RARE BEATLES GEORGE MARTIN HELP WHITE LABEL PROMO LOOK

$

30

The awesomeness of a Beatles themed Rock Band video game got me motivated to throw a few crazy Beatles albums out around it's release, some of the less common items in the collection I still have. 

This is an auction for a copy of "George Martin and his orchestra play HELP!" and other instrumental versions of The Beatles songs by their brilliant recording director.  This copy was originally released as UAL 3448 in 1965, and this is the MONO press of it being the UAL prefix on United Artists.  However, this copy is also a white label copy with "NOT FOR SALE" on both sides of the label.  There is a plastic sleeve that the album comes in and no other sleeve or insert.  Further updates regarding the condition of the album will be updated within 48 hours, so check back to get the full description of some white label promo beatles goodness.

Album cover grade: VG to VG+. 
The cover is at least VG for this album, but likely even a better depending on your definition.  There is light handling wear on the front cover, but nothing serious, maybe just hints of the beginnings of ringwear.  There is a small area with masking tape across the front and another small area where a previous sticker looks to have peeled a bit off, smaller than the size of a dime and both located around the middle just to the left (see pic).  The most prominent wear is at the seams and corners, upper seam is just beginning to split in the middle and lower seam is doing a bit better.  The spine is fully legible and has small wrinkles coming off it all the way down the front cover, none more than 1" or so in length.  The upper left and lower left corners are showing medium wear and the upper corner has a light fold on it, but just a very small corner fold.  The back cover looks pretty good and has some spotty wear commonly appearing on large white covers. 

Vinyl visual grade: VG (at best)
The vinyl appears ok, but is (IMHO) just as close to a VG- as it is a VG.  There are quite a few fine and light wisp marks on both sides, and some odd random scuffing as well.  I would not classify any wear above medium depth visually, and side B seems to have more of the wisp marks and side A more of the odd random scuffing, but there is some of each on either side.  The white label shows just very light wear and the picture in the photo is about accurate for both labels.  I do not know what to expect from the audio grade based on the look of it, but I think it will play with both light and heavy audible wear depending on the spot being played.  Please give me until Thursday to finish the audio grade before bidding but feel free to ask questions or watch the item until then. 

Vinyl audio grade: VG (at best)
Sounding about like I expected, with wear audible and right between the VG- and VG range.  The album played nicely with no disruption in play, and the listen was still great (to me) as I am a huge George Martin fan, being the driving force behind the Beatles melodies.  The album is entirely instrumental, and definitely worth checking out if you haven't ever heard it.  As far as quality goes, there was noticeable constant audible wear throughout, but not often overpowering enough to really deter the listening experience.  I thought side A actually sounded a bit better, but there were rough spots on both sides.  A few tracks actually sounded impressive in contrast to visual appearance, but overall I would again put this between VG- and VG depending on the track you are hearing.  The beginning of both sides (outermost track) definitely starts a little rough, yet the listening experience was neither comfortable nor uncomfortable to me, somewhere in between, and if there are any questions on specific track audio grades, I can answer them within 24 hours after being asked.  Note for note though, this is one of the best instrumental albums I have heard in my years, just not of exceptionally clean quality in this case. 

Sweet white label promo copy though, and these are always nice to just behold and think about -- historically speaking, that is, as I often wonder how many people I would know by name physically held, played, or heard this EXACT copy on the radio or elsewhere, and the degree of influence it may have had on them at the time or even through today.  Again, just my opinion, and I don't even know for a fact that this copy was a radio station copy but as many promo copies I have come across do indeed have radio station call signs written or stamped across them for the specific station that used it, I assume most promotional copies are sent out for marketing purposes in a similar way.  This one however, does not have any information on it's specific history from what I can tell.

GRADING :

As this is a Beatles themed week for me, I am listing a dozen or so of some of the rarer Beatles items I have.  Being very collectible Beatles albums, it is important for the buyer to know I grade pretty conservatively.  I will provide additional pictures upon request, and likely post them in the auction.  I only use the following grades in GOLDMINE record grading standards:  Mint (must be sealed and perfect), Near Mint (NM), VG+, VG, VG-, Good, and Poor as opposed to the large variety of VG++++++++ and SUPERVG+ and all the other ridiculous grading you see on ebay. However, I am pretty detailed in descriptions and will be providing an audio grade for each of these as well.  If there are any other questions on my grading please ask.


SHIPPING
I will ship anywhere at the world at buyer expense, and get a quote for a particular location within 2 business days of being asked.  I have shipping shown with USPS media mail, but that is only because it is the cheapest option.  I will ship any (reasonable) service but will not use FED EX due to my hatred of them.  That aside, I would recommend USPS priority mail in my experience for both shipping cost and reliability.  I will be using signature required delivery on all of these Beatles items this week, so be prepared for that.

RETURNS/REFUND POLICY:

AS THESE ARE BEATLES, I WILL ACCEPT RETURNS UNDER THESE CIRCUMSTANCES:

YOU HAVE 7 DAYS TO CONTACT ME FROM WHEN THE ITEM IS DELIVERED, AND YOU MUST CONTACT ME BEFORE SHIPPING THE ITEM.  FAILURE TO CONTACT ME PRIOR TO RETURNING WILL COMPLICATE THE REFUND AS I WOULD NEED TO GIVE YOU AN ALTERNATE ADDRESS TO PROPERLY RECEIVE THE ITEM.  IT COULD END UP THAT FAILURE TO CONTACT ME BEFORE SHIPPING WOULD VOID THE REFUND AS I MAY NOT GET THE ITEM BACK.  BUYER PAYS RETURN SHIPPING, AND I WILL REFUND ITEM COST AFTER RECEIVING IT.  AS I AM CONFIDENT IN MY GRADING, IF I FIND I HAVE MADE A GROSS ERROR IN JUDGMENT IN THE ITEM DESCRIPTION, I WILL ALSO REFUND THE SHIPPING COST BACK TO THE BUYER.


ABOUT THE SELLER

I am a former record store owner who closed up shop and has been transitioning to an online only set up.  I also work a full time job in a shipping department, so you can bid with confidence as I have much experience in both dealing records and properly packing and shipping boxes of stuff.