Black Sabbath : Black Sabbath (Vertigo Swirl 2nd Press 1Y1 / 2Y1)

This second pressing with the large Vertigo label on S2 plays to a superb standard with very little interference.  To be honest the only obvious interference is at the start of the album but even then the music/thunder still plays very clearly!

The gatefold is in very good condition with not too much wear.  As it is such an early pressing it has 'Ozzy' incorrectly spelt as 'Ossie'.  The second pressings had one of two covers - the one with the production info and band names only in capital letters or the one with the full composition and publishing credits.  This one has the latter.

The original swirl inner is in excellent shape with no side splits.

Apologies for the shipping cost but the Royal Mail have massively increased their prices recently.

VO 6   1Y * 1   420  1 2 3

VO 6   2Y * 1   420  1 2 1 9

The audio on S1 is Near Mint (Mint- for the majority / Track 1 intro VG / T2 intro Ex-)

The audio on S2 is Near Mint (Mint- for the majority / T2 intro Ex+)

The gatefold is VG+

The labels are Ex+

The original swirl inner is Ex-

Play grading  

The intro on 'Black Sabbath' plays very clearly with no underlying static/crackle but there are five clicks of which two are a little louder.  It then plays with stunning clarity and power with only a small number of light ticks in the mid quieter section.  The intro is VG but then Near Mint- for the remainder in my opinion.  'The Wizard' has a small number of light ticks on the intro and then plays 'as new' with no 'background', it is a superb listen.  So the intro Ex- but grades as Mint for the rest of the track.  Wow!  'Behind The Wall Of Sleep' is stunning from the very first note and progresses in much the same way.  All I heard were a couple of barely audible ticks so Mint- is more than deserved.  The audio is so 'clean' and has incredible depth and power.  The bass intro on 'N.I.B.' plays so well with no obvious 'background', just the one light tick.  As for the rest of the track?  Well you won't hear many better!  The clarity is outstanding and Mint- is a fair assessment of the audio here.

'Evil Woman...' plays superbly from the outset and continues in the same manner.  There is no interference, just a little static on the fade out and is worthy of a Mint- grade.  The quiet intro on 'Sleeping Village' has only minimal static and then plays with amazing clarity and just the one light tick.  Again there is only the light static on Iommi's final note that brings the track to a close.  This is Ex+ on the intro and Near Mint for the remainder.  The heavy bass/guitar intro on 'Warning' is 'as new' and it continues to play with stunning precision.  Throughout this 10 minute classic all I heard was one light click and 5/6 light static sounds.  The clarity is so impressive even during the first very quiet section.  The stand alone Iommi solos are spectacular!  There is just no 'background' - no underlying static and certainly no ticks, clicks or pops.  Right to the end this plays with a quality that you so rarely find today.  I have no hesitation in grading this as Near Mint although the majority is better than that it is superb!

Visual grading

As per a lot of 70s vinyl this one plays so much better than its visual quality.  There are no scratches on either side but S1 does have a few faint faint hairlines including one longer one across the side and a faint scuff mark but these have no affect on the audio.  S2 is much cleaner with only some light hairlines to be seen.  It still has an impressive glossy sheen and like I say, no scratches.

The Gatefold

The matt textured cover does have some shelf wear but is still very strong and remains in good shape.  The top edges are very clean but the bottom do have a fair amount of rubbing.  The spine is 100% legible with only a little rubbing on one edge and some corner wear mainly at the bottom.  The right hand corners also have a little corner but it is certainly not excessive and the opening edge has only a little handling wear.  The front cover is very clean with only a handful of faint marks bottom right which can only be seen when you hold it at a certain angle and the back cover is in excellent shape with only a couple of light scratches.  The inside of the gatefold does have some fading/spotting mainly around the edges and a little creasing at the foot of the inner spine but no major marks.  Not a perfect cover but is still VG+ I would say.

The 'Swirl' Inner Sleeve

The original poly-lined 'swirl' inner dated 0671 has no side splits and only one very tiny tear on the central 'window'.  It has some age related fading around the edges and some light creasing.  There is a name and Black Sabbath written in pen at the top of one side also.  Overall though it is in excellent condition.

The Labels

The Vertigo labels have no marking or writing, just some spindle wear on each side.  There is no 'spotting' which is a rarity.

Play tested on my Pro-Ject Essential III Turntable / B&W 684 Speakers

This record has been cleaned on a Pro-Ject VC-S machine

VO 6   1Y * 1   420  1 2 3

VO 6   2Y * 1   420  1 2 1 9

I grade according to "Record Collector" guidelines.

Any questions please feel free to ask

Please pay within 4 days of auction end

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