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Cilla Black - You're My World - Parlophone was also pressed up by Polydor. As with above, EMI supplied labels, but immediately noticable by the three pronged middle. I only saw it once about 15 years
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Mick, thanks for that info. Yes, it's obvious many other EMI released 45's were pressed up by other companies. I never realised Polydor were also part of the process (but now do). I know Beatles
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Input again from a SDF member ... copies of TMG 607 were outsourced for pressing. It seems likely these were done at the CBS / Oriole plant (probably the one in Aston Clinton) ... though some see
Going back to the 1960's, EMI was the biggest record company in the world. Off the back of the Beatles worldwide success, they expanded here & in many other countries. They had some of the most modern / best / biggest pressing plants in the world here in the UK. This was partly coz old equipment would be taken off line & shipped to an overseas EMI operation (India / Pakistan / Africa) with new machinery replacing it in their UK plants.
BUT even though EMI was a 'giant' in the industry, sometimes they had problems pressing enough records to keep up with the demand. To increase production they turned to other companies to press up some copies of particular releases, however, the vast majority of their single releases were still pressed by EMI themselves. However, if they, say, had a big Beatles hit on their hands and a couple of other big sellers at the same time, they would go out to get help from other labels plants.
They used the likes of Oriole -- who pressed up loads of copies of “I Want To Hold Your Hand” (R 5084--- November 63) & “Can’t Buy Me Love” (R 5114 -- March 64) at their Aston Clinton facility in 63/64. It seems they deemed Oriole to have a very good pressing plant that was also used by several other companies. Oriole pressings are usually mistaken for Pye pressings. The reason for this was that Pye also had several of their big hits 45's pressed by Oriole, with folk assuming these had been done in-house by Pye. By all accounts you can tell the EMI label & Pye label 45's that were made by Oriole coz they have distinguishing characteristics.
Oriole pressings .... 1. No tax code is evident in the push-out centre on either side of the disc. 2. The push-out centre has a rough texture to it.
3. There is one small ridge that’s approximately 0.5mm in from the edge of the push-out centre. 4. The gap between the push-out centre and the body of the disc is approximately 2.5mm wide. 5. The tax code can be found stamped into the deadwax at the 9 o’clock position. 6. The mother plate number is pressed directly underneath the tax code at the 9 o’clock position.
Obviously CBS took over Oriole in late 64 and then used the Aston Clinton & Colnbrook pressing plants to make their own CBS & Direction stuff, US Columbia / CBS had first looked to start their own UK labels in 1962. From May 1962 onwards, Philips handled the American Columbia / CBS label here & in Ireland. An early UK 45 under the new arrangement with Phillips was the Dave Brubeck Quartet's "Unsquare Dance" (CBS AAG 102). This collaboration started to end after CBS bought out the Oriole Records operation. A few more EMI 45's were made by CBS (/ Oriole) in December 64 & again in September 68, but not as many were made this way.
So, it seems using the old Oriole facilities became harder for EMI when they needed instant extra capacity. So they went to the likes of Decca, Phillips & Pye. Decca pressed up 45's for EMI in September & December 63 + in summer 65. It seems Decca pressed up lots of 45's for EMI throughout the 1960's. Phillips & Pye made EMI 45's mainly in 1968 /69 and into the 70's.
I have used the Beatles 45 to illustrate this piece as their stuff has been extensively researched by many before me. Beatles collectors have identified which singles were pressed by the other companies & how these can be identified, as the completists want a copy of each 45 in all it's different forms.
So, we know it went on (other companies pressing up 45's for EMI) from at least 1963 right through into the 70's.
I guess it would only have been big single runs that were sent out to these outside sources; an order for say 5000 of this particular record, rather than 500 copies of 10 different EMI 45's, So that means it will only have been HITS that EMI outsourced. That would cut down the number of releases that were of interest to us ... but I guess we could easily have Stateside 45's from the likes of Lee Dorsey, T/Motown 45's from the likes of the Supremes / Tops, etc, Bell 45's from James & Bobby Purify, etc etc that were done by the likes of Oriole, Decca, Pye, etc.
I know Pye went through a rough patch in terms of 45 sales in summer 65 and were only 'rescued' when Fontella Bass's "Rescue Me" (Chess) became a big seller for them ahead of Christmas 65. I guess it's likely that copies of this Pye / Chess 45 were outsourced to other pressing plants to meet the demand.
ANYONE HERE have any knowledge of which singles from one company were pressed up in this way (by another rival record company) ?