Second State Mono Beatles Butcher Cover Needs Peeling

$

255

Most record collectors are familiar with butcher covers . . . Originally, Capitol Records issued a controversial record cover for the Beatles' 1966 "Yesterday And Today" album showing the Fab Four in white smocks flaunting pieces of meat and doll parts. Reasons advanced to explain the then-controversial artwork included theories that the Beatles were protesting the record company's reduction of tracks on individual albums in order to collect surplus tracks for additional albums (thus "butchering songs" in order to increase sales), or that the album cover was meant to focus public attention on the growing violence of the war in Vietnam. Whatever the reason, the original albums were recalled from the market very quickly. Many were destroyed, while some were cropped and reissued with "trunk slicks" pasted over the original covers. The originals are known as "first state"; the paste-overs as "second state", and those peeled to reveal the original cover, as "third state". Stereo versions in any state are far less common than mono and command incredibly high prices depending on condition. A sealed first state stereo butcher cover may sell for $20,000 or more. This is an unsealed second state (paste-over) mono butcher cover from Plant 6. CONDITION: Ringo's collar is clearly visible on the right side under the trunk slick. There is some ring wear and discoloration on front and back. The slick was not perfectly aligned when applied, so the dark gray of the original picture underneath is visible at the bottom left corner of the album and along the bottom on the right. Someone tried to peel this cover as evidenced at the top and bottom right hand corners (thankfully, that someone stopped before causing any damage to the cover underneath). There is red writing ("Little Gass") by George's head and slight color loss at Paul's legs and feet where he is sitting in the trunk. The back is quite clean, although there is residue at the top and bottom edges, indicating that someone applied tape (probably to prevent further seam splitting). There is also some residue along the top of the front of the jacket. I suspect that someone else removed the tape and glued the top and bottom seams. It's hard to determine how much seam splitting actually occurred. The spine shows wear affecting the printing along the edge of the album. Overall, I'd rate this cover as "good to very good" since the butcher cover underneath the pasted on slick is intact. NOTE: This auction is for the cover only. I do have a stereo recording of "Yesterday and Today" on the Apple label that I can ship with this cover if the winning bidder so desires, but, again, the auction is for the cover only. SELLER'S COMMENT: Normally, I would discourage a buyer from peeling a second state butcher cover, as they are becoming scarce and are only increasing in value. However, if you are looking to own a peeled cover, this may be the piece for you, due to the writing on the front, the tape residue, previous attempts to peel, and seams. PLEASE DO NOT ATTEMPT TO PEEL THIS COVER YOURSELF! Do some research and have it done professionally. I OFFER NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE SUITABILITY OF THIS COVER FOR PEELING, NOR DO I OFFER ANY GUARANTIES AS TO RESULTS SHOULD ANYONE ATTEMPT TO REVEAL THE BUTCHER COVER BY REMOVING THE TRUNK COVER. SALE OF THIS ITEM IS "AS IS" AND FINAL ONCE THE AUCTION ENDS, SO PLEASE EMAIL ME WITH ANY QUESTIONS. I cannot be responsible for this item once it ships, unless the winning bidder purchases insurance. Thank you for your interest in this highly collectable Beatles artifact.