The Kick Inside - USA LP First Issue

First issue release For The Kick Inside in the USA. The interesting thing about this one is that it shared the same cover and catalogue number as the Canadian release. It even had the same two tone green Harvest logo record labels. One of the few ways of telling this one apart from the Canadian release is simply by looking at the manufacturing information on the back of the record jacket and vinyl record labels and seeing where they were made.

This release has also been reissued several times, and later pressings will have a different typeset to this one, a different printing arrangement and even dark green/bluish and yellow Harvest logo labels.

The Kick Inside - Uruguay Release

NOTE: This is one of my tester ideas for redoing album covers on here. I'm not even sure yet that I like how this particular one turned out, especially as the album jacket got slightly chopped off in the process... not to mention that the quality is less than I expected - so most likely I'll eventually redo this one another way. But since this is just one of a few ideas I have in mind, posting them to test them out just gives me a chance to see how I really feel about how it looks overall. So even though this is a real post, also look at it as a tester post.

The Uruguay cover is the last one to feature unique artwork for The Kick Inside, which also makes a total of six cover variants in all. This is also the hardest one to find, the most sought after and the most expensive of them all. It's also my personal opinion that the Uruguay cover is the least impressive one out of the six. The front artwork is done in black and white, and to be honest, it looks like a cheap 1970s photocopy.

The other interesting thing about this one is the back of the record jacket. Virtually every other release out there has the UK back sleeve printed onto it, which also includes the song lyrics - but as you can see this one doesn't. It's just plain with the song titles printed in Spanish and English. I have no idea if this one ever came with a separate insert with the lyrics printed onto it or not as I bought this second-hand years and years ago, but I highly doubt it.

The record labels are fairly identical to the UK ones at the time. Again, Spanish titles followed by English ones in brackets.

If you don't own this one, you might be wondering if it's worth getting or not. Truthfully, if you can live without it then don't bother. Apart from the different cover artwork, there's nothing else that's special about it. The fact of the matter is that you could be spending years looking for a copy. I can't even remember the last time I saw a copy, and I'm sure these days the vultures will want a fortune for it. When I got this copy back in the '90s it wasn't in the best condition to start with, especially the record labels, but it was the second, and only other time I ever came across a copy in person. As much as I hated paying the kind of money that I did for it, I'm also sure it easily goes for 3 times the amount these days.

The Kick Inside - Yugoslavia Release

Yugoslavian pressing of The Kick Inside featuring unique cover art. This is just one of six different variant covers for The Kick Inside. The other countries featuring different artwork include the UK, Canada, USA, Japan and Uruguay. Uruguay is the toughest release to get a hold of and the most expensive. The Yugoslavian release follows in second place in my opinion. Although not nearly as expensive as the Uruguay release tends to be, it is tough to find.

The artwork on the back of the jacket is identical to the UK release, as is the majority of the worldwide releases. The only differences between them are the distribution information.

The record labels on the Yugoslavian release are fairly identical to the UK ones at the time. However, the colour scheme is noticeably different.

The record jacket is a flimsy one and easily susceptible to damage. Just take a look at my copy. This is one sleeve you really need to handle with kid gloves.

The Kick Inside - Dutch Grey Vinyl Release

The front and back of the record jacket are virtually identical to the UK release. The only differences are the catalogue number and the distribution information found on the back on the sleeve.

The record isn't anything spectacular, but it's still interesting. I personally like it. To me it looks and feels like it was made out of plastic. While it looks to be a solid grey colour, it does have a slight marbleized effect to it. You should be able to see some of the veining detail in these scans. It becomes more obvious when held up to the light.

The vinyl is also translucent. If you hold it up to a bright light it has a very iridescent quality. It's been said that early coloured vinyl records, like this one, didn't have great sound quality to them. I've never listened to this one, so I can't comment on that.

The Kick Inside - USA Second Issue Release

When the Kick Inside was first released in the USA it shared the same front cover with Canada. It also shared the same catalogue number and Harvest logo labels on the record. One of the few ways of telling the releases apart is by looking at the manufacturing information on the record jacket and vinyl labels and seeing where they're made.

When the Kick Inside was reissued in the USA, it got a new cover, which I like better, a new catalogue number and even new records labels.The second issue cover is commonly referred to as the "red socks" cover, or the "box" cover.

The first release with the red socks cover actually had full green labels with black printing and a rectangular black and white EMI America logo along the top. It was later reissued again with full silvery labels and a larger rainbow EMI America logo along the top, like you see below in my scans.

The Kick Inside - Canada First Issue Release

The Canadian release features a different cover to the UK release, and is also one of six covers for The Kick Inside to have completely different artwork. Interestingly enough, this was also the original cover for the first issue USA sleeve, until it got reissued with the "box" photo of Kate that people are more familiar with.

The back of the record jacket is fairly identical to the UK release, as are most of the releases. The only real differences here are the catalogue number, Harvest logo and distribution information.

Two-tone green Harvest labels are featured on both sides of the record. I think they're rather ugly.

Out of all the releases for The Kick Inside, the Canadian release is probably my least favourite.

The Kick Inside - Japan First Issue Pressing

The first thing that you need to keep in mind is that the Japanese release of The Kick Inside was issued twice. The first pressing, which is the one featured here, has the Obi-Strip placed vertically along the spine area of the record jacket. The reissue has the Obi-Strip placed horizontally along the top edge - so basically the strip of paper is cutting off the top part of Kate's head.

Since both the first issue and the reissue use the same artwork on the front of the record jacket, there are really only two ways to tell them apart. The obi-strip is one way as they are completely different from one another. The first pressing obi-strip has a predominantly black strip with pink Japanese text, whereas the reissue version is predominantly white and blue and says "Break Out 2000" on it in English. If the obi-strip is missing, both issues can also be identified by their catalogue numbers, which are completely different. The first issue pressing has the catalogue number EMS-81042, and the reissue is EMS-63026. I always advise against buying a Japanese pressing that no longer has its original obi-strip as it devalues the record in most cases.

The back of the album jacket is the same as UK release, which is pretty much the case with most of the releases. There's also a double-sided insert included, which is written in Japanese text. Side one has a small photo of Kate, followed by what appears to be a huge write up - the other side has song lyrics in Japanese.

The record labels are similar to the UK ones at the time and feature English titles.

The Kick Inside - UK First Issue

UK first issue release of The Kick Inside came in a laminated sleeve. There's also no barcode on the back of the record jacket, which you will find on the FAME reissue.

The Kick Inside is the only album of Kate's to feature six completely different covers. The other countries include: Japan, USA, Canada, Yugoslavia and Uruguay.

First issue pressings also have the inscription "Remember Yourself!" in he run off vinyl on Side A. Reissues do not have this message.

Another interesting thing about the inscription is that some of them are misspelled. Some first issue copies will say "Rember Yourself!" and others will say "Remember Yourself!" A misspelling of the word "Remember" occurred when they first started scratching the message into the vinyl, so it's unknown how many copies were pressed and released with the misspelling. Whether you have the misspelling or the corrected one doesn't really matter as they're both first issue releases.

Here's how they both look:

Misspelling.

Corrected Spelling.

The Kick Inside - UK Second Issue Picture Disc

UK Second Issue Picture Disc of The Kick Inside. Although both issues are limited edition, first issue picture discs were pressed in fewer quantities and therefore the more rarer of the two releases.

Both picture disc issues look nearly the same when quickly glancing them, but there are a couple of very specific differences between them.

The record jackets on both releases are identical, except for the stickers. First issue picture discs will have a circular sticker positioned in the upper left-hand corner of the record jacket, which is sort of purple in colour. It will read: Limited Edition Picture Disc. Now take a look at mine, which is the second issue picture sleeve. It also has a sticker, but it's larger, oval in shape and centred at the top of the album jacket. It's also more of a brown colour. Not only does it read Limited Edition Picture Disc, but the catalogue number is also printed underneath the words, which isn't the case with the circular one. These stickers are the only identifying feature between the jackets.

The other thing you really need to pay attention to is the actual picture disc. Both issues are virtually identical with just one slight difference between them. Take a look at my picture disc - either side will do. Take a look at the bottom rim of the record where the printed information is located. The last sentence, "Manufactured in the UK by EMI Records LTD." is only printed on second issue picture discs as part of the copyright notice. First issue picture discs will not have this last sentence added.

 
It's just a handy thing to know in case you ever go looking for a first issue picture disc and the album jacket has conveniently lost its sticker and the vinyl turns out to be second issue, or the vinyls and sleeves get switched. Speaking of stickers missing from the jackets... it's highly unlikely that one would just fall off, even from age, so if you ever come across either of the picture disc releases that have lost its jacket sticker, just forget about buying it. A missing sticker also means a lot of its value is gone right there.