JIMI HENDRIX (EXPERIENCE) 1968 UK A1/B2/A2/B2 ELECTRIC LADYLAND TRACK RECORDS

	£		52
	$		69

You are bidding on a highly sought after and rare UK pressing of the 1968 Jimi Hendrix Experience Electric Ladyland Double LP.

Matrix numbers:
Side A: # denotes scratch-out : 61300##8 A//1
Side D: 613008 B//2
Side B: 61300#9 A#//2
Side C: 613009 B //2
Auto-coupled release

CONDITION:

This LP on the whole grades easily as EX.

Vinyl:
The vinyl is great overall. There are a few light insignificant hairlines on each of the sides and a deeper scratch on side D. this causes a click for the last 30 seconds of "All Along The Watchtower" and the first 30 seconds of Voodoo Chile". There are no other clicks, pops, jumps or skips and the rest of the record plays fantastically throughout. I would still grade the record on the whole as VG+

Outer sleeve:
This is an easy EX+. It does have some light ring wear and a few grubby marks but these could be cleaned. There is no other damage and the sleeve is in fantastic condition.

more about the album and pressings:

This 3rd and final album by "The Jimi Hendrix Experience" was first released in September 1968 in the USA on 'Reprise Records' and October 1968 on 'Track Record' in the UK. The US issue, mastered by Reprise, has the Warner7Arts/Reprise roundel logo & 'Stereo' on the cover. The 'red/yellow' cover image of Hendrix is a photo by Karl Ferris, subsequently adopted as an 'official cover image' since the acquisition of the catalog by the Hendrix Family Trust. The logo was removed on later releases and the label went through visual changes during the emergence of 'Warner Bros.' and the Kinney National deals. The early US mastering does not capture the same 'hi-fidelity' qualities found on the UK issue. When 'remastering' is referred to on any subsequent issues the source is worth noting.

The UK issue was mastered, produced & distributed for Track by Polydor, who subsequently branded the UK release after the demise of Track. Polydor branding was also used for roll-outs in the European market. Polydor, of course, having its roots in Germany. Buyers and sellers should both be aware of the key differences which help identify early Track Record releases. All early UK (and some Euro) issues are auto-coupled, as Disc 1;Sides A/D & Disc 2;Sides B/C. On a few later vinyl & CDs this has resulted in the track order being wrongly presented, with A/D as A/B & B/C as C/D. (The quickest check for correct track-order is "Little Miss Strange" follows "Voodoo Chile"). The next check is the gatefold cover, 'hi-gloss' laminated inside & out, designed by David King. It is a one-piece front/back spread, with 'naked ladies' photo by David Montgomery, glued to a one-piece left/right inside spread. The lamination on Track issues is poor, leaving exposed print on the two opening edges and around all four edges of the inside spread. Bubbling, creasing & de-lamination also occurred and 'perfection' is an unlikely find - until the improved process on Polydor issues. The next and most important factor of the Track covers is the inside spread and its relationship to vinyl content.

First press Track issues have all-blue text in two versions. The Hendrix picture is either on the right when opened (most common), or on the left (rare). This is a result of the spread being rotated in production. This can go unnoticed, as the spread is viewed vertically for it to be read, rather than horizontally. First press Track issues can also have the same layout, Hendrix on right, but with a blue track list & white logo as a third version. On all three versions the 2 sepia images of Redding & Mitchell, by Donald Silverstein, are large, with the print credit grouped to the left. There is then a fourth Track version, with all white text and the print credit centered. On this the 2 sepia images are significantly reduced in size, surrounded by the black background. A fifth version is the same layout as the fourth, but the Track logo is replaced by the Polydor logo. This is the most common release.

The first 3 cover versions have 'greener' flesh tones on the cover girls than the 'warmer' later releases. These 3, with blue text content, were all effected prior to and during release. The fourth version after release date. The vinyl within has the significant 'hand-etched' changes to the wax matrix stamped ID that denotes first press. Disc 1 label is cat#613008, suffixed by A&B on sides marked A&D. Disc 2 label is cat#613009, suffixed by A&B on sides marked B&C. These suffixed cats are in parenthesis, inverted above the unsuffixed cat#. This cataloging decision to auto-couple resulted in the wax changes to the '8' & '9' and 'sides' order. The 'hi-dynamic' of the mix was found to cause needles to 'jump' on less expensive phonographs of the time. In simple terms, Polydor repressed a 'lower mix' for the Track releases, followed by a third press on Track and then into the Polydor issues. There is a subtle label change between 1st & 2nd press, both having inverted catalog data. 'Side A' 1st press has "Electric Ladyland" overlapping the center indent and there is a small gap between the words "Jimi Hendrix" & "A.Schroeder Music". 'Side A' 2nd press has "Electric Ladyland" clear of the indent. The unit of text has moved down, so that "Jimi Hendrix" is closer to "A.Schroeder Music"- which is now closer to the "Made in Britain" at the foot of the label. The final assurance of the earliest pressing is the white poly-lined inner sleeves with punched label holes, bearing the blue imprint "Made in England 108" in the bottom-right corner. The later pressings in the later covers do not have inverted cat# over the 613008 or 613009 and Track labels also have "Two Record Set (Set. No. 2657-001)". Later liners are printed "Made in England 1170".

Radical at the time, the UK cover caused controversy, with some outlets refusing to display it. Often, it was sold 'brown bagged', like Lennon's "Two Virgins" album of the same period. Hendrix wanted all issues to have the David Sygall & Linda Eastman (McCartney) images used for the cover. These photos, of the band & children posed on an Alice in Wonderland sculpture in Central Park, can be seen on the US inner and in the MCA CD booklet. Both Reprise and Track ignored the designs he sketched out. Initial work on tracks was begun by the band in January 1968, with manager and producer Chas Chandler at Olympic Studios, London, the 'residency' of engineering brothers Glyn & Andy Johns and staff engineer Eddie Kramer. It was here that Hendrix began to explore the production of his 'progressive' sound and the feasibility of creating tracks that went beyond the current concept of 'pop singles material'. He began to experiment with repeated takes and effects, with Chandler producing and Kramer engineering. Mixes from these sessions then became a new starting point for Hendrix when Chandler and the band entered Gary Kellgren & Chris Stone's newly-opened Record Plant Studios in New York in April & then June 1968 after a period of touring. During the months of recording Hendrix became somewhat fixated in achieving on tape exactly what was in his head, overdubbing, erasing and moving from 4 to 12 & 16-track layering - plus inviting in musicians he had been jamming with at clubs like The Scene. This drove the commercially-minded Chandler to financial distraction. He quit early in the proceedings, selling his shares and leaving Hendrix to complete production. Michael Jeffery became the manager. Kramer, the most prevalent engineer in the recordings, had been called in from the UK and joined forces with Kellgren. Hendrix also dubbed many of the bass parts in Redding's absence. This and many other factors no doubt prevailed in this finalé album of the "Jimi Hendrix Experience"

A short-lived 'Electric Jim Hendix' was produced with 9 tracks, available by mail-order to Polydor Club members in 1971. Some 200 copies of this "Electric Jimi Hendrix" album (Cat#2856 002) on the Track label were in circulation before it was withdrawn. The double album was later released as two single LP's under the same title, suffixed "Part 1" & "Part 2"

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