The Clash — London Calling: How to Identify a First Pressing

• Cover: The cover photo shows bassist Paul Simonon at a September 20, 1979 show at the Palladium in New York, at the moment he smashed his Fender Precision Bass onto the stage.
• Cover: The cover artwork was designed by Ray Lowry, deliberately paying tribute to the classic layout of Elvis Presley's self-titled debut album cover: pink vertical lettering on the left, with green horizontal text along the bottom.
• Cover: A gatefold cover was used only for the Japanese release; regular editions in other regions do not use a gatefold format.

• A 25th-anniversary 'Legacy Edition' was released in 2004 with a bonus CD and DVD in digipak packaging; a limited picture-disc edition also followed in 2010 — both clearly distinct later reissues from the 1979 original vinyl.

• Japanese gatefold edition: Only the Japanese release uses a gatefold sleeve; every other region's regular edition (including the UK and US) uses a standard single-panel sleeve — a direct structural difference for identifying the Japanese edition versus other regional editions.

discogs.com returned a 403 this time and could not be accessed; the English Wikipedia entry was used instead. The specific US/UK catalog numbers, label design, and matrix-etching details could not be verified this time.

• Read the runout (the smooth area between the last groove and the label) with the disc tilted under a lamp: matrix numbers, stamper codes and mastering initials are the strongest evidence.
• Label details change between pressing plants and years: rim text, logo style, address, "Manufactured by" wording.
• Cover printing shows the plant and era: printer credit, catalog number position, barcode presence.
• Match all three. A first-press disc in a later cover, or the reverse, is common.

Shoot the label straight on in even light, then the runout with the disc tilted so the etched text catches the light (a phone torch from the side works). Add the front and back cover, the spine, and any inner sleeve or insert. The app reads the label and cover; the runout photo is what confirms the pressing.