BOOT SCOOT: If you’re saving your pennies...

BOOT SCOOT: If you’re saving your pennies for that bootleg CD from one of Nirvana’s last-ever concerts or maybe one of a rare Doors television session, you might want to hurry.

The Italian government--under pressure from major record companies--is cracking down on the country’s bootleg industry, which in recent years has produced perhaps the world’s best CDs of unauthorized live and otherwise unreleased recordings. The Italian bootlegs are known for their high-quality sound and packaging and often command upward of $30 per disc at U.S. record stores that carry them (illegally).

“There will definitely be a dip in volume of bootlegs coming from Europe for a while,” says Pete Howard, editor of the ICE monthly CD newsletter, which regularly covers bootleg trade. “But (the bootleggers) may get back on their feet with Thailand or Australia imprints. As long as there are good tapes floating around and pressing plants willing to look the other way, there will be bootlegs.”