Sealed Highway 61 - Took a Chance

On a whim, I took a chance on a non-record eBay seller (estate sale) and bought a sealed copy of H61 for semi-reasonable amount of money. It came well packed and it looks pristine under the plastic. The sleeve is nice too.



It is 2C/1B matrix and 'meaningless' sleeve, so no holy grail, but nevertheless, I am amazed it has lasted in this condition for 50 years.

I have two other copies:

Copy 1: 'meaningless', 2F/1H matrix. Nasty scratch over the entire Thin Man track ruins side 1, but side 2 plays mint and in great sound quality.

Copy 2: 'meaningful', 2B/1A. Plays near mint throughout, but the sound quality on side 2 is lousy - no hot stamper there, that's for sure.

So by combining side 1 of copy 2 and side 2 of copy 1 I can play this title flawlessly and in great sound. I fully intended to open and play this new copy also, but now, looking at it, it feels a bit irreverent to tear into it.

What would you do? I know the lousy sound on the 1A side of my other copy is probably because of worn stamper, not the matrix per se, but is there something I should know about 2C/1B matrix?

 

PLAY IT...THAT'S WHAT IT'S FOR!!

 

Why buy it not to play it!

 

I would keep it sealed personally...
But, then I collect Dylan rather intensely, and do things that sometimes
seem a bit overboard to others. I have a love for the older baggy sealed Dylan Columbia LP's. I have some different titles in Mono and Stereo.
For "HW61R" I have the original Mono and Stereo, both are NM not sealed. My Stereo copy has the matrices 1A/1A w/ the "meaningful" wording. Most importantly it has the rare alternate "From A Buick 6" withdrawn version.

You may know about the very best Dylan web site.. but if not, may I suggest a
visit to: " www.searchingforagem.com ". Alan's site is absolutely invaluable.
Enjoy!

 

Nice score!

Sorry to go somewhat off topic, but do those inner bags sometimes leave hazy lines on the vinyl like some UK poly lined sleeves sometimes do?

 

Too late.

 

I’ve grown increasingly shy around sealed records. Too many warps that you often can’t see from outside.

 

I should have made it a poll .

It's an unsolvable conundrum: If I open it and it plays great, I will be happy. If, however, the sound is lame or it is crackly, I'll wish I kept it sealed.
I guess I'll keep it sealed for a while just to enjoy the feeling (I have never bought another vintage album of this caliber sealed) and then open it eventually.

 

AFAICT, this one is nice and black under the plastic.

 

I don't buy them as a rule either. But this one is perfectly flat - the plastic is loose on the record - not a shrink wrap.

 

Why? The jacket was not sealed, just the record is. That's how Columbia used to pack them in the '50s and '60s.

 

A thousand record collectors screamed in the distance, but in unison, when you opened that thing up.

 

I haven't yet. The thousand better start exercising their vocal chords.

 

They're coming over now - better lock up the man cave.

 

I've bought still-sealed-in-their-baggies '60s Columbia Byrds and Dylan and flat loved them. Loved seeing something so old still new and LOVED the SQ, especially on something like my mono Highway 61...

Frankly, I don't know why the sound would be lame. But, you don't seem happy with the play copy you already have, so I'd be inclined to open it and check it out. It's what I did with everyone I came across (I might still have a ss mono Byrds MTM somewhere -- duplicate) and was happy I did. It was the sound I was seeking.

 

So, records used to be unsealed? Just the cardboard out and getting dirty in the store? I guess I never thought of this. It would fix the shrink problem, though.

 

from the picture it looks like it has ripples all over it.

I say play it!

 

This has to have cost a fortune.

 

Not a problem either way man ... live and let live.
I was just saying to our thread OP some info, and since he stated he
had two other copies of the LP, keeping the old baggy is a nice thing to have.
Da, da, da.. dat's all folks.

 

My understanding is, that in those days they pressed the snot out of those stampers. A copy pressed with a stamper near the end of its life sounds noticeably worse than a copy pressed with a spanking new one.

Side 1 of both my play copies sound great and very similar to each other, even though the matrices are 2F and 2B, respectively. Side 2 with 1H matrix sounds very nice as well. Clear, airy, non-screechy harmonica, clean voice sibilants. The side 2 with 1A matrix is duller, yet screechy, with smeared sibilants.
It does not sound like play wear or bad mastering, so I have to assume they kept the 1A stampers in operation for too long...

I can easily live with my current play copies - I just play the good side off of each copy. But you are right - I will eventually have to open it and find out. Not today, though...

 

save it for a rainy day...

 

Have fun when you do open and play it. That's what this hobby is all about!

 

If you can live with your play copies, then save for a rainy day. I've tried that before and couldn't resist temptation. Almost every time I looked at a sealed copy, I always thought, "bet that sounds good."

 

Keep it sealed, it will never be sealed again (no mater how good or bad a pressing it is). There are people out there who would (desperately) want to have this record sealed!

Start looking for a mint (both sides) great-sounding original and buy it; might be costly. Someday you can sell your sealed copy and you'll have back more than you spent on the mint original.

 

Nah, I'd never sell it unless forced to by circumstances. Meanwhile, I'll enjoy it one way or another.