Alchemy Live - 20th Anniversary Edition

[Simon]

Alchemy released on CD in 1990? Where did you get this information? I could be wrong but I think it has been released on CD few months after the vinyl (1984). Not later than 1985 anyway.

Possibly but not in the UK. Maybe you have an import or you live n a place where CD was more prevalent than us over here?

[rudiger]

Hi Simon, BIA was one of the first fully digital recording (DDD) and the first CD to sell one million copies, but not the first DS CD. Dire Straits, Communiqu

[rudiger]

Possibly but not in the UK. Maybe you have an import or you live n a place where CD was more prevalent than us over here?

The first CD plant in Europe was in Hanover (Germany): the first releases of all the mentioned CDs (Alchemy included) are "made in West Germany". The West Germany plants provided the European market and (with the Japan plants) the US market too.

[allen]

According to http://www.neck-and-neck.com/disco/albums/alchemy.html, it was released in Feb., 1984.

Wishes
Allen

[Simon]

Hi Simon, BIA was one of the first fully digital recording (DDD) and the first CD to sell one million copies, but not the first DS CD. Dire Straits, Communiqu

[Simon]

According to http://www.neck-and-neck.com/disco/albums/alchemy.html, it was released in Feb., 1984.

Wishes
Allen

Allen this is just one of many sites that bear many different release dates. The date on the site you mention is probably the date the vinyl album was released that the CD was taken from. It is also not an official site so can't really be regarded for confirmation purposes - like wickipedia - the info is only as good as the source it came from.

[rudiger]

Hi Simon, we are not talking about the CD diffusion. I didn't buy the CD in 1984. But if you want celebrate an anniversary you must refer to the first release. And the first release of Alchemy on CD was in 1984 (if I'm not wrong). We can say that CDs were not so diffused in Europe, but this is another subject.

[allen]

Allen this is just one of many sites that bear many different release dates. The date on the site you mention is probably the date the vinyl album was released that the CD was taken from. It is also not an official site so can't really be regarded for confirmation purposes - like wickipedia - the info is only as good as the source it came from.

Hmm, I see.  There is no aLCHEMY info here: http://www.markknopfler.com/music/discography/cd/direStraits.aspx
Then what about this?  http://www.mark-knopfler-news.co.uk/disc.html

Wishes
Allen

[ustas]

In 1984, Alchemy was released on CD in USA (Warner 925085-2), Japan and Germany/France/Netherlands (Vertigo 818 243-2, 818244-2, 818245-2). There in not any info about CD release in UK in 1984.

[Simon]

Allen this is just one of many sites that bear many different release dates. The date on the site you mention is probably the date the vinyl album was released that the CD was taken from. It is also not an official site so can't really be regarded for confirmation purposes - like wickipedia - the info is only as good as the source it came from.

Hmm, I see.  There is no aLCHEMY info here: http://www.markknopfler.com/music/discography/cd/direStraits.aspx
Then what about this?  http://www.mark-knopfler-news.co.uk/disc.html

Wishes
Allen

Allen that is the date the vinyl album came out - if you look at the date the first album came out on the same webpage it says 1978 -

DIRE STRAITS (1978)
Vertigo 800 051-2

there is no way it came out on CD in 1978. They are referring to the vinyl release dates.  I just checked my Making Movies Cd and it bears the date 1980 - well that is when the album came out not the CD - it is very misleading but I am sure Alchemy wasn't released in the Uk until the 1990s. That makes the 20th anniversary correct.

[rudiger]

In 1984, Alchemy was released on CD in USA (Warner 925085-2), Japan and Germany/France/Netherlands (Vertigo 818 243-2, 818244-2, 818245-2). There in not any info about CD release in UK in 1984.

in 1984 all the DS CDs marketed in Europe were made in West Germany. Also the first Warner Bros issues were made in WG or Japan.  We must distinguish between "made" and "marketed". It is not important if Alchemy was released in UK in 1984 (I think so): we know that Alchemy on CD existed in 1984. So, what means "20th anniversary edition"?

[Simon]

In 1984, Alchemy was released on CD in USA (Warner 925085-2), Japan and Germany/France/Netherlands (Vertigo 818 243-2, 818244-2, 818245-2). There in not any info about CD release in UK in 1984.

in 1984 all the DS CDs marketed in Europe were made in West Germany. Also the first Warner Bros issues were made in WG or Japan.  We must distinguish between "made" and "marketed". It is not important if Alchemy was released in UK in 1984 (I think so): we know that Alchemy on CD existed in 1984. So, what means "20th anniversary edition"?

In terms of media items, i.e. books, newspapers, magazines, Cds and all forms of music - I think we should rely on publication dates not when they were 'made'. After all - you could argue a song was written many years before it appeared on a form of media and then a number of years later before that media was published. There needs to be a date that satisfies everyone and that is also absolute.
The 20th Anniversary Cd from what I can gather is being released in the UK? Therefore what they are saying is that it is 20 years since it was first available in that format in the UK.

[rudiger]

Hi Simon, first of all I want to point that I'm not debating with you: from my side it is an interesting, friendly conversation and I hope from you too  

In 1985 BIA was released worldwide (at least in the Occident) on CD, vinyl and tape simultaneously: I don't believe there were CD plants in the UK, but you can't consider the copies sold in UK as imported, because even if the CDs were phisically made in West Germany or France they were marketed also in the UK. What happened in 1990? Also (I don't think so) if Alchemy was released on CD in the UK in 1990, I don't believe that UK is the "center of the world"  
In 1984 Alchemy existed on CD and was marketed in Europe (I can't say in UK).

The 20th Anniversary Cd from what I can gather is being released in the UK? Therefore what they are saying is that it is 20 years since it was first available in that format in the UK.

It could be an explication, but actually I don't believe it will be a local launch (neither I read on the "communique" any reference to Universal UK)

[Simon]

Hi Rudiger - yes this is an interesting and friendly discussion and one which i don't think we will ever get to the bottom of simply because there doesn't seem to be any official information available.

If anyone can show a definitive reference it would be much appreciated but there are too many unofficial sites stating different things.

No the UK is not the centre of the world but can anyone confirm if it is being released elsewhere in the world to coincide with the so-called 20th anniversary?

[rudiger]

Actually it is likely that the first plant for manufacturing of CD in England is from 1990, since the first CD of the DS 'Made in UK " that I know is On every street.
I think the puzzle will be solved when we'll have an official statement 

Fabio