The Beatles - A Hard Days Night - 1st UK Mono Pressing 1964 - 3N/3N VG+/VG+

	£		35
	$		46

The Beatles - A Hard Day’s Night - 1st UK Mono Pressing 1964. 

Vinyl VG+ Sleeve VG+ There are a few light surface marks on either side of the vinyl which do not affect playback and some wear to the label around the edges of the spindle hole. Both sides of the disc play well and sound great. There is some minor creasing to the edges and bottom right hand corner of the sleeve and some signs of wear from handling and storage. Please see pics as they form part of the description.

I am not a dealer. All of the vinyl I sell has been purchased from new at the time of its release and has generally had very little playback. This particular record was part of my fathers collection and probably hasn`t been played since the 1960s.

The main differentiator of this early pressing, compared to later versions, is the black and yellow Parlophone label with the perimeter rim copyright text, 'THE PARLOPHONE CO LTD • ALL RIGHTS OF THE MANUFACTURER AND OF THE OWNER OF THE RECORDING WORK RESERVED • UNAUTHORISED PUBLIC PERFORMANCE BROADCASTING AND COPYING OF THIS RECORD PROHIBITED'. Above the spindle hole the centre text, 'SOLD IN THE U.K. SUBJECT TO RESALE PRICE CONDITIONS, SEE PRICE LISTS'.

There are a number of other differentiators present on both the labels and the cover.

Label:

1 - Has a 'chubby' font with the right-hand side indicator numerals appearing under the '2' in the catalogue number 'PMC 1230' above them.

2 - The publishing copyright date is given as 'RECORDING FIRST PUBLISHED 1964', and is nearly left-aligned compared to the matrix number above it.

3 - The group's name 'THE BEATLES' is closer to the 'Northern Songs Music Ltd.' publishing credit below it than the '(Lennon-McCartney)' credit above it.

4 - A2 'I Should Have Known Better' has its title split over 2 lines.

5 - All of the song titles on side 2 appear on separate lines.

6 - No embossed tax code around the spindle hole.

Cover:

1 - Front laminated, tri-flipback and printed by Garrod & Lofthouse Ltd., with a medium 'MONO' indicator on the front top right hand corner.

Cover details:

 EMI RECORDS LIMITED

(Controlled By Electric & Musical Industries Ltd.)

HAYES • MIDDLESEX • ENGLAND

Made and Printed in Great Britain

Printed and made by Garrod & Lofthouse Ltd. Patents pending PMC 1230 PCS 3058

Matrix / Runout (A-side label, in brackets): XEX.481

Matrix / Runout (B-side label, in brackets): XEX.482

Matrix / Runout (A-side runout, stamped variant 2): XEX 481 - 3N

Matrix / Runout (B-side runout, stamped variant 2): XEX 482 - 3N

Please note: I use the Goldmine Standard for grading the condition of items listed in the Marketplace.

Mint (M)

Vinyl

Absolutely perfect in every way. Certainly never been played, possibly even still sealed. Should be used sparingly as a grade, if at all.  

CD 

Perfect. No scuffs/scratches, un-played - possibly still sealed.

Insert/Inlay/Booklet/Sleeve/Digipak: Perfect. No wear, marks, or any other imperfections - possibly still sealed. 

Near Mint (NM or M-)

Vinyl

A nearly perfect record. A NM or M- record has more than likely never been played, and the vinyl will play perfectly, with no imperfections during playback. Many dealers won't give a grade higher than this implying (perhaps correctly) that no record is ever truly perfect. The record should show no obvious signs of wear. A 45 RPM or EP sleeve should have no more than the most minor defects, such as any sign of slight handling. An LP cover should have no creases, folds, seam splits, cut-out holes, or other noticeable similar defects. The same should be true of any other inserts, such as posters, lyric sleeves, etc.  

CD

Near perfect. No obvious signs of use, it may have been played - but it has been handled very carefully.

Insert/Inlay/Booklet/Sleeve/Digipak: Near Perfect. No obvious wear, it may have only the slightest of marks from handling. 

Very Good Plus (VG+) 

Vinyl

Generally worth 50% of the Near Mint value. A Very Good Plus record will show some signs that it was played and otherwise handled by a previous owner who took good care of it. Defects should be more of a cosmetic nature, not affecting the actual playback as a whole. Record surfaces may show some signs of wear and may have slight scuffs or very light scratches that don't affect one's listening experiences. Slight warps that do not affect the sound are "OK". The label may have some ring wear or discoloration, but it should be barely noticeable. Spindle marks may be present. Picture sleeves and inner sleeves will have some slight wear, slightly turned-up corners, or a slight seam split. An LP cover may have slight signs of wear, and may be marred by a cut-out hole, indentation, or cut corner. In general, if not for a couple of minor things wrong with it, this would be Near Mint.  

CD 

A few minor scuffs/scratches. This has been played, but handled with good care - and certainly not abused.

Insert/Inlay/Booklet/Sleeve/Digipak: Slight wear, marks, indentations, it may possibly have a cut-out hole (or similar).

Very Good (VG) 

Vinyl

Generally worth 25% of Near Mint value. Many of the defects found in a VG+ record will be more pronounced in a VG disc. Surface noise will be evident upon playing, especially in soft passages and during a song's intro and fade, but will not overpower the music otherwise. Groove wear will start to be noticeable, as with light scratches (deep enough to feel with a fingernail) that will affect the sound. Labels may be marred by writing, or have tape or stickers (or their residue) attached. The same will be true of picture sleeves or LP covers. However, it will not have all of these problems at the same time. Goldmine price guides with more than one price will list Very Good as the lowest price.  

CD

Quite a few light scuffs/scratches, or several more-pronounced scratches. This has obviously been played, but not handled as carefully as a VG+. 

Insert/Inlay/Booklet/Sleeve/Digipak: More wear, marks, indentations than a VG+. May have slight fading, a small tear/rip, or some writing.

Good (G), Good Plus (G+) 

Vinyl 

Generally worth 10-15% of the Near Mint value. A record in Good or Good Plus condition can be played through without skipping. But it will have significant surface noise, scratches, and visible groove wear. A cover or sleeve will have seam splits, especially at the bottom or on the spine. Tape, writing, ring wear, or other defects will be present. While the record will be playable without skipping, noticeable surface noise and "ticks" will almost certainly accompany the playback.  

CD 

There are a lot of scuffs/scratches. However it will still play through without problems. This has not been handled with much care at all. 

Insert/Inlay/Booklet/Sleeve/Digipak: Well worn, marked, more obvious indentations, fading, writing, than a VG - possibly a more significant tear/rip.

Poor (P), Fair (F)

Vinyl 

Generally worth 0-5% of the Near Mint price. The record is cracked, badly warped, and won't play through without skipping or repeating. The picture sleeve is water damaged, split on all three seams and heavily marred by wear and writing. The LP cover barely keeps the LP inside it. Inner sleeves are fully split, crinkled, and written upon.  

CD 

The CD may or may not play some or all of the tracks. See the seller's comments for details.

Insert/Inlay/Booklet/Sleeve/Digipak: Very worn. It may have obvious writing on it, it may be ripped/torn, or significantly faded, or water damaged.

Standard Jewel Cases: Standard Jewel Cases are not graded as they are replaceable.

 Generic

Within the context of grading items in the Marketplace, the term "generic" refers to a type of sleeve that is not specific to the release. A generic sleeve is either a plain sleeve or a company sleeve with standard company artwork. A sleeve that is graded as "generic" needs no further grading, as a generic sleeve generally adds little value to the item and can be easily replaced.