Company Sleeves (Australia)

This page aims to provide the Quo 7" collector with the correct company sleeve match to their Australian 7" singles. Most Australian releases did not come in a picture sleeve, but instead a company sleeve from the manufacturer (e.g. Astor or Vertigo/Phonogram).

When you look at auction sites such as eBay, you'll see items for sale in a variety of sleeves — often inappropriate for the year of release.

The science behind what record was in what sleeve on release is imprecise, so please treat this as a guide only.

Astor (1965–1971)

The Astor sleeves for most releases from The Spectres, Traffic Jam, The Status Quo and Status Quo look very similar from the front. There are minor differences over the years in the folds and typefaces on the rear. See the link at the bottom of the page for full details.

Astor (1973)

By the 1973 release of Mean Girl, Astor had moved on to using a rather garish yellow and pink swirl sleeve.

Phonogram Sleeve v1 (1973–1976)

This sleeve was used for Paper Plane through to Wild Side of Life.

Phonogram Sleeve v2 (1977–1978)

This sleeve was used for Rockin' All Over The World through to Accident Prone.

Polygram Sleeve v1 (1979–1982)

This sleeve was used for Whatever You Want through to Dear John.

Polygram Sleeve v2 (1982)

This sleeve was used for I Love Rock and Roll.

Polygram Sleeve v3 (1983)

This sleeve was used for Ol' Rag Blues and Marguerita Time.

Polygram Sleeve v4 (1984–1986)

This sleeve was used for The Wanderer through to Dreamin'.

Plain Black or White Sleeves (1986 onwards)

You would expect The Anniversary Waltz to be in a plain sleeve if the dedicated picture sleeve is not available.

The information shown here is a guide. If you have more precise information, please share it with us.

Some external links for background:
Astor Labels and Sleeves