radiohead on vinyl - uk help please (1 Viewer)

[Matt Broeska]

hey everyone. i'm just starting to pick up all of radiohead's albums on vinyl and was trying to make a "collection" of albums printed in the uk. here's my problem... i have the bends and ok computer, both of which say on the sleve "Printed in the UK." i also have kid a and amnesiac and it's with these albums that i have the problem. i got amnesiac from amazon and it's sealed and says "printed in holland" on a sticker and "Printed in the EU" on the sleve itself. from another company, i ordered kid a (long story) and it isn't sealed (as i had read albums from the uk aren't sealed--true?) and a sticker on the sleve says "Printed in the UK" but printed on the sleve itself is "Printed in the EU."
so what i'm wondering is, is the kid a album with the deceptive stickers actually from the uk or is it from holland with stickers on it trying to cover up that fact? are their last 2 albums only printed in the eu and it's the sticker i should believe?
any help would be great, thanks.
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That way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes.

 

[andrew markworthy]

Don't know how much help I can be on this, but here goes:
(1) generally, UK vinyl albums aren't sealed (at least they weren't when I still bought vinyl)
(2) if it says 'printed in the UK' then it probably is
(3) 'printed in the EU' of course just means 'printed in the European Union' (i.e. the sleeve could have been printed just about anywhere in Europe). The basic story is this - manufacturers might use several different factories in different countries within the EU to produce batches of the same product. Rather than going to the trouble of setting up a different 'printed in X' for each country, it's easier simply to print 'printed in the EU'. Alternatively, a manufacturer might be using a european country notorious for poor production quality and hopes that by putting on a 'printed in the EU' sticker, people will think it was produced somewhere with high production values. Sometimes an individual factory might nonetheless add a sticker of its own saying precisely where it was printed, as seems to be the case with your sleeve.
(4) where the sleeve was printed doesn't necessarily tell you where the album itself was pressed. It's not unknown for LP and sleeve to be produced in different EU countries. Given the low demand for vinyl these days, it's possible that one pressing plant somewhere in the EU could cope with the total european demand. If you check the record label or the inscription (if any) on the vinyl by the run-off groove, you might get a better idea of its provenance.

 

[Iain Lambert]

I've got both Kid A and Amnesiac on the UK double ten-inch vinyl releases, but they are at home. If no-one chimes in before I get a chance to check them I'll update later when I've had a look. Rather annoyingly my Amnesiac has come unglued on the outer sleeve along the bottom, which I've been meaning to fix up, but they are rather lovely otherwise. Mind you I've got both CD releases of each as well. Just call me sad...

 

[Alex Johnson]

what andrew said..
also, a lot of vinyl is being produced in germany and the netherlands still (eurodisc) - nice 180 gram vinyl seems to come out of germany and a few places in the uk.
i'm not sure where capitol is sending their vinyl work to. if the numbers are large (and with radiohead they very well may be), the vinyl may be pressed on the continent and sent back to the uk for final assembly or something (depends on the fulfillment house doing the work). it is very common to see the sleeves pressed in the uk and the vinyl pressed elsewhere, most likely for financial reasons at the label.
a
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[Iain Lambert]

Well, I've checked now, and sure enough both are just labelled 'Printed in the EU' - no stickers however, as mine came from a shop (the weekend before release no less. Its good to know your record shop owner :bg . Below the barcode as well as the message are the French and English product codes - curiously the Amnesiac code is LPFHEIT 45101, another Farenheit 451 reference.

 

[Matt Broeska]

thanks, guys for setting my mind at ease. i understand now.
and iain, i guess i'm just as sad as you. i've got all their cds, plus all vinyl except for pablo honey.
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Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes.
That way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes.