2 Disc, Wide-Spine, Gatefold Album with Picture Inner Sleeves (One Maroon Tint, One Green Tint)
Both Records Fit into one side of the gatefold from the inside at the spine “hinge”.
Two white Die Cut record sleeves With Label holes,
Set of 12 “Storyboard” postcards, each showing a progression in a scenario, with captions on the back (top left) and a griffon,surrounded by stars franking symbol top right.
The postcards come attached to each other in a string, and are concertina folded.
There's a copy of this on ebay at the mo (looks pretty good nick, I have to say), which is listed at £450.
... It does highlight a particular problem with this issue though, as you can see from my image scans:
The cover tends to go brown (being essentially a thick card newspaper) and finding one (unlike mine) that has not done so can be even harder than finding one with all inner sleeves and postcards intact.
(many will have tears along the hinge from either edge of that inside hinge too, through the process of extracting and inserting the records as you open up the envelope to do so)
Matrix numbers are positioned to be read from over the top of the labels, although not consistently oriented to the label itself... Taking The Stamped Matrix numbers to be the starting point of 12 O'Clock, the very busy deadwax; Which is composed of a separate template for the scratched info and the stamped; Reads as follows on my copy:
Side 1: COC 69100 A2 (G at 3 O'Clock) (Stamped)
“Rolling Stones Records”, with: ST-RS-7235 07 under it, Both at 9 O'Clock (Scratched)
A stamped next to these. A figure comprised of two ovals (One inside the other) with two lines radiating from the centre point, at 6 O'Clock
Side 2: COC 69100 B1 (13 at 3 O'Clock) (B at 9 O'Clock) (Stamped)
“Rolling Stones Records”, with: ST-RS7235 08 under it, Both at 6 O'Clock (Scratched)
Double ovoid figure here at 1 O'Clock
Side 3: COC 69100 C1 (GC at 3 O'Clock) (A at 9 O'Clock) (Stamped)
“Rolling Stones Records”, with: ST-RS7235 09 under it, Both at 6 O'Clock (Scratched)
Double ovoid figure at 1 O'Clock
Side 4: COC 69100 D2 (2 at 3 O'Clock) (A at 9 O'Clock) (Stamped)
“Rolling Stones Records”, with: ST-RS7235 10 under it, both here at 3”Clock, just above the “2” stamp.
Double ovoid here at 9 O'Clock
So while I don't think mine is an absolute first press, strictly speaking, but I'm confident is an early one, and I'm very confident this is a first issue at least.
I'll dig mine out either tomorrow or Wednesday Baggieman52, and have a look at the matrices...
as I'm fairly certain that mine's a first press (Gulp! - fingers crossed). I think the biggest give away for this though is actually the postcards... as the first issue cards have "The Rolling Stones" (Top left of the postcard), and "Exile On Main St." (Bottom right) written in white... whereas many of the later ones I've seen on the web have it written in red.
But whatever press you have, to be given any copy of this is amazing... bloomin' awesome album!
Got to be up there with Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti as one of the best double albums around.
Just been given a copy of this with all the postcards still attached together how do I know if it's a first pressing or not please help. Cat number coc69001 matrix a side coc69001a2. Bside coc69001 matrix b1
C side matrix coc69001c1 d side matrix coc69001d2
Listened to it again today... A looser, more: "live in the studio" feel to it than more highly produced sounding stones albums, and all the better for it I think, as it has a kind of destitute, vagabond joyfulness and soul that other albums of theirs; while they of course have bags of attitude; do not.
Charlie Watts' bass drum foot has never been heavier, thumping along with Wyman (Hugely under-rated bass player, and a sweeter lead guitar here and there than on other albums (Wonder why?), add in Nicky Hopkins piano, and it sounds like the prototype for what basically every New York band of the late 70s was aiming for.
It sounds like the best Friday night you ever had.. either rolling around on the living room carpet after one too many Chablis, with a couple of friends, or the kind where you wake up on a park bench with the remnants of a Kebab stuck to your face.
Is this Punk, Soul, Rock, Country, or Blues?
Yes.
(I'm taking this to the desert island now instead of Let It Bleed. Not as epic, but gets right under your skin, and makes you love it... I'll have to get a new copy o vinyl and CD so I don't kill my original!)