Record material imageable with a laser beam. The material is a substrate such as paper or polyolefin film having provided on at least one surface thereof a coating containing a solvent-soluble or disperse-type dye suitable for coloring plastics or polymers. Typical solvent-soluble and disperse-type dye include monoazo dyes, diazo dyes, anthraquinone dyes, coumarin dyes, quinoline dyes, xanthene dyes, and naphthalimide dyes. The record material does not show visible dye specks in the coating layer on the substrate because the dye has a very small average particle size—less than 50 microns. No more than 1% of the dye particles are larger than 100 microns. Also, method for imaging a substrate using heat energy by applying heat energy to the described record material to bring about a temperature in the coating greater than the melting temperature of the dye, causing color to become visible in the record material.