more questions. If you decide to bid-good luck! Best regards-Vincent Canizio.

    I'd love to haev a sealed copy, but only if it's the original. Any Christmas music experts out there?
     
  2. Ed Bishop

    Ed Bishop Incredibly, I'm still here

    Chris,

    There's really no way to know from that description, since it's sealed, there is no way to be sure it's an 'eyes' pressing, since it was in print until vinyl was phased out. The 'eyes' pressings are on thicker vinyl than subsequent Columbia's, but since you can't check it out for yourself, it's a real crap shoot.

    The album cover looks fairly identical from original release date until the end, except the number in one of the corners of the back cover might be different. It never had any other release number, BTW; on the other hand, had this been a mono pressing, you'd only have three different label variations to worry about(I think)but with this one, you have at least five.

    But why bother? I got my mono and stereo 'eyes' pressings in nice shape, long ago, at flea markets and used shops for almost nothing. It's so common an album that paying $25 for even a sealed 1st press seems like a waste of money.

    But no mistake, it's a great album, one of the best Christmas albums ever made. Mathis really put everything into it, and his version of "O Holy Night" is my favorite version of that song.

    Check out the recent CD reissue--budget priced--with a few bonus tracks added!

    ED:ed:
     
  3. tim_neely

    tim_neely Forum Hall Of Fame

    Location:
    Central VA
    This album remained in print well into the 1980s, and as a result, copies with "CS 8021" can be found with all the different Columbia labels right up until the end of mass-release vinyl. There also are some Columbia Special Products editions of the album with similar covers but different numbers. I may have more different versions of this album than anything else in my collection except Merry Christmas by Bing Crosby!

    Columbia never changed the catalog number on this one; even the original CDs have the number "CK 8021."

    Also, this album was issued with two different covers. The original cover has Johnny standing, holding skis; the second cover, which at some point seems to have been re-replaced by the first cover, has Johnny sitting in the snow with skis next to him.

    A bar code, even as a sticker, is a giveaway of a repressing.

    Oh yeah. When this album first came out, in 1958, albums were generally NOT sold sealed. Sealing started to become commonplace only in the mid to late 1960s. In fact, Columbia in the mid 1960s up to about 1967 made records that in some cases had a sealed inner bag rather than a sealed cover -- if you've ever encountered one of those rounded plastic bags on an LP instead of a paper inner sleeve, that's what it is. It had a perforated strip at the top that you removed to get at the record (similar to what you find on many audiophile LP covers today, except this bag sealed the RECORD and not the COVER).

    In other words, the odds are about Ivory Soap-like (99 and 44/100 percent) that it's a reissue.
     
  4. Chris Desjardin

    Chris Desjardin Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Ware, MA
  5. Jeff H.

    Jeff H. Senior Member

    Location:
    Northern, OR


    Yep as a matter of fact, I bought a reissue copy of this album in 1987 and it still carried the original catalog number, and cover art, which from the mid 60's to the mid 80's was different for some reason. The reissue copies of this album sound quite good. Excellent early stereo album.
     
  6. RetroSmith

    RetroSmith Forum Hall Of Fame<br>(Formerly Mikey5967)

    Location:
    East Coast
    Is this on Cd? How does it sound?
     
  7. tim_neely

    tim_neely Forum Hall Of Fame

    Location:
    Central VA
    A brand-new CD, in stereo, with two bonus tracks (a hard-to-find 1961 Christmas single, also in stereo), was just reissued last Christmas season (2003). I have no problems with the sound of this new reissue.
     
  8. RetroSmith

    RetroSmith Forum Hall Of Fame<br>(Formerly Mikey5967)

    Location:
    East Coast
    thanks Timmy!!
     
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