The Beatles : Hottest Hits 1/1 1st Mono Press 1965 (Denmark) Very Rare w / Eskimo cover

This very rare first mono pressing plays to an incredible standard with NO interference!  As always I have played every track in full so as to provide a 'complete' grade and the clarity, depth, power and warmth of the audio is sensational!  There are no ticks, clicks, pops or static and S1 just has a minimal amount of inner groove distortion on the final track and I do mean minimal!  In fact the lack of distortion on this mono pressing really stands out, the playback is so clean - so much better than the UK pressings as stated below!  S1 plays with superb audio but as for S2 it is absolutely stunning!  When you take into consideration the age and rarity of this album the sonic quality is so impressive.  A FINAL UPGRADE archive classic in my opinion.

It is said that only 3,028 copies of this album were produced and were only available for a short time.  There cannot be many around today that play as well as this one!  Low starting price as per usual - I can't imagine I'll ever have another one!  

The vinyl has only very minimal spindle wear and has clearly not been played very much.  There is one obvious hairline thumbnail mark on S2 but it has no affect on the incredible audio.  The rare Eskimo cover is in excellent shape apart from some wear on the opening edge of the front cover and a few laminate creases next to the spine.  The Emitex inner is in superb condition.

PMCS 306 // XSTX 115 1 / XSTX 116 1

The audio on S1 is Mint(-) (T1 & T3 Near Mint / T6 Near Mint-) 

The audio on S2 is Mint(-)

The cover is VG+

The Emitex inner sleeve is Ex+

The labels are Near Mint

The vinyl is in excellent condition overall and still has a very strong glossy sheen and no actual scratches.  S1 is very clean with only a small number of faint hairlines and handful of minor 'specks'.  S2 does have a thumbnail type hairline scuff mark that is a bit more obvious but it has no impact on the superb audio whatsoever.  Aside from that it is in great shape with only a small number of ultra faint hairlines and a couple of minor blemishes.  The ridges black & silver Parlophone labels are in superb condition with barely any spindle wear and just one small faint 'white' mark on S1.

Play grading  

The intro on 'I Feel Fine' plays so clearly with barely any background and the opening vocal plays with great clarity also.  It continues in the same precise way with no ticks, clicks or pops and no background static either.  There is a minor 'tinny' sound but that is probably more due to the type of recording that is and it is also a mono record being played through a stereo set up.  Every section plays very clearly and the fade has no background which gives a good measure of the clarity on offer here.  I will grade as Near Mint I think that is fair.

If anything 'I Call Your Name' plays with an even greater clarity of sound.  From start to finish there is no intrusion on the audio and Mint- is very much deserved.

'I'll Get You' again plays very clearly with no ticks, clicks etc.  Perhaps not quite on the same level as the previous track but I could be accused be accused of being too critical!  I am sure it's more likely due to how they were recorded than anything else.  Don't get me wrong it still plays with superb audio.  Near Mint

The classic intro on 'From Me to You' is super clean and the first chorus is just as strong.  So far you really can't fault the actual clarity on this rare record.  It continues in the same way with nothing to detract from the 'listen' - the clarity and depth of sound is very impressive.  Back to Mint-

The acoustic intro on 'This Boy' plays beautifully with not even a dust tick and this standard is kept up throughout.  I cannot overstate just how clean and precise the audio is here.  Despite being the penultimate track on the side there is no inner groove distortion and every section plays with STUNNING clarity and that includes the fade out.  No need for a minus this is Mint in every way.  A incredible version.

'She Loves You' ends the side with genuine power and clarity.  It's interesting to note that this Danish mono pressing plays with much less inner groove distortion on the final track than the UK monos!  There is no interference and I think Near Mint- is an honest appraisal of the audio.

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'Long Tall Sally' on S2 is STUNNING!  McCartney's vocal is so powerful and clean and the sonic quality could not be improved in any way.  The playback is just perfect with no background of any kind.  Incredible when you think this LP is 58 years old!  This classic is Mint from the first note to the last.

'Thank You Girl' plays to the same high end standard with... no interference.  It has that full deep rich mono sound and again there are no negatives.  I am now running out of superlatives for this superb album!  Mint

The intro on 'Matchbox' has no intrusion and Starr's vocal from then on is crystal clear.  There is no distortion on the instrumentation either and this is another track that grades as Mint

'She's A Woman' plays with sublime quality throughout with great depth and clarity.  Again.  A powerful track and yet the audio does not suffer for it.  Maybe not quite as 'clean' as the previous three but if they are 10/10 this is 9.9/10!  Mint-

The intro on 'Slow Down' is so strong and deep, the sonic quality is wonderful!  The opening vocal is equal to that and it continues to play with impeccable quality and no interference.  The guitar solo near the end is perfect with no distortion and the final vocal has no intrusion either.  A Mint- track but have to say not sure about the minus!

The classic 'I Want To Hold Yor Hand' ends this incredible album with incredible audio!  I honestly cannot believe the lack of distortion - the playback is so clean and precise, I am just amazed at the sonic quality here.  Needless to say there are no ticks, clicks, pops or static and I have no hesitation in grading this as Mint- it is a breath-taking version!

In summary this rare mono pressing is unbelievably good!  I'll be honest I wasn't expecting it to play this well but it delivers on every sonic level!  The clarity, depth and warmth of the audio is stunning and just to repeat there are no ticks, clicks, pops or static.  The only intrusion, if you can call it that, is a little inner groove distortion on the final track on S1 but even then it is so so minimal.  This is a FINAL UPGRADE time-warp classic in every way.  The cover may have a little wear as detailed below but the audio is quite simply out of this world!

The Cover & Inner Sleeve

There are many aspects of this rare Eskimo cover that remain in excellent condition.  The edges and thin spine are in superb shape and the corners are also very clean, just a little rubbing bottom right.  The main area of wear is on the opening edge of the front cover which in a way is surprising because the vinyl has not been removed very often / played that much.  It is probably down to how it has been stored over the last 58 years and remember this 'thin' section running down the edge is not laminated.  There are also a number of laminate creases next to the spine and a couple next to the bottom edge but apart from this and the wear next to the opening edge the front cover is very clean without any marking.  The unlaminated back cover is in superb condition with barely any marking and the opening edge here looks hardly touched!  The flipbacks are still 100% attached and have very little marking on the edges.  A very strong example overall with only two areas of obvious wear, the rest of the cover is extremely clean.

The original poly-lined Emitex inner is in lovely condition with no side splits, tears or marking and only a little creasing.

Play tested on my Rega P2 with Rega Carbon Cart / Denon PMA-520AE Amp / B&W 684 Speakers

This record has been cleaned on a Pro-Ject VC-S machine

PMCS 306 // XSTX 115 1 / XSTX 116 1

I grade according to "Record Collector" guidelines.

Any questions please feel free to ask

Please pay within 4 days of auction end

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