The Beatles White Album. No 172533. Rare No 0 Prefix. First Stereo Press 1968.

	£		46
	$		61

PCS 7067 &  PCS 7068

Side One YEX 709 - 1. Side Two YEX 710 - 1. Side Three YEX 711 - 1. Side Four YEX 712 - 1.

This is a rare White Album, as it has no 0 prefix for its number and is just SIX DIGITS! Now do dispel a few myths and throw light on the 'Mono' & 'Stereo' - 'Top Opening' & 'Side Opening'   debate! Read and observe...

The White Album was released on November 22nd 1968, for the Christmas market and it entered the UK Charts on December 1st and stayed at No 1 for seven weeks. By the end of the year, just over a month later, the white album had sold over 4,000,000 copies worldwide, and by the end of 1970 global sales were around 6.5 million. At that time this was the biggest selling double album of all time, but just a few years later was topped by "Saturday Night Fever"! So...

 Both Mono & Stereo copies were released at the same time and initially Mono was Top Opening and Stereo Side Opening, but both were simultaneous and due to Garod & Lofthouse having more than one print-plant (look at the huge numbers of pressings!), there were variations on this theme. The Stereo label, as with this item, does have the "Sold in the U.K..." statement and it does have "An E.M.I. recording" printed on the left above the 33 1/3 text, where most Mono copies don't, but both were original 1968 pressings!

The gatefold sleeve design was both Top Opening and Side Opening and both had an embossed "The Beatles", and a unique stamped serial number.  The lower the stamped number the greater the value. So...

Interestingly an internet posting of one man’s purchase in November 1968 states, ‘’ I bought both my mono and stereo LP’s in the county of Essex in England and they are: Mono - 0609258, Stereo – 0387593’’. Proof that, actually, the Mono pressings, generally with the top opening, was more common and went into higher numbers, than the Stereo!

Something else to ponder, as you wonder about Mono/Stereo versus Top/Side: with sales probably in excess of 6,000,000 by the end of the numbering of the sleeves, just how many stamped numbers of each ID No were there?! And now think of this: numbering stopped, due to cost and hassle, in late 1969 and yet, due to Garod & Lofthouse's numerous plants, there were numbered sleeves appearing, that must have simply been stored or forgotten, as oddities still surfaced as late as 1973! So...

With 0569889 or thereabouts, being the end of numbering and with the seven digits and '0' prefix, take a look at this little gem! Now, something unique and RARE. Take a look at the two photos I have included, above, of close ups of two other White Album covers, as I am about to dispell a few more myths and open the introduction to this album's unique number.

First of all, note that the format for both other examples, with different numbers, is 7 digits, begining with a prefix '0', even though the '0' was not needed at the time, because EMI, had puIled the plug on numbering! Both os these sleeves have high numbers, but, guess what? They are the over-prized and over-priced Top Opening sleeves and... Yes, MONO! Yes, here we have evidence, that very high numbers were on the Top Openers and more Mono Pressings were sold, initially, than Stereo!

As I said, both were being manufactured at the same time and Garod & Lofhouse had a number of plants, that supplied sleeves and some were Top some were Side. Okay, now here is te rarity of the LP I have on offer. It is Rare because it has the early Stereo, First Press, 6 digit format, with no prefix '0' begining its number of 172533. This rarity only comes to light with some Stereo pressings, but not that many! This is also a very low compared to the two examples above and don't forget they are Mono and Top Openers! Yet, as we all know, the rarity is in the lower the number and in this case a low number without a '0' prefix and not seven digits, but only SIX, a highly collectable format! 

Okay... now to this LP, which has a low number, a stated, being 172573. This, in itself, gives provenance as a genuine 1968 pressing and in this case a Stereo First Press. How do we know it is a First Stereo Press? Simple, take a look at other descriptions of White Albums and you will find that there is Stereo stamped on the rear of the cover, but no Mono stamp. The very early Stereos did not have this stamp and the spine denoted, Stereo PCS 76067-8/Mono PMC 706708, one of The Beatles famous Mono/Stereo transitions, before clear definiation, as Mono was being phased out. This is a transition sleeve, that coincides with Please Please Me, being re-issued, with its famous 'No Mono & No Stereo' sleeve at around the same time.

So, with with low Mothers (master dyes) & Stampers (actual dyes) and heavy viynl and the dark green Apple labels and the 709, 710, 711, 712 Matrices, proving First Press again, along with the rare numbering format and the Mono/Stereo coupling, this is a very rare, quite unique and collectable White Album!

The vinyl is in really nice condition, with just a few odd hairlines. It has a nice shine on the heavy weight 60's vinyl and looks well looked after. There is little spindle wear. All four sides of the vinyl are really nice and it is obvious the records have been well cared for.

It has the all white Garod & Lofthouse outer sleeve, which is very good condition for its age, with no damage or bad discolouration, but ageing, as to be expected. It has a sharp spine, with the unusal 'dual' Mono/Stereo PCS information along it and all in all just odd creases to the laminate, as one might expect and an ageing of the Whiteness. It also has the two EMI white inner sleeves, with the usual copyright information on them, which are crisp, but gently aged and un-damaged. It has lost its poster, but has four photos of The Beatles. 

As with all The Beatles records, the EMI Matrix, Mother & Stamper Codes are in the run offs, with Side One Mother, being '5' and Stamper 'GPD', being '160'. Side Two Mother '2', with Stamper of 'GTA', being '191. Side Three's Mother being '2' and Stamper 'RDD' or '200' and Side Four with Mother '2' and Stamper 'GPG' or '161'.

This is a nice LP, belying its 44 plus years of life. Grading is difficult & subjective, so all I say is, obviously, based on what I can see and hear. Please bear this in mind; grading is subjective and I try to be honest. As a guide, see below, The Record Collector's Guide, but any wording or terms are their words and terms and mine are mine.

I do not, now, sell anywhere else in the world, other than the UK.

After discussion with Ebay, I do not accept returns, unless there is good, honest and necessary reason. I will not be open to scams and will report anyone who attempts one.

Postage quoted is for Second Class Recorded, but if the item sells for above £46.00 then it has to go Special Delivery - Guaranteed Next Day Tracked & Signed For. This is more than the £4.50 Second Class, so, please, wait until I invocie you with Royal Mail's charges.

MINT: 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: 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: 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: 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, discolouration, etc.

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

As well as the above grades, Near Mint is often used as well; this is really for a record that appears new but is known to have been played because the label has light spindle marks or because it has come from a previous owner and is assumed to have been played by them. For records which appear to fall between the accepted grades, + and - are also often added to the grading.

In addition to the basic grading, any individual faults should be noted separately such as if an otherwise Excellent cover has a name written on it, or a 7" single is missing its original centre etc.

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