THE BEATLES. PLEASE, PLEASE ME. ULRA RARE. LAST EJ DEAN LARGE MONO. EXCELLENT.

	£		34
	$		45

  PMC 1202

  SIDE ONE MATRIX XEX 421 - 1N    SIDE TWO MATRIX XEX 422 - 1N

This is a record for collectors and so hold on and read on!

This is fantastic and very rare copy and an original First Pressing of the Second Issue Yellow & Black Parlophone Label of the iconic and highly valued Please, Please Me, by The Beatles, on a most sought after Yellow & Black Parlophone Variation label, released in 1963.

This means, as you collectors will know, that the First Issue or Pressing of Please, Please Me was released on the traditional Black & Gold Parlophone Label, which was a hang over of the 'old days' of Tin Pan Alley and quite 'square' as a label. The Beatles were a new group and Parlophone was new to pop, so the 'old fashioned ways' were still the norm. It was only produced in Mono and just for a few months, with three variations in the label, before the roller-coaster that was to become The Beatles, began. By the Second Pressing, just a few short months later and a few more slight variations, The Beatles were big sellers and with it Parlophone had to introduce more information on the label and so came the new and very 'with-it' Parlophone image and label change!

The Third Issue or Pressing was a Yellow & Black Label and whilst 'modern' and purpose designed for this 'new group' that was top of the 'Hit Parade', it had an anacronistic hang over from the ‘old days’ and still retained a tiny ’33 ?’ to the left of (XEX. 422) on both sides of the vinyl. This 'new' label and colour scheme and 'with-it' promotion also, for the first time, came in Stereo, which was a very new format and not widely liked, especially as those who could afford record players, had Mono. The label & image change was geared to the growing phenomina of the new 'teenagers'. This Third Press lasted very shortly and was quickly superceeded, with little change, by the Fourth Issue or Pressing. Pretty much the only difference in the label was the removal of the record speed, as it was considered ‘old fashioned’ and not necessary with modern record players fast losing ‘78’ and only keeping the 33 ? & 45 for singles - being RPM, of course!

For many years many did not know about the Third Press and even now there is confusion and mis-labeling, pushing the Fourthe Press down and so on, but the real  Fourth Issue or Press was rapidly introduced and became the Yellow & Black label of most teenagers record collections.

The Fifth Issue or Pressing, as with all of the above, came just a month or so later, still in 1963. One can look back and see that Parlophone was dealing with something nobody understood and with the massive sales of this 'new' group, came necessary change most information was carried on the label, hence the need to keep on adding or deleting or even adjusting information. So, with the Fifth Issue the minor changes were that the (XEX.421) and the "Rec.First Pub. 1963" were centred to the 1 & 2 on both sides of the label, whereas the previous pressing had the information non-centred. The label examples, courtesy of brilliant and fully independent Beatlebay.co.uk, are featured below and show this variant.

As the Yellow & Black Label didn't officially change, in any marked way, until the 'Sold in the UK' line appeared, it was pressed quite a few times, with minimal variations, but all significant in their own right. The tax codes are a good indication as to exact times of release, with this being K T centred over the spindle, but the most common being, as in the photos, M T, so this a little later and placing it in the category of the last EJ Dean sleeves with the large Mono logo. The very last Fifth Issue or Press, was in 1964 and that was with the E J Dean last mid-sized Mono, but this, being Fifth Press Variant 2b has the very last 'large' Mono, which is a rare LP. 

The 5th Press, Type 2b, of which this is the Variant, according to Beatlebay.co.uk has (and this is a quote - see their web-site):

''The 3rd line on side 1 being set slightly longer, and the 5th line on side 2 being slightly shorter! Even though the differences here are so slight, they were deliberate and do keep in line with the mother stamper pressing numbers. These were pressed alongside & about halfway through the run of the type 2a label, at the height of sales and therefore are quite common also. Even though there are tons of these still out there, I have seen these go for £250 in near mint Condition’’

So, the rarity is in the Variant of the label and in the E J Dean Sleeve or Cover and its format logo; in this case the large Mono, which was soon to be the last, with Garod & Lofhouse producing all future sleeves and Mono fast disappearing, with some confusion and reluctance from the buying public. Whilst this is a Fifth Issue, it is, none the less, a First Pressing and is a significant item in the history of this, the First Beatles LP. Don't get confused or mislead by claims of pressings, especially when it is as complicated as Please, Please Me!

This record is in excellent condition, with just obvious hairlines visible under very bright light. There is some spidle wear, but what is interesting is that the wear itself is aged and it looks like any playing happened in its first years or so, and then the white spindle marks aged and became quite gentle in colour, as the air changed its hue. It is an early 1960's  heavy weight vinyl and I would rate this as excellent on both sides, with obvious light 'spidery marking', probably more due to the inner Emitex liner coming 'on and off'. I think it is nice to see that it has been played and obviously enjoyed and looked after by a new 'teenager' almost fifty years ago!

It has the usual hidden Parlophone codes in the vinyl 'run-offs' and along with its matrix numbers of XEX 421 - 1N & XEX 422 - 1N, which denotes the First of the Yellow & Black Fifth Press matrices, this LP has a sought after 1G Mother, with the code in the run-off area of the vinyl. The Mother, an example of which can be seen in my original photo, above, which is of a genuine EMI Mother, from Hayes Pressing Plant, is Negative acetate, which is pressed copper, with stainless steel plate and is the dye made from the original Four Track Master Tape that is used to Produce the Stampers, which are the pressing plates for the vinyl. It sounds complicated, but it is quite basic, as vinyl is actually pressed into its shape, and the grooves are created in this way, by the Stampers, which do as they sound! Stampers were many, as they wore out and it is not unuusal for hundreds of them to be used and often mixed, but the Mothers or original dye produced from the Master Tape would be very few, because of their steel manufacture, hence the markings being important. And here is the important part; this Mother is 1G! This means it is the First Mother or Dye and this record comes from that Mother's Stampers. The Stamper codes being: Side One 'RRG' or '221' @ 3'oclock, with Mother 1G at 9 o'clock. Side Two Stamper 'RAL' or '238' and Mother G 1, with laquer 5. So we have the First Press of the Fifth Issue here and because the Stampers are later in the run, we know that this is around the time that the E J Dean Large Mono covers were being phased out.

It comes with its original Emitex Inner, which is intact, but with a couple of minor seam-splits, that are not too serious. This is a truly rare and lovely example of a 49 year old record and it is in fantastic codition for its age and plays wonderfully, with its raw, punchy, four-track Mono beat. I think, using The Record Collector's Guide, which I try to do sparingly, as it tends to over-grade, this LP won't disappoint and since, according to Beatlebay, some of these, in Near Mint,  can fetch £250 plus in auction, this has to be an appreciating and desired record!

Depending on its final price, it will be posted either Royal Mail Second Class Recorded at £4.50, to include packaging or First Class Guaranteed Next Day Delivery, which is much more than the £4.50 maximum quoted. Please bear in mind that it may well be around £8, to, hopefully, include insurance, but I will only charge what Royal Mail charge me, along with my costs for packaging, so check first, as final postage is to be agreed.

I only sell in the UK & to the UK, due to a time-waster and probable 'scammer' from Russia, so, if you live outside of the UK, whilst you are currently excluded, please check, before you bid, to see whether I will sell to you.

Meanwhile, happy bidding!

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