THE BEATLES - HELP genuine and ORIGINAL 1979 SHELL cover, rare DUTCH variant EX+

	£		144
	$		191

THE BEATLES - HELP! (Shell cover, Dutch variant)

A beautiful and extremely rare copy of this 1979 Dutch original/first pressing on the PARLOPHONE label, STEREO SC 062-04257

One of the rarest of all Beatles LP's with just 2000 being manufactured for Shell oil company employees only : 1000 went to Swedish employees and had the EMI "single box" label, and the other 1000 were the Dutch variant with the PARLOPHONE label - this is the Dutch variant, completely original and in truly excellent+ condition. Rarer than rare.

 Matrix Numbers :

Side 1  YEX 168 //39455 - 1 - Y  with mother stampers "1" and "1" at 11 o'clock and 7 o'clock respectively 

Side 2   YEX 169 //39456 - 1 - Y  with mother stampers "1" and "1" at 7 o'clock and 5 o'clock respectively 

The appearance of the vinyl is excellent+. Beautifully jet black lacquered sheen, completely flat and with a wonderful gleaming appearance. Hard to believe that any piece of vinyl can possibly be in as good a condition as this 38 years after it's release, but for such a rare, classic and sought after album as this - well...it is! I have looked hard at both sides of the vinyl under a bright halogen light and can just make out a few very faint surface paper scuffs and wispy hairlines but these really are superficial, the exception being one slightly more visible pencil line scuff on side 2 track 6, but even this is strictly surface only and not immediately obvious.

The labels are pristine - straining my eyes I could just make out a couple of very faint spindle trails adjacent to the centre hole on side 1, but that's all.

The outer sleeve is excellent.  There is barely any scuffing on any of the edges and the spine is rigid and near perfect with all writing perfectly legible. The corners remain well defined right angles with just a little rubbing on the corners on the opening edge. There is no creasing, apart from an 8cm diagonal very light surface crease towards the reverse side top right corner - again not obvious, no fraying on the opening edges, and the merest hint of some very faint ring wear but only noticeable when held at the right angle and in the right light.The only other blemish is a very, very light stain adjacent to the top edge on the front side, but even this is not immediately obvious and you will need to hold the cover in bright light to notice it - I have tried to capture this very minor blemish in one of my photos. So, not quite perfect, but rest assured that the condition of this cover is a strong and definite "excellent"!

Finally, the quality of the audio is EXCELLENT+. A stunning listen throughout with great tone and clarity, no distortion at either higher volume or higher frequency, and just the merest hint of a little background crackle (more like static, actually) on the first two tracks of side 2 but even this is negligible and, clearly, down to dust in the grooves due to decades of storage. 

The tracks are :

Side 1 :

1. HELP!

2. THE NIGHT BEFORE

3. YOU'VE GOT TO HIDE YOUR LOVE AWAY

4. I NEED YOU

5. ANOTHER GIRL

6. YOU'RE GOING TO LOSE THAT GIRL

7. TICKET TO RIDE

Side 2 :

1. ACT NATURALLY

2. IT'S ONLY LOVE

3. YOU LIKE ME TOO MUCH

4. TELL ME WHAT YOU SEE

5. I'VE JUST SEEN A FACE

6. YESTERDAY

7. DIZZY MISS LIZZY

Comes with original plain white inner sleeve - no splits or tears and minimal creasing and still fully functional. 

I just can't imagine that there are many copies of this sought after classic Beatles album variant which are in overall better condition than this.

 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 over the years I have embellished my collection by buying records from a variety of sources : friends/acquaintances, car boots, auctions, and even through putting up a "vinyl wanted" notice in my wife's shop! I never intended selling any of my records but now I am retired and a combination of space requirements (caused partly by duplication) and a need to help fund my retirement has prompted me to "rationalise" my record collection and sell many of my much loved gems. 

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 cardboard mailer along with at least two cardboard stiffeners. I take great care in removing the record from the outer sleeve in order to 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 Royal Mail 1st class, tacked and signed for  : UK £5.00, continental Europe £9, and Rest of the World £14. 

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

Good luck with your bidding! Richard

Descriptions of any records I sell comply with the Rare Record Price Guide grading guidelines :

Mint

Description: 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

Description: 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

Description: 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

Description: 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 

Description: 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

Description: 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

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