Fillmore The Last Days 1972 Columbia Z3X 31390 With All Extras 1st Press NM Play

$

82

• "Fillmore The Last Days" 3LP Vinyl Box Set.
• Fifteen Performers, Both Bands And Individuals.
• Full-size Commemorative Booklet.
• Reprinted Concert Poster For The Final Run Of Shows.
• 33-1/3 rpm 7" EP Record Containing An Interview With Bill Graham.
• Reprinted Fillmore Ticket Stub (this one is for The Grateful Dead).

Item Details
Manufactured in: USA
Recorded: 6/29-7/4, 1972 At Fillmore West, SF, CA
Lacquer Cut By: By: Artisan Sound Recorders, N. Hollywood, CA (symbol in matrix)
Pressing By: Columbia Records Pressing Plant, Terre Haute, IN
Original Issue: June, 1972
This Issue: 1972
Label: Fillmore Records (Columbia) Z3X 31390
Runout Deadwax Matrix Numbers A/F/B/E/C/D, 7" EP Sides 1,2:
Side A: (etch:) PAL31391-1E ｜ (stamp:) T C ∧ ○
Side F: (etch:) PBL31391-1E ｜ (stamp:) T C ∧ ○
Side B: (etch:) PBL31391-1E ｜ (stamp:) T C ∧ ○
Side E: (etch:) PBL31391-1E ｜ (stamp:) T C ∧ ○
Side C: (etch:) PAL31391-1E ｜ (stamp:) T C ∧ ○
Side D: (etch:) PAL31391-1C (stamp:) (Artisan symbol) ∧ ○
7" Side 1: (stamp:) ZLP156925-1B T
7" Side 2: (stamp:) ZLP156925-1B T

Was bought new by this seller many years ago and now offered from his private collection (you have absolutely known provenance). Has had almost no plays after its initial audition and in storage for almost 52 years. When played it was only on an expertly setup high-end audiophile turntable, arm, and cartridge. Has never been exposed to heat or tobacco smoke and always stored vertically in specially designed record cabinetry (Rackit brand).
All vinyl sides are cleaned on a VPI HW-16.5 record cleaner. I use the Audio Intelligent "One-Step" formula that requires no rinsing and leaves no residue. It is alcohol free and uses enzyme agents to remove pressing mold-release compounds, fungi & bacteria, finger oils, and many other environmental contaminants. Made with laboratory-grade pure water(50X purer than distilled water). I neutralize residual static charge from both vinyl and new inner sleeve with a Milty Zerostat. I wear nitrile surgical gloves while cleaning and play testing to avoid any chance of transferring finger oils to the vinyl.

Very sensitive play testing was performed straight off my Ayre P-5xe fully balanced phono preamp over Sennheiser HD 600 headphones using a Schiit Audio Valhalla 2 tube headphone amp fitted with NOS Soviet Voskhod matched tubes (see last photo).

Track list
For track listings, please see my attached record label photographs.

I never take "distant" photos nor the so-prevalent type with the LP sticking halfway out of the jacket. I take close-ups under photo lamps so you can see nearly everything I describe in the jacket grading. It is virtually impossible to know the true vinyl condition from any photograph. That takes very bright and close visual inspection PLUS play testing with thorough coverage on high resolution equipment.
Grading Details
Note: Grading LPs by text characters is subjective and at best are only a guide as no two used records are of exactly the same quality. I do not use "EX" grades as my VG+ is right below "NM-."Please, refer to both my photo evidence and detailed descriptions to judge by YOUR OWN grading standards. Questions are always welcome. Play quality is personally most important to me so vinyl visual qualities are separately graded and described in detail for your complete assessment.

Outer Jacket Inspection/grading:
VG+/VG+
The box is structurally perfect with no split seams. There is just a little bit of rub wear on one corner of the top section. The inner box section has no abrasive wear. The box is kept from a VG++ grade because of color transfer to the front and back faces from adjacent albums pressed against it while in storage shelving over almost 52 years.

Booklet Inspection/grading:
NM
Near perfect.

Poster Inspection/grading:
NM
Looks perfect (was never unfolded).

Ticket Inspection/grading:
NM
No flaws, perfect.

Vinyl visual inspection/grading (A/F/B/E/C/D/7" S1 / 7" S2):
NM/NM/NM/NM/NM/NM/NM-/NM
Side A looked perfect and Side F had one very faint top surface "fog line" passing through T1. Otherwise, F was perfect. I made a note to check T1 thoroughly during play testing to make sure there is no repeating vinyl noise associated with the line. Side B looked perfect. Side E had a similar top surface "fog line" going only halfway through T1. I made a note to check that on play. Sides SC and SD were absolutely perfect. Both sides of the 7" records looked the same as when they were new (they only ever got one play).

Play Testing Grades:
NM+/NM+/NM+/NM/NM/NM
Extensive play testing was performed after visual inspection (continuous written notes were taken). I listened to the beginning, middle, and end of each track for a few minutes on each needle drop. When the track width was noticeably greater I took more play samples to get good coverage. I also listened to all lead-in, lead-out and transition grooves between each track. Some tracks were played all the way thru when digitizing my favorites to 96k/24-bit WAV files. This allowed me to go back and re-check some of my notes on digital playback in ProTools. I did not play test the 7" record as it contained no music. Here is rundown of each 12" side from my notes.

Side 1 Play Details
The first 3 tracks had zero vinyl noise on all play samples. No ticks, clicks, or crackle. T4 was a long track needing many samples. Was cut very hot and no way any vinyl noise could ever become audible. Was always one of my album favorites. The side played so much like brand-new I felt it deserved a "+" added to the grade.

Side 6 Play Details
I noticed a warp on this side. It was smooth with slow rise and fall times so as not to cause a waver in the audio. My cartridge with 2 grams tracking force had no problem with it. T1 was checked by 100% play per my visual notes and was another very hot cut (also a favorite artist). Only heard 2 insignificant HF ticks near the very end but otherwise zero vinyl noise. T2 was not cut nearly as hot as T1 but was very long and also very quiet. T3 had no vinyl noise. This side also sounded so much like new my exuberance gave it an NM+.

Side 2 Play Details
T1 played perfectly with zero vinyl noise on all play samples. T2 was recorded so it got 100% play. Only 2 LF soft ticks at about 1/3rd in with all the rest perfect. T3 is a very hot cut and one of the best tracks in the whole collection. It had perfect play quality and so did T4. Another near-perfect "like-new" side, so NM+.

Side 5 Play Details
Like the opposite side of the first disc, this also had a smooth warp with two gentle peaks. raising just a little bit higher than Side 6. Again, it caused no problems with tracking or audio waver. T1 required 100% listening through the 1st half per notes. It had perfect vinyl performance. T2 is a super-hot cut and one of the top tracks of the whole. Incredible audio quality that blew me away. T2 got my vote for musically best of the side with perfect pressing quality. T3 was another favorite of the side also with no vinyl noise on any sample. Easy NM, but did not add a "+" because of the slightly longer but still smooth warp.

Side 3 Play Details
T1 is just a spoken intro by Bill. T2 was perfect with zero vinyl noise. T3 started out with very low program levels at its start. So low, I could easily hear the analog tape hiss. Underneath the hiss was the pressing's absolute vinyl noise floor with some HF noise pulses at the threshold of audibility. I remembered noticing this on my very first play of the track a long time ago. Those low music levels last for about the first minute and then the volume ramps up to more normal levels achieving a quiet vinyl background. If I had to pick my favorite track of the whole album this one would be it. T4 was a super-hot cut with zero vinyl noise. Pretty sold NM side overall.

Side 4 Play Details
Again another smooth warp but with the least height of the three "flip over the whole stack and play" sides. In T1 I heard 2 mild non-repeating ticks in the first few seconds of play. The rest of the tracks on the side had no audible vinyl noise on any sample. The remaining tracks were all free of vinyl noise. I wish they had chosen different Grateful Dead recordings for the album but overall a pretty easy NM grade for this side.

In terms of play quality the whole album performed outstandingly. I was puzzled by the presence of warps on the three "flip over" sides as I used the same sturdy modular oak cabinets designed expressly for vinyl storage continuously. I have never seen this pattern on any other vinyl box set of the same age. Then it came to me that maybe the unbalanced width of the 7" record and poster against one side of all three 12" disks applied uneven force across the whole width of the LP stack. In nearly 52 years a smooth warp may have been slowly induced by the uneven forces. A guess, but it makes the most sense to me. Luckily, the warps did not affect play when I tested it. I don't hide these kinds of details in case they may be important to some potential buyers.

Packaging

• The 12" records with the booklet on top are placed into the album box with a cardboard pad on top of them. The 7" record is placed on top of the cardboard pad and then the album box cover goes on top.
• The poster and ticket are each individually contained into new clear plastic sleeves for protection.
• Poster and ticket will be placed on top of the album box with a packaging cardboard Stiffener pad on top of that.
• Original paper inner sleeves are not included as they were immediately replaced by cheap plastic-lined sleeves when first purchased. For the sale those were replaced with brand new MFSL-style "rice paper" plastic sleeves right after cleaning each disc. This will keep vinyl surfaces clean and well protected during shipping and ultimately during buyer usage.
• Sent in high quality record mailer with cardboard stiffener pads on both sides of the album case. All shipping carton corners are double-taped.

Shipping

• Shipping will be via USPS Media Mail for a flat charge of $6.00 only for this sale because shipping weight is 3 lbs.
• A combined shipping discount is not available for this sale only because there is no room in the shipping carton for additional records.