BEATLES Sgt Pepper 1st press UK 67 MONO Complete N/M LP

	£		227
	$		301

Hi, I am Mike, now 47 and have been a music collector and enthusiast for over 34 years now. We all wish we could turn back the clock and buy those wonderful brand new records from the 60s and 70s, but alas, this is not possible; so I always try to offer the finest and most accurately described and graded records I can find. No vinyl/music lover really would choose to buy second-hand, but this is only way now to own these valuable, prized and elusive items now. I pride myself on offering a variety of genres to keep my site as interesting as possible. I will rarely offer any record that falls below a true Excellent grading, unless its of a certain rarity which will justify offering a lesser grade. I try, to the best of my ability to describe as accurately and as honesty as I can all items I offer for sale with all the relevant information I can think of to help any potential bidder and collector. You may notice I only submit records sparingly on Ebay - on average ONEADAY, hence the name - time rarely allows for more as I Play-Grade virtually every record I offer in their entirety, not just bits to guess a grade (on a Rega 3 deck with Ortofon cartridge) - visuals alone do not always tell a true or full story - I will mention any defects or flaws no matter how small that I notice to be fair as possible to any interested reader – I am very fussy and my buyers have the right to be too. Every record I offer, whether it be a common or rare item deserves the same respect as far as I am concerned and will be treated the same - just because an item is rare does not always mean its good. I get just as much pleasure offering a relatively common record in stunning near mint condition as the real rare items. All the pictures I use for your guidance are taken with a digital camera or scanned - they are NOT improved, cleaned-up or made better looking than they are with camera trickery or enhancing with digital programmes. What you see is what you get. The only thing I cannot guarantee one hundred percent is exact colour matching - this depends on the lighting at the time and that is out of my control, but I feel sure most items will be very close to the actual real item. Variation can sometimes occur too in colour of the label scans and labels taken next to the sleeve with a digital camera, the scanned full label pictures should be the most accurate. If any picture I take looks more flattering than the actual item for any reason, I will clearly state the fact in the advert. I hope the item below is to your liking - any questions can be emailed and I will do my very best to answer you. I am enthusiastic , and have a fair degree of knowledge about many genres and I promise quality items - bid with confidence - excellence comes as standard and so does Near Mint regularly. Please assume all records I offer have NO jumps or sticks or writing on covers or labels unless clearly stated to the contrary. Thanks for your interest and Good luck – MIKE.

Please Note as From 1st April 2005. I can no longer accept cash from any overseas winning bidder, a letter arrived recently with the contents stolen – only the second time this has happened since I have been an Ebay member - but twice too many for my liking. This is highly embarrassing to have to tell the sender and annoying for both parties. Cash is always risky and with Paypal so easy to use or even an IMO, I feel unnecessary now. I feel this is best for any overseas buyer, as once the letter leaves the senders hands we both are at the mercy of foreign postal services from both points of view. Sorry for any inconvenience to any overseas collector, but I feel this is really in the best interests of both parties – the buyer especially. UK winning bidders can still send cash if they wish in a secure letter via Special Delivery, but even here, a cheque is still best.

Album Title: Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.

Producer(s): George Martin.

Track Listing: Side 1: Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band; With a Little Help From My Friends; Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds; Getting Better; Fixing a Hole; She’s Leaving Home; Being For the Benefit of Mr Kite . Side 2: Within You Without You; When I’m Sixty-Four; Lovely Rita; Good Morning Good Morning; Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise); A Day in the Life.

Label/Format: Parlophone – Yellow and Black format. Text and detail includes: Sold in UK Subject to Resale etc, The Gramophone Co Ltd etc, Made in Gt Britain. Also the embossed KT tax codes are included on this unbanded Mono copy. All this criteria meets with the recognised ‘First Pressing’ of this classic masterpiece.

Label Conditions: Clean and attractive examples that show moderate(-) spindle marks, only really showing under angled light, most are relatively fine and non-obtrusive visually. A fine white circle has formed around the hole area. Now this may lead any reader of this advert to a copy that has been played several times or more. Well forget it!, never have I had a copy of any mono record that defies any logic of spindle mark and number of plays theories than this one. This original mono record is one of the cleanest, most stunning sounding copies of this album (or any) 60s mono record I have ever heard and that’s the honest truth. Sound quality throughout is astonishing and I promise just about every collector wanting this album in mono will adore this copy. More on that further down. Both the tax codes retain well defined embossing and are unflattened or eroded like many. Both also still have most of their ink intact, these so often rub and become white but there is only a trace of this on this pair. For a mono, very popular record that’s fast approaching 40, these labels look great. (Please see label scans for all information needed and please refer to my paragraph further down about ‘Spindle Marks’).

Cat Number: PNC 7027.

Mono or Stereo: Mono (This famous album was also issued in Stereo). Both versions are essential, the mono version by far the harder to find that will play well throughout.

Country of Manufacture: Gt Britain.

Rarity: As I always state, most Beatles standard issue albums are not that rare, with some exceptions (the original gold labels and 606-1 Revolver and the early stereo and late mono versions are exceptions, especially the first pressings) all their albums sold in vast numbers, pressing plants could hardly keep up with demand. Finding clean, lightly played copies that still play well are rarer and far harder to find. So many were played into submission, trashed even, so when a very clean copy, especially in mono, for all the reasons I outline in my paragraph further down ‘mono vs Stereo’ shows a copy like this the exception rather than the rule. A super clean available copy of this album that plays near perfectly and devoid of distortion is getting pretty scarce these days.

Original Year of Release: 1979

Matrix Nos: XEX 637-1 / XEX 638-1

Stamper Codes: 3 ATA / 7 MRT

Brief Artist & Album Info: I really feel its unnecessary to tap out lengthy paragraphs about the importance of this landmark and groundbreaking album, any music lover, collector and Beatles fan will know most all there is to know already and almost certainly will know more than me anyway regarding fine details. What I think is far more important is to make clear what is actually here on offer and the visual and playing conditions, because simply I do not offer albums of this magnitude lightly. A copy of ‘Pepper’ has to be of a certain quality and grading simply to allow me to even offer one and boy does meet my criteria. This ranks as one of the very best Mono ‘Peppers’ I have ever heard and it will take something pretty much out of the ordinary to find a copy that will play better. This is a complete copy: the labels meet the recognised criteria to be a ‘first pressing’. The cover has the very wide spine, yes probably twice the width of the far more common thin type format spines and this is still virtually uncompressed with the very thick shape retained. I have attempted to photograph this, I hope it helps. The original ‘Patents Applied for’ psych inner is included and again its a super one. The insert of course is included also. I could hardly wait to get this on to my Rega, nervously with breath held, was this going to be up to standard? An emphatic YES!, its a stunner. Whenever I manage to get a copy of Sgt Pepper that passes my critical visual threshold for offering, the first track I play is ‘She’s Leaving Home’, only very rarely will this song play perfectly with distortion and breakup being almost the norm. As I have stated many times before, mono Beatles albums always have at least one ‘critical track’ that nearly always gives problems. On Rubber Soul its ‘Michelle’, on Revolver its ‘In My Life’, on Help! its ‘Yesterday’, on For Sale its ‘Mr Moonlight’ on With the Beatles its ‘Money’ - on this album its ‘She’s Leaving Home’ and often also the final song, ‘A Day in the Life’ - I can only assume the groove patterns on these tracks were such they clipped and damaged more easily along with the fact they are tracks nearer the centre which is explained below too. This copy plays both songs (and all others) as near perfect as you will ever hear, I could hardly believe it myself, what a delight to hear a Mono ‘Pepper’ this clean and distortion-free. I can hardly reiterate enough this is an exception rather than the rule, if you dont believe me, try listening to your own copy, is it totally noise-free, distortion-free, devoid of pops or clicks and all high frequencies sharp and clear? If it is, treasure it, most are not these days. This mono copy is truly exceptional and could mean a huge upgrade for many collectors, I would guess most serious collectors will have this already but are the conditions up to scratch (or not as the case may be). This record is a visual delight and the audio playback is terrific. I had fully intended to describe every song track by track, but to be honest they all play the same, near faultless and most collectors will truly enjoy this fantastic copy.

Cover Grade and Format: Critically graded at EX++, a gatefold format, laminated all over (including the centrefold). Two huge flipback on the top of the inner. This has the original PMC 7027 Mono cover. The very wide spine format which is far harder to find. Printed and made by Garrod & Lofthouse Ltd. A very attractive example of what is arguably the most famous over ever made, a few blemishes yes, but remember this is a genuine very early example. Later versions may look ‘more perfect’ but they were not around when the hype and hysteria was at its peak, these vintage early mono covers were more prone to use and abuse and rarely survive looking even half this good. (Please refer to my paragraph further down about ‘Covers etc’).

Cover Front and Laminate (very critically observed and graded for all): Very clean and attractive with moderately strong colour, that is to say not pale nor very intense but in the middle. I have found many ‘Peppers’ with covers of varying degrees of colour intensity, I would presume every time it was printed it could vary slightly and almost certainly did. This is clearly not faded in any respect as the centrefold is slightly less intense than some later versions I have seen – they simply varied slightly. The laminate on this front is mostly uncreased except on top, left edge which has a light press and a very light crease to accompany it. This front retains a high shine and attractiveness factor. Surface laminate marks are minimal with just the odd tiny hairline type blemish under light. No peeling, just one tiny dry spot near a small spine edge crease (I mean real tiny), no indentations, one tiny mark near the bottom left corner tip area only. A very mild tone line where the laminate ends about 3mm short of the right edge, this only shows on the skyline part and I reiterate its only a mere blemish. This front sets a very high standard.

Cover Back and Laminate: Mostly very similar to the front. The deep red is unforgiving for highlighting creases but not too many on view here anyway. A small hairline type one near the top and similar, even lighter and hardly showing near the bottom. Any others are just the almost mandatory hairlines types near the very edges and there are few of these either. A tiny ‘crack’ near the left, bottom, spine corner which represents the only other tiny blemish on this fine back. Again no peeling, dry areas or indentations. Deep shine and only a very faint pressmark from the massively thick pressed LP that’s inside all these years. Again even this only shows under angled light. Both front and back have hardly any traces of any dulling or dulled areas. This vintage back will be hard to find much better either.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Still crackles when opened (the only crackle I heard from this copy!) Sorry I could not open this up wider for my centrefold picture, this could have split the inner hinge laminate and cracked it badly, also a risk to the very thick spine too, so I opened it up as far as I felt safe to do so, clearly this has not been laid flat in the past or the laminate crackle and resistance would have gone by now. This inner looks great also, the wider spine gives the central gutter a more uneven look but its all quite natural. Again clean and with deep laminate shine. Both the large flipbacks are firmly stuck down and uncracked or split, frayed or creased. Shape and neatness is superb. A small amount of dust has been attracted by the short laminate on these as most often do this age. One small thin ‘pull’ where the laminate ends meet on closure but far more minimal than some I have seen. These often pull badly on this cover and many similar – Zappa’s ‘Money’ parody of this album does just the same on the laminated originals. This has been kept inside a gatefold heavy duty cover all its years but even with that high-grade protection dust can still creep inside with time, but little here really. And again this lovely inner gatefold will be hard to find much better on an original sleeve.

Top Edge: Virtually unworn with rock solid laminate still. A tiny, mild bend on that pressed area near the left, a very minor blemish.

Bottom Edge: Virtually unworn.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Generally clean, very sharp with barely any wear and not feathering. Record entered on right outside back edge.

Spine and Text: Very impressive and massively thick. Solid, straight, only minor compression traces near the top area but retaining that massive thick shape with minimal traces of any creases. Very square, both right faces meeting up near perfectly with little wear, all text is perfect and unworn under the very solid and uncracked laminate.

Corners: Any ‘real’ cornerwear is minimal indeed, just a small crease front and back of the bottom spine corner. All retain high quality shape and definition with clear pointed tips on the right corners.

Cover Summary: A very strong all round example of this classic 1967 cover, one that could prove difficult to find much better as a mono wide spined version. This possibly undergraded sleeve should please most collectors.

The Inner: Mint(-), a real beauty to say the very least. Made with very thin and unforgiving paper, most of these are split on all seam edges, creased, torn, rubbed or missing altogether. This is a stunning example that is totally unsplit at all – Why? – because the owner kept the record in a separate inner hence this one is close to new looking with just an ultra faint friction rub trace on top and bottom edges on just one side. Even the delicate cut and shaped entry edge is virtually pristine, how many will still exist quite like this? This has the Made in Great Britain and Patents Applied For text and is in itself a classy inner. The famous psych design never looked much better than this and even the flipback type seams are rock solid and unlifted or creased. Any age gum toning is extremely minimal and with both surface being so clean and fresh this is a ‘Pepper’ inner to treasure.

The Insert: Virtually Mint: clean, uncreased, untorn, no rubs or marks. All edges sharp and unfrayed or feathered. Again they dont get much better.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: Mint(-) Unbanded version. A superb visual copy. Super clean, shiny, jet black and very heavily pressed. Barely a significant mark to be seen, this looks really amazing. There is just the odd ultra light and fine hairline type trace, anything totally superficial and barely even noticeable. Any mono first press ‘Pepper’ looking like this is one to cherish also. Most will know what most copies of this will look like, mono copies especially are rarely ever seen this clean and close to near mark-free. There is nothing whatsoever that even remotely resembles a scratch and this reiterates my comments about spindle marks. One slip or jolt from an unforgiving Dansette arm could have put a furrow through this record, one dropped needle a crater – we have all seen them at sometime. This copy is so clean and devoid of any true blemishes its a copy I would think has been played hardly at all, a view reinforced by the stunning audio quality my play-grade revealed. Visually a super record that should please most collectors again.

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This quite stunning record plays up to its high visual grading and yes, even beyond with practically nothing to fault. Strong, UNDISTORTED sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is astonishing with a massive dynamic range and very detailed sound, another George Martin masterpiece of sound. Any surface sounds are practically zero and I am one who thinks vinyl can rarely ever play dead silent in its entirity, but this gives my opinion a thorough test, few copies will match let alone play better than this. I noted no pops or clicks whatsoever, why should there be?, there is no grime or marks for the stylus to hit. Both channels are clean and sharp and as close to noise-free as possible. How often do mono records have one channel noisy and one near silent, its all too common. Vintage classic mono copies are a national treasure, when found sounding (and looking) like this they take the breath away. The detail and sounds locked into these vintage, virtually wear-free grooves is astonishing. Both the ‘difficult’ songs play superbly, I really dont think I detected any stresses to those critical high frequencies at all. Believe me, I have heard ‘She’s Leaving Home’ that will make most listeners cringe, echo, noise and break up on the vocals is just so common. I will rarely touch any Beatles album that I cannot hear before I buy to offer, especially in mono, its just too risky. Faint or very mild traces of groove wear distortion that is clearly mentioned maybe is just about acceptable – (but only just), but some copies I simply refuse to offer if they dont please me. This truly is an exceptional copy that can be played with high confidence, its clearly been generally well stored and caringly looked after, almost certainly in a non-smoking environment. Little, if anything spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this monumental classic. This copy could prove near impossible to find significantly better.

Album Played For Grading: Yes.

Final Summary: At last a Mono first pressed ‘Pepper’ that plays as good as it looks, visuals simply do not always tell the full story. A few more spindle marks than maybe I would have liked but the play-grade was a delight from start to finish, even the run-in grooves were quiet. I personally never thought Parlophone albums took the heavy plays as well as say Decca albums, and sound deteriorated far quicker on Beatles albums compared to vintage Stones records. I feel this record will please even audiophile collectors, the two inserts will too, and the cover will only be a whisker short for the connoisseur collector also. Next time you visit a record fayre, thumb through The Beatles section and try to find a copy like this, better still try to hear a copy. I am confident it will take some time before a copy that even approaches the quality of this one will ever be found these days. This is in investment type condition and will prove better than cash in the bank with dealer prices rising faster than UK petrol. If for some reason your collection is missing an early Mono pressing of this giant album, this really could be the copy you have been waiting for. I feel certain (without checking) there will be other Mono copies of this on offer on the Net, but how confident will you feel about risking one?, will they really be play-graded from beginning to end?, will they be listened to at all? This one has, on a deck that reveals most all – good and bad – I strongly recommend this beautiful copy, and record especially, to all, good luck again – Mike.

SOME GENERAL GUIDES TO WEAR AND CONDITIONS TO HELP YOU DECIDE

I decided to add this text to help new collectors and younger people just starting their vinyl collections (I hope it will even be of interest to all vinyl lovers too). This helps me save time by not repeating these comments in my actual advert areas which is all very time-consuming.

My Use of Description Terminology: Surface Marks = Superficial, usually light marks, hairlines or light scuffs that rarely sound. Scratch = a needle mark that goes below the record’s surface, some will sound, some will not, my play-grade will inform. Original = a record that has been pressed with the first label design which does NOT necessarily mean a very first pressed record. First Pressing = A record that I believe or know to be a genuine very first pressed record. I do not claim to always know for sure, and that’s why I state the stamper and matrix numbers if at all possible, for those who claim to know what they all mean, the information is there for the collector to decide. I prefer to use terms like ‘Early Copy’ rather than ‘First Pressing’ if I am not totally sure. Surface Sound = Mild, light sound, usually light crackle or similar. Distortion = Break up of the actual sound caused by groove wear or damage from a chipped stylus – the most undesirable form of unwanted sound, vintage mono records were the most prone to this happening but not exclusively so. The symptoms of distortion are high frequency clipping, moderate constant crackle or an echo type sound quality. Violin, piano and vocals are most prone to groove-wear distortion. Feathering = Fraying or softening of the entry edge of a cover. Covers with feathered entrance edges are more likely to have had the actual record inserted and removed more than a non-feathered, sharp-edged cover which are always far more attractive.

Spindle Marks on Labels – the importance of: Spindle marks generally are only a loose guide to number of actual plays. As I have said before, some owners used the label area as a guide to find the spindle on vintage decks. Example: 60s/70s radiogram furniture players often had pull down fronts that meant locating the spindle was always more challenging – a fact – my parents had one. Also decks from way back had steel spindles that left their mark far more readily – later turntables often had far more sympathetic materials used that left little or no marks. Careful owners, myself very much included, could play a record 20 times with near zero spindle traces left on the labels because of the ultra careful placement on a turntable to avoid cosmetic blemishes. That said, lighter always has to be better because even if the record has been played more than it looks it was probably owned by a more discerning and careful collector. Any record with a mass of spindle marks or actual wear or even erosion around the hole area is almost certainly a heavier played copy and most are best avoided (unless they still play reasonably well or sufficiently rare). Any record that can still be found that has any small ‘residue’ still attached to the centre hole is often a rare guide for light use too, especially older records. This thin, fragile ‘flash’ vinyl residue usually snaps off quickly and only rarely does it remain intact for long. Summary A record with one spindle mark does not (necessarily) mean, played once. A record with 10 clearly defined spindle marks does not (necessarily) mean a record played ten times. Labels and marks is very much subjective and can only be used as a ‘guide’ the actual playing quality is more important.

Mono vs Stereo, an overview: Always a matter of opinion which is better or more important. For any serious collector where there is a choice e.g. Beatles, Stones, Doors, Hendrix etc. both are essential. True Stereo albums give great imagery and presence whereas mono albums usually are more dynamic, louder and present the detail more clearly. Mono albums are far harder to find in genuinely top playing condition. Most were heavily played, particularly the truly great bands and artists, often covered in marks and scratches, many severe and labels that were looking a real mess. The majority were played on vintage and unsubtle decks with heavy tonearms and thick styli (often sapphire, not diamond, that chipped more easily) that rendered heavy wear in a very short time to many a fine classic record. Wear to the delicate groove walls, particularly the innermost tracks to the labels were most vulnerable where the tracking angle became more severe and the backdrag actually stripped the delicate groove walls. This resulted in surface noise and mild/moderate distortion or worse. These old decks tracked by sheer weight and little of any refined engineering. Next time you see such a deck at a local record fayre, feel the weight of the arm, it almost makes you wonder how any records survived at all. The point of this paragraph is emphasise that when a truly clean, lightly played and great sounding 60s mono album (or stereo come to that) is offered, treasure it, because for sure they are truly getting vary rare and precious - beware - demand only play-graded records. As a general guide to rarity, mono was the far more common format from 61–66; Around 67–68 the balance was roughly equal, then from late 68-69 the balance swung more to stereo, making monos from these dates far scarcer, even rare - this guide is important and effects values greatly.

My Terms For Bidding

Payment Details please read carefully - I know its boring but essential:

UK First Class: = £3.00; Recorded Delivery (Recommended) = £5.50 Special Delivery (Next day, insured up to £250), the best service available = £7.00

Europe Air Mail: = £4 Insured: £8.00

Overseas, non-Europe e.g. USA, Japan, Australia etc. Airmail:= £7; Insured with recorded delivery (where available) = £11.00

Singles: (Packed to the high standards of the LPs)

UK First class: = £2.00 Insured: £4

Europe Air Mail = £3.00 Insured: £5.50

Overseas, non-Europe (as above) Airmail £3.50 Insured: £6.00

Doubles add extra £1, triples add extra £2. Box sets add extra £3 (£4 overseas and Europe)

Any item that sells for over £85 will be sent Special Delivery in the UK at no extra cost. Items over £125 get the same service Overseas. This gives peace of mind for the winning bidder and myself for valuable items. Reduced postage of course for multiple items.

The winner bidder chooses his/her posting method and if uninsured is chosen, its their decision and they have to stick with it, I can accept no responsibility if an item is lost in the post. I can only try to claim at standard levels if no enhancement is chosen (£28). Mailing Details: Please note I do NOT profit on postage (my packing standards are high and the package weighs a little more and I often actually lose money on this part of service - I simply refuse to compromise with poor packing. All records are sent in plastic covers with the record taken OUT of the sleeve and sent in professional mailers with FOUR professional stiffners for extra protection (if space allows), I do NOT use old cardboard boxes or cereal packets for protection. More expensive items are also inserted into a de-luxe heavy duty padded bag AS WELL to give that extra protection. I truly want ALL my items to arrive to their destination in the same condition they leave me. I will also include in most cases a brand new lined inner, but will include the original inner if available and in a condition to be worthwhile.

I no longer accept cash for payments for non-UK winning bidders – its too risky. UK buyers CAN send cash if they wish via Special Delivery. Paypal payment only in UK Sterling please.

Potential Bidders: Please do not bid if you have negative feedback unless checking first, I will cancel any bids I feel are timewasters. I now only accept PayPal, bank draft or International money orders from overseas bidders. Cash, cheques, postal orders and PayPal are all okay from the UK. I allow maximum 3 days for communication and 7 days for payment to arrive - if this does not happen I will relist the item and may send negative feedback unless an explanation is given. Fast deals get great feedback from me. Any questions - please ask. Please keep watch on my Ebays, I have other interesting items coming very soon. Thanks for looking.

My Guarantee: As listening to every single record I offer all the way through is difficult timewise, can I make it clear if any winning bidder is not satisfied with their purchase I will offer a complete refund minus the Posting and All Ebay costs as long as the item detail has been read and understood. I will not refund if any defect detail is clearly stated on the advert and missed by the buyer. I still endeavour to play all the items in their entirety for grading if at all possible and is usually the case for virtually all records offered.