Folder 27
Mexico
SLEM-1520 - the Mexican catalogue number.
What the record says
Every line below was read off a native-resolution crop of the photograph named beside it.
Run-out photographed. Side B reads SLEM-1520-B with a date stamp read as 14-IV-88, matching the SLEM-1520-B 14-IV-88 Discogs records for both Mexican entries. It confirms the family, not the copy.
Barcode and Other Identifiers: Matrix / Runout
As Discogs records them for release 3229879. Green: in my collection (1 of 2). Red: missing.
| ✗ | Matrix / Runout (Side A runout) | SLEM-1520-A 14-IV-88 |
| ✓ | Matrix / Runout (Side B runout) | SLEM-1520-B 14-IV-88 — this copy |
Every line of small print, and the photograph it came from — 9 of them
Label: SLEM-1520, LADO A
IMG_0813, IMG_0815
Label: track titles in Spanish - HIJO DE LA LUNA, SUEÑOS INFINITOS, TOCANDO CON LOCURA, EL MAL QUE LOS HOMBRES HACEN
IMG_0813, IMG_0815
Label, side A track 3 printed CAN I PLAY WHIT MADNESS - a typographical error for WITH
IMG_0813
Label rim: … POR EMI CAPITOL DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V. and HECHO EN MEXICO
IMG_0813, IMG_0824
Label rim: IMPORTE PAGADO POR ESTE DISCO NO AUTORIZA SU EJECUCION PUBLICA CON FINE[S] …
IMG_0813
Label: ℗ 1988 EMI RECORDS, LTD., PRODUCIDO Y MEZCLADO POR MARTIN BIRCH, SONIDO ORIGINAL GRABADO EN EMI RECORDS LTD.
IMG_0815
No promotional overprint on either label
IMG_0813
Run-out, side B, etched: SLEM-1520-B with a date read as 14-IV-88
IMG_0825, IMG_0826
Rear sleeve: Spanish tracklist and 1988 EMI RECORDS, LTD with a Mexican distributor address
IMG_0810, IMG_0811
The photographs
IMG_0806.jpg1 of 23READ FROM
The object, and what marks it out
Sleeve, labels and inserts
- Outer sleeve - standard artwork, Spanish-language rear.
- Labels - pale yellow with black and red text, red EMI logo. Spanish track titles with the English originals set beside them.
- Vinyl - black.
- Insert - the rear photographs show a thin printed sheet, consistent with the double-sided paper insert Discogs records.
What distinguishes this pressing
SLEM-1520- the Mexican catalogue number.- Spanish track titles printed on the label, which only this copy and the Uruguayan promo (folder 8) carry in this collection.
HECHO EN MEXICOand the EMI Capitol de México manufacturing credit.CAN I PLAY WHIT MADNESS- a label typo specific to this printing.- No promotional overprint, which is what makes it the retail issue rather than the promo.
Eight tracks, two sides, and the recording credits
Side A
- A1Moonchild
- A2Infinite Dreams
- A3Can I Play With Madness
- A4The Evil That Men Do
Side B
- B1Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
- B2The Prophecy
- B3The Clairvoyant
- B4Only The Good Die Young
Bruce Dickinson - vocals · Dave Murray - lead and rhythm guitar · Adrian Smith - lead and rhythm guitar, synth · Steve Harris - bass, string synth · Nicko McBrain - drums.
Produced, engineered and mixed by Martin Birch. Mastered by George Marino at Sterling Sound, New York. Recorded at Musicland Studios, Munich. Sleeve illustration, concept and design by Derek Riggs (with Rod Smallwood). Inner-sleeve photograph by Ross Halfin. Published by Zomba Music Publishers Ltd.
Personnel and studio credits are sourced from Discogs release 576952, the UK original, and apply to the recording rather than to this pressing. The producer, publisher and copyright lines are independently corroborated by this copy's own label, quoted above.
Condition, from the photographs
A photograph cannot grade a record - this is a description of what is visible, not a grade.
- Sleeve: general handling wear with some edge and corner softening; no splits or seam separation visible in these shots.
- Vinyl: light surface marks and handling sheen catch the light. No visible deep scratches, warping or edge damage in these photographs. The labels are clean and unmarked.
Nothing on this page comes from playing the record. No Goldmine grade is claimed for it, or any other. I have no record of where this copy came from.
What is settled, and what is not
Confirmed. Mexico and SLEM-1520 are certain. The master lists two Mexican vinyl entries under that number and they differ in exactly one respect:
How the other candidates were ruled out
| Candidate | Verdict |
|---|---|
| 3229879 - standard issue | Matches. Discogs describes the retail Mexican pressing with a Spanish/English tracklist and the Hecho en Mexico logo. |
| 19072813 - Promo | Discogs: “On both labels promo” print. Both labels of this copy were photographed in full and neither carries any promotional overprint. |
The two entries share their run-out (SLEM-1520-A / -B 14-IV-88), so the matrix cannot separate them and is recorded here as corroboration only. The absence of the promo print is a positive observation from clear photographs of both labels, not an assumption from a missing photograph.
Standing caveat: this method cannot exclude a pressing absent from Discogs.