AUTOBAHN (USA, 1977)
Mercury MCR4-1-3704


Here's one of many US editions of Autobahn, the 1977 Mercury edition.


The USA did of course have a lot of variations of Autobahn, on LP or cassette. The album was a big hit there, and kept selling, so when stock was getting low and orders kept coming in, I suppose they'd make more? Why they changed the label I don't know though - the first edition was released on Vertigo, and they're both distributed by Polygram anyway so where one label ends and another begins is anyone's guess. 


This reissue is apparently based on the Vertigo edition, sharing the cover design and a surprising edit in the tracklist: As the two sides were of different length, the US market deemed it necessary to cut a minute off the title track and relegate it to the b-side! Of course, it saves the listener the trouble of fast-forwarding the end of side two, but at the cost of a prominent break in the ending of the title track... I can't say I like that pause much if I'm honest.


Both the Vertigo and Mercury issues have the same crop of the Emil Schult painting, with the US amended titles (set in a different font to the German LP sleeve). They also both come with 2-panel J-cards, printed on both sides - in this case, we get both a list of other releases which we should no doubt hurry to purchase (if you like Autobahn, just wait until you discover Rod Stewart, Rush or Thin Lizzy!), and on the inside, a lot of quality-boasting warranty information. Apparently the cassette itself may sound better than the Vertigo issue, since it's been treated to Dolby B? Of course, as time took its toll on both editions this is a purely academic point in modern times...

No paper labels on this cassette, just black print on a grey cassette. Thoroughly lovely none the less, I'd say.








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