BOB DYLAN 1st LP STEREO 6-eye label Double Shrink
$
500
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Description
MONSTROUSLY RARE ORIGINAL, FIRST PRESSING ON RED & BLACK COLUMBIA "SIX EYE” LABEL
· THICK, CARDBOARD COVER, AMERICAN STYLE.
· COVER IS STILL IN ITS ORIGINAL SHRINK (CELLOPHANE) WRAP with another wrap over the shrink wrap! This is the only copy wrapped in the this particular manner I have seen!
· BEAUTIFUL, LOW WEAR LABELS with name written in pen on one side. (see photo)
· MATRIX NUMBER IN TRAIL-OFF VINYL (DEAD WAX) ENDS WITH '-1'. , SUFFIX '–1' DENOTES THE VERY FIRST, ORIGINAL PRESSING)
Matrix numbers XSM-55621-1e and XSM-55622-1f
· THICK, HEAVY VINYL PRESSING RECORD IS IN VG++ CONDITION with a few very fine hairline marks. COMPLETE GLOSS LIKE A MIRROR! (see photo)
By now you know that the first pressing of Bob Dylan's first album on the impossible "six eye" label is near-impossible to find: it can easily fetch upward of $1,000.00 on the open market. And here’s why it is so rare:
Two years ago, someone met at one of the local record shows in New York City a gentleman named Marc ( last name unknown). At the time Dylan’s first record was released, Marc was about 18 and – at least so he claimed – he was working as a bike messenger for Columbia Records headquarters in NY City and had personally hand-delivered a production order signed by John Hammond, Sr. for 500 stereo and 3000 mono copies of this album. I do not have any means of independently verifying this information, but judging by the colossal rarity of this album, I find the story altogether credible.
And those 500 stereo copies – that was it, folks. There was no more. No additional press runs on this particular label was ever ordered. Columbia would soon phase out the “six-eye” label altogether and introduce the new, black and red “360 stereo label”, and so all subsequent pressings of this album (as well as the first pressings of the next four Dylan albums) would appear on this, new Columbia label.
I would be willing to bet big money that, out of those 500 copies initially produced, less than 200 survive worldwide and that, out of those 200, probably less than 100 copies can be accounted for. Of those 100, probably less than 70 copies are in playable condition. How many of them are still NEAR MINT (like the one we are offering here)? Nobody knows. Our qualified guess is less than 50. This is one of those monumentally rare pieces. A cornerstone – if not the proverbial Holy Grail – for any Dylan collector.
Now for the music: this truly IS a piece of history: this is an album that announced Bob Dylan’s arrival to the unsuspecting world; the work that started the entire Dylan cult, which would follow merely a year or so later, on the heels of his next album (“Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan”). Capably produced by the legendary John Hammond, Sr. (who, among others, discovered such stars as Billie Holiday, Robert Johnson, Aretha Franklin and Bruce Springsteen and was the father-in-law of Benny Goodman and the father of John Hammond, jr (you figured as much, didn’t ya?) , the album shows Bob Dylan's deep and genuine love for all forms of archetypal musical Americana, particularly traditionals, spirituals, folk, blues and work song, but also his evolving, maturing ability as a songwriter.
Track listing: You're no good -Talkin' New York - In my time of dying - Man of constant sorrow - Fixin' to die - Pretty Peggy-O - Highway 51 - Gospel Plow - Baby, let me follow you down - House of the risin' sun - Freight Train Blues - Song to Woody - See that my grave is kept clean.
For additional historical or discography information on this album, including track listing ►click here
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