HW:Polydor/Live 79

[Doug Pearson]

On Sun, 20 Apr 2003 13:43:22 +0200, Filip Vanhuyse
<Filip.Vanhuyse at PANDORA.BE> wrote:
>
>Well,seems like I'm wrong,I mixed a French & UK pressing.
>This is what I got:
>-UK,BRON 527,Bronze Records,19 Cordon St.
>-UK,BRON 527,Bronze Records,rather large sign on the back cover right
>  corner
>  "Manufactured and distributed by POLYDOR Ltd",19 Cordon St.
>-FRANCE,BRON 527,Bronze Records,at the left corner "Distributed by
>  WEA",this is the only one with 29 Cordon st.
>
>Also have 2 German pressing with 2 different numbers: 202 553-270 & 202
>553-320,also both 19 Cordon St.
>
>For completion:New Zealand pressing,number L 37425,19 Cordon St.

I only have one copy of Live '79, the second one Filip mentions,
distributed by Polydor.  The label is the standard Bronze "evolution"
label, not the custom "Live" label that some pressings have.  One important
thing to note is that the label has the Polydor catalog number (2406 205)
immediately below the Bronze catalog number (BRON 527).  19 Cordon St.

Fortunately, I have two copies of 'Levitation' (blue and black vinyl, of
course), which seem to provide the necessary clues:

-UK, BRON 530, blue vinyl, upper left corner of back cover "Manufactured
and distributed by EMI Records, ltd.", "evolution" label with the text "EMI
Records Limited.  All Rights of the producer ...", lower right corner of
back cover "G.O. 8010 J.U."  29 Cordon St.

- UK, BRON 530, black vinyl, upper left corner of back cover "Manufactured
and distributed by Polydor Ltd", "evolution" label with the text "All
Rights of the producer ...", Polydor catalog number (2406 209) immediately
below Bronze catalog number on label, no text on lower right corner of back
cover, 29 Cordon St.

This indicates to me that Bronze was distributed by EMI at least through
1980, and sometime after that, distribution switched to Polydor.  (And to
confuse things further, a review of the Uriah Heep discography indicates
that Bronze was originally distributed by Island, switched to EMI sometime
around '77, and switched to Polydor sometime around '81 or '82.  US
distribution seems to have switched from Mercury [a Polydor subsidiary] to
Warner/WEA around '77, and back to Mercury around '81/'82.)

If anyone has original vinyl copies of Motorhead's albums on Bronze, it
would be interesting to see which ones originally came out under the EMI
distribution, and which ones came out after distribution was switched to
Polydor.  (The only one I have is 'The Golden Years', from 1980, under
EMI.  That and 'No Remorse', which has no distribution information on the
jacket or labels, but does mention a 'P.R.O. Records' who I think were a
direct-marketing-by-television company.)

    -Doug
     jasret at mindspring.com