COLUMBIA RECORDS
including the following distributed labels
BARNABY (2) - BLUE SKY (5) - COLUMBIA (170) - EPIC (37)
MASTERWORKS (119) - MONUMENT (6) - PHILADELPHIA INTERNATIONAL (12)
PORTRAIT (1) - T-NECK (5) - VIRGIN (1)

TOTAL: 358 SQ ALBUMS RELEASED*

* - Totals do not include promo samplers and specially produced compilations created for hardware vendors and specialty retailers (Radio Shack, Magnavox, etc)

The above classic gold SQ Columbia Quadraphonic label is from a
rare 1975 Columbia sampler that included tracks from other labels using the SQ System

At the beginning of the 1970's, Columbia Records was one of the top record companies in the US, with an impressive
roster of recording stars and a great history that included artists like (early) Frank Sinatra, Mitch Miller, Ray Conniff, Miles Davis, and
through the efforts of executive Clive Davis had burst into the Rock and Pop era by signing starts like Simon & Garfunkel, Donovan,
Bob Dylan, Blood Sweat and Tears, Chicago and others.

Columbia was also a pioneer in the field of the actual recording of artists, being one of the oldest
record companies in the world. As the '70s began, a new technology was developing that would present audio sound
through 4 Channels and 4 speakers and Columbia, with it's CBS Technology Center in Stamford, CT, was right
on top of this new quadraphonic craze. In fact, they developed their own system,  "SQ" (Stereo-Quadraphonic), that
encoded a 4 channel audio signal into a "normal" stereo signal, and in 1972 began selling these Quadraphonic albums
which could also be played on a normal "Stereo" turntable and system without special cartridges or turntables. 

Below you will find a table containing all of the Columbia US SQ LP releases, including those on
subsidiary labels such as Epic, and their classical brand, Masterworks. They are listed in "pressing
number" order, and I've included the dates in which they were released, as well as the approximate
date that they were deleted and sent to the cut-outs.

The SQ albums of 1976 and 1977 that were not "single-inventory" (they were not released in stereo, only
compatible quad) are the rarest of the group, as they were pressed in very limited numbers. The early titles with the wide
gold borders are quite common, as Columbia pressed them in great numbers to get their product the
highest visibility.

Not all Columbia (and subsidiary label) quadraphonic labels have the large gold border around the album front graphics. Throughout
the '70s, the style changed and eventually the bold proclamation of SQ QUADRAPHONIC was relegated to a little
blurb on the back of the album jacket, sometimes being so small that only the quad fan would ever notice it.

These are a few examples of some different type of quadraphonic labeling of Columbia (and group) albums

THE NUMBERS QUESTION
What's the difference between pressing number CQ 30994 and PCQ 30994?

ANSWER: ONE DOLLAR!

COLUMBIA and affiliated labels QUADRAPHONIC SQ LP RELEASE LIST

DIGITAL REISSUE ABBREVIATIONS:   AF=Audio Fidelity;   AP=Analog Productions;   DV=Dutton-Vocalion;

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Page Date: 3/7/2010, Rev 2s 1/17/2020 - Columbia and SQ are registered trademarks and no ownership is implied
The above graphics are reproduced for educational and archival purposes only.

List compiled by QuadraphonicQuad