As many record collectors will perhaps painfully know, if a record has been released with several different picture sleeves, even if the record is no different there is almost a compulsion to collect them all. This post features a handful of my favourite such releases, mainly punk, new wave and post-punk singles and albums from the 1970s and 1980s.
Let's start with one of the punk pioneer groups, The Damned. On reforming in 1979 they came back with a vengeance releasing Love Song as the first single taken from their Machine Gun Etiquette album. The record was packaged in four different sleeves, one showing each of the band members. From left to right they are Algy Ward, Captain Sensible, Dave Vanian, Rat Scabies. And if this wasn't enough for the collectors, it was also released on red vinyl, making a combination of 8 different versions to collect. And if anyone wants to get really serious about this, Love Sing was reissued on Big Beat records in 1982, again with the 4 different sleeves, but this time on both blue vinyl and black vinyl, giving the collector a further 8 pieces to collect. Most versions are readily available on Ebay, selling for between £10 and £15.
The Damned - Love Song, Chiswick records, c.1979
Another band of the same era, Generation X, also released a single, King Rocker, with 4 different covers, again one for each band member. From left to right these are Tony James, Billy Idol, Mark Laff, and Bob Andrews. As with The Damned's Love Song these also came on coloured vinyl as well as the conventional black vinyl, so again 8 for the collectors to track down. Plenty of these on
Ebay too, with the coloured vinyl versions regularly going for £20 - £40.
Generation X - Kind Rocker, Chrysalis records, c.1979
Staying with the punk genre, another band who released a sleeve for each of their 4 band members was The Lurkers on their I Don't Need To Tell Her single from 1978, released on Beggar's Banquet, BEG 9. From left to right they are Howard Wall, Pete Stride, Nigel Moore and Manic Esso. A few of these are available on
Ebay at the time of writing at various prices.
The Lurkers - I Don't Need To Tell Her, Beggar's Banquet records, c.1978
No band members pictures on this release from The Psychedelic Furs, but 1979's We Love You 7" single was released with 3 different coloured sleeves. Their debut, self-titled album was also released with different coloured sleeves, pink, green and orange.
The Psychedelic Furs - We Love You, CBS records, c.1979
Manchester's finest, Buzzcocks, released their 1979, Steve Diggle penned single, Harmony In My Head, in 2 different coloured sleeves.
Buzzcocks - Harmony In My Head, United Artists, c.1979
The Clash released their 1978 (White Man) in Hammersmith Palais single with 4 different coloured die-cut sleeves. It also came in a die-cut, black CBS sleeve. Plenty of the latter on
Ebay at reasonable prices, but the versions with the coloured sleeves command a fairly high prices these days.
The Clash - (White Man) in Hammersmith Palais, CBS records, c.1978
Dr Feelgood released their 1979 single, Milk and Alcohol on black, white and brown vinyl, and with a variety of different coloured sleeves with 8 combinations in all.
Dr Feelgood - Milk and Alcohol, United Artists, c.1978
Martha and the Muffins, best known for Echo Beach but did release an impressive run of other material too, released their 1980 single, Saigon, with 3 different coloured sleeves.
Martha and the Muffins - Saigon, Dindisc records, c.1980
The first album by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark was originally released in 4 different die-cut sleeves before it was finally reissued with a printed sleeve.
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Dindisc records, c.1980
There are probably many I have missed, but these are the first handful which sprang to mind.
Other worthy contenders for this list are:
New Order - Procession / Everything's Gone Green, released in 9 different sleeves.
The Tubes - Prime Time, released in 6 different coloured vinyl, all with the same sleeve.
Dr Feelgood - As Long As The Price Is Right, 3 different sleeves, 3 different coloured vinyl.
Ian Dury - Do It Yourself LP, 12 different wallpaper design sleeves.
Tenpole Tudor - Swords of a Thousand Men, 2 different sleeves
The Rumour - Emotional Traffic, 3 different coloured vinyl, all with the same sleeve (I can't help thinking Stiff records missed a trick here but not having the cut out in the traffic light which exposes the vinyl match the colour of the record. All sleeves have the space where the red light would have been cut out, regardless of the colour of the vinyl inside).
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