Vinyl:  VG++ Play Graded. Sounds Great!  Asylum Labels are Clean and Bright.  This is the 1975 Asylum 7E-2008 Double LP 1ST PRESSING!  NO BARCODE!!!  This is the audiophile acclaimed pressing, Pressed by Specialty Record Corp., of Olyphant, PA!!  Emblematic '70s Tom Waits:  full of booze and broads and beat poetry backed up by a crack jazz combo. This one was actually recorded LIVE in front of an audience...in The Record Plant recording studio!  The stuff that his legend was built on, here in all its glory.  Check out "Emotional Weather  Report", "Warm Beer and Cold Women", "Big Joe and Phantom 309" and "Putnam County" to get an idea...Unique as Captain Beefheart in the '60s, here's quintessential Tom Waits!

See Review Below!
In the Dead Wax:  Matrices, etched.  Also, on all 4 sides, the SRC glyph for Specialty Records Corp., Olyphant, PA.   Complete Dead Wax information cheerfully provided upon request.

Cover:  VG++  (see photos)  Gatefold.   NO BARCODE!    Nice high gloss on cover. Front and back of cover artwork and text are rich and clear, with some ring wear.  The seams, corners and spine are solid and clean, with minor wear.  No splits.  No writing.  Spine print is crystal clear.

Goldmine Standards.   I play grade every record that I sell on eBay as I have found you can't rate an LP accurately by just visually inspecting an album.  I wipe the dust off of every cover with clean, unscented baby wipes.  I professionally clean the vinyl.  (I also operate a Vinyl Record Cleaning business for your dusty/dirty records--if interested, send me a message).

U.S. Shipping:  $5.49 Media Mail.  Tracking included.   50 cents additional shipping per additional item, when the shipment is combined.   If you wish to take advantage of my COMBINED SHIPPING deal, simply select your items by clicking on "ADD TO CART" on the main listing page.  Do this for all of your selections and then go to your cart to checkout. Your combined shipping discount will be computed automatically.  Free domestic shipping if you spend $100 or more!
All records are packaged securely with the vinyl outside the jacket (to avoid seam split in transit). The vinyl and jacket are sandwiched between two cardboard stiffeners and shipped in a custom cardboard record mailer box. 
INTERNATIONAL BUYERS!  EBAY'S PLATFORM DOESN'T ACCOMMODATE FOR COMBINED SHIPPING FOR INTERNATIONAL BUYERS---BUT DON'T LET THAT STOP YOU!!!---I CAN COMBINE SHIP FOR YOU AND MINIMIZE SHIPPING COSTS!!!  TELL ME WHICH ITEMS YOU WANT TO BUY, AND I WILL WEIGH THEM AND THE SHIPPING BOX TOGETHER AND THEN I WILL CREATE A "LOT OF 2..." OR "LOT OF 3...", OR "LOT OF 4...", ETC WITH THE ITEMS YOU WANT, AND CREATE A LISTING WITH THE EXACT WEIGHT OF YOUR LOT.   THIS WILL SAVE YOU A LOT OF MONEY!!!  IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THIS, SEND ME A MESSAGE TELLING ME WHICH ITEMS YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AND WE'LL GO FROM THERE.  OR, FEEL FREE TO ASK QUESTIONS.
I ship internationally through EBay's Global Shipping Program.  Check to be sure that they ship to your country. Feel free to ask any questions and happy shopping! 
Once you're satisfied with your purchase, please leave positive feedback and I will do the same for you.  If you're unsatisfied, please let me know so we can resolve it.  I do not give partial refunds.  Take a look at my previous feedback and buy with confidence.   I've qualified for the "Top Rated Plus" seal from eBay, awarded to the most reputable sellers who consistently deliver outstanding customer service.  Check my other items this week, check back often & CLICK ON "SAVE THIS SELLER" at the top of my listings page to be notified of New Listings as I will be adding more Rare items in the coming weeks!  Thanks!

Why buy a first or early pressing and not a re-issue or a ‘re-mastered’ vinyl album? 
First and early pressings are pressed from the first generation lacquers and stampers. They usually sound vastly superior to later issues/re-issues (which, in recent times, are often pressed from whatever 'best' tapes or digital sources are currently available) - many so-called 'audiophile' new 180g pressings are cut from hi-res digital sources…essentially an expensive CD pressed on vinyl.  Why  experience the worse elements of both formats?  These are just High Maintenance CDs, with mid-ranges so cloaked with a veil as to sound smeared.  They are nearly always compressed with murky transients and a general lifelessness in the overall sound.  There are exceptions where re-masters/re-presses outshine the original issues, but they are exceptions and not the norm.  First or early pressings nearly always have more immediacy, presence and dynamics. The sound staging is wider.  Subtle instrument nuances are better placed with more spacious textures. Balances are firmer in the bottom end with a far-tighter bass. Upper-mid ranges shine without harshness, and the overall depth is more immersive.  Inner details are  clearer.   On first and early pressings, the music tends to sound more ‘alive’ and vibrant.  The physics of sound energy is hard to clarify and write about from a listening perspective, but the best we can describe it is to say that you can 'hear' what the mixing and mastering engineers wanted you to hear when they first recorded the music. 
Nighthawks at the Diner Review

by Mark Deming

' first two albums, 1973's and 1974's , documented his estimable strengths as a songwriter, but they didn't always give much of a sense of the personality that came through in his live performances. In front of an audience, transformed himself into something resembling a minor character from a novel, a witty but bedraggled hipster from the seedy side of Los Angeles. His third album, 1975's , was designed to show off as an entertainer as well as a tunesmith; producer set up a nightclub facsimile in a recording studio, paired with a solid band of jazz-inclined studio musicians, brought in an audience, and recorded what was in essence his first live album. As entertainment, is one of ' most thoroughly enjoyable albums. He's clearly jazzed by the presence of an audience, and his skills as a storyteller are marvelous. Much like 's , this is an album where the between-song patter sometimes outshines the songs, and there's no arguing that is a very funny guy who plays brilliantly to a crowd, spinning eccentric, evocative tales of life on the bad side of town that make it all sound like a ball. The band is excellent, too; bassist , drummer , pianist , and sax player give the ideal three-a.m. ambience to bring the songs to life. If has a flaw, it's that ' beatnik spiel sometimes overwhelms the music, and a number of the "songs" are more spoken word routines than anything else. But "Better Off Without a Wife" and "Nobody" show he hadn't lost the ability to write a memorable song, sing it all the way through, and make it connect. And if this plays more like a "show" than a "concert," it's a show you'd gladly pay to hear more than once. is a must for fans, and while beginners might not get as strong a sense of his music as they would from many of his other albums, it's hard to imagine anyone not being charmed by it.