Is the obsession for "original" vinyl a worldwide trend?

[Campag Record]

I've been pondering this for a while (sad, I know) but does the UK record buyer/collector lead the way for obsessing over original first pressings?

I ask because I buy US pressings from the States and sometimes it's a gamble on exactly what pressing you may receive, even though it may be sold as an original. This applies to ebay as well as set sale mail order.

I'm not talking about being duped by a modern bootleg or 80's pressing with barcode etc. More so the variation on a major label over a 10 year period that may change its label design ever few years, say a Rainbow Capitol from the late 60's. Now you can buy something that you know was originally pressed on the rainbow label but a receive a green lime copy or the mid 70's pinky colour with green Capitol text.

I could mention the Westbound label. Now if spend big bucks on the first Funadelic LP I want the multi-coloured label from 1970, not the light blue pressing of the mid 70's.

There are others (ie Reprise, Atlantic, Columbia, Epic) but I'm already sounding way too anal

So do we UK people stress about this way too much while our US counterparts do not pay much heed to this? I know you have the whole trainspotting label thing with The Beatles/Stones etc worldwide but that's a whole different thing.

Interested for other people's views on this, or am I alone and should be just happy as long as I've got the music ?

[pitch]

An interesting question sir!

I think I have a subconscious (well now I guess defined and conscious) hierarchy for buying LPs.

New music I tend to buy on CD unless there is a particular (often irrational) reason to buy it on vinyl - ie. all my Pulp albums are on vinyl; I had to wait for the new Circulus LP to come out on vinyl; private press new/weird folk I buy on vinyl (usually limited issue to 200 - 500).

If a classic album I have just discovered, is reissued on CD and I haven't already become obssessed with the artist or genre (ie. in my case - early Hip hop; punk; classic rock) I will buy the CD.

If it is recommended on this this site for the odd track that is great / weird / funky / lovely I will be happy to find any issue UK / USA 1st or second issue - I would be unhappy if it was some 80s reissue, but would probably live with it (as i was with Lena Horne and Gabor album which turned out to be an 80s reissue)

If it is an album from a particular genre / artist that I already have stuff on original vinyl, I will seek out original versions of other LPs. Also if someone recommends a particular LP as a total brillant experience, then I will try and find it on original vinyl.

That said - I do find it difficult to spend more than £50 on any LP (I have 5 that I have spent over this amount on) and if a reissue on CD is available, or is coming available soon - I am happy to buy that, and cross the original off my want list (particularly useful with regard UK jazz from 60s / 70s - reissues have saved me 100s of pounds and I don't regret not having the originals yet).

[bongolia]

the danger of multiple LP pressings (and issues from different countries) is that sound quality can vary dramatically between issues. it tends to be that an earlier issue sounds better, but not always the case. and of course there's mono and stereo issues to contend with...

[francis]

I've totally stopped buying reissues of anything, even hiphop, and I don't have any cds. I think that is a sorry state to have got to, but there you are, I'm stuck with my odd idea that I only want originals of everything. Its bad, because I don't even want reissues of records that are really really impossible on original. I think thats pathetic though, I need to try and get out of that.
I only want pre-liberty issue Blue notes (apart from LPs that were issued after the changover, obviously), NY or lexington (although they really do cost too much, perfectly happy with the NY presses), and much prefer the mono issues. I think thats the only label where I get really nerdy and start looking at the run-outs to make sure of the mastering, the stamp and ear etc. etc. god this is sad.

[Sie Vulture]

Its bad, because I don't even want reissues of records that are really really impossible on original...

.. thank God it's not just me then! I get some strange looks when I put records back into racks proclaiming "nah mate, I only want the original pressing..."

I only want pre-liberty issue Blue notes, NY or lexington and much prefer the mono issues. I think thats the only label where I get really nerdy and start looking at the run-outs to make sure of the mastering, the stamp and ear etc. etc. god this is sad.

Ditto on this too... I used to buy my Blue Note LP's from a very competent jazz dealer and he taught me how to spot which issue was which etc... and I lapped it up, thought it was great knowledge to have... Now, i have second thoughts!

[Xavier_Blake]

Most original pressings are out of my league - and anyway, it's all about the music for me, so I'm generally happy with a reissue, or even a CD (if I have to), as long as the sound quality is good!

Of course, if I was loaded (i.e. not a teacher and from a very modest background) then I might think differently and just splash that cash on nothing but the best, but until my numbers come up on the lottery ..............

[son of stan]

I don't get the "originals only" thing. Yeah, they're nice and that but all things being equal (ie sound quality etc) I don't understand the intrinsic superiority of owning something in a certain form as opposed to the owning exactly the same thing in an almost identical form (I'm not criticising anyone though if it's your thing).

[francis]

I know, but its the history thing that gets me I think. When you have the original, thats it, its the real one, its the actual record that the person made, the actual one that was made in the factory and sold in the shops. Not a copy of it. Like a painting and a print of the painting. Its strictly about the having, and I can admit that, it would be pure hypocrisy and poor self-analysis to pretend otherwise. Having said that, the sound is almost always superior on originals too.

I don't want a new thing. I want an old thing, in the same way an antique collector wants an old thing, a real thing, the actual, bonafide, real deal thing. Not just a very good picture of it. Do you want chocolate or 'chocolate flavour coating'? they tatste nearly the same, and do the same job. But one of them isn't actually chocolate. and a repress isn't actually the record. It just looks and sounds like it. what's the point of having a new replica of a old thing, when you can still buy an old thing? Thats basically how it appears to me inside my head, and its quite a recent development. I think its been exacerbated by the whole internet music download thing. If you don't really care about the format, you're a mug if you collect records, just download everything or buy it on CD, you'll have it all in 20 minutes, you'll hardly ever have to search for anything again. I don't think theres now any point in making out like theres anything to collecting records apart from sad fetishism, obsession with things that haven't been reissued, and weird ideas about owning old objects. I'm comfortable with that.

and they sound better and look nicer and are nicer

[Viva Chiba]

For me it's nice to have an original since I consider it the "definitive" article. . .although of course when there are lots of issues of stuff with extra bonus tracks that confuses the issue! If I buy a reish of something which I particularly like, that's a filler copy until I can track down an OG, unless we're talking about something fiendishly elusive or expensive (i.e. C.A. Quintet - A Trip Thru Hell sort of stuff).

This is a somewhat anal mentality because it should really be "all about the music". And it is, at least to a degree. . .I'm not going to go out and score a ton of Mrs Mills LP's just because they're "original pressings". Records are mass produced bits of plastic sandwiched between a couple of wedges of cardboard, which were usually produced in the thousands/millions. . . (obviously there are minute pressing runs on certain items, acetates etc.). It's not like owning a canvas (although vinyl cover art looks great at 12", less impressive at CD proportions!). . . talking about the "originality" of such a mass produced item seems rather sad. And I do feel a bit guilty about it.

Something else is also a factor as well as the labels mentioned earlier. . .in the US, different pressing plants were used to produce the same LP in a lot of cases, meaning that one particular record - even if the label is the same - probably has a few variants with regards to pressing quality, I'd guess.

However, investing in originals almost always makes economic sense. . . reissues are (typically) far more plentiful and harder to resell a
t a profit or at cost. I'm fairly confident that if I purchase something unheard which is an O.G. then it should be fairly easy to resell at the same price or a little more. . . this gives me slightly more assurance when I tell the wife that my cupboards full of vinyl are a "pension plan"!

However, I am pleased to see the Harkit reish of "Bedazzled" currently sitting at about £30 on the Ebay though. .. I'll regard my copy of that as an investment. . .

[billybuck]

Capital rainbow first appeared over here in late '57 or early '58 - I've got Gene Vincent and the Bluecaps first two LP's - #1 on turquoise ('56) and #2 (actually first released in '57 - the really early ones were turquoise) on rainbow - It's still late '50's, mint and good enough for me ......If it's from the right period - it's ok. 1st pressings etc.... are nice but I'm happy with seconds - not too keen on RI stuff; it's always nice having the original article y'know. Modern stuff - CD.

[Campag Record]

I've totally stopped buying reissues of anything, even hiphop, and I don't have any cds. I think that is a sorry state to have got to, but there you are, I'm stuck with my odd idea that I only want originals of everything. Its bad, because I don't even want reissues of records that are really really impossible on original. I think thats pathetic though, I need to try and get out of that.

I went through a stage of buying reissues from Fopp for £7 which is super cheap but some of the LP's bootlegged are easy to pick up as an original. (I'm talking about the Curtis Mayfields and and Cheryl Lynn's rather than some rare funk LP). So like you I've pretty much stopped buying reissues but that of course means I'll never own super rare funk or psyche LP's, as you say.

I'm very relucant to buy Hip Hop as well from ebay etc. I would imagine a lot of people are buying recent presses of late 80's indie Hip Hop in the belief it's an original.

Buy the Freddy Fresh book kids and don't get ripped off!

[francis]

I went through a stage of buying reissues from Fopp for £7 which is super cheap but some of the LP's bootlegged are easy to pick up as an original. (I'm talking about the Curtis Mayfields and and Cheryl Lynn's rather than some rare funk LP).

Yeah I did that a bit, I think that was in the end what made me think there wasn't any point. Loads of those records can be found for the same price on original if you look around. I thought it was stupid. If you want the record, just find the real one. Now I'd rather wait a year and then pay £50 for a OG of a record which can be bought on reish in selectadisc tomorrow for £7.99. Blue Notes being a case in point; there are some I would like (Tina Brooks, for instance, or hubbards 'open sesame') which are monstrously rare and pricy on original, but I'd rather not have a reish. If i want to listen to it in the meantime, I'll listen to the cd reissue. Why bother with the vinyl reissue? completely pointless, that would be fetishising the medium, not the object. just listen to the music on a cd.

[soul doubt]

I've totally stopped buying reissues of anything, even hiphop, and I don't have any cds. I think that is a sorry state to have got to, but there you are, I'm stuck with my odd idea that I only want originals of everything. Its bad, because I don't even want reissues of records that are really really impossible on original. I think thats pathetic though, I need to try and get out of that.
I only want pre-liberty issue Blue notes (apart from LPs that were issued after the changover, obviously), NY or lexington (although they really do cost too much, perfectly happy with the NY presses), and much prefer the mono issues. I think thats the only label where I get really nerdy and start looking at the run-outs to make sure of the mastering, the stamp and ear etc. etc. god this is sad.

With you on the reissues idea. If I can't find the original I won't buy it, full stop.

Not sure if I'm up to your level on the Blue Note stuff. I'm happy with a Japanese pressing, though. Originals of the best ones are sooo hard to come by.

[son of stan]

Like a painting and a print of the painting.

Nah. It ain't like a painting. A record is a mass produced artefact. Like a print. The equivalent of the painting would be having the person who made the record living in your house in order to perform the tune in question on request (or at least owning the master tapes).

I'm sure I'd really enjoy some of the novels of Charles Dickens but I am unable to countenance reading anything other than the original manuscripts (which have yet to turn up in my local Oxfam).

[mendoza]

I'm sure I'd really enjoy some of the novels of Charles Dickens but I am unable to countenance reading anything other than the original manuscripts (which have yet to turn up in my local Oxfam).

LOL
Dickens - overrated / underated?