The Beatles : A Hard Day's Night 1964 (1st Mono Presssing)

I recently purchased a Beatles collection and the majority of them are Mono first pressings.  They have been incredibly well looked after by the one previous owner and she stored them all upright in plastic sleeves since the 60s.  They have only been lightly played and the covers are in wonderful condition.  Any minor wear will be fully described.  There will be no 'buy it now' price as I prefer to let the auctions run.

  Mono 3N/3N first pressing on Yellow/Black label.  'The Parlophone Co. Ltd' etc printed around the perimeter edge.

'Recording first published 1964' and 'Sold in U.K. subject to resale price conditions' also on labels.

Parlophone PMC 1230

Matrix / Side One XEX 481 - 3N // Mother Stampers TH 3

Matrix / Side Two XEX 482 - 3N // Mother Stampers LP 2

The audio is Ex+

The flipback cover is Ex+ although the back is Near Mint

The labels are Near Mint-

The original polylined inner is Ex+

Visual grading

There are some faint hairlines but no scratches.  Approaching 53 years of age the vinyl is in remarkable condition and has obviously been very carefully handled.  It retains a lovely glossy sheen and lies perfectly flat on the turntable.  The labels are superbly clean and whilst there is some spindle wear there are no marks/writing and the run out grooves are in immaculate condition.

Play grading  

There is minimal lead in static and then 'A Hard Day's Night' plays with wonderful clarity and no interference except for two faint clicks half way through.  The remaining tracks on Side One play with stunning quality and depth and with no intrusive background noise.  At times you can hear very light static but this is only during the quieter sections and is so much in the background as to be totally negligible.  'Tell Me Why' and 'Can't Buy Me Love' do play with a little distortion but this may be due to being played through a stereo system or because the grooves are pressed closer together in order to 'fit' them onto the side.  This can sometimes cause a small deterioration in audio quality.

There is no lead in static/crackle whatsoever on Side Two which is simply astounding for a vinyl of this age.  'Any Time At All' then proceeds to play with an incredible rich sound.  The sonic quality across the whole side is stunning and I have never heard better.  It is worth reiterating that the clarity is first class.  Every track plays so clearly and with almost zero interference.  The worst that can be said is that there is sometimes a little static in the background but I am perhaps being too harsh as you expect that on a vinyl of this age.  

Cover

The G & L flipback cover is in fabulous condition with only very minor shelf wear.  The laminated front cover remains in excellent shape with no lifting/splits and only a handful of tiny creases.  The edges and spine have no wear at all and only the corners have a little rubbing, most prevalent on the two bottom edges.  The opening edge has minimal handling wear.  The reverse side just has to be seen to be believed!  The flipbacks themselves are amazingly clean and this can be said for whole of the back cover.  It is so close to being pristine and has no writing/marks anywhere.  It is in astounding condition for its advanced years!

Polylined inner sleeve

This original 'Emitex' polylined inner sleeve is extremely clean and has no rips or tears, just mild creasing.

Labels

They both remain in wonderful condition and have no marking, foxing etc.  There is only some spindle wear.

Play tested on my Technics SL-J110R turntable system

Parlophone PMC 1230

Matrix / Side One XEX 481 - 3N // Mother Stampers TH 3

Matrix / Side Two XEX 482 - 3N // Mother Stampers LP 2

Any questions please feel free to ask

Please pay within 4 days of auction end

I SHIP WORLDWIDE BUT WHEN SHIPPING ITEMS TO ITALY, RUSSIA AND SOUTH AMERICA I WILL ONLY SEND THEM "TRACKED/SIGNED FOR" AS TOO MANY ITEMS GO MISSING AND THIS COSTS AN ADDITIONAL £6.00.  PLEASE ONLY BID IF YOU AGREE WITH THIS.

COMBINED POSTAGE IS ALWAYS OFFERED WHEN MORE THAN ONE ITEM IS WON.

ALL VINYLS ARE PACKED IN PROFESSIONAL MAILERS WITH CARDBOARD STIFFENERS.  THEY ARE ALSO PLACED IN SEPARATE SLEEVES AND PLACED OUTSIDE THE COVER TO AVOID SEAM SPLITS IN THE POST.

I WILL LEAVE FEEDBACK AS SOON AS I RECEIVE FEEDBACK - SO I KNOW THE ITEM WAS RECEIVED SAFELY AND THAT YOU ARE HAPPY WITH IT.  IF YOU ARE NOT ENTIRELY HAPPY WITH YOUR PURCHASE PLEASE CONTACT ME BEFORE LEAVING FEEDBACK AND I WILL ALWAYS RESOLVE ANY PROBLEM, 100% GUARANTEED.  I WILL ALSO PAY THE RETURN POSTAGE COST IF I AM AT FAULT - yes this can happen as I am only human!!

In the coming weeks and months I will be putting plenty of Queen, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Genesis and Marillion items on the site so please keep a look out!  Many thanks.  Please look at my other items on now!

FOR ITEMS SENT OVERSEAS I WOULD SERIOUSLY RECOMMEND "TRACKED/SIGNED FOR" ESPECIALLY FOR ITEMS SELLING OVER £40.00.  IT PROTECTS US BOTH IF ITEMS GET LOST OR DAMAGED IN THE POST AND COSTS AN EXTRA £6.00 SO PLEASE JUST ASK IF YOU WOULD PREFER THIS. 

UK POSTAGE RATES (SECOND CLASS)

LPs/12" singles : £4.95 (recorded) then £0.75 per extra item 

7" singles / CDs : £1.95 then £0.35 per extra

EUROPE 

LPs/12" singles : £7.95 then £1.25 per extra 

7" singles / CDs : £3.95 then £0.95 per extra 

REST OF WORLD  

LPs/12" singles : £10.95 then £1.75 per extra

7" singles / CDs : £4.95 then £0.95 per extra