Vinyl:  VG  Play Graded. Sounds Very Good!  Island Labels are Clean and Bright.  This is the 1985 Island 90299-1 1ST PRESSING!  This is the audiophile acclaimed pressing, Mastered by Howie Weinberg of Masterdisk, NYC and Pressed by Specialty Records Corp of Olyphant, PA!!  A cacophony of greatness, this is Tom's triumphant followup to Swordfishtrombones...One of his very best!  One of Rolling Stone's 500 greatest Albums of All Times!!!...allmusic gives it 5 stars!!!

See Review Below!
In the Dead Wax:  matrices, etched.  Also:  the SRC glyph ((Pressed at Specialty Record Corp., Olyphant, PA))  and MASTERDISK with HW underneath  ((Mastered by Howie Weinberg at Masterdisk, NYC))   Complete dead wax information cheerfully provided upon request.  
Cover:  EX (see photos)   Nice high gloss on cover.  Front and back of cover artwork and text are rich and clear.  The seams, corners and spine are solid and clean.  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:  $4.99 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.
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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.
Rain Dogs Review

by William Ruhlmann

With its jarring rhythms and unusual instrumentation -- marimba, accordion, various percussion -- as well as its frequently surreal lyrics, is very much a follow-up to , which is to say that it sounds for the most part like The Threepenny Opera being sung by . The chief musical difference is the introduction of guitarist , who adds his noisy leads to the general cacophony. But is sprawling where its predecessor had been focused: ' lyrics here sometimes are imaginative to the point of obscurity, seemingly chosen to fit the rhythms rather than for sense. In the course of 19 tracks and 54 minutes, sometimes goes back to the more conventional music of his earlier records, which seems like a retreat, though such tracks as the catchy "Hang Down Your Head," "Time," and especially "Downtown Train" (frequently covered and finally turned into a Top Ten hit by five years later) provide some relief as well as variety. can't surprise as had, and in his attempt to continue in the direction suggested by that album, occasionally borders on the chaotic (which may only be to say that, like most of his records, this one is uneven). But much of the music matches the earlier album, and there is so much of it that that is enough to qualify as one of ' better albums.