Release of Universal Japan's First Set of SHM-SACDs Delayed

To those who placed a pre-order with us:
The release date of the first 20 titles of the Universal Japan's SHM-SACD reissues has been pushed back. The originally planned release date was June 23. The newly revised release dates are:

• UIGY-9022 The Who / Who's Next: August 25
• All other 19 titles: June 30

We will ship the SHM-SACDs as they become available. If you've ordered "Who's Next" with another title, we will ship them separately with no additional shipping charge. If you'd like to cancel any part of your order because of this delay, please contact us for partial refund.

Pre-order Opportunity for the Second Set of SHM-SACDs

Universal Japan is releasing the second set (12 titles) of SHM-SACDs in Japan on August 25, 2010. SHM-SACDs stand for Super High Material Super-Audio CDs. They are single-layer, stereo-only SACDs pressed on special SHM discs utilizing high-quality polycarbonate material originally developed for LCD panels. They are NOT hybrid SACDs. They do NOT contain any multi-channel tracks. They require an SACD player and will NOT play on regular CD players.

This series of limited-edition SHM-SACDs will use the most recent DSD masters available to Universal Japan, and in some cases, brand-new DSD masters will be created from analog master tapes.

Based on our past experience, this limited-edition series will quickly sell out, and once they are out of print, they will be available only at premium prices. So we have decided to offer our valued customers a chance to secure their copies by pre-ordering. Eastwind Import has no plan to stock them, except for a few copies each of the jazz titles.

The price of the SHM-SACDs is $49.00 each. In addition, our regular shipping charge will apply:
 
Shipping and handling charges for US customers
$5.00 for the first CD
+$1.95 for each additional CD

Shipping and handling charges for Non-US customers including Canada
$9.00 for the first CD
+$2.50 for each additional CD

The cut-off date is Sunday, June 27, US California time. Please send an email to hajime@eastwindimport.com listing the titles you'd like to order, your name, shipping address, and a PayPal email address if different from your usual email address. In return, we will send you a PayPal invoice via email which you can pay with your credit card.

Below is the list of the 12 titles to be released on August 25 in Japan:

Rock/Pops

• UIGY-9022 The Who / Who's Next (delayed from the 1st set)
• UIGY-9031 Blind Faith / Blind Faith
• UIGY-9032 Dire Straits / Dire Straits
• UIGY-9033 10CC / The Original Soundtrack
• UIGY-9034 Black Sabbath / Paranoid
• UIGY-9035 Kiss / Destroyer

Jazz

• UCGO-9001 Bill Evans / Portrait In Jazz +1
• UCGO-9002 Miles Davis / Relaxin'
• UCGO-9003 Wes Montgomery / Incredible Jazz Guitar

Classical

• UCGD-9003 R.Strauss: Also Sprach Zarathustra.etc. / KARAJAN,HERBERT VON / WIENER PHILHARMONIKER
• UCGD-9004 Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique / DAVIS,SIR COLIN / ROYAL CONCERTGEBOUW ORCHESTRA
• UCGG-9003 Mozart: Requiem / BOHM,KARL / WIENER PHILHARMONIKER

After the order is placed and payment received, we will place an order with our Japanese distributor. The SHM-SACDs will be released in Japan on August 25, and we expect to receive them shortly thereafter. We will ship the CDs to you as soon as they arrive from Japan. In an unlikely event that we cannot fulfill this special order for some unforeseen reason, your prepayment will immediately be refunded in full.

To secure your copy from this historic and sure-to-be-sold-out series, please email us on or before Sunday, June 27! This is a FIRM deadline!

Happy listening to you all!