Japanese Compilation Albums

I was just very lucky. My first album was Live In Japan. I heard it on a radio station in San Francisco area first. I asked the fan club how to get it, and they said send all your college tuition money to King Records in Japan. Lol
That was 1976. Then I left school and went to work in a local record shop. I met a Japanese importer at the monthly Capital Record swaps around 1979, and he could get pretty much anything I could afford.....that lasted until 1990, when we closed. Then I have a friend that lives there and could get records and CDs from him. Then EBay and Amazon came along, and pretty much everything new and old is available some time or another. The Yen used to be so much more valuable than the dollar until the late 90’s, I believe. So it was, and still is very expensive to buy imports from there. The shipping is really high too, because of the pandemic. Several sellers or vendors won’t even ship to the USA at all now. It’s sad. I’m still waiting for a cd I bought on Amazon in late July. I think they’re waiting for the whales to migrate, to send it here.....
 
I bought something from Japan on another site, and the seller refused to send it to the USA. Said he would hold on to it until it was convenient to mail. I didn’t pay under those conditions. My cd thru Amazon should be here by the end of the month they said. Hope your poster shows up soon too.
 
It will be worth it though. I got as many of them as I could find and some were in like-new shape. My main goal was to find every single remix as I am a recording engineer and love to compare the different mixes. I think I have all of them and this site is the best place to be if you're missing anything. I have that Mook also and I wish there was a way to have it translated. It was worth the price just for the pictures. That is where you can see everything Yuko collected up until the year of the release of that book. I have like three or four box-sets in vinyl including the original Anthology. It's hours of fun when you have all those treasures from the past. Good Luck in your search!
 
I just received a Japanese only promo collection called Yesterday Once More. The just says Carpenters on the front of the white cover. Not For Sale D.J. Sampler A&M Alam-1010-1011. From 1981. Manufactured by Alfa Records, pretty decent quality. The back cover says Sides A, B,C, D with song titles listed under each one. The records actually both say either Side 1 or Side 2. It’s an interesting collection starting with the album versions of TTR 4:10 and CTY 4:36 Then WOJB, Help,FAWK,RDAM, and Superstar.
Side 2 album version of TOTW,HEO,IGTTST,GTL,ASFY, album version of IWLADWY, Sing.
Record 2 Side 1. Jambalaya 3:42, then YOM/w oldies medley listed as a 19:00 min. track 2.
Side 2. YOM album version, PMP, OY, TAKOH, BUIHTD, AYGFLIALS, and SSS.
It’s obvious they left off later ballads, and Goofus/Occupants from the collection. My guess is they might get more airplay from radio stations there with this set. Interesting the whole oldies side is included though. Bathroom break time I suppose. There a booklet inside that’s okay. A timeline and regular album discography at the end. About 10 pages on glossy paper. All written in Japanese unfortunately. Anyway for $25 it was a good find.
 
I just received a Japanese only promo collection called Yesterday Once More. The just says Carpenters on the front of the white cover. Not For Sale D.J. Sampler A&M Alam-1010-1011. From 1981. Manufactured by Alfa Records, pretty decent quality. The back cover says Sides A, B,C, D with song titles listed under each one. The records actually both say either Side 1 or Side 2. It’s an interesting collection starting with the album versions of TTR 4:10 and CTY 4:36 Then WOJB, Help,FAWK,RDAM, and Superstar.
Side 2 album version of TOTW,HEO,IGTTST,GTL,ASFY, album version of IWLADWY, Sing.
Record 2 Side 1. Jambalaya 3:42, then YOM/w oldies medley listed as a 19:00 min. track 2.
Side 2. YOM album version, PMP, OY, TAKOH, BUIHTD, AYGFLIALS, and SSS.
It’s obvious they left off later ballads, and Goofus/Occupants from the collection. My guess is they might get more airplay from radio stations there with this set. Interesting the whole oldies side is included though. Bathroom break time I suppose. There a booklet inside that’s okay. A timeline and regular album discography at the end. About 10 pages on glossy paper. All written in Japanese unfortunately. Anyway for $25 it was a good find.
Would love to see pics!!
 
Look at the link Harry sent. Touch the album cover and it will show all.
Only sent to radio stations in Japan for d.j.’s ( disc jockeys) to play on air. Not a commercial release, or sold to the public in stores. The album versions, and song selections make it unique. No YOM reprise at the end of the medley. YOM is on there twice. Once with medley running over the end of the song, like the album, and once free of the medley. I thought that was interesting too!
 
What I find I interesting is that it was released in 1981? Photos in the booklet were used from MIA but no songs appear from that album. Chronologically the last songs were from Passage.
 
These kind of compilations (samplers for DJs) were released a lot in Japan. A&M Japan must have been very interested in keeping Carpenters stuff out in the forefront with fresh copies of their records that would sound good on the radio.

A decade earlier, A&M in the US did the same for Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass with this DEE JAY SAMPLER:

DEEJAYFrontMonoSm.jpgDEEJAYRearMonoSm.jpgDEEJAYRearMonoSm.jpg

Given the time frame of this release, it had both mono and stereo issues.
 
Consider that MIA had just been released, so the radio DJs all had that one in a fresh condition. These were to be used to freshen up a station's library with new vinyl. MIA was already new.
 
Consider that MIA had just been released, so the radio DJs all had that one in a fresh condition. These were to be used to freshen up a station's library with new vinyl. MIA was already new.
MIA was only released in June (9), so half-way through the year (with DJ samplers maybe hitting in May). Could the Sampler have been released earlier in 1981 (like February) in anticipation of MIA’s release, hence no MIA tracks (also, aside from “I believe You”, the earliest 45 release from the album was “Touch Me When We’re Dancing”—-but it wasn’t released until June 20 almost 2 weeks after the album).
 
It's very possible that it was released in conjunction with the new album.
 
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