Wishful, Sinful / Who Scared You?

The release in question is the German single for Wishful, Sinful backed with Who Scared You?, issued by Metronome Records GmbH under catalog number J 27020 in 1969. This is a 7-inch 45 pressed in Germany, identified in the matrix as an Elektra-USA-Recording, and notably comes with a picture sleeve, which immediately separates it from more utilitarian European pressings of the period. The Discogs notes confirm the Super-Stereo-Sound designation and the standard Metronome label credit, placing this squarely within the German market releases The Doors were receiving through their Elektra distribution arrangement at the time.

The picture sleeve is the primary physical draw here, and it deserves careful attention. Metronome's German singles from this era were generally well-produced in terms of sleeve printing, and this one follows that standard. The sleeve presents band imagery consistent with the late-1968 to early-1969 promotional cycle surrounding Strange Days and the Soft Parade sessions. The color palette leans into the warm, slightly saturated tones common to European sleeve printing of the period, and the front face carries both the Metronome branding and the Elektra logo acknowledgment, confirming the licensing arrangement. The catalog number J 27020 is printed clearly, which helps when cross-referencing against other variants, including the other pressings cataloged here on DoorsInfo such as the alternate Wishful, Sinful / Who Scared You? listing and the additional variant also in the catalog. The disc itself carries the Super-Stereo-Sound designation on the label, which was a marketing term Metronome applied to stereo pressings during this period. Label typography is clean and functional, standard for Metronome's output. Vinyl quality on surviving copies tends to be acceptable for the era, though condition varies considerably given the age and the relatively modest collector base compared to US pressings. The sleeve, being a picture sleeve, is of course the more vulnerable component and finding copies with minimal edge wear or seam splits is increasingly difficult. Any collector targeting this specific pressing should prioritize sleeve condition as the primary grading concern.

Wishful, Sinful was released as a single in the United States on Elektra in early 1969, drawn from The Soft Parade before the album itself appeared. The German Metronome pressing, catalog J 27020, follows that timeline and carries the same A and B side pairing, with Who Scared You? serving as the flip. Who Scared You? is a track that does not appear on the standard US album configuration of The Soft Parade, which gives this single, and its various international pressings, an added degree of interest beyond simple market variants. For collectors who track the broader German Doors discography through Metronome, this sits alongside releases like Hello, I Love You / Love Street as an example of how Metronome consistently serviced the German market with proper picture sleeve packaging during the band's commercial peak. The Super-Stereo-Sound designation is a notable feature of this pressing specifically and distinguishes it from some contemporaneous pressings that did not carry stereo designations on the label. On Discogs, this specific pressing shows 118 collectors marking it as owned and 58 with it on their want list, figures that indicate a reasonably active secondary market without suggesting extreme scarcity. It is not in the same territory as a truly limited pressing, but it is not common either, particularly in picture sleeve condition. Those building comprehensive German Doors collections, perhaps alongside the Star Collection release that Metronome produced in this market, will want this in the holdings. The Elektra-USA-Recording designation printed on the label is a consistent identifier for this pressing and should be confirmed when authenticating copies offered for sale.

The Metronome J 27020 German pressing of Wishful, Sinful / Who Scared You? with picture sleeve is a solid mid-tier acquisition for collectors focused on The Doors' international 45 output. It is not exceptionally rare, but clean copies with intact picture sleeves are genuinely harder to source than the Discogs ownership numbers alone might suggest. Recommended for anyone building out the German Doors singles run, and especially relevant given that the B-side does not appear on the standard Soft Parade LP configuration.