Something New

LP.2108.2.2 is the fifth pressing of Something New in Canada, appearing around early 1968, during the last months of the mono era (see LP.2108.2.3 for the stereo edition that followed). The label is the same "rainbow brackets" design as LP.2108.2.1, but this pressing is recognized by its hybrid matrix (one side pressed from the original USA plates), its narrower 5 mm inner seams, and its glossy back slick presenting the albums in the wrong order, once again.

Availability

This variation was available approximately between early 1968, and mid 1968 (for a few months) when the mono format was phased out and Something New moved to a stereo only release (see LP.2108.2.3).

General Information

In mid 1966, Capitol Records of Canada had been reincorporated as CAPITOL RECORDS (CANADA) LTD. From this point on (July 1966), all new labels would feature the new corporate information. This rainbow label remained in use until Capitol changed its design in favour of the green target label (see LP.2108.4.1).

For some reason, the original (decommissioned?) USA plates were used again around early 1968, for one or two of the very last mono pressing runs, producing these copies with a hybrid matrix assembly. Capitol of Canada fell back on the original USA plates it had kept in storage for practical or technical reasons still unknown, but later pressings kept using the previous "proper" Canadian plates.

The jacket tells a similar story of used-up leftovers: these copies have a glossy back slick presenting the albums in the wrong chronological order, once again. Capitol most likely used old stock of the faulty back slicks that had sat dormant at the warehouse since late 1965. It is particularly interesting that both the pressing plates and jacket construction saw the use of older "decommissioned" material, possibly caused by a momentary supply chain bottleneck.

By this point, pressings were made as demand required, while Capitol pushed out the Beatles' newer albums. Mono was phased out of the regular catalogue in mid-1968, making these hybrid copies the very last mono pressings of Something New.

Collectors should keep in mind that overlaps between variations LP.2108.2.1 and LP.2108.2.2 may very well exist (e.g., different combinations of correct / mistake covers and Canadian / hybrid plates), as the pressing plant assembled what they had on hand at the time. The differentiated variations noted in this archive stem from the most common pattern that was observed over the years.

Pressing Information

As with all previous variations, Capitol of Canada subcontracted the RCA pressing plant in Smiths Falls (Ontario). For these runs, and for some undetermined reason, a Canadian-made plate was combined with one of the original USA plates seemingly kept in storage.

LP.2108.2.2 has a hybrid matrix assembly, where one side features the earlier USA pressing plate with stamped matrix numbers, and the other the hand-written Canadian matrix. Both types of hybrid combinations (USA/CAD and CAD/USA) have been documented:

Side 1: T-X-1-2108-3
Side 2: T2-2108-F5" IAM logo

And

Side 1: T1-2108-F7 IAM logo
Side 2: T-X-2-2108-3

These pressings feature the same 70 mm deep-groove RCA pressing ring as previous pressings. Labels feature the "brackets" rainbow label (see perimeter print at the bottom of the label: "Manufactured in Canada by Capitol Records (Canada) Ltd." with brackets around the word CANADA).

Cover

The jacket for LP.2108.2.2 features a similar build to its predecessors: the inner seams (the inside fold of the cardboard jacket) are still cut straight but now measure only 5 mm high, showing a different cardboard frame, for the first time since 1964.

Covers up to the mid 70s used a “front slick” construction (a larger back slick, usually printed in black and white that wrapped around the front of the cardboard cover, onto which a smaller colour front slick was glued, creating a white frame effect all around the front image).

Both slicks were printed by Parr's Print and Litho in Toronto and assembled onto the cardboard frame by Modern albums.

The back cover keeps the Canadian-market list of albums introduced with the first pressing: Beatlemania! and Twist and Shout instead of Meet The Beatles and The Beatles' Second Album, with Long Tall Sally added ahead of The Hollyridge Strings' Beatles Song Book. A Canadian back cover lists four Capitol albums, one more than the American.

Unlike LP.2108.2.1, these copies have a glossy back slick with the albums in the wrong chronological order (Twist and Shout before Beatlemania), most likely old warehouse stock of the faulty back slicks.

Packaging

Copies of LP.2108.2.2 were packaged with a tight shrink wrap.

These were sold with / without a red and white Capitol / Pathé "ATTENTION" paper LP inner sleeve.

Sales

Records show that sales for this album were dramatically declining by this point. We do not have sales figures for 1968, but these hybrid copies come from one or two small, demand-driven runs during the last months of the mono era. Numbers are expected to be low (possibly no more than 1000 copies).