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The World Record Club Ltd. was the name of a company in the United Kingdom which issued long-playing records and reel-to-reel tapes, mainly of classical music and jazz, through a membership mail-order system during the 1950s and 1960s.
In addition to titles imported from recording companies like Everest Records and Westminster Records, which it obtained on franchise, it made a series of recordings of international artists using its own engineers. Although often of great musical interest and very acceptable technical quality, these recordings do not appear in shop catalogues of the time as they were not available new through record shops. In modern times, however (when most vinyl is second-hand), they are frequently found by collectors, to whom an outline of the company's history will be valuable.
The label was taken over by EMI in 1965 but continued to be used as a sub-label for mail order, covering a wide range of musical genres, and distributing in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. ( from Wikipedia)


#1-1 Magical Mystery Tour And Other Splendid Hits (1st. Press "Northern Songs Credit": S-4574)
Back to the tp of the line
TITLE MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR AND OTHER SPLENDID HITS
CATALOG NUMBER S-4574
RELEASE DATE February 1969 / First Press
TRACK LISTING SIDE 1 SIDE 2
Magical Mystery Tour Hello Goodbye
The Fool On The Hill
Strawberry Fields Forever
Flying
Penny Lane
Blue Jay Way
Baby You're A Rich Man
Your Mother Should Know
All You Need Is Love
I Am The Walrus
("No, you're not!" said Little Nicola)

FRONT -->Click! BACK -->Click! SIDE 1 -->Click! SIDE 2 -->Click! DISK
label label label label label
INNER SLEEVE FRONT COVER CLOSE UP BACK COVER CLOSE UP
Plain white paper sleeve (maybe)
label The picture is very similar to the N.Z. edition, but there is a only large WRC logo over the white piano. label Housed in a front laminated cover with colored striped rear panel.
BACK COVER CLOSE UP
label label World Record Club logo was printed at the center of the back cover.
World Record Club office address was printed at the bottom.
LABEL CLOSE UP
label label label The initial pressings came with this light-green "S" label. World Record Club logo was printed above the center hole.
Northern Songs royalty stamp
LABEL CLOSE UP
label label label
There are three label variations:
Type-A:
On both sides,  RPM, CatalogNo, and Side details at left of WRC logo.
OTHER ITEM
-

LABEL World Record Club / Light Blue "S" Label Type-A
MIX STEREO
MATRIX No. SIDE 1 SMAL-1-2835 B24  (hand writing)   IAM logo
SIDE 2 SMAL-2-2835 A23#4 (hand writing)  IAM logo
VINYL COLOR BLACK
RECORD COMPANY'S NAME
LABEL World Record Club
COVER World Record Club
RECORDING PUBLISHED CREDIT -
COVER FORM Single type. Housed in a front laminated cover with colored striped rear panel
PRINTER CREDIT Unknown
COVER DESIGN/ PHOTO/ NOTES Cover Photo: The Beatles perform ‘I Am The Walrus’ for the film Magical Mystery Tour. West Malling Air Station, Kent, England. September 20, 1967
INNER SLEEVE Plain white paper sleeve (maybe)
PRODUCER George Martin
COMMENTS
The first album version of Magical Mystery Tour was issued in Australia around February 1969 through the World Record Club (EMI's mail-order division). This edition was titled Magical Mystery Tour And Other Splendid Hits. The image that graced the front-sleeve of the WRC edition was taken from page 10 of the booklet that accompanied the UK EP and US LP. In 1974, EMI (Australia) made the decision, based on sales through its import ordering system, to retail US-imported Apple copies of the album.

In July 1979, EMI (Australia) released the LP domestically on the Parlophone label, not surprisingly with an inferior gatefold sleeve and without the 24-page book. Until the digital era, all LP copies have the duophonic versions of Penny Lane, Baby, You're A Rich Man, and All You Need Is Love. However, and mirroring the UK, Parlophone compact-cassette copies contain the true stereo versions of those tracks.

Despite EMI (Australia) importing the album from the US and subsequently pressing it locally on the Parlophone label, it would remain available through WRC until the club closed in 1982, with copies from late 1979 using the domestic Parlophone cut and copies from 1981 being the standard EMI (Australia) release with a small WRC sticker applied over the Parlophone catalogue number on the rear of the cover.

There are three label variations:
  • Type-A:Northern Songs royalty stamp
    - RPM, Cat No, and Side details at left of WRC logo
    - Non-italicised Production credit
    - Tracklist layout A
  • Type-B:No royalty stamp (music publ credits appears within tracklist)
    - RPM, Cat No, and Side details at right of WRC logo
    - Italicised Production credit
    - Tracklist layout B
  • Type-C:Tracklist layout C
    - changes to vert and/or horiz spacings of various elements
(from Australian Records Labelography "I Am The Platypus" Thanks!)



#1-3 Magical Mystery Tour And Other Splendid Hits (3rd. Press: S-4574)
Back to the tp of the line
TITLE MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR AND OTHER SPLENDID HITS
CATALOG NUMBER S-4574
RELEASE DATE 1970? / Third Press? (First Press: February 1969)
TRACK LISTING SIDE 1 SIDE 2
Magical Mystery Tour Hello Goodbye
The Fool On The Hill
Strawberry Fields Forever
Flying
Penny Lane
Blue Jay Way
Baby You're A Rich Man
Your Mother Should Know
All You Need Is Love
I Am The Walrus
("No, you're not!" said Little Nicola)

FRONT -->Click! BACK -->Click! SIDE 1 -->Click! SIDE 2 -->Click! DISK
label label label label label
INNER SLEEVE FRONT COVER CLOSE UP BACK COVER CLOSE UP
Plain white paper sleeve (maybe)
label The picture is very similar to the N.Z. edition, but there is a only large WRC logo over the white piano. label Housed in a front laminated cover with colored striped rear panel.
BACK COVER CLOSE UP
label label World Record Club logo was printed at the center of the back cover.
World Record Club office address was printed at the bottom.
LABEL CLOSE UP
label label label The initial pressings came with this light-green "S" label. World Record Club logo was printed above the center hole.
LABEL CLOSE UP
label label label
There are three label variations:
Type-C:
On both sides,  RPM, CatalogNo, and Side details at right of WRC logo.
OTHER ITEM
-

LABEL World Record Club / Light Blue "S" Label Type-C
MIX STEREO
MATRIX No. SIDE 1 SMAL-1-2835 B24  (hand writing)   IAM logo
SIDE 2 SMAL-2-2835 A23#4 (hand writing)  IAM logo
VINYL COLOR BLACK
RECORD COMPANY'S NAME
LABEL World Record Club
COVER World Record Club
RECORDING PUBLISHED CREDIT -
COVER FORM Single type. Housed in a front laminated cover with colored striped rear panel
PRINTER CREDIT Unknown
COVER DESIGN/ PHOTO/ NOTES Cover Photo: The Beatles perform ‘I Am The Walrus’ for the film Magical Mystery Tour. West Malling Air Station, Kent, England. September 20, 1967
INNER SLEEVE Plain white paper sleeve (maybe)
PRODUCER George Martin
COMMENTS
The first album version of Magical Mystery Tour was issued in Australia around February 1969 through the World Record Club (EMI's mail-order division). This edition was titled Magical Mystery Tour And Other Splendid Hits. The image that graced the front-sleeve of the WRC edition was taken from page 10 of the booklet that accompanied the UK EP and US LP. In 1974, EMI (Australia) made the decision, based on sales through its import ordering system, to retail US-imported Apple copies of the album.

In July 1979, EMI (Australia) released the LP domestically on the Parlophone label, not surprisingly with an inferior gatefold sleeve and without the 24-page book. Until the digital era, all LP copies have the duophonic versions of Penny Lane, Baby, You're A Rich Man, and All You Need Is Love. However, and mirroring the UK, Parlophone compact-cassette copies contain the true stereo versions of those tracks.

Despite EMI (Australia) importing the album from the US and subsequently pressing it locally on the Parlophone label, it would remain available through WRC until the club closed in 1982, with copies from late 1979 using the domestic Parlophone cut and copies from 1981 being the standard EMI (Australia) release with a small WRC sticker applied over the Parlophone catalogue number on the rear of the cover.

There are three label variations:
  • Type-A:Northern Songs royalty stamp
    - RPM, Cat No, and Side details at left of WRC logo
    - Non-italicised Production credit
    - Tracklist layout A
  • Type-B:No royalty stamp (music publ credits appears within tracklist)
    - RPM, Cat No, and Side details at right of WRC logo
    - Italicised Production credit
    - Tracklist layout B
  • Type-C:Tracklist layout C
    - changes to vert and/or horiz spacings of various elements
(from Australian Records Labelography "I Am The Platypus" Thanks!)



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