The mysterious Aqua releases (Part II: Alternate covers & bootlegs) (29/10/07)

I have written this series of articles with the intention of clearing up many misteries and not well-known issues about certain Aqua releases. I hope you enjoy it and that it helps you to know this band better. You can read the first part of this article here.

Turn Back Time alternate cover

Early pressings of Turn Back Time, fifth Aqua single in Denmark, were done in a cardboard sleeve which used the picture cover of Didn't I and the same pink-coloured letters. This edition of the single has the catalogue number UMD 85042 and its tracklist consists of the Album Version and Love To Infinity's Classic Radio Mix (labeled as Classic Radio Mix).

However, a re-release of the single with the standard cover of Turn Back Time (Aqua surrounded by orange, melting clocks) had the same catalogue number and tracklist. This is why some people think that the original artwork was a fake or a provisional one, but the item really exists. The CD with the original cover is very rare, and only from time to time pops out at eBay (cheaper than one might think).

My Oh My alternate cover

At some on-line shops and download sites, the My Oh My single appears with a strange cover artwork, which you can see to the right. It uses the same picture as the standard european release, but with a different background and without the starfishes nor the yellow octopus that grabbed the Aqua members (but you can notice the empty spots where the octopus' tentacles were supposed to be placed).

My Oh My has been released three times, and with three different covers each time: old-look Aqua (1996, original release), new-look Aqua (1997 Scandinavian reissue, accompanying the release of Aquarium) and the octopus cover (1998, european release). The existence of any release with this fourth artwork is unconfirmed.

Cartoon Heroes promo in golden box

At the end of 1999, the promos of Aqua's long-awaited, upcoming single Cartoon Heroes were distributed in many radio stations around the world. Some of the european promos came in a deluxe pack, which consisted of a metal tin (like the cases for cinema films), the CD and a circle-shaped booklet.

The colour of the tin was silver but, because of its shiny surface, sometimes it can look like a golden box depending on the surrounding colours. But don't be misled: this cool promo box only exists in silver tin.

Aqua Live album

There was no official Live Album recorded by Aqua. You can find some bootlegs if you're lucky enough, all of them with a low quality audio compilating some of the recordings that have surfaced through the years, but no official release was ever done.

During an interview to the four Aqua members in a danish TV show in 2006, one of the screen texts said that they had released a live album (as well as 14 singles), but unfortunately it was a wrong information. A VHS release of the Scandinavian Tour 98 was planned, but the plans were discarded and the footage was used for the Good Morning Sunshine videoclip instead.

Bootleg albums

After the success of their debut album Aquarium in 1997, people expected from Aqua a quick second album next year to make some cash. It's what most novel pop acts do. But, after two exhausting years, the band preferred to take some time to work hard on their next album, and it was not until 2000 that Aquarius was released.

Taking advantage of this gap, many groups emerged those years trying to emulate Aqua's formula: Daze, Toy-Box, Hit'n'Hide and many others. Bootleg pressings of their releases were done using Aqua pictures and claiming to be the new material from Claus, Lene, Ren� and S�ren, as well as mislabeled mp3 tracks. They were all obviously fake, but even today many people think that songs like Space Invaders (from Hit'N'Hide) or Tarzan & Jane (from Toy-Box) really are Aqua songs.

Previous article: Part I (more Aqua releases)
Coming soon: Part III (featuring Lene, Ren� Dif, S�ren Rasted/Lazyboy and Claus Norreen releases).

Information sources: Aqua Express, eBay and My Aquarium.

Remember that webmaster Lleonard Pler is the author of every news article and they may not be used or copied without permission.