MICHAEL JACKSON "THRILLER" RARE AUDIOPHILE HALF-SPEED VINYL EX+ to NM

$

41

I. Description:
Half-Speed Masters This is the original 1982 limited edition Half Speed Master of what most realize is Michael Jackson's great album but what some to believe is one of the all time greatest albums. Half Speed Masters were special pressings of the albums. The (smartly) realized that not all audiophiles were classical music buffs, and hat the rock generation was beginning to come into its own, with big bucks to spend. These were superior quality pressings of albums by using thick, virgin vinyl by locating low-generation copies of the master tapes and using those as a source for their albums. The term "Half Speed" refers to slowing the cutting lathe to half-speed while cutting the album stamper, resulting in a more accurate and deeply etched groove that held low tones better. 
"Thriller"  (One of Michael's Two FIVE STAR albums per AllMusic.com (the other being "Off The Wall")
Off the Wall was a massive success, spawning four Top Ten hits (two of them number ones), but nothing could have prepared Michael Jackson for Thriller. Nobody could have prepared anybody for the success of Thriller, since the magnitude of its success was simply unimaginable -- an album that sold 40 million copies in its initial chart run, with seven of its nine tracks reaching the Top Ten (for the record, the terrific "Baby Be Mine" and the pretty good ballad "The Lady in My Life" are not like the others). This was a record that had something for everybody, building on the basic blueprint of Off the Wall by adding harder funk, hard rock, softer ballads, and smoother soul -- expanding the approach to have something for every audience. That alone would have given the album a good shot at a huge audience, but it also arrived precisely when MTV was reaching its ascendancy, and Jackson helped the network by being not just its first superstar, but first black star as much as the network helped him. This all would have made it a success (and its success, in turn, served as a new standard for success), but it stayed on the charts, turning out singles, for nearly two years because it was really, really good. True, it wasn't as tight as Off the Wall -- and the ridiculous, late-night house-of-horrors title track is the prime culprit, arriving in the middle of the record and sucking out its momentum -- but those one or two cuts don't detract from a phenomenal set of music. It's calculated, to be sure, but the chutzpah of those calculations (before this, nobody would even have thought to bring in metal virtuoso Eddie Van Halen to play on a disco cut) is outdone by their success. This is where a song as gentle and lovely as "Human Nature" coexists comfortably with the tough, scared "Beat It," the sweet schmaltz of the Paul McCartney duet "The Girl Is Mine," and the frizzy funk of "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)." And, although this is an undeniably fun record, the paranoia is already creeping in, manifesting itself in the record's two best songs: "Billie Jean," where a woman claims Michael is the father of her child, and the delirious "Wanna Be Startin' Something," the freshest funk on the album, but the most claustrophobic, scariest trackJackson ever recorded. These give the record its anchor and are part of the reason why the record is more than just a phenomenon. The other reason, of course, is that much of this is just simply great music.*
* per AllMusic.com
This piece of vinyl looks as though it could be one that has never been played. I can see not marks that would result from a needle hitting the vinyl. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ II. PAYMENT:    1. Payment at sale completion would be greatly appreciated but if that is not possible the established payment deadline is seventy-two (72) hours  ollowing delivery of the invoice after which will begin to initiate unpaid claims.    2. Payments are only accepted via PayPal, no other options available. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ III. SHIPPING:   1.  Shipping will be very quick, items will be mailed out by the next business day at the latest    2. Multiple purchases are always combined to create maximum postage savings. If combining is your plan please let me know so that I am prepared    3. Shipping type is the the buyers discretion. Seller will offer at least two methods for which the seller may select. For records, compact discs and books            those options will be Media Mail and Priority in the U.S. All other items will be shipped either standard post or priority mail. International Shipping will            be First Class International or Priority International (over 4 pounds requires Priority Mail).    4. S&H Fee ($1.40) is for reimbursement of protective polyurethane sleeves, inner sleeves, special durable mailers, adhesive shipping directions and                    delivery confirmation. Each of these being factors to improve probability of non-damaged receipt.    5. Items will only be shipped to the eBay address of record, this is an eBay requirement with no exceptions.     6. Records are ALWAYS packed outside of their jacket in order to protect against jacket splitting. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ IV. Returns:    1. Accepted within the first fourteen (14) days of receipt. Returns are normally for those items that were not accurately described.    2. For Vinyl sales, please remember grading vinyl is very subjective, for that reason I tend to grade very conservatively but if a mistake is made it certainly          is not intentional.     3. Lost, or damaged, in transit, please address with your local postal service so that a claim can be initiated. Many times items are found at the post                  office.     4. Partial returns are not accepted ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ V. CONFIDENCE:    1. Please check feedback to view 1,000+ satisfied customers    2. Communications window is open both pre-sale and post sale
____________________________________________________________________________________________________ VI. GRADING:    IMPORTANT NOTE:  Please remember that any record graded below a Mint, or a Near Mint, will obviously have some marks on the vinyl and/or jacket otherwise it too would have been graded Mint, or Near Mint. Marks on vinyl can be disturbing but on the other hand they can be non-factor. If I see any marks that may impact a listeners sound quality I will play grade the vinyl to ensure that the marks do not result in any deterioration of the sound quality. My priority, for all buyers, is a pleasant listening experience. 

• Vinyl is normally visually graded, except for above, primarily due to time constraints and the sheer volume (thousands) of records being graded. I am selling off my personal collection as this is NOT a business where I buy and sell. I use very bright lights & magnifiers to search for flaws ensuring that no over-grading occurs. The grading scale is as follows:

  Mint (M):  Still Sealed, if opened the grading should not reflect Mint.

  Near Mint (NM):   Looks as though it just came from the retail store and was opened for the very first time (i.e. nearly perfect). Shiny vinyl with no visible defects such as writing, stickers, markings on either jacket or vinyl. Near Mint records do not have to be one that has never been played because used record that have been played multiple times can also be Near Mint providing that they have been properly cared for during its' life.  

  Excellent (EX):  Looks like a Near Mint at first glance but upon thorough exam a minimal blemish or mark may be noted. As a Near Mint is in perfect condition, this grade is just a small step down in the grading scale. An jacket saw cut. corner cut or punch hole will result in the nicest looking jacket having to be downgraded to Excellent due to these flaws.

  Very Good Plus (VG+):  Shows slight signs of wear, including scuffs or light scratches that do not affect the listening experience. Slight warps that do not affect the sound and minor signs of handling will fall into this category. Telltale marks around the center hole, from repeated playing may have enlarged or damaged the hole and may be visible. Light ring wear or discoloration, can be noted but should not be overwhelming. Very Good + jackets should have minor wear such as a very minor seam wear or split (less than 1"long) at one of the seams (normally the bottom seam which is most vulnerable. A Very Good + may have some jacket defacing such as cut-out markings which can be either a circular hole punch, a cut corner or a saw cut. 

• Very Good (VG):   Shows more obvious flaws than the above. They may lack the original gloss found on factory fresh records, groove wear is evident as are light scratches that may be deep enough to feel with a fingernail. The Very Good record could have minor surface noise and some scratches may be audible most likely in the intros and the empty space between songs but not at a level that would overpower the music. Minor writing, tape or sticker may exist on the jacket and/or label. These records will still remain a fine listening experience.  

• Good (G):  Good does not mean Bad and far as a listening experience it can be far from meaning so. A Good record will still play through without skipping but may have significant surface noise and groove wear but when visually graded it may look like it has the groove wear but when listening to the vinyl none may be heard. A record that may look bad could sound like an Excellent graded record. The label may be worn, there may be heavy writing. If an item that you have been looking for then still grab it on the cheap. Will/May have ring wear and/or seam splits.