a b o u t   /   d i s c l a i m e r   The info in this document is not going to be revolutionary.  What it will be is a simple checklist that you can use when buying one of the singles.  Every attempt will be made to be informative, yet brief and to the point. Additional images and basic info for official and counterfeit copies can be found on the single's summary page. Information on this page is compiled from various sources and is not official.  While not perfect, we do try to be as accurate as possible.  If you have anything to add or correct, please click on the link at the top right to submit info.

t h i n g s   t o   c h e c k   The sleeve is folded, meaning the front and back are continuous. Text on the sleeve, even the names of Alice Wheeler and Suzanne Sasic, can be seen clearly.  Be suspect of any sleeve on which the names have been traced over or are too dark and can't be read.  (Different scanners produce different images, but the images below should give you an idea of this issue.  Note the tracing/sloppiness on the counterfeit.) Official   Counterfeit The bottom left of each sleeve's back has an area that should be numbered with a red felt pen.  1000 copies are hand-numbered.  An additional 100-200 copies may be unnumbered, but will have a red "slash" where the number should be.  (Images and info.) The owners' list has several examples of numbering, but it should be noted that previously published info is most likely incorrect; not all copies seem to have been numbered by a lefthanded person, let alone just one person. Copies 1-499 do not match those above #500, though the exact cutoff won't be known until more images are submitted.  Two people may have numbered the first 499 sleeves, though again more images are needed to form a better opinion. Copies above #570 (since that's the earliest example we have in the 500s) are numbered by someone else, meaning two or three people are responsible for the entire 1000.  The style of writing on the high-numbered sleeves is very distinctive when compared to the low-numbered official copies and some badly attempted counterfeits. As already stated, official copies have a red number, not blue or black as have been seen in the past. The vinyl is black with labels on each side.  (Record Collector claims the labels have been easy to copy.)  Any colored vinyl is an obvious fake. Many counterfeits do not accurately copy the matrix code found in the run-out grooves of each side of the record.  This is the easiest and best way to figure out what the single is. The matrix code hand-etched into Side A of official copies is 2mm high and should read: SP-23-A Why Don't You Trade Those Guitars For Shovels? L-31540 There is one counterfeit version that comes close, but has five errors: 1) the code is 3mm high, 2) the question mark is omited, 3) quotation marks enclose the statement, 4) the order is wrong, and 5) the dashes are missing, like this: "Why Don't You Trade Those Guitars For Shovels" SP23A L31540 The matrix code hand-etched into Side B of official copies should read: SP-23-B L-31540X In addition to these codes, each side also has the word Kdisc machine-stamped into the groove. s o u r c e s   Joris Baas, Dave Chang, Adam Clark, Giovanni Solorio, Record Collector (issue #210, February 1997), Mitch Vassar, Enrico Vincenzi