DAVID BOWIE THE PRETTIEST STAR / CONVERSATION PIECE - MERCURY 1970 1st UK PRESS

	£		299
	$		396

All my items have a full money-back guarantee - if it's not as described you can return it for a full refund.

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This is an original pressing bought in the UK at the time of first release. It is not a modern reissue.  

The record has normal signs of play and use, but nothing bad anywhere. The playing surfaces have light surface marks and hairlines but nothing major and both sides play through without any jumps, skips of sticking.  Inevitably there is some crackle, especially in the intros and fades, and the background noise is more noticeable on the quiet B side. Despite this, I found that both sides were enjoyable to listen to*.  Overall, I would say that the grading for the vinyl (both visual and play-grade) falls somewhere between Good Plus (G+) and Very Good (VG) with the visual grade possibly slightly higher than the play-grade. 

This comes with an original Mercury sleeve which shows typical signs of age and wear, especially near the opening, but there are no central seam splits.

* This is a mono record and so I play-graded it using mono equipment.

Detracting features not covered above:  None.

All photographs are of the actual item for sale. Please ask any questions before you bid or buy.

Where gradings are given these are based on the UK Record Collector grading system (see below) and are visual gradings only, unless the listing specifically states that it is a play-grading.

I use the UK RECORD COLLECTOR GRADING SYSTEM. This grading system differs from some other grading systems, in particular the Goldmine grading system. Please make sure that you are familiar with the UK record collector grading system before you bid.

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, discoloration, 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.

Plus (+) or Minus (-) are added where items fall between gradings. I only ever use one plus or minus.

* Play-grading MONO records: Mono records and stereo records have different grooves. A stereo record produces a stereo sound through both lateral and vertical groove modulation whereas a mono record is not intended to produce any sound from vertical modulation. Playing a mono record with a stereo cartridge will create distortion because it is trying to pick-up the vertical (stereo) part of the signal, whereas this is not intended to be heard on a mono record and so is just noise.  Using a pre-amp with a mono switch will eliminate the noise caused by vertical modulation leaving just the lateral groove signal which is how the record was intended to be heard. Based on the assumption that most people choosing to listen to a mono record will have the right equipment to listen to it, I play all mono records via a pre-amp with a mono switch.  My play-grading is based on how the record sounds when played through a mono switch. If you do not have mono equipment, or a mono switch on your amp or pre-amp you will be reproducing the noise from the vertical part of the signal and so the record will not sound as good. This is not any fault of the record, it is inherent to playing any mono record through a system that it was not designed for.

P&P costs as follows:

UK:

First LP or 12" record = £5.50, each additional item no extra P&P charge.

First 7" record = £3.95, each additional item no extra P&P charge.

Europe:

First LP or 12" record = £18.95, each additional item = an extra £2.20 P&P charge.

First 7" record = £13.95, each additional item = an extra £1.40 P&P charge.

Rest of the world:

First LP or 12" record = £29.50, each additional item = an extra £3.10 P&P charge.

First 7" record = £18.95, each additional item = an extra £1.80 P&P charge.