Ni Kantu En Esperanto Test Pressing LP
1964 test pressing vinyl album manufactured for ESP-Disk Records by Plastylite of North Plainfield, NJ (matrix # AEIOU 1001, on very heavy vinyl).
This is a TEST PRESSING of the very first LP release on Bernard Stollman's avant-garde label ESP-DISK. Dated July 24, 1964, it comes in generic sleeve. One side has "AEIOU 1001 A", "7-24-64" and "ESPERANTO" written in pen on a Plastylite blank label, the other side has a Plastylite blank label with no writing. The run-off grooves read "AEIOU 1001 A" and "AEIOU 1001 B" with a script captial "P" on each side (this "P" is sometimes referred to as the "ear".)
"ESP-Disk" is not printed or written anywhere (par for the course for test pressings) but there is no question that this is an ESP record. Plastylite was the New Jersey pressing plant which produced many of the very early ESP releases (as well as most of the classic Blue Note LPs up until the sale to Liberty Records.)
There is no tracklisting given but it appears to jibe with the tracklisting on the official release (reproduced below.) I don't have a copy of the official release to compare in order to determine if this test pressing differs in content or production, but based on the Ni Kantu En Esperanto audio samples found on the official ESP-Disk website, this appears to be the same recording.
Julius Balbin, Duncan Charters, and Franz Jahger performing songs and poems in the international language of Esperanto. Julius Balbin declaims his translation of Yevtushenko's Babij Jar and Duncan Charters does his famous monologue Mia Eksterlanda Vojago.
TRACKS:
La Lingvo por Ni
Chiu Chiu
Lulkanto
Kara-Kentoki-Land'
La Rompiginta Ringeto
Funga Kanto
Mi Eksterlanda Vojagho
Babi Jar
Mariston Logas Vasta Mar'
Bovochar
Jukajdi, Jukajda
Lorelaj
Fluanta Tajdo
Pasintaj