BEATLES PLEASE ME LP UK ORIG MONO BLACK & GOLD RARE

	£		417
	$		553

Item :

THE BEATLES ~ PLEASE PLEASE ME LP

Original 1963 U.K. first issue mono pressing released on the black & gold Parlophone label PMC 1202.

Description :

Super rare first issue mono pressing of the legendary Beatles debut album. Contains the "Dick James Mus. Co." publishing credit for "Please Please Me", "I Saw Her Standing There", "Misery", "Do You Want To Know A Secret" and "There's A Place" on the labels. Only the very first issue 1963 pressings have this whereas the second black & gold pressings have the "Northern Songs" publishing credit for those tracks. Both labels also contain "The Parlophone Co. Ltd." label text.

Please Please Me was released when Parlophone were in the process of changing their label design. The very first pressings of the LP are the only The Beatles LPs that have the gold and black Parlophone label (gold writing on a black background). This version is highly sought after by collectors. The next Please Please Me LP label had a yellow and black Parlophone LP label (black with yellow writing) which Parlophone would use until 1969.

In order for the album to contain fourteen songs (the norm for British vinyl pop albums at that time was to have seven songs on each side, while American albums usually had only five or six songs per side) ten more tracks were needed to add to the four sides of their first two singles recorded and released previously. Therefore, at 10:00 am on Monday, 11 February 1963 at EMI Studios (whose name was later changed to Abbey Road Studios), The Beatles and George Martin started recording what was essentially their live act in 1963, and finished 585 minutes later (9 hours and 45 minutes). In three sessions that day (each lasting approximately three hours) they produced an authentic representation of the band's Cavern Club-era sound, as there were very few overdubs and edits. Optimistically, only two sessions were originally booked by Martin, the evening session was added later. George Martin initially contemplated recording the album live at the Cavern in front of the group's home audience and visited the Liverpool club on 9 December 1962 to consider the technicalities. But when time constraints intervened, he decided to book them at Abbey Road Studios instead and record them virtually live. Martin said, "It was a straightforward performance of their stage repertoire, a broadcast, more or less."

The day ended with a cover of "Twist and Shout", which had to be recorded last because John Lennon had a particularly bad cold and Martin feared the throat-shredding vocal would ruin Lennon's voice for the day. This performance, captured first take, and generally regarded as a classic, prompted Martin to say: "I don't know how they do it. We've been recording all day but the longer we go on the better they get."

The song "Hold Me Tight" was recorded during these sessions, but was "surplus to requirements" and not included on the album. "Hold Me Tight" was recorded again on 12 September 1963 for With The Beatles.

The whole day's session cost around £400. George Martin said: "There wasn't a lot of money at Parlophone. I was working to an annual budget of £55,000." This budget had to cover all of the artists on Martin's roster.

Individually, under a contract with the Musicians' Union, each Beatle collected a seven pounds and ten shillings (£7.50) session fee for each three hour session.

Martin considered calling the album Off the Beatle Track before Please Please Me was released on Parlophone PCS 3042.

Please Please Me was recorded on a two-track BTR tape recording machine, with most of the instrumentation on one track and the vocals on the other, allowing for a better balance between the two on the final quarter-inch tape mix-down in mono. A stereo mix was made at the same time as the mono mix, with one track on the left channel and the other on the right, as well as an added layer of reverb to better blend the two tracks together. This was common practice for playback on stereo consoles.

Please Please Me was released as an LP album on Parlophone in the UK on 22 March 1963.

Condition ~ Vinyl :

Side one of the vinyl is in VG+ condition but only because of an entirely non-audible surface mark across the first four and a half tracks. Apart from that the rest of the side is in solid EXCELLENT condition with just the faintest signs of use.

Side two is in VG++ condition with just the odd light surface mark and occasional hairline.

Audibly, the whole record plays absolutely superbly and doesn't appear to have been played very much at all. There is no visible spindle wear. The grooves on these original pressings are so deep that the odd surface mark is entirely non-audible. The sound quality is wonderfully crisp and clear with only the faintest of occasional surface noise between the tracks. There is no distortion even on the last track "Twist And Shout".

Condition ~ Sleeve :

The laminated Ernest J. Day & Co. Ltd. flip-back sleeve is in VG++ condition. No writing, splits or tears. Just light overall wear and a light stain on the rear. There is some faint creasing but absolutely nothing serious.  

Condition ~ Labels :

Both labels are super clean and bright showing no visible spindle wear. No writing.

Condition ~ Inner Sleeve :

Comes complete with the original Emitex poly-lined inner sleeve which is in superb shape with no splits.

Matrix Numbers :

Side one : XEX 421-1N 

Side two : XEX 422-1N

Mother Stampers :

Side one : 1 T 

Side two : 1 GR

Miscellaneous :

No reserve and low starting price so start bidding !!!

PAYMENT

Payment must be made within seven days of the auction ending. If you cannot comply with these terms then please do not place a bid.

PAYPAL ~ Preferred

INTERNATIONAL MONEY ORDER

POSTAL ORDER ~ U.K. Buyers only 

PERSONAL CHEQUE ~ U.K. Buyers only 

SHIPPING

Great care is taken when packing your item. Each record is placed inside a 400 gram polythene sleeve for added protection and packed using a strong card mailer with appropriate stiffeners. I want to make sure that it arrives in perfect condition.

United Kingdom ~ Royal Mail 1st Class Standard : £3.00

Europe ~ International Air Mail Rate : £4.00

U.S.A. / Americas ~ International Air Mail Rate : £6.00 

Rest Of The World ~ International Air Mail Rate : £8.00 

For Multiple Purchases I Will Give A Shipping Quote When All Auctions Are Ended. Recorded / Signed For Delivery Available On Request.

ABOUT ME

I have been trading in new and used vinyl for over twenty five years beginning in the early eighties with record fairs all over the United Kingdom, Europe, Canada and the States. Since 1995 I have been the proprietor of Rooster Records which is a retail store currently located in Exeter, Devon in the south-west of England. We sell all kinds of vinyl, CDs and DVDs. I have always treated customers honestly and fairly and like to think that I get it right when grading a record. What you see is what you get !

BID WITH CONFIDENCE ~ 100% POSITIVE FEEDBACK !                          

THANKS FOR LOOKING !