A Record Collector's Guide

Jale.  Halifax's finest.  If the rest of those mid-90s indie bands from the Great White North were mounties, Jale was Dudley Do-Right.  A short-lived career, but some solid music packed between 1992 and 1997.  I was fortunate enough to see them play exactly once.  I managed to talk two of my friends into driving me the 3 1/2 hours to Buffalo, NY, back in April of 1996, shortly before the release of the "So Wound" album.  We got to see Jale along with about 11 other people in a room that looked like someone's den...a den which, of course, happened to be attached to a big bar.

Aunt Betty 7" - I Lied/Twisted b/w Sweetness

Cinnamon Toast CT002, released 1992

Jale's first single.  It's a little rough.  Things definitely got better from here.  Not terrible, but certainly not their best.  Up until April 2009, every one of these I had ever seen had been on red vinyl.  I read somewhere that red vinyl was the second pressing, but had never seen anything else.  Then, I came across a copy that had a black and white sleeve.  The vinyl looked red until I examined it closely.  This one is more of a pink-red or a magenta color.  It also comes with a different insert than the standard red copy, which appears to be an earlier Cinnamon Toast catalogue.  This all leads me to think that the copy with the black and white sleeve is the earlier pressing.  I had also read that the first pressing of this record was numbered.  My magenta copy has the number 80 written on the A side label in pen.  This may be numbering from the label...and it might not.  There is no additional information on mine...just the number 80.

1st Pressing - Magenta Vinyl

1st Pressing Insert

2nd Pressing - Red Vinyl

2nd Pressing Insert

Sort of Gray 7" - Emma b/w Brother

Derivative duh006/Cinnamon Toast CT007, released 1993

Jale really started to show their potential on this single, a joint release between Derivative and Cinnamon Toast Records.  All white vinyl on this release.

Insert

Nevermind the Molluscs 2 x 7"

Disc 1: Sloan - Pillow Fight b/w Jale - Lung

Disc 2: Eric's Trip - Blue Sky for Julie/Smother / Idee du Nord - Iodine Eyes

Sub Pop SP198, released 1993

Yeah, it's a comp, but it was Jale's first Sub Pop appearance, so it's important.  Canada began to invade Sub Pop land with this double 7".  The Jale song is really solid.  Sloan never did anything else on Sub Pop.  Eric's Trip developed a really dedicated following with their releases (they never really grabbed me, though).  I choose to ignore Idee du Nord.  Pretty good single overall.  All on black vinyl.

Gold Leather with Heel Detail 7" - Steppin' Out b/w River

Genius geniJR015, released 1993

This single is odd.  The music's good - I just mean the release details are odd.  There I was, plodding along for years, thinking there was only one version of this single...and then, I came across a completely different one in a bargain bin in 2007.  Released on grey marble vinyl and black vinyl.  That's normal enough.  However, I just recently noticed that the two versions have completely different labels and types of sleeves.  My grey one has a pink label and a full glossy sleeve.  My black one has a red label with a map of the world on it, along with a foldover paper sleeve and an insert.  I have no idea which came first.  Weird.

Insert

Cut 7" - Promise b/w 3 Days

Sub Pop SP235, released 1993
Sub Pop SP126/309 (Germany)

This was Jale's first solo Sub Pop effort.  Very good.  The U.S. version was on black vinyl - supposedly a press run of 1500.  The European version can be found on red, blue, and yellow vinyl.  The European one was a total press run of 1000, but it was not an even split between the three colors.  The red one is by far the most common.  The blue is scarce, but can be found, and the yellow is a difficult find.

Dreamcake LP

Sub Pop SP256, released July 1994
SP127/317 (Germany)

What's that, you say?  An album?  Indeed.  A very good album.  It has a little bit of the edge that I love in this type of music.  Dreamcake was only on black vinyl domestically.  However, the European vinyl was on both black and yellow marble vinyl, with the yellow marble version limited to 1000 copies.  The European version is mislabeled - it says "SP137/317"...this is wrong.  It is really supposed to be SP127/317.  Trust me.

14 08 93 7" - Not Happy b/w Love Letter

Sub Pop SP134/331 (Germany), released 1994

This single was a Europe-only release.  The 7" had two tracks that appeared on the Dreamcake album.  The cd had a third, along with a cd version of I Lied from the Aunt Betty single.  The 7" exists on both black and pink vinyl.  The pink version was limited to 1000 copies.

From Greer To Eternity 2x7"

Lush - Childcatcher / Ivy - Beautiful / Solar Race - I Feel / Splendora - Breeze / Jale - Nebulous (Alternate Version) / Fuzzy - Christmas

Fierce Panda NING005, released 1994

Double 7" on Fierce Panda containing a different version of "Nebulous."  I tracked it down, and it is a really good version of the song.

Club Spangle Number 2

The Spinanes - Sunday / Jale - The Unseen Guest b/w Velocity Girl - The All-Consumer / Pond - Sideroad

Spangle SPANG 002, released 1995

This was a British compilation 7" with a few songs from releases that Sub Pop was promoting in 1995.  Nothing particularly interesting here.  Black vinyl.

Closed EP

Murderecords mur018, released 1995

This EP was released on Sloan's Murderecords label, theoretically to have been promoted and distributed as well by Sub Pop (this part of the equation did not work so well).  It's an excellent recording.  It bridges the gap between the unrefined sound of Dreamcake and the polished So Wound, with very good results.  Black vinyl.  The vinyl can occasionally be hard to come by, and can sell for more than most things on this page.  Still pretty affordable, though.

Hey Hey b/w All Ready 7"

Sub Pop SP346, released 1996

This single led up to the release of Jale second full length album.  The 7" was on toffee-colored tan vinyl.  The cd came with a few rarer tracks - Bluestreak is exclusive to this cd (and a promo, I think...it's been a while since I've seen that one, though, so I am not certain).  Leave It Alone and Coincidence were on the Japanese version of the So Wound album.

So Wound LP

Sub Pop SP350, released June 1996

Jale's second and final full length release.  So Wound is a much more polished recording than anything the band had done prior.  I consider a few songs to be throwaways, but there are still a great deal of very good tracks on the album.  It has a ghost track at the end ("Sorry Sentimental"), which is not on the Japanese version.  In place, there are five bonus tracks: the versions of "Promise" and "3 Days" from the SP235 7", "Jesus Loves Me" from the Closed EP, along with "Leave It Alone" and "Coincidence."  As far as I know, this was only on black vinyl.

Pet-Kout-Koy-Ek: Songs for a River

PKKE-CD, released August 1996

Contains the Jale song "Traditional"

A compilation for completists.  This was the only place where you could find the song, "Traditional."  It was a benefit cd released to help save the Petitcodiac River.  A noble cause, and there's some decent music on it as well.  Many other Canadian bands make appearances (including Eric's Trip, but Eric's Trip fanatics would already know that).   Well, this cd is a bit tough to find.  It shouldn't be that expensive should you be able to find it...finding it is the problem.  Originally, it was sold through the campaign's web site.  It was called Écoversité.  I just checked to make sure, and their site is long gone.  I am having trouble remembering exaclty how I got my copy.   I think I got it when the Écoversité web site was still functional, and even then, it required several emails and sending cash through the mail to Canada.  There's another group out there to save the Petitcodiac now (google it if interested).  Perhaps someone there might have some idea how to get one of these now.  Otherwise, good luck.  It is quite scarce.

From a Still b/w True What You Say 7"

Sealed Fate, released 1997

This is hands down the toughest Jale record to find.  It took me a while to track it down.  It is out there, though.  You just have to keep an eye out.  This single really does nothing for me.  It was recorded after Eve left the band, and ended up being Jale's swan song.