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BBC Transcription Discs

BertieWorcester

What-ho!!
How common are these, and is there a market for them? I ask this because I've just rediscovered one that I've had for years, and the passage of time has eradicated the memory of how I came to own it.

It's called 'Top Of The Pops - 776', and it appears to be a broadcasted show from 1979 hosted by Simon Bates. It features amongst others XTC, The Ruts, Racey, The Members and Nick Lowe. It also heavily plugs what must have been then a newly released Cliff album, (Rock n' Roll Juvenile), and plays two tracks from it.

The SQ is fantastic, as is the vinyl. Strangely, the XTC track (a then newly released Making Plans For Nigel), sounds slightly different to me. Were tracks mixed differently for broadcast back in the day?
 
How common are these, and is there a market for them? I ask this because I've just rediscovered one that I've had for years, and the passage of time has eradicated the memory of how I came to own it.

It's called 'Top Of The Pops - 776', and it appears to be a broadcasted show from 1979 hosted by Simon Bates. It features amongst others XTC, The Ruts, Racey, The Members and Nick Lowe. It also heavily plugs what must have been then a newly released Cliff album, (Rock n' Roll Juvenile), and plays two tracks from it.

The SQ is fantastic, as is the vinyl. Strangely, the XTC track (a then newly released Making Plans For Nigel), sounds slightly different to me. Were tracks mixed differently for broadcast back in the day?
Sounds interesting regardless of value
 
BBC transcription discs are not something I know much about other than they are *very* widely pirated! I guess the further one gets from the big name concert recordings the more likely it is to be legit though. The only ones I’ve ever seen obviously weren’t!
 
Also BBC cd transcription discs do come up rarely. Like most things their value is whatever someone is prepared to pay.

I came across one a few years back of one of my favourite singer , didn't know it existed and never seen it before or since. Luckily i managed to buy it below my value estimate.

For myself now that cd is priceless.
 
I have a copy of Nirvana in concert. Interstingly, Discogs list it as an unofficial release and have blocked the sale of it on the site. I have no idea if it's woth anything, I paid a tenner for it.
 
I seem to recall all BBC transcription discs were actually supplied to broadcasters in very limited numbers and they state they are not to be sold and also I believe they officially should be destroyed after their specified use. That would therefore naturally make genuine ones very rare and valuable. Just checked and some CDs seem to be up for between £200 and £300.
 
II believe they officially should be destroyed after their specified use
I went to a talk at the British Library a few years ago where a guy from the Sound Archive talked about some of their rarest classical recordings.

As you say It was common practice for the BBC to require overseas stations to destroy transcription discs after broadcast. Decades after their broadcast someone discovered a stash of early transcription discs languishing in the storeroom of an obscure station but they'd all been slashed to make them unplayable.

Many of them are now the only known surviving copies of the recording and have been digitally restored. Hearing the before and after, it was really impressive what they'd been able to achieve.
 
I wonder if the BBC have kept the original recordings.

The one I have states it was recorded by BBC engineers , and is mastered by Nimbus. I assume Nimbus would have been the manufacturer as well.
It is an excellent sounding disc. The insert gives music timings and fade in/fade out timings as well.
 


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