OK friends, I really appreciate your help, this thread will be very informative thanks to your help. The next question is: 4.-Besides the Japanese editions, the West Germany ones were the other early issues, so what are the titles, and there's a Catalog series as the Japanese ones? I've ever seen "Japanese" targets that are merely West Germany CD's with an OBI attached to the jewel case, so this means to me that those Germany Cd's were first than their counterparts in Japan.
Phonogram discs with 800 XXX-2 catalog numbers were some of the first issued out of West Germany (made at the Polygram plant in Hanover). It's been said here before that ABBA The Visitors with catalog number 800 011-2 was the first West German disc released. Note that each Phonogram label (e.g., Polydor, RSO, Vertigo, Casablanca, Rocket, and Mercury) changed designs in the '80s. For each label, West German pressings exist with both designs. For these labels, here are the first designs and then the second designs: Polydor First design: orange coating with black text Second design: orange and black rings, orange and black Polydor logo, black text, and no color coating RSO First design: orange coating with black text Second design: orange and black rings, orange and black RSO logo, black text, and no color coating Vertigo First design: blue and silver swirls Second design: orange waves Casablanca First design: yellow and black swirls Second design: yellow and silver rays Rocket First design: blue stars with purple coating Second design: orange train, orange arrow, and purple coating Mercury First design: dark green arrow with light green coating Second design: atomic design at center with red and silver lines Note also that West German Philips classical titles with catalog numbers of the form 400 XXX-2 were likely released at the same time as the earliest discs from the above labels. These Philips discs have dark blue text and a light blue coating.
Thank you very much Keith, are you skipping the Sire label? There are IIRC many Sire Targets, first issues, Talking Heads, Madonna, Smiths, just to name a few.
No problem. I was only considering Phonogram labels in my previous post. Sire was not part of Phonogram. Sire was part of WEA (Warner-Elektra-Atlantic).
Friends, just for closing the chapter of Japanese first editions, can someone tell if there's a way to identify chronologycal the following catalog numbers?: 358P 50DP 32VD As far I know, this ones are the famouses "Black Triangle" Cd's on what year they were launched? 32XD Others?
Innercircle, are you interested in the first CD Singles? I recall here in the UK the first was by John Martyn (don't recall the title) then I think U2's 'With Or Without You' and Pet Shop Boys' 'It's A Sin'. There was a lot of press coverage at the time though my memory may be futzed as to those examples!
Actually I'm trying to put in a list the historical realeases on CD, if they were singles or full lenght albums is not the point, only to know what were first, if you see on past posts here can you find that we did a list with the first ones realeased under the Columbia/Sony brand, the which ones were the really first CD's on history. The singles you're quoting should be after the Japanese and WGermany ones, if I'm right.
This doesn't apply to all releases, but many CD's manufactured in Japan were only made for a two-year period. I'm not sure if it had something to due with a copyright, an approval for printing, limited contract, etc., but if you look on the back of many Japanese CD's you will find two numbers... A start date and an end date. For instance, Bon Jovi - Slippery When Wet may have a start date of 06-08-86 (August 8, 1986) and and end date of -5-08-88 (August 5, 1988). At that time the CD either goes OOP, or is reissued with a different catalog number. Again, this is not true of all Japanese pressings, but is true of many, because I have a bunch. I'd be happy to post a pic. if anyone is interested. Perhaps one of our esteemed Japanese members (progmog) can explain this better than I?
Innercircle, are you looking for info on early compilations? (Hear The Light 1 & 2, Laser Rock and a few others from Realistic, Sampler USA from Polygram, the CBS Demonstration disc, the early Telarc samplers with the Beach Boys sound-alikes "Papa Doo Run Run", the first disco & pop compilations, etc.) There are a few CBS promo compilations that pull tracks from most of the stuff on the list.
Some of the early samplers are very rare and are worth compiling. The early WEA target compilations have been documented here, but it's worth mentioning again that the promo version of WEA Stars on CD -- More Adventures in Modern Sounds (catalog number PRO-411-2) and the Sony/WEA compilation Digital Discovery (catalog number PRO-CD-2294) are very rare. The CBS Demonstration Disc, which was pressed in Japan for the U.S. market, is very rare as well. One interesting rock/pop compilation I found a few years ago is a Japanese CBS/Sony release called American Best Selection. It is not a promo, and the catalog number is 35 8P-35. I have not seen another copy.
I believe the earliest 35 8P discs were released around the same time as the earliest 35DP discs. Thus, a disc like Michael Jackson Off the Wall with catalog number 35 8P-2 was likely released in 1983. The copy I have looks like a very early CBS/Sony pressing. The 50DP series spanned several years. The lowest-number title I have is Weather Report 8:30 with catalog number 50DP 133-4. My guess is that the original version was released around 1984 or '85. Titles with white spines and black text, such as Pink Floyd The Wall and Billy Joel Greatest Hits Volume I & II were released in 1985 or '86 in looking at the pressings. The higher-number sets, such as the Miles Davis titles with catalog numbers of the form 50DP 7XX-X were probably released in '86 or '87. I believe the earliest 32XD discs were released in 1984 or '85. Note that the 32XD series covered both MCA and WEA titles. The earliest 32XD WEA titles were done as targets. This series also spanned many years. I believe it ran into the early '90s, but the earliest pressings were not in print that long. The 32VD series looks to have been released in 1986 or '87. These discs came later than the CP35 black-triangle discs.
It looks a very rare indeed, and I remeber had seen a pic of your 52nd Street copy **Sealed** I'm right? I mean that baby should be a very collectible thing, the first CD realesed sealed, or it was another one?
The first CD single released was Dire Straits "Brothers in Arms", and it is on the Vertigo label. The disc was pressed in West Germany, and the catalog number is 884 285-2. This disc was released to commemorate the Brothers in Arms tour. There are two similar releases. The first one states "Live in '85" on the cover, and I've read that this version was limited to just 200 copies. The second one states "Live in '86" on the cover. From what I have read, this version was limited to 500 copies. Two CD singles released by A&M in 1986 were the first ones released in the U.S. One of them was The Police "Every Breath You Take '86". It was released in a digipak. The other single was for a .38 Special song.
I think the 50DP series are for the double sets, my copy of Miles Davis-Dark Magus is quoted in a catalog with other early relaeses, and is only diferenced by the 50DP from the others because is a double one, same with the Fillmore Set.
I've ever seen some 32VD Cd's that are Black Triangles, this one is King Crimson-In The Court Of The Crimson King Catalog Number: Toshiba EMI 32VD-1063.
Sorry, I missed that post. You are thinking of my sealed blister pack containing the original Japanese pressing of Billy Joel 52nd Street made for the U.S. market. The catalog number is CK 35609, but the disc has "35DP-1" in the matrix code. Since it is the original U.S. release and not the actual 35DP 1 Japanese release, my guess is that the blister pack is from 1983 or '84.
Note that the King Crimson back insert has a barcode. Barcodes were added to Japanese releases in 1986 (I think it was '86 and not '85).
I thought this album had the distinction of being the first one to be released straight to CD (and LP and cassette) rather than the CD being released at some point after the LP or cassette release.