‘SF Sorrow’ Pretty Things – Rare Stereo LP – German 1st Press – Excellent

	£		45
	$		60

‘SF Sorrow’ Pretty Things – Rare Stereo LP – German 1st Press – Excellent condition

Columbia Stereo LP 1-C 062-04 004

Matrix nos:

Side 1 – 1-C 062-04 004-A-1  YAX 3738-1

Side 2 – 1-C 062-04 004-B-1  YAX 3739-1

This 1968 LP was genuinely ground-breaking as the very first rock opera, predating The Who’s ‘Tommy’ by several months. In many ways it’s a more imaginative and musically compelling work. I bought this copy around the time of its first release and it’s still an amazingly fresh album.

Having done some research I believe that this copy has all the characteristics of a first German press of SF Sorrow - The Pretty Things had a big following in Europe at the time. The track listing is identical to the UK version as is the sleeve with the exception of catalogue numbers and copyright/printer credits at the bottom of the rear of the cover. The disc itself comes with blue Columbia labels.

This is a genuine classic, a great rarity, and much sought after, especially a 1st press in such good condition. I'm confident you won't be disappointed - hence my starting price.

Using the Record Collector Grading System I would rate this item overall as Excellent.

I am not a dealer. This record comes from my own collection which I have been selling here on eBay for a few months. I don’t exaggerate the condition of my records.  Please take a look my feedback and you’ll see that previous buyers feel I have accurately graded my records in the past.

Cover

This LP has been housed in a clear plastic outer sleeve since purchase, therefore it is still in Excellent condition. The gate-fold sleeve has a laminated front and rear cover with matt inner surfaces. There are a few very minor creases at top and bottom edges, but no scuffs or ring wear. The white front cover shows the slightest yellowing along the spine edge – a common feature with this album it seems. The rear has some very minor lifting of the laminate at the bottom right adjacent to the spine. As you can see from the pictures it is clean and in outstanding condition with no writing or pen or pencil marks. It has no other significant marks and no tears. The spine is intact and legible and the corners are perfect. The inner sleeve is the plain poly-lined original and is perfect.

Record

The record itself I would grade Excellent. Overall this is an exceptionally clean and clear pressing and very quiet between tracks. It has no significant visible blemishes at all that I can see.  The labels are clean and unmarked, with no writing, pen or pencil marks. There are no spindle marks.  The playing surfaces are gleaming, have no visible scratches and look as good as new. The reproduction quality is about as good as it got from a 1968 vinyl pressing - it's never going to be digital quality, but pretty good nevertheless.  There are no audible scratches or crackles other than the usual surface noise that you'd get with any new vinyl record, with the exception of one minor pop near the end of ‘Baron Saturday’. If it weren’t for this I’d rate the record as Excellent+. The lead in and play out grooves are clean and glitch-free. I have test played both sides from start to finish and the whole thing still sounds fabulous.

I believe this is as close as you'll get to a mint condition original copy of this very rare pressing. This record was not a big hit on first release so it will be very hard to find one so well-preserved.

I'm happy to mail worldwide so if you want a price quote for p&p before you bid please let me know. Likewise if you have any questions I'm happy to answer. Thanks for looking.

Peter

Terms and Conditions

This record will be sent Royal mail 1st Class Signed For @ £5.00 p&p for the UK.  I mail all overseas destinations using ‘Royal Mail International Signed For’ with additional compensation protection for higher value items.

I use purpose made cruciform cardboard mailers. The record itself will be placed in a new inner paper sleeve and packed separately from the outer record sleeve and the original inner sleeve to avoid seam splits in transit. Within the cardboard mailer, the whole package will travel in a clear plastic outer sleeve packed in bubble-wrap.

If once you have received the item you are not satisfied, then if the item is significantly different from the description given here I will refund the purchase price provided that the item is returned in the condition it was sent - p&p will not be refunded.