PINK FLOYD DARK SIDE OF THE MOON 1st UK PRESS SOLID BLUE A2/B2 FULLY PLAY-GRADED

	£		950
	$		1,259

All my items have a full money-back guarantee - if it's not as described you can return it for a full refund.

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Here is a 1st UK pressing which is complete with the earliest 'midnight blue' cover, black poly-lined inner sleeve, two posters and two Fasprint Permanent Crack Back stickers.

The disk has the following 1st press matrix numbers:

Side 1: SHVL 804 A-2

Side 2: SHVL 804 B-2

Detailed description

Vinyl: The vinyl has retained its sheen with some light marks, wispy hairlines and sleeve-removal marks, but there is nothing which interferes with play. I have played the entire record and played through with little 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. There is some background noise in the run-ins/outs, fades, segues and silent parts, the occasional random click and a handful of soft tics in a few places, but nothing significant. 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 plays perfectly 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 intro and quiet sections of ‘Us and Them’ etc). Generally, I would say that both sides sound better as they progress: the second half is better than the first half, and both of them ending up sounding Excellent (Ex). However, they both start-off with some background noise which can be heard in the early tracks, especially in the quiet sections and 'difficult' parts mentioned above. For side one there is nothing else to mention: it starts-off with some background noise in the early parts, but 'Time' and 'The Great Gig . . .' sound Excellent (Ex). I would say that it starts-off grading around VG to VG+ and ends up Ex, so averaging this out I would play-grade side one as a Safe Very Good Plus (VG+), but acknowledging that there are parts which are above and below this overall grading. On side two it's a similar story: some background noise at the beginning, a few small crackles and tics in the quiet parts of 'Us and Them', but the loud parts of that track sound Excellent as do the tracks that follow, and the solo and loud parts of 'Money' also sound great. For side two, I would say that it ends up sounding a safe Excellent (Ex), but the quiet parts of 'Us and Them' are only just Very Good (VG), although the loud parts and most of the rest of the side are much better than that. Averaging this out, I would play-grade side two as a super-safe Very Good Plus (VG+), but again acknowledging that there are parts which are above and below this overall grading.

Labels: No damage, writing, stickers etc, just spindle marking.

Sleeve: This is the original 'midnight blue' cover with a sealed left-edge. Please see photograph eight showing the cover against the black inner sleeve which clearly shows the blue tone. The cover is clean with no writing, seam-splits, tears etc, just some wear, mainly to the edges and corners, especially the bottom edge and a hint of ring-wear to the rear. I would say that this is a well-above-average example, which actually looks better in real life than it does in the photos.

Inner sleeve: This is the original black, poly-lined inner sleeve. There is a small (approx 1 inch) split to one side seam and some obvious creases (see photos) and a couple of small marks, but no major problems.

Posters: The posters have never been on display and so have no pin-holes, sellotape, blu-tac etc, and minimal signs of any handling or use.

Stickers: These early stickers (Fasprint CrackBack Permanent stickers - later ones say 'removable') are both unused with no significant issues.

Detracting features not covered above:  None.

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 = £4.95, each additional item no extra P&P charge.

First 7" record = £3.95, each additional item no extra P&P charge.

Europe:

First LP or 12" record = £14.95, each additional item = an extra £2.20 P&P charge.

First 7" record = £11.95, each additional item = an extra £1.00 P&P charge.

Rest of the world:

First LP or 12" record = £24.95, each additional item = an extra £2.20 P&P charge.

First 7" record = £14.95, each additional item = an extra £1.00 P&P charge.