Re: Album Dates

[J. Peter Alfke <alfke@csvax.caltech.edu>]

 J. Rossi complains that many independent labels omit the dates on the
album covers.  This is definitely a valid complaint; fortunately, the
date usually makes onto the album somewhere, on the inner sleeve or disc
label.

There are, however, underhanded methods for finding the date on the outer
sleeve.  I realized 4AD's scheme a few months ago.  All 4AD releases have
catalog numbers like "CAD 211" or such.  Of the number, the first digit is
the last digit of the year, and the other two digits are the release number
during that year.  Thus 211 is the 11th release of 1982.  The letters work
like:
	CAD -- LP
	BAD -- 12" single / EP
	 AD -- 7" single
I've also seen:
	MAD -- 12" single (only on one Colourbox EP)
	WAD -- collection of scrumptious 23 Envelope posters (not yet in
		the hot little hands of this author)

I did NOT waste enormous amounts of time figuring this out.  The letter stuff
is pretty simple, and the numbering scheme just came to me one day.

Red Rhino, for one, seems to use a similar number scheme.

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The Bauhaus collection sonds GREAT on disc.  My opinion of Bauhaus is
growing by leaps & bounds.

						--Peter Alfke
						  alfke@csvax.caltech.edu
"Some kind of useless information
 s'posed to fire my imagination"