Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour - US 1st Mono Pressing - 1967 Capitol Vinyl LP

	£		30
	$		40

Magical Mystery Tour (US LP Version)
THE BEATLES
1967 US Capitol First Mono Pressing
Capitol MAL-2835 
"F9" Matrix Ending On Both Sides
"IAM" Scranton Pressing Indicator In Deadwax



Vinyl: Good +, but please read through
Visually the record has surface marks and the odd scratch on both sides. The labels show wear too and it's clear that the record was enjoyed in it's past life, but it generally plays nicely without too much surface noise / crackle and is surprisingly quiet for how it looks. The audio is generally strong and confident and I think for the most part it easily plays to a Very Good standard, however please note that there is a deep scratch mark that goes along the run-in groove of Side 1, north of the Capitol logo. I tested this record on two different turntables, an Ariston transcription deck and an Audio Technica LP60 and the scratch caused my Audio Technica deck to jump a couple of times in the introduction to the title track. My higher end deck did not jump and played through this section with some pops and slight hiss / audio drop-out. I assume that this scratch originally caused a few jumps but was manually corrected by someone in the past as it shows other scuff patterns around this area. Oddly, the Audio Technica deck also jumped at one section mid-way through "Blue Jay Way" but on my Ariston it played through perfectly without even a pop or any indication of obstruction. Besides the aforementioned problems, it played through quite nicely and despite not being cut from an original master tape, had a strong and enjoyable sound to it. I have meticulously aligned my Ariston deck and my Audio Technica seems to have a thing for jumping at the slightest indication of any issue, so please be aware of this but know that I can't guarantee how this record will play for you. That part of the title track may jump for you, it may not but it's only in the very opening and not a major interruption. I was going to grade this record as VG but I will stick with Good + instead to accommodate for that. It's quite a shame because otherwise it's very enjoyable indeed.

Cover: Fair
The cover is showing it's own signs of wear too, quite a few after 54 years. The front print generally looks decent which is surprising for how a lot of the '60s Capitol albums tend to show up looking like these days, but it does have writing on it and spots of fading around the seams too. Unfortunately the seams that held the record in the gatefold have both become torn and repaired at one point. When I received this album the tape that joined the top half was mostly peeled away so it was removed, but the tape on the bottom is still holding, at least for now. I'd recommend repairing this if possible; it's unfortunately something I can't do myself. The spine has wear too with a loose bit of print hanging in the middle, and while the picture booklet is still included inside, some of the pages have come loose and one of the back pages has been sellotaped back into place, probably a long time ago given how it's discoloured. If it weren't for the split seams at the back I may have been able to grade it as Good but because of that I think this cover is more suited for Fair instead. It can definitely be repaired with a little TLC but I just don't have the resources or the ability to do it myself.


The record is housed in a 1970s / 1980s EMI inner sleeve which is generally in decent shape.

This album may be good for someone looking to own a Mono LP version of this Beatles classic without forking out hundreds to own a 2014 edition. This one won't sound as good as that pressing, but for a tenth of the price I think it's still competent. Please just be warned about the mark on the Side 1 opening, I really can't say how that'll play on other equipment.

Any questions, please feel free to message me! I combine postage on multiple purchases :)