Etchings on vinyl
Posted by Ben Milne on 4 June 2008 - 5:40pm.
The current thread about b-sides set me to ponder upon another missed relic of the vinyl age - the messages sometimes scratched upon the vinyl near the centre of the disc, on the smooth area between the grooves and the label.
The Smiths were particularly keen on this - examples include "Alf Ramsey's Revenge" on the 7" of "Shoplifters..." and "The impotence of Ernest" on "William It Was Really Nothing". Inevitably there's a website documenting this:
http://www.geocities.com/costelt/Lyrics/etching.htm
There was never anything significant about these messages - but I always looked out for them.
Can anyone remember any other notable etchers?
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Porky's Prime Cut
rings a bell as very common.
George "Porky" Peckham
was I believe the originator of this. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Peckham
Go for
Stiff Records - they did absolutely loads
Madness
Madness, Wings of a Dove had (IIRC) "Look up at the rooftops...at the arse of a crow"
Elvis Costello - This Years Model - (Radar Records-1978)
Had a Porkys message stating it was a Special Pressing requesting I ring a telephone number and "ask for Moira for nice prize".
Said "nice prize" was a poxy crumpled copy of an autographed photo (Elvis didnt waste time or ink on an actual autograph) and a few badges.
Wow.
Ha!
I bought that from a second hand shop in the late 80's and always wondered whether I was sitting on a Costello bumper prize bonanza. Clearly not.
Here he is ......
What a jolly enthusiastic chap he is too!
Do what thou wilt...
...so mete it be.
appeared on the first pressings of Led Zep III. It's a quote from that old fraud Aleister Crowley. He once spent an ultimately disappointing year looking into a mirror trying to make his reflection disappear. I might have some good news for him though, the spell checker doesn't think much of his Christian name. Although I don't expect he called it a Christian name.
That would explain
why my first copy of LZ3, on being played backwards on a modified turntable, disappeared in a puff of green smoke, leaving only a sulphurous whiff.
Godspeed you black emperor's
f# a# oo had two:
A) Nervous, sad, poor...
B) Black, uncertain, beautiful
http://www.vinylremarks.com/ has a load of 'em!
Drop Dead/Celebration...
... the b-side of Happy House by Siouxsie and the Banshees, has the words "Bye Bye Blackheads" etched in to the run out groove. This is a reference to ex-members John McKay and Kenny Morris who had just left the band half way through a tour. The opening line to the song is "Drop dead, you stinking little creeps". Nice.
As Is - Away From You
"And all the world is football shaped"
"wipe your windscreen with a piece of chocolate cake...
...count your pizzas before you bake" - Something for the weekend - SFA
"Curtis Mayfield....Move On Up" - (what could it mean?) Primal Scream Kill All Hippies
"Stringer Them Up....You Have Been Warnered" The Rockingbirds - Band Of Dreams
Just 3 out of the 7" box.