Tom Waits' voice may not be for everyone, but there were bigger problems than that to notice on the recent repressings of his first four albums on red vinyl from Rhino.

The reissues, put out several months back, have been plagued with sporadic problems that seem to lie with the mastering or transfer onto vinyl. Fortunately, Anti- Records has begun an exchange program and promised their customers that these problems will be corrected and avoided for future vinyl reissues of the Waits catalogue.

Here's their full statement, which we've reposted after the jump.

Dear Tom Waits fans,

As you may or may not have heard or read, there were pressing discrepancies with the first round of Tom Waits vinyl re-issues from Rhino. While it was reportedly not on all pieces of vinyl, it was enough to investigate the issues related to this. All of us here Kings Road as well as Tom himself have heard about this from friends, fans and even family in addition to customers. We have been very concerned with resolving this since the first mention of this came to our attention, and we have been answering any and all complaints on a customer-by-customer basis, all the while resolving this with the companies involved.

Please only use the appropriate option.

IF YOU PURCHASED FROM KINGS ROAD USA:

Please go to the URL: http://www.kingsroadmerch.com/tomwaits-vinylexchange and enter your ORDER # and EMAIL ADDRESS that you used to make the order. This will allow you to select which records you would like replaced and create a request. You will receive new VINYL shipped in a white sleeve when product is finished. You will not be sent a new cover as those didn’t have pressing errors.

IF YOU PURCHASED FROM KINGS ROAD EUROPE:

Please email: support@kingsroadmerch.eu with the title “TOM WAITS VINYLEXCHANGE” with your order number and titles you would like to replace.

IF YOU PURCHASED FROM A RECORD STORE:

Please contact Rhino & WEA directly via email at drrhino@rhino.com to arrange an exchange.

Return Requests will be taken until Monday April 18th, 2011 so we can order replacements.

The time frame on this replacement is still being determined. New acetates have been approved by Gavin and test presses are currently in motion for Tom’s approval. Once approved, pressing could take another 4–6 weeks. When we have more information, we will notify all of those who request a replacement on what to expect and when. But just know that proper resolution of this will be handled at no cost to you should you want this resolved.

This was a project that we here and the Waits family were very excited to make happen. For Tom as an artist, audio quality and fidelity are his main concern. For everyone else involved on a personal and professional level, we stand by quality of what we sell, even if we don’t manufacture it ourselves. You ordered a very special set of records and from the perspective of someone who has heard the intended audio in Gavin Lurssen’s studio, we expect THAT to be what is on the record.

We want to make sure you know how seriously we take resolving such a complicated situation because when Blue Valentine, Foreign Affairs and Heartattack & Vine receive the same treatment, you should know that you can buy in confidence knowing that we all stand by the product, its quality, and its fidelity. And regardless of what happens, please know our team here will resolve this issue for you as fast as we can.

On behalf of the Waits, our customer service staff, and everyone involved, thank you for your support and patience.

- Anti Records