PINK FLOYD DARK SIDE OF THE MOON '73 UK SOLID BLUE A2B2, vinyl+audio+posters VG

	£		230
	$		305

PINK FLOYD - THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON

A nice copy of this rare and highly sought after very first 1973 UK pressing of this Pink Floyd/prog rock classic, complete with the coveted "solid blue" triangle and original posters, on the Harvest label, stereo SHVL 804

The dead wax matrix numbers are :

Side 1  SHVL 804 A - 2  with stampers "2" and "A T" at 10 o'clock and 3.30 o'clock respectively

Side 2  SHVL 804 B - 2  with stampers "3" and "O R" at 8.30 o'clock and 2.30 o'clock respectively

The appearance of the flat, thick vinyl is excellent. Both sides of the vinyl have retained a beautiful jet black lacquered sheen - gorgeous. In normal daylight there are no obvious blemishes at all, and it's only under a bright light, and when tilted at the right angle, that some wispy hairlines and pencil thin surface scuffs come into view, with a few of these scuffs being 4-5cm in length. Nothing "feelable" or obviously below the surface here but enough wispy hairlines and light scuffs to suggest that this record has had a fair number of plays. And although nothing appears to be below the surface there is some mild clicking (I counted x3 clicks on side 1 and a further x11 on side 2) and some occasional light background crackle (most noticeable on side 1 where there is almost continuous light background crackle - not nasty or especially intrusive but it is noticeable). With that in mind I grade the overall condition of the vinyl as a solid very good.

The labels are excellent. Beautiful labels with the coveted "solid blue triangle" in all it's glory on both sides. Just a few very faint spindle trails adjacent to the centre hole on each label, otherwise pristine with all the silver text on the matt black background in perfect order.

The non-laminated gate fold sleeve is very good.  Such an iconic sleeve, and so rare to come across an original with the dark blue hue - even more noticeable on this copy than other 1st pressing "solid blue" copies that I have seen. There is mild and occasional, but noticeable and obvious, scuffing on the the top and bottom edges along with further noticeable rubbing on each corner although each corner does remain a well defined right angle. Similarly with the spine where there is some intermittent scuffing and a few small "nicks", along with a 2cm thin surface split about half way up the spine, though the spine itself remains rigid. On both the front and reverse side there is some mild, surface rubbing/abrasions along with some light ring wear and occasional light score lines and indentations - I have tried to show all of these blemishes in my photos. There is no obvious creasing anywhere, however, and the inside of the gatefold is excellent with no unwanted writing or doodles. The opening edges remain nicely intact, firm with virtually no fraying. The whole gatefold has a hint of ageing about it but nonetheless remains a solid very good. And, of course, on the front side there is the sought after "PINK FLOYD THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON" sticker, a rarity in itself.

Both posters are the original 1st press posters : the "pyramid" poster is excellent with no splits or tears and just some mild age discolouration on the reverse side;the Pink Floyd poster has two splits each being from the edge to about two thirds up along the bottom vertical folds - other wise the condition is excellent. For each poster there is no blue tac residue, no pin holes, no nasty creases, and no unwanted writing. There is one original unpeeled "FasPrint" sticker which is in excellent condition, the other is missing. 

Finally, the quality of the audio is overall very good. There is impressive tone and clarity, and no distortion either, even at higher volume and on the higher frequencies. There are no skips or jumps or nasty pops but I did count a total of eleven mild clicks : x5 towards the beginning of "Money", x4 towards the beginning of "Us and Them" and then another x2 a little more into the same track. Very close inspection under a bright light revealed x3 tiny (and barely "feelable") scratches being responsible for each of these relatively minor blemishes. There is also some mild background crackle which is most noticeable on side 1 but does occur at times on side 2 also. I should add that much of this light background crackle becomes irrelevant and/or negligible for significant periods of this album's play time, and for much of this album the audio quality is excellent - the second half of side 2, for example, is wonderful. Certainly the excellent appearance of each side of this LP is at odds with why this light background crackle should occur at all, so I assume that at least part of the answer could be down to dust in the grooves through decades of storage which a professional clean may therefore cure. Nevertheless these are blemishes that I have to mention because they are there and for that reason I grade the overall audio quality as a solid very good. The bottom line question is "Does this record still makes for a great listen?", and the bottom line answer is an emphatic "YES"!

The tracks are :

Side 1 :

1. SPEAK TO ME 

2. BREATHE IN THE AIR

3. ON THE RUN

4.TIME

5. THE GREAT GIG IN THE SKY

Side 2 :

1. MONEY

2. US AND THEM

3. ANY COLOUR YOU LIKE

4. BRAIN DAMAGE

5. ECLIPSE

Comes with original die-cut black poly-lined inner sleeve  with the original PATENT Nos and "MADE IN GREAT BRITAIN" text and which has no splits or tears (just some creasing towards the top edge) and remains in excellent condition despite there being a circular "Mouse Music" sticker covering the reverse side die-cut (see photo)!. Note that I always post the record in a new plain white inner sleeve in order to protect the original.

In summary a nice copy of this rare and sought after 1973 UK very 1st pressing prog rock classic, with some blemishes but still remaining highly desirable, highly presentable, highly playable, and a very worthy addition to any vinyl collection with it's value only continuing to increase.

 If you require any further information, including photos, then let me know and I'll do my best to oblige. 

If this record interests you then take a look at my other 60's & 70's classic vinyl listings.

A bit about myself : I have been collecting vinyl for more than 48 years and have amassed a huge collection covering a varied genre, but mostly of 1960's and 70's origin. Most of my records were originally bought by myself for my own collection, but during the past 30 years I have embellished my collection by buying records from a variety of sources : friends/acquaintances, car boot sales, auctions, and even through putting up a "vinyl wanted" notice in my wife's shop! I am now retired and take great delight in being able to spend more time scouring the country and attending boot sales and auctions in the hope of unearthing more vinyl gems...I am 63 years of age now and am still discovering bands and music of the 60's and 70's that I have never come across before. Wonderful! Richard

My ebay feedback speaks for itself so rest assured that you are buying from a trusted seller and in the very unlikely event that you are unhappy with your purchase just e-mail me and I'll sort out the problem. I offer a "no quibble" refund policy. 

On the subject of postage, I take great care in the packaging of all items, using a proper vinyl thick cardboard "crucifix" style mailer along with at least two thick cardboard stiffeners. I take great care in separating the record from the outer sleeve in order to help prevent sleeve damage in transit and I always insert the vinyl, outer sleeve and inner into a clear plastic sleeve, thus adding further protection. 

For this item postage & packaging will be UK £5.00, Royal Mail 1st class signed for; continental Europe £11 and Rest of the World £15, Royal Mail 1st class tracked and signed for. 

 I DO discount post & packaging costs for multiple purchases. I do NOT profit from postage.

Good luck with your bidding!

NOTE : My vinyl descriptions comply with the official Record Collector vinyl grading guidelines :

Mint

The records 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, discolouration, 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 are torn, stained and/or defaced

Poor

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

Bad

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