Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band - Bluejeans & Moonbeams Vinyl - UK Reissue

	£		25
	$		33

NOT BEEN PLAY TESTED!

Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band – Bluejeans & Moonbeams (1976 UK Second Pressing / Virgin Reissue Run / Matte Non-Pinched Sleeve Variant)
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue Pressing, Mid-Decade Audio Run, Original Master Lacquer, Matte Non-Pinched Single Sleeve Layout
Label: Virgin Records (Smooth green-to-white gradient paper label with a flat finish. Centred at the top sits the iconic corporate "Twins" logo featuring a mirrored naked woman. This specific gradient style explicitly identifies the disc as a 1976 reissue. The circular rim text wraps around the edge in English, starting with "ALL RIGHTS OF THE MANUFACTURER" and ending with "MADE IN ENGLAND.")
Cat No: V2023 (Spine), V2023 (Labels)
Matrix / Runout:
* Side A (etched): V-2023-A-6 (V at 3 o’clock) (LA at 12 o’clock) (5 at 9 o’clock)
* Side B (etched): V-2023-B-5 (V at 3 o’clock) (C or O/0 at 9 o’clock)
Description: A verified 1976 authentic reissue United Kingdom-manufactured commercial retail pressing of Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band's controversial ninth studio album Bluejeans & Moonbeams, specifically distinguishing itself by carrying a completely uniform, matched mid-1970s production narrative across its packaging channels. This mid-decade pressing run was mastered, cut, and manufactured in the United Kingdom, as definitively proven by the iconic factory matrix configuration embedded in the deadwax. The runout markings reveal that Side A utilizes the 6th lacquer cut (-6) and Side B utilizes the 5th lacquer cut (-5) sourced from the high-quality master metal plates to capture the uncharacteristically mainstream, soft-rock, and blues-focused soundstage, conventional melodies, and smooth vocal presence. Crucially, the matrix breakdown tracks the exact mechanical history of the EMI facility in Hayes, Middlesex, where both sides were struck using the "V" Mother clone plates. Decoding the stamper cipher reveals that Side A utilized Stamper number 5, while Side B utilized Stamper letter C or O/0, confirming this copy rolled off the production line during Virgin's inventory expansion. The tracklist features the standout soft-rock ballad "Observatory Crest", the bluesy "Party of Special Things to Do", and his distinctive cover of J.J. Cale's "Same Old Blues". The outer cardboard jacket is a historically intact second-run package printed in the United Kingdom; it is a standard, single-pocket jacket displaying a delicate, unglossed, non-laminated matte paper texture with a right-side opening, flat un-pinched spine edges, and no rear flipback flaps. The front features a striking full-colour surreal painting of a green-faced man by Beefheart's cousin, Victor Haydon. The spine cleanly reads "CAPTAIN BEEFHEART BLUE JEANS AND MOONBEAMS VIRGIN RECORDS V2023". The back cover text block explicitly includes the fully structured artistic layout credit line reading "ART DIRECTION - DES STROBEL/AGI DESIGN - DAVID MOORE/LARRY VIGON PHOTOGRAPHY - SUSANNE AYERS COVER PAINTING AND CONCEPT BY VICTOR HAYDON - MIDAS TOUCH PRODUCTIONS" alongside the unedited dedication line "This album is dedicated to Denny Rosencrantz", followed by publishing credits for Virgin Music and Rondor Music, and a cross-promotional tape advertisement reading "ALSO AVAILABLE ON CASSETTE NUMBER TCV2023 AND CARTRIDGE NUMBER 8XV2023". The upper right of the back jacket lists the standalone catalog number "V2023" with an absolute absence of modern barcodes or European distribution codes, proving the sleeve layout was printed concurrently with the 1976 vinyl run. The package is a highly uniform, beautifully preserved mid-70s UK variant, standing as an incredibly prized, highly collectible artifact documenting a fascinating era of transitional analog manufacturing and distribution history for a legendary avant-garde icon.