THE ROLLING STONES, Beggars Banquet (1968 DECCA MONO 1ST STUNNING NEAR MINT )

	£		238
	$		315

Welcome to my retro auctions that offer the best of classic and collectable vintage vinyl records, ranging from the out-and-out classic to the weird and wonderful obscurities! With the revival of the vinyl records continuing apace, I find it increasingly frustrating how so many second hand outlets where I’d traditionally source used records, such as charity shops and boot sales, are clogged up with dealers unwanted dross and ubiquitous max bygraves & ken dodd type records! Then when they do have something interesting they very often haven’t even thought about checking the condition! I’ve had a life long love affair with vinyl and will be using ebay to share that with you and hopefully direct some of these treasures to the right home where they’ll continue to be used and enjoyed in the way they were intended, so here we have the fantastic LP:

THE ROLLING STONES – BEGGARS BANQUET

This is an original UK Mono vinyl LP released in 1968 on the Decca label with the catalogue number LK.4955. This is an incredible first pressing of a classic Stones album, the ultimate upgrade for someone so don’t miss out!!

The condition of the record is brilliant and it just has to grade as a Near Mint! Nothing else is going to accurately reflect what a wonderfully well preserved original copy of the album this is. The only reason I can’t give it Mint is because it has been played and the guidelines are strict on that! But this is totally in that ball park because, even though the spindle area does point to some use, the record has been handled with proper care at all times. The sound quality is strong and powerful all the way through. It’s so hard to find a record that has been cared for enough to still provide a pleasurable playing experience; so often these discs were thrown around or taken to parties and inevitably they’d become scratched, warped or just totally unlistenable so when they show up like this with strong vinyl sound that truly delivers in audio quality they really are to be treasured! When that record happens to be like this, a top drawer collectors item by one of the worlds all time greatest rock bands, then the status simply cannot be emphasised enough! This is one of the special ones!

The cover is a front laminate gatefold sleeve with correct poly-lined paper inner sleeve and this is also in brilliantly well preserved order grading as a strong Near Mint. So many times you find covers like this they are written on or have loads of edge scuffs and seam splits but none of that is the case here! This cover is fully intact and the most there is to report is a laminate crease appearing down the spine where the cover has been opened out but that is nit picking of the highest order, all the edges are smooth and the spine remains straight, firm and with clearly legible text. This really is the complete package in fantastically well cared for condition and I am very keen for it to find its way into the right collection with an owner who will continue to preserve it to this standard, so don’t miss out!!

Gradings explained:

Mint – I only ever use this grade for a record that is brand new or one that has clearly never been played, Mint records will usually be sealed as well.

Near Mint – The record has been on a shelf between other records. The vinyl looks glossy and clearly has only been played a few times. There are no marks on the vinyl and the whole package is complete.

Excellent – Close to the above grade but there may be some very light marks where the vinyl has been in and out of the inner sleeve a few times, or tiny signs of use generally.

Very Good+ – A few further faults are acceptable, but nothing that really compromises the record visually or audibly. A little rub or light inaudible marks and occasionally a little background crackle but nothing that’s instrusive or spoils your enjoyment of the music.

Very Good – It’s seen a bit of use but is still very usable. Light pops and clicks, an edge split, light visible scratches. You can still listen to it and enjoy looking at it, but it is visually and audibly a used title.

Good – To be honest you’re making trouble for yourself here, as Good means Bad. The only reason to be selling something in this condition is if it’s something ultra rare and unlikely to show up again.

My love of records has been there all my life, from my infant days becoming hypnotized at my parents copy of Waterloo Sunset rotating on the deck, to my first purchase of a Wombles album and through my childhood years when everything from Pop, Rock, Disco, Punk, Electro, Indie, Reggae and so much more exploded in my ears and my brain and left me an incurable music addict for life! In the middle of the eighties a versatile Piano Man with an ear for a Beatle-esque melody and an unashamed love of the sounds of the fifties and sixties pointed me to music of the past to expand my pallet so, as the era of the CD arrived, a fascinating never ending journey of discovery brought the giants of earlier decades to my collection; a spidery expedition that goes backwards and forwards ad infinitum but crucially, can throw up a thrilling discovery on a daily basis. But as the CDs started to take over from vinyl in my collecting during the nineties, I noticed a phenomenon that other collectors were always talking about but I’d doubted to be true; namely that vinyl records do sound better than CD. It was on an original RCA copy of the Elvis Presley album ‘Elvis’ Golden Records’ and in particular the track ‘Hound Dog’. I’d become used to it on a CD I owned but on this 1958 pressed vinyl record the difference in audio was amazing. The guitars were on fire, the vocal soared and the drum roll seemed to rattle the room. This kind of resonance just wasn’t happening on the flat CD which, for all it’s crisp background silence, seemed lifeless by comparison. And this is something I’ve continued to marvel at over the years and particularly in the 21st century, as the tepid sonics of streaming have become commonplace, that to really get to the heart and soul of a recording, to totally experience the primal triggering of emotional responses to these vibrations, you have to search out a great quality vinyl pressing. It’s the only way!    

BUYER PAYS FOR ALL POSTAGE AND PACKAGING. 

PLEASE BE AWARE THAT INTERNATIONAL PRICES WILL VARY DEPENDING ON DESTINATION 

LP’s & 12” 
UK: £3.30 1 x LP / £4.50 for 2-3 x LP’s 
Europe: £6.75 1 x LP / £8.00 for 2-3 x LP’s 
**Rest of the world: £12.50 1 x LP/ £15.00 for 2-3 x LP’s (**If post is going as International Standard only, prices will be lower) 
Substantial discounts available for orders of 10 items or more 
ALL ITEMS SOLD OR TOTALS COMBINED £21.00 OR OVER WILL BE SENT BY RECORDED/TRACKED POSTAGE WITH NO EXCEPTIONS. 

7” 
UK: £2.50 1-2 x 7” / £3.50 for 3-4 x 7” 
Europe: £4.75 1 x 7”/ £5.00 2-3 x 7” 
Rest of the world: £5.95 1 x 7” / £6.00 2-3 x 7” 
Substantial discounts available for orders of 10 items or more 

Please contact us if you require an estimate for shipping prices or if you want an estimate for the cost of other ways of postage (such as recorded delivery or Parcel Force Worldwide or others)