Led Zeppelin Houses of The Holy. 1st Press. A2/B2. Obi Strip. Super Hype. Ex++.

	£		185
	$		245

LED ZEPPELIN HOUSES OF THE HOLY
Original First Press
K50014 A/2 B/2 Sterling

Obi Strip
This is a superb copy of this LP, bought by me in 1973, from Haydn Heard, Banbury. I would say it is Excellent Plus.
Please see the Goldmine record grading guide below, as approved by Ebay, as grading is often misunderstood.
This is A2/B2 and NOT A2/B3 or A/3/B3, being of lesser intrinsic interest and value. The A2/B2 were pressed first, and of fewer numbers and as such has matching 'Mothers' and 'Stampers'.
It has the First Press matrices in the run-off area of the vinyl, and they are:
Side One - K50014 A2, STERLING RL
Side Two - K50014 B2, STERLING RL

STERLING, refers to the record being mastered at Sterling in New York.
RL: Robert Ludwig, mastering engineer.
What also sets this out as a genuine First Press and many also get this so wrong on Ebay, is that there are
no markings of any kind on the front, back or inner sleeve, nor the spine. Atlantic Records, much against Jimmy Page and Robert Plant's wishes, issued an ‘Obi’ style strip to identify the band and album title. In reality Page & Plant were a nightmare for the retail side, as there had to be some way of visual labelling! However, it was dropped for subsequent pressings, probably more due to cost of printing, sticking and manually having to put onto hundreds of thousands of records!

Inner sleeves are textured heavy card and carry a credit to the printer: MacNeill Press Limited. An Atlantic Records Distributed By WEA, credit, and Superhype. Along with Jimmy Page as sole Producer.

Label notes:

Copyright statement within orange segment.
No ‘WEA’ logo after copyright statement.

Made in UK on labels. Superhype Publishing, which was dropped in later presses, and Produced by Jimmy Page.

All subsequent presses had the copyright statement encroaching into the green segment, 'W' logo after statement.
The gatefold sleeve is mat, and full orange.
A nice LP and collectable, hence the price and also the price of postage, as this has to go Guaranteed First Class, fully insured, next day, signed for.
I am not listing or selling outside of the UK, so there are exclusions. If you wish to collect, you are welcome, but this is cash on collection. The record can also be listened to.

Any questions, please ask. I will try and answer them.

Mint (M)

Absolutely perfect in every way. Certainly never been played, possibly even still sealed.(More on still sealed under "Other Considerations"). Should be used sparingly as a grade, If at all.
Near Mint (NM or M-) A nearly perfect record. Many dealers won't give a grade higher than this implying (perhaps correctly)that no record is ever truly perfect.
The record should show no obvious signs of wear. A 45 RPM or EP sleeve should have no more than the most minor defects, such as almost invisible ring wear or other signs of slight handling.
An LP cover should have no creases, folds, seam splits or other noticeable similar defects. No cut-out holes, either. And of course, the same should be true of any other inserts, such as posters, lyric sleeves and the like.
Basically, an LP in near mint condition looks as if you just got it home from a new record store and removed the shrink wrap.
Near Mint is the highest price listed in all Goldmine price guides. Anything that exceeds this grade, in the opinion of both buyer and seller, is worth significantly more than the highest Goldmine book value.

Very Good Plus (VG+)

Generally worth 50 percent of the Near Mint value.
A Very Good Plus record will show some signs that it was played and otherwise handled by a previous owner who took good care of it.
Record surfaces may show some signs of wear and may have slight scuffs or very light scratches that don't affect one's listening experiences. Slight warps that do not affect the sound are "OK".
The label may have some ring wear or discoloration, but it should be barely noticeable. The center hole will not have been misshapen by repeated play.
Picture sleeves and LP inner sleeves will have some slight wear, lightly turned up corners, or a slight seam split. An LP cover may have slight signs of wear also and may be marred by a cut-out hole, indentation or corner indicating it was taken out of print and sold at a discount.
In general, if not for a couple things wrong with it, this would be Near Mint. All but the most mint-crazy collectors will find a Very Good Plus record highly acceptable.

Very Good (VG)

Generally worth 25 percent of Near Mint value. Many of the defects found in a VG+ record will be more pronounced in a VG disc. Surface noise will be evident upon playing, especially in soft passages and during a song's intro and fade, but will not overpower the music otherwise. Groove wear will start to be noticeable, as with light scratches (deep enough to feel with a fingernail) that will affect the sound.
Labels may be marred by writing, or have tape or stickers (or their residue) attached. The same will be true of picture sleeves or LP covers. However, it will not have all of these problems at the same time, only two or three of them.
Goldmine price guides with more than one price will list Very Good as the lowest price. This, not the Near Mint price, should be your guide when determining how much a record is worth, as that is the price a dealer will normally pay you for a Near Mint record.
                                                                    

  Good (G), Good Plus (G+)

Generally worth 10-15 percent of the Near Mint value. Good does not mean Bad! A record in Good or Good Plus condition can be put onto a turntable and will play through without skipping. But it will have significant surface noise and scratches and visible groove wear (on a styrene record, the groove will be starting to turn white).
A cover or sleeve will have seam splits, especially at the bottom or on the spine. Tape, writing, ring wear or other defects will start to overwhelm the object.
It is a common item, you'll probably find another copy in better shape eventually. Pass it up. But, if it's something you have been seeking for years, and the price is right, get it...but keep looking to upgrade.

Poor (P), Fair (F)