BURSTING AT THE SEAMS - VERSIONS
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US vinyl
Canada vinyl
Asia Pacific vinyl
Cassette and 8-track
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UK VINYL
UK release
Vinyl album: AMLH 68144 (A&M, UK, 1973). Single black sleeve, with metallic silver inner sleeve with lyrics. Issued with brown A&M label, almost certainly re-issued at later date with silver label.
Front and back of sleeve
Inner sleeve
Labels
UK release signed by band
Around the time that the Bursting At The Seams line-up got back together, with added Brian Willoughby (1999 onwards) I asked the original BATS band members to autograph an album sleeve.
Autographed sleeve
UK silver label reissue
Vinyl album: AMLH 68144 (A&M, UK, 1973). Given that so many were pressed in 1973 on brown labels as the album took off, the UK silver label reissue is quite hard to find.
Labels
US VINYL
US release variant 1 (Monarch pressing)
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, US, 1973). Single black sleeve. Inner (less metallic, so easier to read, otherwise same as UK) inner sleeve. 1-sided insert, slightly smaller than album size. Labels match promo variant 1 above.
Back of sleeve and insert
Labels
US release variant 2 (Pitman pressing)
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, US, 1973). Matching promo variant 2 above.
Labels
US release variant 3 (Terre Haute pressing)
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, US, 1973). Matching promo variant 3 above.
Labels
US club release
Vinyl album: Club release R120028 (SP 4383) (A&M, US, 1973). Brown specially printed labels for this record club edition with both the "R" catalogue number and the standard A&M cat number. The cover however is not specially printed, but stickered with the "R" catalogue number. There's a lyric inner sleeve, and Jim Bickhart's promo insert (which includes the "R" number) in my copy.
Known "R" Strawbs releases:
Back cover and insert
Labels
US promos
US release stickered with release date
Spotted online, copy with promo sticker, detailing US release date 30 Mar 1973.
US promo release - variant 1 (Monarch pressing)
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, US, 1973). Cover same as full releases, but with A&M white promo labels matching full release variant 1 below.
Labels
US promo release - variant 2 (Pitman pressing)
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, US, 1973).Cover same as full releases, but with A&M white promo labels matching full release variant 2 below. Came with lyrics inner.
Labels
US promo release - variant 3 (Terre Haute pressing)
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, US, 1973). Cover same as full releases, but with A&M white promo labels matching full release variant 3 below. Came with lyrics inner.
Labels
US first silver label reissue
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, US, 1973). Silver labels were introduced in US in late '73/early '74, so this may have been the first reissue for this album with silver labels. This has the same typography as the brown label release, on both sides. Lyric inner sleevve, but no Jim Bickhart insert in my copy.
Labels
US second silver label reissue
The first copy I got of an early silver label reissue has differently styled labels on each side. Side 1 is as above with the same typography as the brown label variant 2 above. Side 2 matches the later re-issue below, so not scanned). However copies spotted online with matching labels as pictured above, so my guess is that this was a second pressing, when the pressing plant had some old side 1 labels but had run out of side 2 labels, and had to reprint in the new style. No Jim Bickhart insert or lyric sleeve in this copy, but they probably were included.
US later silver label reissues
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, US, 1973). Reissued with standard silver A&M labels for the Hero/Ghosts/Nomadness period, still includes Jim Bickhart insert.
Labels
Variant labels (*)
Listed on Discogs as an "Indianapolis" pressing. Side 2 appears to match the above, but on side 1 "Stormy Down" has migrated above the spindle hole and I think the typesize of "Strawbs" is reduced.
CANADA VINYL
Canada full release
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, Canada).. Single sleeve (very thick card). Came with two sided grey paper insert (shinier on the non-lyric side), modelled on US insert, with "Litho in Canada" overprinted. Labels are brown.
Labels
Canada promo release
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, Canada, 1973). Strong cardboard sleeve, logo and cat no on front at bottom right of sleeve. Canadian release details at bottom of back sleeve (120 Milner Ave address). Two sides grey insert (unlike full release below, both sides the same level of shininess, quite matt in fact) Logo and cat no at bottom right with a tiny "Litho In Canada" overprint.
Came in A&M company inner sleeve, same as Canadian promo for Grave New World (pictured here)
Labels
Company inner sleeve
Canadian reissues
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, Canada).. Reissed with silver labels. Same typography as original release otherwise. Came in nice light blue A&M inner - all albums featured (including Carole King's album Fantasy, Carpenters Singles/Now And Then) are 1973 or earlier, so I'd assume this quickly supplanted the brown label release at some point in 1973. No insert in my copy but I'd be pretty sure there was one.
Labels
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M, Canada).. Another silver label reissue. Typography is same as Early Strawbs (1974), but also similar to earlier releases such as Two Weeks Last Summer (both original brown label release in 1972 and subsequent silver label reissue). So, either a further reissue after the first silver label reissue sold out, or perhaps pressed at the same time by a different Canadian pressing plant.
Lyric insert included.
Labels
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M Canadian silver label reissue). Further reissue, typography similar to Best Of so probably 1978 or thereabouts.
Labels
Canada budget release(s)
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M Canadian black label reissue).
Also released subsequently with A&M black labels (and possibly white ones too).
Labels
Vinyl album: SP 4383 (A&M Canadian white label reissue). No lyrics inner, but a nice A&M Canada protective inner sleeve. Outer sleeve has Warden Ave, Scarbourough Ontario address on the back.
Labels
EUROPE VINYL
Danish release
Vinyl album: SLPS 1544 (Sonet/Dansk Grammofon) . Same sleeve as UK, except for back cover Sonet info and logo - see scan below. I now have a copy with an inner sleeve, pretty much identical to the UK design but black and white) mine sightly faded and crumpled) rather than grey. The lyrics side has a patent number and a sonet logo as well as a statement that it was "Made in Great Britain", none of which appear on the UK inner sleeve. I could have spent a long time flattening out the crinkles in the sleeve for the scan, but I think you get the idea ...
Back of sleeve and logo
Lyrics side of inner sleeve
Labels
German release
Vinyl album: A&M 86 658 (A&M Germany, 1973) Same as UK release, except with Im-Ariola Vertreib on the bcak cover at the bottom. There's also a sticker "Including Part Of The Union" been added to the front cover. Brown A&M labels.
Labels from 86 658 release
Sticker from 86 658 release
German reissue
Vinyl album: A&M 88 004 ET (A&M Germany) . Silver labels. The copy I have has a stickered catalogue number on the back cover - the spinr carries the brown release catalogue number (86 658 IT), so presumably that's what's underneath the sticker. UK address details on back of sleeve with "Im Ariola Vertreib" overprinted at the bottom.
Back cover/sticker from 88 004 release
Labels
German black label reissue
Vinyl album: A&M 394 383-1 (A&M Germany, date?) . Black labels. Polydor Hamburg archive copy: no outer sleeve, but it came with a couple of archive pages. They are date-stamped "27 Juli 1988", but not clear whether the release was that year, or that was just when they were archived. The white inner sleeve is stamped Ungepruftes Muster" (which I think translates as untested sample.
As well as the archive copy I have a copy with fairly standard sleeve, which has US trademark info but no other indication of country or date of release. There's a bar code on back cover top left. Discogs dates the German CD release below (394 383-2) as being a 1985 release, so this may have come out at the same time as that early CD release.
Labels
Archive info
Special price cover sticker
Italian release
Vinyl album: A&M SLAM 68144 (A&M Italy) . Single sleeve, nothing much to differentiate it from other release, except A&M logo with Italian number on back cover. No lyric sleeve/insert in my copy, but there would probably have been one. Brown labels (with an import stamp).
Spanish release
Vinyl album: HDAS 371-82, (Hispavox/A&M, Spain) . The first Spanish release as far as I'm aware. The cover is shinily laminated. Front cover and front of inner sheet (as opposed to inner sleeve) are the same, though the cover has the Spanish catalogue number at bottom right. Track titles are translated into Spanish on the labels, back cover and lyric sheet - except "Part Of The Union" which seems to have been untranslateable! ("Fuschia" appears as "Fushia" on the label, but "Fuschia" elsewhere).
Back cover and lyric sheet
Labels
Track Listing
- Volando (Flying)
- La Señorita Fuschia (Lady Fuschia)
- Noche Borrascosa (Stormy Down)
- Junto Al Mar (Down By The Sea)
- El Rio (The River)
- Part Of The Union
- Lágrimas Y Pavana (Tears And Pavan
- El Invierno Y El Verano (The Winter And The Summer
- Tiendete (Lay Down)
- Gracias (Thank You)
ASIA PACIFIC VINYL
Australian release
Vinyl album: AML 34846) . Same sleeve as UK, except: refernces at bottom back to Festival Records, Aus cat no at top left of back, and a little addition to the band logo - reference to "Part Of The Union" (so likely that the Australian release was a little later than UK release.
Detail from front sleeve, labels
New Zealand release
Vinyl album: AML-34846). Single sleeve, as per everywhere else. No insert/lyric sleeve in my copy. Back cover has Festival Records NZ info.
Labels
Japanese release
Vinyl album: AML180, A&M/King Records, 1973) . Same sleeve as UK (with changes to cat nos and distribution credit at bottom of back of sleeve). Green & white obi, which folds over itself at the back. Inner sleeve same as UK Inner sleeve same as UK (except that Japanese catalogue number substituted). Labels brown A&M (2 variants known). But best of all - bespoke insert with Japanese notes and lyrics.
Obi front, back and back with foldover pulled away
Insert
Labels
Japanese promo release
Vinyl album: AML180, A&M/King Records, 1973) . Same as below but with white label.
Labels
Korean promo/full release
Vinyl album: SEL-RA 354, Korea, 1986) . Laminated single sleeve. Back cover has Sung Eum catalogue number at top right manufacturing/licensing details at the bottom. No lyrics inner sleeve in my copy, though Hero And Heroine which was released in Korea in 1985 had a Korean language insert, which may have been the case with this. There are two protective plastic sleeves, one plain, one Polygram printed, but with Sung Eum Record address added. and the "SEM Gramophone" logo under Polydor.
Silver labels. Dates on the label indicate that this release is 1986. The 1985 Korean Hero And Heroine release was SEL-RA 344 and came out with black A&M reissue labels rather than silver ones.
The back cover has a sticker "Sample Record (Not For Sale)" and the actual record labels are stickered too, so it's unlikely there were separate promo and full releases.
Back cover
Labels
OTHER VINYL
South African release
Vinyl album: AMLS 68144) . Laminated single sleeve. Lyrics inner sleeve, as per UK release. The back cover has South Africa details - note unusual A&M logo on back cover without rounded outline, just the text and trumpet. No lyric sheet in my copy, but have seen one on Ebay.
Back cover
Labels
Venezuelan brown label release "Reventando Por Last Costuras" (*)
Vinyl album: LPS 88105, A&M Venezuela, 197?) . Spotted online Likely the sleeeve is same as later reissue below.
Labels
Venezuelan silver label reissue "Reventando Por Last Costuras"
Vinyl album: LPS 88105, A&M Venezuela, 197?) . Based on US sleeve (has US address on rear). Front bottom left has Venezuelan cat no above the A^M logo, and bottom right "STEREO COMPATIBLE" inside a rectangular box. Back sleeve has "Fabricado y distribudo por la Palacio de la Musica SA Apartado 1637 Caracas.
Silver labels. Label text including song titles is in Spanish. I think:
Labels
Israeli release
Vinyl album: AMLH 68144, A&M Israel (dist by CBS), 1973) . Same front cover, but cream back cover with lyrics from UK inner. Typical Israeli labels, no white in A&M logo.
Back cover
Labels
CASSETTE & 8-TRACK
UK cassette release (green body)
Cassette: ZCAM 68144(A&M, UK, 1973). Produced for A&M by Precision Tapes (their details on the inside of the cassette cover), the cassette cover includes the Strawbs logo but not the band picture.
Cassette cover
Cassette
The running order on the cassette release differs from the album on vinyl. On cassette it goes:
Side 1
Side 2
UK cassette (white body reissue ?)
Cassette: CAM 68144 (A&M, UK, 1973?). Cassette insert is identical to the one above, as is the label on the cassette body itself, but the cassette body is white plastic rather than green. All the Precision Tapes A&M cassettes I have seen had that lurid green body (other than Grave New World which has been seen in both green and white), so this may have been a 1973 reissue as sales of Bursting At The Seams took off (The Precision Tapes deal seems not to have continued into 1974 - the UK cassette of Hero And Heroine wasn't manufactured by Precision Tapes - so it's unlikely to have been later than late 1973.)
(Or maybe the plant just ran out of green plastic ....)
Cassette
UK cassette CAM reissue ? (*)
Cassette: CAM 68144 (A&M, UK, ?date). Highly likely that this album would have been reissued on cassette after A&M took over making their own cassettes from Precision Tapes. Anyone seen/got one?
UK 8-track release
8-track: Y8AM 68144 (A&M, UK, 1973). Also produced for A&M by Precision Tapes (their details on the inside of the cassette sleeve), the labels and outer cover broadly match the minimalist packaging for the cassette release, including the Strawbs logo but not the band picture.
8-track outer cover
Front, back and head
Running order
The running order on the 8-track release differs from the album on vinyl (8-tracks when played had gaps when the track changed) and also includes the non-album track "Here It Comes":
Program A
Lay Down
Down By The Sea
Program B
Flying
Lady Fuschia
The River
Program C
Tears And Pavan
The Winter And The Summer
Program D
Part Of The Union
Stormy Down
Here It Comes (bonus track not on vinyl, but later appeared on 'Strawbs By Choice')
Thank You
US cassette original 1973 release ? (*)
Anyone have an original 1973 US cassette? Does one exist?
US cassette reissue ?
cassette: CS-4383 (A&M, UK, 1974 or later) . Outer follows design of the vinyl album. Inner cover has list of other A&M US cassette releases including Rick Wakeman's Six Wives and Journey To The Centre Of The Earth the latter not released until 1974. This matches closey the Ghosts cassette I bought at the same time, so I think this may be a reissue from 1974 when Ghosts came out.
Cassette itself has printed on details. Track listing same order as the album (no extra track like the UK cassette).
Cassette cover
Cassette
US 8-track release
8-track: 8T-4383. This item came in a Canadian std outer box, but the cartridge itself was manufactured in the US.
Front and back
Spotted online in an Epic outer sleeve. Not clear whether the same as the item above (looks as though it is). The cartridge itself looks the same.
Front and back of sleeve
Running order (both)
Program 1
Lady Fuschia
Tears And Pavan
Program 2
Part Of The Union
Lay Down
The River
Program 3
The Winter And The Summer
Down By The Sea
Program 4
Flying
Stormy Down
Thank You
US 8-track Hemisphere release (*)
. Spotted online, not known whether this was a legitimate release..
Running Order
An unusual running order here.
Program 1
The River
Tears And Pavan
Lay Down (part)
Program 2
Lay Down (concl)
The Winter And The Summer
Stormy Down
Program 3
Lady Fuschia
Down By The Sea
Program 4
Part Of The Union
Flying
Thank You
Canada 8-track cass (?)
Hard to imagine that this key album didn't have a Canadian cassette release: anyone have a copy?
Canada 8-track release (?)
The US release pictured above came in a Canadian standard A&M 8 track sleeve. Either this was a mistake, or for some reason the US manufactured copies which were then sold by A&M Canada. Hard to imagine that this key album didn't have a Canadian 8 track release: anyone have a true Canadian copy?
Canadian outer sleeve front and back (with US 8-track cartridge)
Italian cassette release
Cassette: EM-K 78144 (A&M, Italy, 1973). Cassette itself and case are a lurid orange plastic, with white on-body printing on the cassette. Cassette inner is blank. Running order matches the vinyl.
Cassette cover
Cassette
Australia cassette release
Cassette: AM 24846 (A&M/Festival, Australia, 1973). Cassette inner is blank. Running order matches the vinyl.
Cassette cover
Cassette
Korean cassette release
Cassette: CA 056 (Sun Eung Ltd, Korea, 1986). A South Korean edition in cassette form - what is most interesting is that side 2 of the cassette OMITS "Part Of The Union"! Acquired same time as a Korean Hero And Heroine (CA 046). Date on labels is 1986, same as vinyl release above.
Cassette cover
Cassette
CD
German CD release
CD: 394383-2 (A&M US ? stated to be made in West Germany) ??. Minimal reproduction of original - front and back cover, no lyrics.
Booklet pp1 (front) & 4 (back)
Booklet pp2 & 3
CD and tray back
Universal CD release, 1998
CD: 540 936-2 (A&M, 1998, REMASTERED WITH 3 BONUS TRACKS) Front and back covers reproduced. No lyrics, but six pages of new sleeve notes by Dave Cousins and John Tobler.
A&M 1998 CD releases (Antiques, Witchwood, GNW, BATS, Hero, Ghosts)
These Universal releases have manufacturing details printed in the clear plastic centre on the silver side (ie bottom) of the CD. The first releases were made in Germany by PMDC. They seem to have been re-pressed later by other companies - EDC and Universal M&L and these are coming up on Discogs as different releases, but I'm not going to start scanning CD bottoms on Strawbsweb! No other changes as far as I can see in packaging.
Note that this UK CD release and the Japanese 2002 facsimile release "correct" the running order so that "The River" flows into "Down By The Sea" as originally intended (DBTS was too boomy a track to fare well as the last track of a vinyl release and so the running order was reversed in the mastering process).
Booklet pp1 (front) & 8 (back)
Booklet pp2 * 3
Booklet pp4 & 5
Booklet pp6 & 7
CD
Tray
Lithuania LimeCD bootleg CD release, 2000 (*)
CD: LIMECD 10010005, Lime CD, 2000) Spotted on Ebay
Pics
Russian Alcinous bootleg CD release, 2001
CD: AL 0100 (Alcinous, 2001) with 3 bonus tracks) Reported as an "unofficial" release, based on the Universal remaster. 4pp booklet.
Booklet pp1 (front) & 4 (back)
Booklet pp2 & 3
Tray back and CD
Japanese card sleeve CD release, 2002
CD: UICY-9215 (Japan only, A&M, 2002, REMASTERED WITH 3 BONUS TRACKS). Card sleeve is mini replica of the original album release, nicely printed. There's an inner sleeve in grey which exactly matches the UK LP release. The CD is got up to look like an A&M release with the 1969 logo, and light orange background. There's a 3CD x 2CD sized black and white insert with Sleeve notes in English (by John Tobler from UK 1998 release) and Japanese (translated).
Note that the 1998 UK CD release and this release "correct" the running order so that "The River" flows into "Down By The Sea" as originally intended (DBTS was too boomy a track to fare well as the last track of a vinyl release and so the running order was reversed in the mastering process).
This is a release program "British Rock Legend Series" which includes: Moody Blues: Days Of Future Passed (UICY 9210), In Search Of The Lost Chord (UICY 9211), On The Threshold Of A Dream (UICY 9212), To Our Children's Children's Children (UICY 9213), A Question Of Balance (UICY 9214) and Strawbs: Hero And Heroine (UICY 9216)
Obi and CD
Insert Japanese and English
Vox Humana "facsimile" card cover CD release, 2006
Back of card sleeve and CD
Inner sleeve
Universal Japan SHMCD reissue (2018)
CD: UICY-78838 (Universal, Japan, 2018) Facsimile reissue including original inner sleeve and Japanese booklet, based firmly on UK vinyl release. Note that whereas the 1998 UK CD release and the previous Japanese facsimile (2002) release "corrected" the running order so that "The River" flowed into "Down By The Sea" as originally intended (DBTS was too boomy a track to fare well as the last track of a vinyl release and so the running order was reversed in the mastering process) this release sticks to the original UK vinyl running order with "The River" flowing "Down By The Sea". Obi mimics original Japanese release.
Cover
CD and Obi
