OUTSTANDING 1st UK PRESS SOLID, NEAR MINT AUDIO PINK FLOYD DARK SIDE OF THE MOON

	£		1,950
	$		2,584

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This is an outstanding example of this 1st pressing which I think would be very hard to improve on.

The audio is probably the best I’ve ever heard and it is complete with the 'midnight blue' cover, original black poly-lined inner sleeve and earliest posters and stickers.

The disc has the following 1st press matrix numbers:

Side 1: SHVL 804 A-2

Side 2: SHVL 804 B-2

Detailed description

Vinyl: The vinyl looks great and has retained its original high sheen with very little to see. There are just a handful of fine hairlines or small marks when viewed under light, but there is nothing significant anywhere. I have played the entire record and it sounds fantastic with almost nothing to report. Please note that this copy does NOT have the pressed skip in 'Money' often found on first pressings - there are no jumps or skips anywhere and the whole record was a pleasure to listen to. For the sake of completeness I would mention some minor background noise in the run-ins and the occasional isolated click, but there's absolutely nothing intrusive anywhere. Like most Pink Floyd albums Dark side of the Moon has lots of quiet and sparsely arranged passages and because of this it is very hard to find an original copy which genuinely plays Mint all the way through, and there are some sections which are always 'difficult' on original vinyl copies of this album (e.g. the long-fade explosion noise at the end of 'On the Run', the heart-beat fade-in at the beginning and fade-out at the end of the album, the quiet end section of ‘The Great Gig in the Sky’ and, in particular, the intro and quiet sections of ‘Us and Them’), but this copy is the best I’ve heard and apart from four small tics in the third line of 'Us and Them' there was nothing to note in any of these parts. For side one there isn't anything else to mention, so I would play-grade side one as Near Mint (NM). On side two I could just hear four or five tiny, tiny (barely audible) tics in the dialogue segue after 'Money' (not really noticeable unless you are listening out for them) and the four small tics previously mentioned in ‘Us and Them’. But that was all !!! Everything else sounded amazing and the whole record was an absolute pleasure to listen to. Almost all of it play-grades as Near Mint (NM), but to account for the tiny issues mentioned above I’m going to play-grade side two as a VERY SAFE Excellent (Ex), maybe Excellent Plus (Ex+). This is an exceptional audio performance that I think would be almost impossible to improve on.

Labels: Both labels look great with no damage, writing, stickers etc, just some light spindle marking, suggesting that the record was not played very much.

Sleeve: The cover is nice and clean with no writing, splits, tears etc and just minor signs of use. There is some shaping around the disc on the rear, but unlike most copies there is virtually no ring-wear to the 'midnight blue' panels and the inside of the gatefold looks amazing. It’s very hard to find one as good as this.

Inner sleeve: The black, poly-lined inner sleeve has no seam splits or tears and minimal signs of handling or use.

Stickers: These are the original, earliest PERMANENT stickers with the wavy-lines on the backing paper. These pre-date the 'Crack-Back' stickers found in later copies. They are both unused with no significant issues.

Posters: These are in beautiful condition. They have never been on display and appear to have hardly even been taken out of the cover. They are very early posters which aren't glossy like later printings. The Pyramid poster, in particular, is printed on fully matt paper, making it one of the absolute earliest examples, which are almost impossible to find.

Detracting features not covered above:  None. This is a superb example which I think would be very hard to improve on.

All photographs are of the actual item for sale. Please ask any questions before you bid or buy.

Where gradings are given these are based on the UK Record Collector grading system (see below) and are visual gradings only, unless the listing specifically states that it is a play-grading.

I use the UK RECORD COLLECTOR GRADING SYSTEM. This grading system differs from some other grading systems, in particular the Goldmine grading system. Please make sure that you are familiar with the UK record collector grading system before you bid.

Mint: The record itself is in brand new condition with no surface marks or deterioration in sound quality. The cover and any extra items such as the lyric sheet, booklet or poster are in perfect condition. Records advertised as Sealed or Unplayed should be Mint.

Excellent: The record shows some signs of having been played, but there is very little lessening in sound quality. The cover and packag­ing might have slight wear and/or creasing.

Very Good: The record has obviously been played many times, but displays no major deterioration in sound quality, despite noticeable sur­face marks and the occasional light scratch. Normal wear and tear on the cover or extra items, without any major defects, is acceptable.

Good: The record has been played so much that the sound quality has noticeably deteriorated, perhaps with some distortion and mild scratches. The cover and contents suffer from folding, scuffing of edges, spine splits, discoloration, etc.

Fair: The record is still just playable but has not been cared for prop­erly and displays considerable surface noise; it may even jump. The cover and contents will be torn, stained and/or defaced.

Poor: The record will not play properly due to scratches, bad surface noise, etc. The cover and contents will be badly damaged or partly missing.

Bad: The record is unplayable or might even be broken, and is only of use as a collection-filler.

Plus (+) or Minus (-) are added where items fall between gradings. I only ever use one plus or minus.

P&P costs as follows:

UK:

First LP or 12" record = £5.50, each additional item no extra P&P charge.

First 7" record = £3.50, each additional item no extra P&P charge.

Europe:

First LP or 12" record = £15.95, each additional item = an extra £2.20 P&P charge.

First 7" record = £13.95, each additional item = an extra £1.00 P&P charge.

Rest of the world:

First LP or 12" record = £29.50, each additional item = an extra £2.80 P&P charge.

First 7" record = £18.95, each additional item = an extra £1.40 P&P charge.