The Beatles : Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 1/1 1st Mono Press with rare Fourth Proof Cover

This highly collectable first pressing plays to an excellent standard with only a little intermittent static.  S2 in particular is very impressive.  The vinyl is visually stunning with no marking.

As can be seen this includes the rare 'Fourth Proof' cover which is supposedly a prototype of the original.  It has 'Fourth Proof' and 'AR D 1321' in black print on the inside flipbacks.  The cover itself is in excellent condition with only a little wear on the spine.

The red 'Fool' inner has only minor wear and the cut out card is practically 'as new'.

PMC 7027 // XEX 637 - 1 / XEX 638 - 1 // RPO 6 / RML 9

The audio on S1 is Ex (Ex+ in many sections / track 6 Ex-)

The audio on S2 is Ex+ (Near Mint in many sections / track 2 ranges between VG+ and Ex)

The 'Fourth Proof' gatefold is Ex+ although spine is VG+

The labels are Near Mint

The red 'Fool' inner is Ex-

The cut out card is Mint-

Visually this record is absolutely stunning!  At first glance it appears 'as new' it is so clean!  I looked for quite some time under a strong light and all I could see were a couple of very faint hairlines.  There are no marks or scratches and despite being over 50 years of age it has a beautiful jet-black glossy sheen.  The run out grooves and labels are also in superb condition.  A fantastic example.

Play grading

'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' has only minimal static on the crowd 'intro' and then the actual intro plays very cleanly with only a small amount of static also.  This classic then plays with excellent audio and with only the odd light static sound here and there, nothing intrusive, and there are no clicks or pops.

'With A Little Help From My Friends' plays in similar fashion.  There is nothing that intrudes on the quality of the listen but there are a small number of very light static sounds which are perhaps a little more obvious to me as I sit so close to the speakers.  I must stress that the audio plays to an excellent standard and again there is not one single click or pop and no crackle either.  The first two tracks grade as Ex in my opinion.

'Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds' has minimal static on the intro and then plays with very clear audio and very little intrusion.  For such an early pressing the playback is very impressive and again the only 'background' is a small number of light static ticks here and there.  

'Getting Better' plays in much the same way with only minimal static which I must reiterate is very much in the background and non-intrusive.  Not clicks or pops!

'Fixing A Hole' play with great clarity from the very first groove although there is one light click after 15 seconds.  Aside from that the audio is pretty much faultless with hardly any 'background'.  The audio is very 'clean' and there is barely any static and the fade out is nigh on perfect.

As any Beatles' collector knows 'She's Leaving Home' is the one track on the side that often has some kind of 'background'.  Why this is I'm not entirely sure!  There are no clicks or pops but there is a little more static it has to be said.  In saying that it certainly isn't loud and you can still hear the music clearly and there is also none of the static distortion that you so often find.  Overall it is Ex- I would say.

'Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite' ends the side with very impressive audio and barely any static.  The vocals are strong and clear and the instrumental sections are superb and especially the Wurlitzer!  For a record that is now over 50 years old the audio on this side does have some light intermittent static but it remains an excellent listen and this last track in particular plays extremely well with Ex+ audio and better than that in many sections.

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'Within You Without You' plays very clearly from the outset with only a couple of mega light static ticks.  It continues to play with excellent clarity and of course such a strong bass sound.  The first verse has only minimal background static, totally non-intrusive, and then proceeds to play with wonderful clarity and depth.  With very little static this is a very impressive version and many sections are easily Near Mint although an Ex+ grading if probably a fair reflection of the track as a whole.

'When I'm Sixty-Four' has a little more static but again it is hardly intrusive.  There is one section after a minute or so where it is a little more obvious but again there are no loud clicks or pops.  This track grades between VG+ and Ex in my opinion.

'Lovely Rita' plays with superb depth from start to finish.  There is no obvious 'background' and grades as Near Mint as it really does play with great clarity.

'Good Morning, Good Morning' has the usual static on the 'farmyard' intro but then plays with wonderful clarity for the remainder.  The only negative is a couple of click type sounds at the end but this is on the 'farmyard' fade out so is at least not during the music!

The 'Sgt. Pepper's reprise' then plays with stunning power on the classic strong bass intro and to the end it plays with great clarity and depth.  Another Near Mint track.

The segue into the classic 'A Day In The Life' is perfect and the first verse then plays with fantastic Near Mint precision and no 'background' of any kind.  It continues to play with superb quality and the first 'crescendo' has barely any static or distortion and plays extremely well.  The following up tempo verse also impresses with very 'clean' audio and only 3/4 mega light dust ticks and the following orchestral section has no obvious distortion and plays with real power and depth.  The final verse has only one very light tick and again plays with very impressive clarity.  The final end 'crescendo' is stunning with no distortion and the long piano 'fade out' has only minimal static.  A fine ending to the album and of course if you let the needle run you get the 'nonsense' track at the end of the run out grooves.

In summary the audio plays to an excellent standard overall but with a little static here and there.  It is however largely non-intrusive and as all my regular customers know I just write what I hear however minor.  I would say S2 has greater clarity on the whole and indeed many sections play with Near Mint quality.  Of course what makes this classic all the more collectable is the rare 'Fourth Proof' cover which remains in excellent condition.  I don't know the exact number but there cannot have been that many produced and this has to be one of the most impressive with very little shelf wear.

The Gatefold

The 'Fourth Proof' G & L Patents pending cover is in excellent condition with only a little shelf wear.  The edges have no rubbing at all and the whilst the spine is still legible it does have a some wear albeit nothing major.  Some rubbing and a couple of rubs and some laminate wear.  The corners of the spine have a little wear also although the other corners are very clean with hardly any wear and the opening edge has no handling wear at all.  The front cover is extremely clean with only a small number of very minor creases and the back cover is even better with no marking etc.  The laminate itself is in great shape with no splits or lifting - just a little wear around the spine area as stated.  The inside of the gatefold is immaculate and the colours are still very strong and clear.  The flipbacks could not be any better and 'Fourth Proof' and 'AR D 1321', a reference number, can easily be seen in bold type.  Overall a very impressive example with only a little wear.

The Labels

The yellow/black Parlophone labels are in lovely condition with no marking or writing and not very much spindle wear.  There is no fading and they have lost none of their original colour.  The KT tax stamp is on the S1 label.

The Red 'Fool' Inner Sleeve & Cut Out Card

The original red inner is one of the cleanest you will find and has only one very small side split and a couple of minor tears on the top edge.  There are a small number of light marks but very little creasing.  Not perfect but a very presentable inner.

The cut out card is 100% intact and is nigh on perfect.

Play tested on my Pro-Ject Essential III Turntable / B&W 684 Speakers

I grade according to "Record Collector" guidelines.

Any questions please feel free to ask

Please pay within 4 days of auction end

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