Into the top three now, but to recap progress so far:
10. First Pressing of “The Devil Has All the Best Tunes”
9. Japanese Pressing of “Steve McQueen”
8. “Jordan: the Highlights”
7. “Autos Y Mujeres / El Rey Del Rock’N’Roll”
6. South African “Jordan” double
5. Anything Signed by Paddy McAloon
4. “Life of Surprises” laserdisc
2013 was an amazing year. The summer leak of “Crimson/Red” presaged a flurry of interest and excitement, with the centrpiece being the arrival of a pop up site where you could order various versions of the album.
Amongst the goodies available via the site was a limited edition (of 250) box set with a signed photo of Paddy. The picture on the website shows the content, which was the album of course, the interview disk, a couple of postcards and a booklet, and the 7″x7″ signed photo (the example shown doesn’t include the signature).
It sold out within 48 hours.
In the weeks and months following shipment, there was the usual pattern where examples would turn up on Ebay for stupid prices, which were often paid by late arriving collectors with bad cases of FOMO – I think I recall seeing one going for over £200. But now the prices have settled down, and Discogs suggests a price of around £75, which I think is about right.
As most were bought by fans who kept them, they don’t turn up all that often, but you can find them if you are persistent.
Couple of caveats if you go after one. There were actually three box set variants issued, of which two were “standard” sets without the photo. The one you want has a sticker over the original bar code. And at least one was sent out without a photo, or photos were removed and framed, so always check it’s present before purchase.
It’s a lovely presentation overall. The interview was I think the first we’d heard directly from Paddy, it’s certainly worth a listen though not as insightful or interesting as the ones that came later from Sodajerker or Pete Paphides. The booklet is wonderful. And the signed picture – you can imagine Paddy sitting down with his sharpie and a pile of photos – is really nice. It frames up beautifully should the urge take you to do that.
