Identification and Pricing of Rare Records: Promotional Records

How do you know if you have a promotional record? What's a test pressing? Is a white label an official pressing made by the record label, or is it an unofficial bootleg pressing? Is a promo worth more than a regular copy? These questions often arise from the record collectors and crate diggers, and they come up often here at Metrowax as well.

Shakira - Hips Don't Lie Wyclef Mix (Promo) - 2006 Epic

Let's talk a little bit about promotional records. Promotional records are issued by record labels to promote an upcoming release. Promos are normally sent only to full-time DJ's, radio stations, music journalists, and producers, in search of airplay, hype, and positive reviews. A promo may be marked "not for sale", but it is not illegal to sell promos. A promo record is the property of the record label and subject to recall, but this rarely happens. Promos usually come out slightly earlier than the regular release, but sometimes a remixed version will be released as a promo after the initial release.

Promo records can also be "promo only", which means that the track was ONLY released as a promo, thus the media was unavailable to the public in any format. If you happen to get a sought after mix on a promo only item, you have the makings of an expensive record. One such item is the Devil's Son promo 12" by Big L. This has been repressed (another topic for another time), but prior to the repress, the only was you could get this track was to obtain this promo single.

Big L - Devil's Son (Promo) - 1993 Columbia

There are many ways in which a promotional record can be identified. Promos can be compared to the regular release to get an idea of the demand for the record and the value:

• The promo has a different catalog number and printing on the label.
• The label and/or cover states DJ ONLY, DEMONSTRATION, NOT FOR SALE, PROMOTIONAL, etc..
• The record label is stamped in ink as a promo by the manufacturer.
• The cover has a notch cutout or a corner cut off, to discourage retail sale. Most often the vinyl for these type of promos is identical to the retail copy.
• The cover is stamped as a promo, usually on the back cover and often in gold ink. (We describe this as GOLD PS, for 'gold promo stamp').
• The record label is identical to the regular release, but it is a different color. Usually, the promo label will be black ink on a white label. The regular release may have more color.
• The promo may have contact information on it such as a phone number or e-mail address. This type of information is not on the regular release.

A white label or test pressing can also be known as a promo, but these copies are not officially distributed as promotional items (to promote the track). Sometimes they can't even be identified, so it wouldn't make a lot of sense to promote the music this way! If they were good sounding copies, they were not destroyed, rather they found their way into a collection somewhere.

Sprung Monkey - Get 'Em Outta Here (Promo) - 1998 Surfdog

Is a promo worth more than a retail release? It's a valid question, and promos can be difficult to value. Here are some points that we consider when pricing our promotional records:

• If the music isn't any good, promos aren't worth jack. This holds true for all releases.
• For any tracks that made it big, the promo is worth more, just due to the fact that it's far more rare than the retail release. The promo might be 2x to 4x the price of the normal copy, sometimes much more.
• For tracks that are easy to obtain as a promo or retail version and have low demand, the price is the same for both versions. And it's not much money at all, maybe $1 to $3.
• If the item is promo only, it's worth more money. If a certain track or remix is 'promo only', or ONLY available as promotional record, that promo is going to be worth a lot more than the normal release, since collectors will pine for it. It may fetch $100 or more depending on the quality of the track and how rare it is.
• If a particular track is stated as 'unavailable on LP', meaning it's not part of the full album released publicly, it could be worth a good chunk of change. Especially if the track is good.
• If the promo has sheets of information, like track reaction sheets and DJ feedback forms, color postcards, stickers, autographed pictures, or anything else of interest that's not available in the normal release, the price goes up. It goes much higher if the artist is talented and/or well known.

Promotional records can be a lot of fun, and since most major record labels ceased production of promos in 2008, they should rise in value over time (for in-demand items). When you get a promo that's special to you, you can cherish it knowing there are far less of them produced, which makes them highly collectible! Have fun collecting your promos!

The White Legend - Let The Music Play Remix (Promo) - 2000 Universal Canada

At Metrowax we have finally starting listing hordes of thousands of promos, white labels, test pressings, and other items that are not easily found for sale. We've been hording these for years and they represent every collection we have ever purchased. Now we are listing them on our website with full descriptions and pictures! I even found some Canadian promos recently, they are tough to find for sure, as are many of these rare records we are listing lately. Check out our new listings - you may find something you've been looking for for years! It happens quite often and we always appreciate hearing that WE had the record searched for so long.

Look for another installment down the road in regards to test pressings, white labels, and unofficial pressings. Until then, happy digging!

Metrowax Records Shows Up on Local TV Feature

Metrowax Records recently appeared on local Eau Claire television station WQOW. The story was about Banbury Place and featured several business owners.



They asked which countries I send to and somehow what I came up with on the spot was South Africa? Not sure why I didn't say Brazil, or Japan for that matter.

Props to WQOW TV for considering Metrowax for this story. It was certainly fun to have them come in!

A Tribute to Whitney Houston: Her Star Spangled Banner

Whitney Houston was the greatest singer of my lifetime, and maybe the greatest of all. She followed the all too common path of a music star: a quick rise to fame and stardom, followed by a decline and fall. But if there's a woman who can make you actually feel a song, not just hear it, it was Whitney Houston. She had great talent, and an unbelievable voice. Please listen to her famous rendition of the Star Spangled Banner:

We are saddened by her passing and she will never be forgotten. May she rest in peace.

Moving a Record Store Part 3: The Final Chapter.

We have been in our new location for about 10 days now and all aspects of the move are completed. All the shelving and vinyl have been moved and we have spent the last week or so getting organized in the new space. The pictures that follow were all taken over the last couple of weeks as the final steps of the move were completed.

Part 2 of the series focused on one really tall record shelf. Soon afterwards, the first of three large shelves were moved. Here's what it would have looked like in the first aisle after moving the shelf, and filling it with in stock titles.

We had to start filling up the big shelf with records, and we did that the very next day.

A few days later, another large double-sided record shelf was moved and reconstructed in the new digs. Our helpers Travis and Joey were ready to rock. It's too bad we can't move these shelves with the records on them, but I don't know many people (or groups of people) who can lift 11,000 pounds. These guys were extremely efficient and the only job left for me was to supervise. A job well done!

Meanwhile, back at the old location 10 feet down the hallway, it looked like a tornado went through. Still lots of stuff to do, but the bulk of the heavy lifting is done at this point. 

This move gave us a prime opportunity to do some much needed house cleaning. The records were neatly arranged in the new office gradually as the move happened. Just look at these beautifully organized rows of records!

Some of our stuff made it over quickly and with little regard for organization. These are just empty boxes, and it took only a few minutes to clean this up. Below this mess is our new record sorting area!

It's right next to the shipping tables.

The morning after, looking past boxes of house and hip hop records in the new location. It looks kind of tight from this angle, but there's enough room to move around.

We have coffee!

We should probably clean up the old office too, eh?

Done and done! Ready for a new tenant.

And finally some time to custom mount one of the Technics 1200 MK-2 turntables. It may not be the most attractive install, but it's very functional! Playing records without leaving the desk doesn't hurt at all.

 

We have all worked tirelessly in the past few weeks, and we are happy to have all of this moving stuff behind us. Now we can get back to work! A huge thank you to Joey and Travis - it was their efforts that made this move possible. Going forward, we'll be able to serve our customers even better from our new location.

Freight Train Graffiti: Street Art in Eau Claire

Eau Claire is not a city known for it's graffiti. We don't have any subway trains. Our buses are clean. We don't have a lot of old buildings with large brick faces to tag. Still, we are located in a truly perfect spot to witness some of the best freight train graffiti this side of New York City. Right here in Eau Claire.

All of the following photos were taken within the last year. I can only hope these trains keep rolling by. If they do, I will get them posted.

Freight Train Graffiti #1

Freight Train Graffiti #1 (Right Side)

Freight Train Graffiti #1 (Left Side)

Freight Train Graffiti #1 (Full Car)

Freight Train Graffiti #2

Freight Train Graffiti #2

Freight Train Graffiti #3

Freight Train Graffiti #3

Freight Train Graffiti #3

Freight Train Graffiti #3

Freight Train Graffiti #3

Freight Train Graffiti #3

We liked the last one so much, we used it in one of our ads. I hope Dego doesn't mind.

Vinyl Record Sales Up 36% to 3.9 Million Units in 2011

The Nielsen and Billboard 2011 Music Industry Report was just released, and the sales of vinyl records continue to soar. Vinyl sales accounted for 3.9 million units in 2011, up 36% from the prior year. Vinyl records only represent a small portion of the overall music market, and despite the fact that CD sales have plummeted by upwards of 70% in the last decade, the compact disc still accounted for sales of 223.5 million units this past year. Digital music sales outpaced physical media sales (vinyl, CDs) for the first time ever, accounting for 50.3% of total sales - a sign that the digital age is taking hold in the mainstream.

Some of the physical media sales were spurred by big discounts. CD retailers opted to sell catalog titles as low as $5 apiece, which is a far cry from the $15 retail price of the past. As far as buying vinyl records in 2011, the deals have never been better. Online record retailer Metrowax has been offering discount offers of up to 40% off, and some aging stock as low as 35 cents each before any discounts.

Has the music industry finally come back from the abyss? Time will tell. For 2012, expect certain trends to continue. Digital and vinyl record sales should continue to rise. Digital music is starting to assert some dominance in the marketplace, and vinyl still has a long upward trend in front of it. CD sales have not yet hit the bottom and should continue to fall into the foreseeable future.

Check out these full articles on this topic.
Full Album Sales Showed a Little Growth in 2011...(NY Times)
The Music Hasn't Died:: Sales Up for First Time Since 2004...(Mashable)

Classic Breakin' Video: 1983 Big Break Dance Contest

Here's an oldie but goodie that was dusted off and digitized. Classic. Enjoy!

Read more about this video over on Official Periodic.

Moving a Record Store Part 2: One Really Tall Record Shelf

Just an empty, lonely wall now.

Something is missing here. Could it be the 12 foot high record shelf that used to grace this wall?

Soon, this massive 12' record shelf will be filled with records.

TA-DA! Now in place in our new location. It didn't really take that much to move this monster. It took just a couple hours to deconstruct and reconstruct it. I would not recommend doing it yourself - these record shelves are very heavy. To make this happen, Joey and I had to break the shelf down into three sections, and tip these sideways to get them through the doorway. Looks nice and sturdy, eh? If every section was filled, this shelf alone would hold about 15,000 records.

Stay tuned for Part 3, when the heavy stuff starts to get moved. The vinyl.

Moving a Record Store Part 1: So Fresh and So Clean

We are not moving to a deluxe apartment in the sky, but we are moving this record business. Our new location is about 10 feet from our previous location. In fact, it's right next door. It features both a separated office area, and a small retail area. Walk-ins are welcome!

We agreed to take the space about a week ago. The first thing we did is put carpet in the office room. One double record shelf was split into two single 12 foot shelves, and these shelves line the office walls. A couple of shelves were removed to account for the window looking into the retail area.

A record shelf with a window. Ever seen that?

It's perfect. Nice and clean.

A spacious office with an interior window. It's something I never would have thought to request, but actually I think it will work well. It's certainly much better than ring bell for service.

The back room is where the records will be stored, shelved, cleaned, sorted, and shipped. In the new spot, we're getting a nice square space that just happens to fit about 95% of our shelves perfectly. I'm no architect, but I was certainly patting myself on the back when I found the perfect configuration to get most of our shelves into a smaller space. I'd attribute this success mostly to graph paper.

The unofficial floor plan of the new office.

Large empty space - for now.

That's a lot of vinyl!

Here's a nice full view of our current situation. There's quite a bit to move. See that 12' high wall of records in the back? It's 17 feet long - I measured it. And the dark room (5' x 8') next to the white board hung on the gray door in the back? Both are solid vinyl. This is the amount of vinyl that would stop bullets. Our do-it-all specialist Joey is quite happy about the move, and I am too. But, at this point, a lot of work has to be done. It should be interesting to see this move progress from where it is now to where it has to be.

Check back soon for Part 2. We're going after that 12 footer in the back and whatever else we can drag along.

Merry Christmas from Metrowax, A DJ Yoda Christmas Mix

Hello all. I know it's a couple of days late here, but I just found this really great Christmas mix I wanted to share.

DJ Yoda - Five Minute Christmas Mini-Mix

Merry Christmas from Metrowax Records!