LIMITED EDITION reggae + cheap marketing tricks

[vlad]

I wish re-issue labels stopped with these 2 words. EVERYTHING is a limited edition. Even Michael Jackson's History LP is limited (and in fact now is worth quiet a bit, despite hundred thousands were pressed).

Stop fooling collectors like this. Press whatever you think is right. We all know that some of the stuff will become collectable with time. Such a cheap & obvious marketing trick. The ones that annoy me the most are the Trojan 7" re-issues. Beautiful work, but limited in a way that can only be annoying to the ones who want to purchase one a few months after release, when they're already "sold out". My perception of Trojan: marketing company before being about the music. Same goes for some of the BIG reggae seller out there ( I mean BIG uppercase B): all the stuff is limited, essential, and buy 2 before I put on sale for 300 USD. So ANNOYING.

[Slugger]

Ahhh, the intersection of business and music, profit and art.

Always uncomfortable, always arguable, and from my perspective, just sort of depressing. It's sad how so many deserving artists never get a taste of the "good" life, and how everything (with a few exceptions) is marketed to sheep consumers (wait, am I one?).

But, like you Vlad, I would like to vent on this forum.

This has nothing to do with any marketing aspect (I wholeheartedly agree with Vlad's assertions there), but my #1 complaint without a doubt is re-issues that have crap sound quality. This is inexcusable and an insult to the artist and to the listener.

Get a copy of the master or something in the ballpark of being quality and make your damn presses/CDs without giving us complete and utter crap. There are so many releases out there that have been re-pressed by the same "companies" (I'm not sure if they're really not just bootlegging pirates) that are so poorly mastered...well, you get the idea. If you are going to go through the trouble of running a re-press etc., why not make it sound good, or at least decent?

Three cases in point: I'd like to get my hands on vinyl copies of Jazzbo's Ital Corner, Levy's Poorman Style, and Pablo Moses' Revolutionary Dream without paying an arm and leg and I just don't think its worth it to get a crap-sounding LP...

[vlad]

Slugger, great point: sound is vital, totally agree and, whilst one can decide not to pay a premium for a marketing trick release (silk screen, colored vinyl, hand numbered LIMITED EDITION.....ha!), sound is not as easy to predict, especially in internet age whre we get to listen to the vinyl almost always first via crappy computer / mobile device speakers.

Anyway, to veteran music lovers which have a decent hi-fi / sound system set up - my case - have enough brains left to remember the premium analog days, and happen to work in the world of printing, whilst I love all the re-issue activity going on as concept, I say:

STOP THE BULLSHIT. Press better, print better, and stop using cheap marketing tricks to fool the youths. To veterans & others: for labels not playing it fair, download the files, and use your MP3 devices to enjoy. In any case, the artists get, generally, not a dime for these "limited editions", silk screen covers, and poor presses.

[Dubmart]

As a consumer don't you want to know that the vinyl issue of something is limited in a genuine sense, there may only be 300, 500 or 800 copies pressed and once they are gone it may not be viable to repress it ever again whilst the CD version may remain available for years. Yes everything is finite, but when we are talking just a few hundred copies I think labels are justified in making a point of it. I'd suggest the number of limited editions in Reggae is indicative of the poor state of the market, something not helped by encouraging downloading, legal or otherwise.

I will agree about sound quality, there are certain labels that don't even make an effort to obtain master tapes and may even use mp3 files taken from less than mint vinyl, there is no excuse for that. Perhaps you should support the labels that source their tracks from master tapes, include unreleased tracks, decent sleeve notes and spend extra on good pressings.

[Funky Punk]

Punk and oi! labels are bad for this sort of thing too.

Limited edition of 250 (or whatever) and hand-numbered, yes - and the label hypes the things for weeks in advance, telling everyone how it's the best thing they've heard from the band yet, and to pre-order their copy in a hurry as it's bound to sell out fast... but five years after release, you'll still be able to find unplayed copies on eBay for like £3.

Happens enough to make me rather cynical.

[Billy Boom]

Buy a record if you like it and if it's reasonably priced. Buy a record reasonably quickly if it may not be available too long.

Some Trojan 7"s do tend to sell out quickly but I'm not sure I'd chalk that up to any duplicity on their part. I'd say that's more along the lines of plain poor business. If there's a market to sell more they're missing out on profits. As for limited presses sticking around on the market for years, I don't see any reason to get miffed over it unless you intended to profit through resale.

Slugger: I don't think an original of Poor Man Style should be particularly expensive. I bet you can find one for $15-$20 in great condition if you keep on the hunt. More dear than the repress but worth it because I think you're right about the Clockwork reissue being rather poor. One of many reissues I regret buying and now need to upgrade. Revolutionary Dream, however, does always fetch around $40 online and should be properly reissued. I haven't really looked into Ital Corner.