BEATLES WHITE ALBUM TRUE FIRST PRESSING APPLE COMPRESSED LP

$

700

In this auction is probably what I’d have to call ONE OF THE RAREST PIECES OF BEATLES VINYL and DEFINITELY the RAREST VERSION of THE BEATLES’ WHITE ALBUM known to exist!!!

It has been referred to by several names: “The TRUE First Pressing of the White Album”, “The Lost Harrison Compressed White Album” and simply “The Compressed White Album”. This has also been referred to as “the record that George Harrison didn’t want the public to hear”. It is a record SO RARE that there are literally only a handful of confirmed copies ever uncovered thus far.

I’ve been very fortunate to have found 3 copies of this very rare pressing since 2007 when I learned of its existence via Perry Cox's and Frank Daniels’ book "Price Guide for the Beatles American Records, 6th Edition”. Now it’s time to let another copy go to the collection of another Beatles vinyl collector.

Here is the information about the EXTREMELY RARE LP In this auction:

• “THE BEATLES”(aka “THE WHITE ALBUM”) by The Beatles

• This is Apple Records SWBO - 101 (in STEREO)

• This DOUBLE-VINYL LP was released November 25, 1968.

• IN THIS AUCTION IS THE EXTREMELY RARE COMPRESSED VERSION. The "Price Guide for the Beatles American Records,6th Ed. identifies this very rare pressing as APP 101.SR1(c)X

• It is identified by having lacquer numbers in the trail off area ending in numbers LESS THAN 34.

• It is a TRUE FIRST RUN ISSUE originally mastered from A28/B29 Lacquers with those numbers etched in the trail-off areas of each side. (I have included images of the etched lacquer numbers for each side.) Those lacquer numbers are matched to the four sides of the LP and highlighted in RED below:

  Side 1: SWBO-1-101- B29

  Side 2: SWBO-2-101- A28

  Side 3: SWBO-3-101- A28

  Side 4: SWBO-4-101- B29

• The VINYL was PRESSED at CAPITOL’S SCRANTON PLANT with the triangle (△) stamped into the trail-off on all four sides. The original plates were used to press this record, BEFORE Capitol Records recalled mother plates 01 – 33 from its pressing plants to be destroyed.

• I’ll try to provide a brief version of the STORY behind “The TRUE First Pressing of the White Album”, “The Lost Harrison Compressed White Album” or “The Compressed White Album”. However, I would encourage you to read the FULL and COMPLETE STORY with all of the very interesting details online.

  George Harrison and Mal Evans, the Beatles road manager and personal assistant, made a trip to Los Angeles in mid-October, 1968 just prior to the release of “The Beatles” (Apple Records SWBO - 101) self-titled double-vinyl LP (aka “The White Album”).

  According to Bruce Spizer in his book, The Beatles White Album and the Launch of Apple” (page 109), while at the Capitol Records Tower, George listened to Capitol’s mastering of the new Beatles double-LP and was very displeased and disappointed by its sound, “complaining that the volume range had been compressed by cutting back the high peaks and bringing up the low passages”. Capitol's engineers had apparently used a technical process that altered half the effects. George insisted that the album be totally remastered and that he be allowed to work with Capitol's engineers to supervise the remastering of the album himself to sound like he and the other Beatles had intended it to sound.

  In addition, George insisted that all 33 lacquers, the first set of lacquers that Capitol Records used to press the vinyl, be immediately destroyed along with any records that may have already been pressed from those lacquers. HOWEVER, a few copies of the rejected album pressed using Capitol’s compressed masters were mistakenly NOT destroyed and had already been shipped out. THE LP IN THIS AUCTION IS ONE OF THEM!

  Harrison's remastered version is found on standard copies of the double LP we have today which have lacquer numbers 34 or higher. Ken Mansfield, a Capitol A&R man who was given the job of being Apple's first U.S. manager, confirms Harrison's remastering of the album in his book entitled, "The White Book."

  Perry Cox's and Frank Daniels’ 2007 book, "Price Guide for the Beatles American Records,6th Edition, states at that time:

  “only one copy, which is a VG- condition Scranton pressing with lacquer numbers A-28 and B-29, has been confirmed though there are undoubtedly others out there."

  (I tend to believe that more copies have been found, based upon my having found 3 copies, since that price guide’s 2007 publication date)

• The 2 vinyl records have APPLE LABELS with the CAPITOL LOGO in the PERIMETER PRINT of the sliced-Apple labels. They are the FIRST LABEL VARIATIONS with the following SONG TITLE ERRORS on the labels:

  • "BUNGALOW BILL", INSTEAD OF "THE CONTINUING STORY OF BUNGALOW BILL".

  • "REVOLUTION NO. 1" INSTEAD OF "REVOLUTION 1”

  • "REVOLUTION NO. 9", INSTEAD OF "REVOLUTION 9"

  • “OBLADI OBLADA” INSTEAD OF “OB-LA-DI, OB-LA-DA”

  • “GOODNIGHT” INSTEAD OF “GOOD NIGHT”

  • “RACOON” in “ROCKY RACOON” WAS ALWAYS MISSPELLED as “RACOON” UNTIL THE 1980’s WHEN IT WAS ULTIMATELY CORRECTED to “RACCOON”.

  • "WHY DON’T WE DO IT IN THE ROAD" without the question mark (?) instead of "WHY DON’T WE DO IT IN THE ROAD?"
    (NOTE: I read somewhere that this Error, without the question mark, is the rarest of all 7 errors.)

• The GATE-FOLD COVER is numbered 0636378 and is in OVERALL VG CONDITION. “The BEATLES” is embossed on the front cover. There is NO copyright notice printed inside the gate-fold cover. The cover has MODERATE overall wear and aging, particularly around the edges: inside the gate-fold, front and back. It has MODERATE soiling that includes several droplet stains on the front and rear, a very small scribble in blue ballpoint at the bottom of the front cover and a couple of small and very light scrapes on both sides. There is a small “ding” on the top edge. The corners have very small pushes and moderate wear. The top seams have about 4 inches of intermittent flaking. There are 4-inch seam splits on both of the vinyl pockets on the top seam near the opening that have been nicely repaired. There is NO flaking on the bottom seam, but there is a 1-inch seam split at the bottom opening. There is NO writing and NO tears on the cover.

• I read somewhere that, of the Compressed Beatles White Albums known to exist, all have a number printed on the cover that has only 4 or 5 digits, since it's an EARLY first-run cover. And that any higher numbers then 5 digits, would probably indicate that the original numbered cover was switched out, and replaced with a higher-numbered cover. So, IF this information is true, the cover in this auction numbered 0636378, may not be the original cover for the vinyl. (BUT, according to Cox/Daniels, first-run covers have numbers less than 2,250,000; therefore, the cover in this auction is STILL considered a first-run cover.)

• HOWEVER, I tend to believe instead what a was told by a knowledgeable Beatles’ vinyl collector I know, after consulting him. I was told that a compressed vinyl’s cover is NOT limited to having only 4 or 5 numbers printed on the front cover. He said that numbered covers were routinely produced and shipped to the various Capitol pressing plants; therefore, covers with greater than 4 or 5 numbers were most likely used for these compressed vinyl first pressings as well as for the subsequent first-run/pressings of Capitol’s re-engineered pressing that was produced with the assistance of George Harrison. Therefore, this cover numbered 0636378 would be a CORRECT COVER for this first pressing compressed issue.

• The VINYL is in about VG MINUS (VG-) CONDITION depending on the side. There are a number of LIGHT SURFACE hairlines/scuffs. A few LIGHT scratches are “feel-able”. The VINYL has LOTS OF GLOSS, which makes me think it is in better condition than Good Plus (G+) Vinyl. The LABELS show light to moderate wear depending on the side. The name “Cyndi” is written small and lightly in ballpoint on each of the sliced-Apple labels.

• This LP comes with the FOUR GLOSSY COLOR PHOTOS (one of each of The Beatles), and they are printed on heavier stock paper.

• The PHOTOS are in EXCELLENT CONDITION with very light signs of handling. There are NO CREASES. The Paul and Ringo photos have light aging of the white margins. “Printed in USA” is in the lower left margin of each photo. According to Cox/Daniels, photos printed before December 12, 1968 have “Printed in USA” in the lower margins. Therefore, these are the CORRECT PHOTOS for this FIRST ISSUE of the LP.

• This LP also comes with the COLOR POSTER with LYRICS PRINTED ON THE REVERSE. (The photos side is glossy and the reverse is not.) According to Cox & Daniels, the first issue poster, like the poster in this auction, has a credit that has the copyright symbol (©) followed by “Apple Records”. (Second and later issue of the posters changed this credit.) Therefore, this is the CORRECT POSTER for this FIRST ISSUE of the LP.

• The POSTER is in GOOD CONDITION with moderate signs of handling and the following blemishes: a 16-inch split on the bottom horizontal fold; 1-inch and 1 ½ -inch splits on the outside edges of the top horizontal fold; a 1-inch tear on the top edge above the very small photo of John; a very small “pressure point” hole in the center where the folds intersect; two ½-inch splits at the top and bottom of the vertical center fold.

This VERY RARE LP, a piece of Beatles recording history, is not often seen or offered for sale anywhere. With so few known to exist, you may never see one of these come available again for a long, long time. AND I HAVE SET NO RESERVE ON THIS LP!!!

SO, DON'T MISS OUT ON THE OPPORTUNITY TO OWN THIS VERY RARE & UNIQUE PIECE OF BEATLES RECORDING HISTORY!!!

Thanks to the Price Guide for the Beatles American Records, 6th Ed. by Perry Cox and Frank Daniels for providing identifying information about this LP and its inserts.

FYI: I use the COVER/SLEEVE GRADES and RECORD GRADES listed and described on page 8 of the Price Guide for the Beatles American Records, 6th Ed. for grading. These grades are Poor (P), Fair (F), Good Minus (G-), Good (G), Good Plus (G+), Very Good Minus (VG-), Very Good (VG), Very Good+ (VG+), Near Mint Minus or Very Good++ (NM- or VG++), Near Mint (NM), Mint Minus (M-), and Mint (M or MT) to VISUALLY GRADE this LP, so please know the descriptions of these grades before bidding. Please ask any questions BEFORE bidding. And please check my other auctions for more Beatles and related vinyl you may want to add to your collection. Be high bidder on several and combine shipping where possible on auction items that finish the same weekend. (NOTE: If more than 1 item is won by the same bidder, please do NOT make payment until I send an invoice with combined shipping cost.) Winning bidder must remit payment within 5 days of auction close. Add $6.75 for shipping to a U.S. address via USPS Media Mail with tracking. Expedited Shipping is available at additional cost.