Billy Joel - Souvenir (Vinyl, LP, Promo, Sampler, Unofficial Release) Very Good (VG) / Very Good (VG)

Notes

This is the unofficial release, as indicated by the "AG" 326 on the LP jacket spine; the center labels have "AS 326" printed. For the official release, use [r=1819521].

Promotional-only release by Columbia Records in 1977 to promote Billy's pre-The Stranger songs.

Side 1: These selections were recorded live December 5th and 6th, 1976 at Palmer Auditorium, University of Connecticut at New London during the live video taping of "Billy Joel Tonight."

Side 2:
- The Entertainer (From the Columbia Lp, "Streetlife Serenade" PC 33146)
- I've Loved These Days (From The Columbia Lp, "Turnstiles" Pc 33848)
- Captain Jack (From the Columbia Lp, "Piano Man" PC 32544
- Los Angelenos (From The Columbia Lp, "Streetlife Serenade" PC 33146)
- Say Goodbye to Hollywood (From The Columbia Lp, "Turnstiles" PC33848)

Pressed on Columbia's white promo labels, which state "Demonstration - Not For Sale" at the bottom, as well as on the front jacket.

These were distributed mainly to radio stations, clubs, and fan clubs in the US and were were not sold in stores.

This album is known to have been heavily counterfeited:

Counterfeit:
- The Columbia "eye" insignia in the lower right corner on the front cover may be distorted.
- The LP jacket may be made of thin, white cardboard. When looking inside the sleeve, the cardboard may appear white or grey.
- Because the cardboard is relatively thin, the spine of a counterfeit may be poorly printed and distorted, e.g., the slanted lines on the spine may be crooked and appear hand drawn.
- The runouts do not have the Pitman "P" stamped, but the runouts are otherwise the same stamped runouts.
- Some counterfeits have "Ballad" (in "The Ballad of Billy the Kid") misspelled as "Ballard."
- The non-spine end of the LP jacket cardboard is not clean-cut, but more jagged.
- Pressing ring is 70mm (2.75")

Genuine:
- In the lower right corner on the front cover, the Columbia "eye" insignia should be sharp and clear. No blurriness.
- The "Ron Levine" signature on the cover art should be sharp and clear.
- On the spine, the "AS 326" should be sharp and clear, and the slanted lines next to this should also be clean (see [r=1819521]).
- Genuine copies have the gold "For Promotion Only"/CBS stamp on the back cover, upper left.
- The cardboard on a genuine copy is firm and pretty thick; it yields a good, flat spine.
- Looking inside the sleeve, it is natural, grayish brown cardboard.
- Label-447694, pressing ring is 69mm.

Hard to tell the difference between a genuine and a counterfeit just by looking at the disc itself. The stamps on the matrix/runout on both are similar. The white labels look exactly the same. Some owners of the counterfeit and the official claim that the sound of the counterfeit is noticeably inferior.