Vinyl Icons

Original LP
Replicas was first released on vinyl on Beggars Banquet in the UK in 1979. The record came with an inner sleeve with the lyrics on one side and black and white portrait of Numan on the other [BEGA 7]. In the US it appeared in the same format on ATCO, a sub-label of Atlantic [SD 38-117]. The album was released on Atlantic in some territories, including New Zealand, where its unique gatefold sleeve has made it a collector’s item [600046].

Cassette & 8-Track
In the UK the cassette of Replicas was released in off-white shells, with embossed text in either blue, black or red [Beggar’s Banquet BEGC-7]. In the US, the cassette was released by ATCO [CS 38-117]. The only 8-track cartridge release was by the same label in the US [TP 38-117).

First CD
Replicas arrived on CD for the first time in 1995 on MCI Music [MUSCD509] with an eight-page booklet including liner notes, lyrics and photos. Sharp-eyed Numanophiles will note that the electric light bulb on the front cover had been airbrushed out to make space for larger title lettering.

A version remastered by John Dent came out in the UK and the US in 1998 with six extra tracks including outtakes and different versions, plus a 16-page booklet by writer and archivist Steve Malins [Beggars Banquet BBL7 CD].

Special Edition CDs
In 2008 the lettering on the front cover was changed again, this time to accommodate the credit, ‘Gary Numan, Tubeway Army’. This two-CD set was retitled Replicas Redux [Expanded 2008 Tour Edition], and comprised the original running order on one CD [pictured above] with outtakes and different versions, plus a second disc that contained earlier versions recorded at Gooseberry Sound [Beggars Banquet BBQ CD 2057].

A UK limited version of the above, also released in 2008, included a third CD comprising six extra tracks: alternative early versions and two remixes, one instrumental, by Renegade Soundwave [BBQ CD 2057, GNCD 2008]. Now a collector’s item, it was only available in a limited edition of 3000 copies from Numan’s own website.

Audiophile LPs
In 2008 a 180g pressing in a heavyweight sleeve was issued by Beggars Banquet and Vinyl 180 [VIN180LP001]. It was limited to 5000 copies, the first 2000 being numbered. A standard weight LP on orange vinyl followed in 2015, with 59 copies signed by Numan [Beggars Banquet BBQLP 7].

In 2019, the album’s 40th anniversary, Beggars Banquet released the limited edition 2LP set Replicas (The First Recordings). This is credited to Gary Numan/Tubeway Army and is a compilations of demos, early versions and outtakes plus the three-track 1979 John Peel session [BBQ2159LP].