THE ROLLING STONES, LET IT BLEED, 1969 UK DECCA MONO 2A/1A 1st PRESS

	£		125
	$		166

Hello, my name is Nick (aka playgraderecords). I have been an avid record collector for many years, building up an extensive collection of mostly blues/rock, psych, progressive and classic rock albums from the mid sixties to early seventies period. I have decided to sell off a few choice items in either Fixed Price or Auction formats. These offerings represent the crème de la crème of my 35 years of record collecting and are of the highest quality. My grading is strict and any significant defects will be mentioned. You can rest assured that a record that I grade as MINT- will be both visually and aurally as fine a copy as you are ever likely to find (hopefully my feedback and 4.94/5.0 "item as described" rating will bear this out). My descriptions are concise and in accordance with the GRADINGS detailed below. I will not bore you with the unnecessary duplication of song lyrics, and self-respect will not allow the use of ridiculous words like "awesome, mega, hyper", etc., or endless exclamation marks. Customer satisfaction is of the highest importance to me. In the unlikely event that you are not entirely happy with an LP for any reason, I will refund you in full upon return without any hassle.

From my own personal collection it is my pleasure to offer an exceptional example of the iconic studio album by THE ROLLING STONES titled “LET IT BLEED”, Catalogue Number LK 5025. This is an ORIGINAL 1969 UK MONO 1st PRESSING on the DECCA RECORD LABEL, with a 1st ISSUE UPTON PRINTING GROUP FRONT-LAMINATED “STICKERED” SINGLE SLEEVE. Complete with the 1st issue red & white inner sleeve and the elusive fold-out colour poster. [The sleeve is the earliest possible design with the mono/stereo cut-out peep-hole in the top right corner of the back cover. The dedicated Let It Bleed inner sleeve is the earliest un-censored version with “Madelaine Bell” not blacked-out.  The matrix numbers are XARL-9363.P-2A and XARL-9364.P-1A. There is a common misconception that boxed labelled Decca pressings of Let It Bleed are later issues than the unboxed versions. This is not the case – both were available upon release in December 1969. The boxed Decca labels were introduced in October of that year. Matrix numbers available upon release were 1A/1A, 1A/2A, 2A/1A or 2A/2A. I have seen all of these matrix numbers on both boxed and unboxed labelled pressings. The un-censored inner sleeve and the 2A/1A matrix numbers confirm this to be a true 1st pressing from December 1969].

The sleeve is in EX condition with only very light signs of wear and a few minor creases. The “FULL COLOR ROLLING STONES POSTER INCLUDED” sticker is present on the front cover. There is a small scuff mark near the peep-hole cut-out, but no other significant detractions. Overall it’s a very well preserved sleeve indeed.     

The vinyl is in EX condition. It’s a nice solid pressing which retains a deep mirror-like shine. There are just a few superficial rub-type surface marks on the last track on Side 1 which are of no audio significance whatsoever. The boxed Decca labels are like new with only a few short spindle traces each side. There is virtually no wear to the spindle hole. It is clear that the record has only received a modest number of careful plays. Both sides play excellently throughout with no discernable deterioration in sound quality and barely any unwanted noise at all. There are no loud pops, repeat clicks, hiss, distortion or any other significant audio defects – just a touch of very light surface sound which is not intrusive in any way and only mentioned for complete accuracy. It really is a superb-playing copy.

The fold-out colour poster is in unmarked EX condition.

The red & white inner sleeve is also in unmarked EX condition, with no splits or tears – just a tiny nick to one opening edge.

Overall this is a beautiful and complete mono copy of arguably The Stones’ most accomplished album which will grace any record collection.

GRADINGS

The records that I offer for sale have been critically play-graded, at loud volume, on a Rega P5 turntable fitted with an Elys 2 cartridge. I will only sell records that play to a high standard. My grading is strict and in accordance with the following descriptions:

·         MINT- Record is superb, almost like new, with just a few sleeve removal type surface marks and no deterioration in sound quality. Sleeve is near perfect in all respects.

·         EX Record is a top quality example, with just a few very light surface marks which do not sound, and barely any discernable deterioration in sound quality. Sleeve has slight wear and/or creasing.

·         VG Record has some visual surface marks, but still plays to a high standard without any major deterioration in sound quality – just a few clicks or light surface sound in places. Sleeve has normal wear and tear without any major defects but is still very presentable.

     All records can be expected to rotate sufficiently evenly on the turntable for there to be no effect whatsoever on the audio playback. Minor warps or dishing will not be mentioned as virtually all records display these features to some degree and no record is perfectly flat.

PACKAGING         

LPs are packaged with care and well protected to ensure that they arrive safely in the same condition as they leave me. Records are removed from both inner and outer sleeves in order to prevent seam-splits in transit.

INTERNATIONAL POSTAGE

LPs posted outside of the UK will only be sent International Signed-For with insurance at the following cost:   

Europe - £10.95

Worldwide - £14.80