Paul McCartney - Egypt Station - Traveller’s Edition / Explorer's Edition*

Be shocked. A designed package lile this probably cost at least $150 or more to design manufacture, print and collate. Possibly more once you add in publishing and licensing costs

 

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I kinda thought it might be something like that but having no direct knowledge was reluctant to speak up. I know lot's think of these as cash grabs but they are more like love letters (thank yous) to the fans.

 

With his money, he should have a lottery & give them away to the lucky winners.

 

On who’s authority can you say the only reason to buy one is “hedging your bets on a value increase?”

I bought one and it doesn’t have anything to do with that for me. I saw a collectible that I thought was fun and appealing, I have the extra money, so I purchased it.

Like another poster said—I, too, enjoy promo items and physical items related to artists that I enjoy. It doesn’t always have to be about what music it contains and it doesn’t always have to matter what it’s resale value will be.

 

I own 2CDs(two because of concert tickets), 1 Target cd, a cassette and 2 vinyls. Not to mention the IDK/COTM single.

I bought this set though, I’m admittingly too big of an Egypt Station fan boy to pass this up. Handwritten lyrics, and lots of cool little things. There is a lot for your money I guess, just not enough goods for your money(ex. Extra songs or making of docu)

The lithographs are an amazing touch considering Egypt Station II(painting) I don’t believe has ever been published.

 

Yeah not sure about love letters, but McCartney does like to commemorate things for posterity and seems to want to do this while he still can oversee or approve the artistic side to a point.

3000 is a fairy low quantity worldwide so the cost per unit is more that it would be if they were making 25,0000 or more. Not a ton of profit here.

 

Exactly right. I’m surprised at what several members here have suggested a set like this would cost to produce. It only shows how many folks have no idea what costs go into producing something like this.

 

Graphic design alone of a set like this would run into the multiple thousands of dollars, easy. Even spread out between 3,000 copies, not a small amount of money.

 

not to mention labor costs.

 

Puhh-leeese. Aside from the vinyl, I'm sure all other materials are printed in China.

Pennies on the dollar.

 

No, I haven't heard anything like that. I was looking through old photos the other day and saw this, it was a design from my t-shirt when I met Paul in 2008. This was the back design.....the front was a Beethoven bust with Paul's face photoshopped on it. He loved it!

 

Well all those segments are labor intensive. And oh yes , profit for the artist, label and distributor. .

 

You really have no idea.

 

Enlighten us on the production costs then...

 

And once you lose 1 of the pieces from the jigsaw puzzle, it is completely worthless ...

 

I am sure you will enjoy this set and I share your opnion that others have no right to judge or talk about the motives of those who purchased it. It s bad sports.
Overall I as one who did not and never will order this one have problems understanding some postings here. I mean it s not lke the end of the world that Paul releases this set. A set that I am sure will turn out a beatyful piece of pop-art

 

Makes me wonder if 3000 copies is a conservative strategy meant to merely break even, all while keeping us wanting more (or less) to help keep the Beatle momentum going. In other words, free advertising.

 

A set like this ain t cheap to produce. It s the same with som of the archiwe-editions tha features specially printer photographs per example. Stuff that would be fairly expensive all on it s own.

 

Just because you have money, you supposed to give things away?

 

Of course not. It was a joke. But this set is too rich for my blood with material is, at best, not up to the best McCartney albums. YMMV.

 

As an example for projects like this. 3000 units

Production manager Art Direction & Design: $100k. Maybe more.

Printing, scoring, collation, boxing: $250k

Record pressing , CD & cassette manufacturing: $150k

Copywriting and proofing $5000.

Promotion and Marketing: $15,000. Which is much lower than a normal McCartney release.

Photo and illustration licensing: $30,000. Although McCartney probably already has paid and owns the copyright to all this.

HD Audio Distribution: $5000.

Shipping (not customer shipping): $3000

Publishing and artist royalty: ?

Label Profit: ?

Distributor profit ( Udiscover ): $

Might have been some additional mastering maybe ?


* Educated guesses only based on printed projects I’ve been involved with.

 

I got this Talking Head promo puzzle from Sire Records in the 70s. Of course one piece is missing.

 

Are you in the printing industry? I ask cause it very much seems this way to me. I ran a printing press and worked in print shops for 13 years.

 

What is this lavish, useless box got to do with music?
It is obviously becoming a fashion because I now see an advertisement in the latest issue of Mojo magazine for a Keith Richards box housed in a “handmade wood case built at the Fender Custom Shop in California from the same materials as Keith’s Iconic Telecaster”. Needless to say that this package includes lots of other useless bits and pieces.
Equally silly is a an advertisement for “Mojo - The Collectors Series” which is a magazine in “Two Deluxe Volumes” telling the story of Pink Floyd. It comes in a “Special Gatefold Sleeve”.
Is this marketing gone crazy or is it me getting too cynical in old age