'AB' Etching in Deadwax?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by felixstrange, Oct 28, 2011.

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  1. felixstrange

    felixstrange New Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Portland, OR, USA
    Hello all,

    I'm am continually seeing 'AB' etched in the deadwax on various jazz labels, most frequently Prestige but also Savoy and many other labels. Here's one from a blue label pressing of "Coltrane" on Prestige:

    [​IMG]

    Since many of the records with the stamp have an 'RVG' mastering stamp, I am guessing that it represents the pressing plant rather than mastering house or engineer.

    I often see it listed in descriptions of records, yet I haven't been able to track down what it indicates.

    Anybody have any theories or information?
     
  2. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    Sounds like it could be Abbey Record Mfg., a pressing plant in (I.I.N.M.) Newark, NJ that also handled Elektra Records in its early years of existence. Abbey was another company that, like Plastylite, pressed for smaller labels.
     
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  3. felixstrange

    felixstrange New Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Portland, OR, USA
    I've been looking into this possibility and Abbey seems like a very likely candidate, especially in light of this post:

    http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/archive/index.php/t-181943-p-2.html

    Steve states that Abbey pressed records for both Riverside and Prestige.

    I also found this add in Billboard:

    [​IMG]

    What I haven't been able to find is anybody explicitly stating that the 'AB' stamp indicates that a record was pressed by Abbey Record Manufacturing, but at this point, it seems like the best guess.

    Can anyone confirm this?
     
  4. kaptain_kopter

    kaptain_kopter Forum Resident

    Location:
    Central Europe
    Hi,

    as I'm interested in the 'AB' etchings, I'd like to point out the following releases:

    http://www.discogs.com/Thelonious-Monk-Thelonious-Monk/release/3438016

    A-side was recorded at the house of Van Gelder's parents and mastered by Van Gelder, B-side was recorded at WOR Studios and mastered by Doug Hawkings. Both runouts read RVG (etched), which can only mean 'lacquer cut by' Van Gelder, as RVG hasn't mastered the B-side. 'AB' therefore will most probably denote the pressing plant.

    On the other hand there is the following release on discogs

    http://www.discogs.com/Warren-Galjour-Silly-Liesl/release/3932294,

    which has Abbey Record Corp., N.J. on labels, but no 'AB' etched in runouts. I will post again, when I have more comprehensive information

    Mark
     
  5. kaptain_kopter

    kaptain_kopter Forum Resident

    Location:
    Central Europe
  6. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    Abbey also pressed on and off (as did Plastylite) for United Artists Records (LP's only, of course), up to the point when Transamerica assumed full control in 1967, then a year later acquired Liberty and consolidated the two labels a year after that.
     
  7. kaptain_kopter

    kaptain_kopter Forum Resident

    Location:
    Central Europe
    Thanks for this info. I think that you're exactly the one, who could help me with another runout etching: 7E. This one appears on the wax pressed by different pressing plants (Plastilyte etc.) for Prestige records. It seems to indicate the mastering engineer and/or the cutter of the lacquer. It would be gread, if you had an idea, how to pin this one. Thanks - best wishes
     
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