FLEETWOOD MAC, Rumours MINT STILL SEALED USA 1st pressing LP AUDIOPHILE QUALITY

$

399

Fleetwood Mac?– Rumours Label: Warner Bros. Records ?– BSK 3010 Format: Vinyl, LP, Album Country: US Released: 1977 Genre: Rock Style: Soft Rock, Classic Rock Tracklist Hide Credits A1 Second Hand News Written-By – Lindsey Buckingham 2:43 A2 Dreams Written-By – Stevie Nicks 4:14 A3 Never Going Back Again Written-By – Lindsey Buckingham 2:02 A4 Don't Stop Written-By – Christine McVie 3:11 A5 Go Your Own Way Written-By – Lindsey Buckingham 3:38 A6 Songbird Written-By – Christine McVie 3:20 B1 The Chain Written-By – McVie*, McVie*, Buckingham*, Fleetwood*, Nicks* 4:28 B2 You Make Loving Fun Written-By – Christine McVie 3:31 B3 I Don't Want To Know Written-By – Stevie Nicks 3:11 B4 Oh Daddy Written-By – Christine McVie 3:54 B5 Gold Dust Woman Written-By – Stevie Nicks 4:51 Companies etc Record Company– Warner Bros. Records Inc. Copyright (c)– Warner Bros. Records Inc. Copyright (c)– Gentoo Music, Inc. Recorded At– Record Plant, Sausalito Recorded At– Wally Heider Studios Recorded At– Criteria Studios Recorded At– Davlen Sound Studios Recorded At– Record Plant, Los Angeles Mixed At– Record Plant, Los Angeles Mixed At– Sound City Studios Phonographic Copyright (p)– Warner Bros. Records Inc. Credits Artwork [Hand Lettering]– Larry Vigon, Vigon Nahas Vigon Bass– John McVie Design– Desmond Strobel Drums, Percussion– Mick Fleetwood Engineer– Ken Caillat, Richard Dashut Engineer [Second]– Cris Morris* Guitar, Vocals– Lindsey Buckingham Keyboards, Synthesizer, Vocals– Christine McVie Photography By– Herbert Worthington* Producer– Fleetwood Mac, Ken Caillat, Richard Dashut Vocals– Stevie Nicks Notes Includes 11.5" x 23" photo and lyric foldout insert.

USA FIRST PRESSING VINYL LP IN HEAVY TEXTURED CARD SLEEVE WITH 4 PAGE LYRIC INNER AND ORIGINAL INNER SLEEVE.

The UK and USA first pressings of this album are audiophile demonstration quality. Finding clean, barely played first pressings of this album is proving harder than it used to be, which is why it has been re-issued so many times, and why there is now a large box set of bonus tracks and a 're-mastered' pressing cut by Bernie Grundman. Grundman is a mighty fine engineer, but he was not the original mastering engineer on either the UK or the USA first pressings, and his cut is from 30+ year old decaying master tapes (the tapes were shredding oxide in 1977 when the album was released - this much is admitted in the accompanying documentary video with the recent deluxe box-set) and undoubtedly has some digital signal paths involved (the original mastering was all-analogue). Grundman's new cut is mighty fine, no doubt about it, but it is not as good as the original Ken Perry Capitol mastered UK or USA ones. One side-by-side playing proves this - the Grundman cut sounds like it is 'trying' to be audiophile, whereas the first Perry UK and USA pressings don't try to be anything: they just are audiophile. That was how the band cut and approved the master in 1977, and that is how it sounded to the millions who bought it.

So, why pay top dollar for a record that sold millions of copies, has been 'remastered' on CD a number of times, had colored vinyl pressings, and a decidedly dull and lifeless half-speed master issued by Nautilus in 1980 (with early digital signal paths as well), and has been re-mastered again more recently on vinyl? Well, if you love this album and have a decent or excellent hi fi, the only copy you really need to own is either a first USA pressing or a first UK pressing. They are both so vastly superior to anything else you have ever heard, that it'll be like hearing Rumours for the first time. Initially you'll forget you are listening to the songs that you know so well, and find yourself listening to 'the sound' of the record, the warmth, the depth of the bottom end to shimmering highs that are only on these first pressings. It really was a brilliantly produced album of exceptionally good rock-pop songs by a band at it's second peak. Both the USA and UK first pressings were cut from the same Perry Capitol mastered laquers. We have had many copies of both down the years, and they were very consistent pressings to begin with. It is possible that the first USA pressings have a miniscule 'edge' over the British ones, but this might be because they seem to be cut a little bit louder, which isn't necessarily the same as being 'better', but there really isn't much in it except for the fact that the British first pressing were generally pressed on higher quality vinyl. A true Mac fan is likely to seek out both of course. Although this is a British band with two new American members, the band was signed to Warner Bros. in the USA and recorded, mixed and mastered this album there.

If you drop the needle onto the start of 'Dreams' on either a USA or UK first pressing, and hear that unique Fleetwood-McVie rhythm combination, ever so simple but entirely elegant, you know it is time to toss your CDs and re-issues in the bin. You will never play any other copy again once you have a decent USA or UK first pressing of this album. This is the end of the line for upgrading, they will not get any better than this.

So, once again, the question: Why pay top dollar for a record that sold millions of copies...

BECAUSE THIS FIRST USA PRESSING COPY IS MINT, SEALED AND HAS NEVER BEEN PLAYED. You are having a once-in-a-lifetime time-machine opportunity. In 2014, you can purchase a bonifide rock music audiophile classic in pristine condition, new, sealed, just as if you were in a record store in 1977. Admittedly the price isn't the same - but then neither is a cup of coffee or a gallon of gasoline. And some things are simply just worth it. We doubt we'll ever have another copy in stock like this one again. It came from a collector of 1970s classic rock who had a massive collection of albums we don't think he played more than a few times, and, in some cases, like this Rumours, never at all. He was probably so busy working to pay for all his records that he never had time to listen to them.

We would love to be the folks that cracked the seal on this album and placed it on our turntable to play...but this cannot be, we already own a few splendid copies (fortunately)...but it could be you...or, you could be wise enough and strong-willed enough to keep it in your collection without opening it and allow it to further accrue in value. The choice is yours. But we can only sell this ultra-rare sealed LP under the following conditions:

THE BUYER ACCEPTS AND ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THE SALE OF THIS OUT-OF-PRINT SEALED ALBUM IS FINAL, 'AS IS', IN THE CONDITION STATED BELOW. WE CANNOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES ACCEPT RETURNS OF THIS ALBUM IF IT HAS BEEN OPENED OR ANY OF THE SEAL HAS BEEN REMOVED. THERE WERE NO KNOWN PRESSING DEFECTS FOR THIS ALBUM. IF YOU PURCHASE THIS ALBUM WITH THE INTENTION OF OPENING IT AND PLAYING IT, WE WILL GLADLY OPEN AND CHECK THE CONTENTS PRIOR TO SHIPPING TO YOU 'JUST IN CASE' AND FOR YOUR PIECE OF MIND. ON THE EXTREME OFF-CHANCE THAT THERE WAS ANY DEFECT, WE WOULD OF COURSE REFUND THE PURCHASE PRICE.

A CONDITION OF THIS SALE IS THAT WE WILL BE EMAILING THE WINNING BIDDER VIA EBAY AT THE TIME OF SALE AND ASKING IF YOU WANT US TO OPEN AND CHECK THE MERCHANDISE PRIOR TO SHIPPING. ONLY WHEN WE HAVE AN ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION, WILL THE ALBUM BE CAREFULLY PACKED AND SHIPPED. IF YOU DO NOT WISH US TO OPEN IT, ONCE WE SHIP THIS ALBUM AS SEALED, THE BUYER ACCEPTS THAT THIS ALBUM IS NOT RETURNABLE UNLESS IT IS IN EXACTLY THE SAME CONDITION THAT IT LEAVES US IN: NAMELY, FULLY SEALED WITH NO DAMAGE WHATSOEVER. THE VALUE OF THIS OUT-OF-PRINT ALBUM IS PRIMARILY DUE TO ITS STILL-SEALED CONDITION. ONCE OPENED IT LOSES MOST OF THIS VALUE AND BECOMES JUST A PLAYING COPY. SERIOUS RECORD COLLECTORS ARE AWARE OF THIS. THIS IS NOT A RECORD YOU CAN PURCHASE, OPEN, TRY-OUT THEN RETURN. THE CURRENT AND FUTURE VALUE OF THIS ITEM WILL BE DETERMINED BY WHETHER IT IS STILL SEALED OR NOT. RETURNING IT TO US OPENED HAS MINIMAL VALUE, WHICH IS WHY WE CANNOT REFUND YOU THE PURCHASE PRICE IF YOU OPEN IT.

WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THERE IS ALWAYS SOME RISK BUYING SEALED LPS, BUT THIS IS NOT AN IN-STOCK ITEM THAT WE CAN RETURN TO THE RECORD LABEL BECAUSE IT IS LONG OUT-OF-PRINT IN THIS FORMAT. THEREFORE, WE CANNOT GUARANTEE, BUT HAVE, IN GOOD FAITH, EVERY REASON TO BELIEVE (BASED ON YEARS OF EXPERIENCE AND CAREFUL COMPARISON OF THE SLEEVE, SPINE, PRINTING TYPE, TEXTURE, COLORING, ETC. TO OTHER FIRST PRESSINGS THAT WE OWN) THAT THIS COPY IS A FIRST PRESSING ON THE BURBANK WARNERS LABEL AND WILL FEATURE MATRIX NUMBERS (OR VARIATIONS THEREOF) THAT FEATURE THE FOLLOWING FIRST PRESSING INDICATIORS:

'Mastered By Capitol' and 'BSK-1-3010', alongside any numbers particular to this copy which usually indicate which pressing plant in which part of the country pressed it, which stamper was used, etc. There are even some extremely rare MASTERDISK RL pressings (i.e. Robert Ludwig) with 'Test' in the side A matrix, and you may get lucky and this is one of those because the sleeves are identical, but it is not, to be honest, likely - we have only ever had one of those in the last few decades which we have kept just so as to be able prove it exists.

Please do not hesitate to ask any specific questions you have about this listing PRIOR to bidding.

SLEEVE: MINT SEALED. TEXTURED SLEEVE. NO DAMAGE TO SEAL. CORNERS GOOD AND TIGHT, ONE MINOR BUMP TO THE BOTTOM RIGHT CORNER. A HINT OF RING WEAR DUE TO THE STRETCH OF THE SEAL, BUT THIS WAS COMMON ON SEALED ALBUMS EVEN IN 1977 WHEN THIS WAS RELEASED. THE SPINE READS:
BSK 3010 FLEETWOOD MAC RUMOURS 0798 ? Warner Bros. Records Inc. Printed in U.S.A.

DISC: MINT UNPLAYED.

We ship the next working day after your payment is received. USA media mail can take up to two weeks to be delivered. International Air Mail takes an average of 12-28 days to arrive.