Sold Date: April 3, 2018
Start Date: March 9, 2018
Final Price: $145.00 (USD)
Seller Feedback: 461
Buyer Feedback: 17

This is an exceptional copy of Bob Dylan's 1963 album Freewheelin'

I buy, clean, play and grade hundreds of vintage rock albums per month. I sell the majority at various locations in San Francisco. Occasionally I find really good sounding records among the average ones. Out of those few good ones, once in a great while there is one that is flat-out amazing. Clarity, definition, richness of tone, sweet high frequencies and deep lows are all off the charts. You put it on the turntable and it sounds like angels on a Saturday night.
I remember when I discovered that records like that existed. I had recently managed to get my sound system to the point where I could hear the space between instruments on a record. (Audiophile equipment is nice, but a basic pair of transparent speakers, warm receiver, and a good vintage turntable with a clean stylus on a well balanced tonearm will give you a great listening experience. I like B&W, KEF, Polk, Marantz, Pioneer, Sansui, NAD, Technics, and a Shure MX97e or Grado cartridge.) I was comparing a stack of 360 Sound copies of Bookends by Simon and Garfunkel. On maybe the 8th record, I was expecting to hear something slightly better or worse than the others, and instead I heard sound like a window opening up to the stars. It wasn't just better than the other copies, it was better than the remastered CD - way better - and it even sounded better than what I imagined the master tape would sound like. Clearly my expectations had been lowered by years of exposure to mediocre vinyl (on a subpar system) and compressed digital.
I searched for more records like that one, acquiring and trying multiple copies of favorite albums. I found that they do exist - they are just greatly outnumbered by poor copies. And they often defy conventional assumptions about early and later pressings. Even multiple copies of the same general pressing (often with similar or even matching matrix numbers) can sound very different played back to back.
Over the past year, I've been holding on to the truly exceptional sounding copies of classic albums as I find them. These are the records that I couldn't bring myself to sell. Now I am finally selling a few of them (with a money back guarantee as detailed below).

There are websites out there that specialize in finding and selling (at what may seem like high prices) the best sounding copies of beloved albums, and the question of their worth is controversial. Anyone who has listened to many copies of an album over time can tell you it's true that sonic quality will vary significantly, and that rarely you find one that will surpass all expectations.

Most sellers only grade records based on condition, often with just a visual inspection. The marketplace is in many ways designed to consider title, pressing, and condition as the only factors in assessing the value of a record - just as it would a book. Records are different in that their intrinsic purpose - faithful reproduction of the music - can range somewhat randomly from flat and lifeless to fantastic. I've paid for top condition copies of early pressings, only to be disappointed in how they sound.
I've also bought records on the basis of rarity or for the cover, and that kind of collecting can be fun too. I have records that I like to look at more than I like to play. For really experiencing the music though, that once-in-a-blue-moon spectacular vintage pressing delivers like nothing else.
About this album

This is an early 1963 pressing with the following matrix numbers:

Side 1: XSM-58719-3AE
Side 2: XSM-58720-2AE

Label has "360 Sound" Stereo in white on red label with two Columbia symbols. This followed the first 1963 pressing with 360 Stereo in black rather than white. Front cover upper left shows "Monaural - CL 1986" under the stereo catalog number. Back cover bottom right has a small number 6.

Condition of the record is VG+ with faint storage marks. The disc has been ultrasonic cleaned to lift out any embedded dust and reveal the pure sound in its grooves. Cover is also strong VG+ with a slight bend near middle left and very minor corner wear. Overall both vinyl and cover are extremely well preserved.

Playback is where this record's extraordinary characteristics are revealed. From a condition standpoint, there are some minor pops and crackles throughout. Sonically, both sides present a clear reflection of the master tapes. Dylan's "voice like sand and glue" is at the front of the mix with a lifelike quality not heard on any digital offering. Hearing this 1963 vinyl pressing is like sitting by the fire with Dylan and his guitar in 1962/1963 when these recordings were made.

Track by track notes as follows:

Side 1

Blowin' In The Wind
Recorded July 9, 1962 - the earliest recording for Freewheelin' to make it on to the final lineup. Dylan's gentle guitar and confident voice pour out like honey on this legendary album opener. Hear the rhythm of the guitar and how beautifully the bass notes play against the harmonica.

Girl From The North Country
The sonic quality of this pressing really comes into focus on this second track, recorded April 24, 1963 with Tom Wilson producing. The brilliant and fine fingerpicking is crystal clear, and you can hear the confident, hesitant, and loving characteristics in Dylan's voice. Hear it crack on the very last line in the song - "a true love of mine".

Masters Of War
Similar in quality to Blowin' In The Wind, this audio here is straightforward with focus on the percussive guitar and Dylan's simmering vocal.

Down The Highway
Incredible definition is immediately apparent on this track as you hear the familiar playful guitar phrase of this song sounding like it's played live in front of you. You can hear the changes in microphone dynamics as Dylan moves in the space of the studio.

Bob Dylan's Blues
This playful "talking blues" song springs to life here. Hear the sustained high strumming with intimate clarity in the first harmonica break, and the abandon as he spirals through the wild words and effortless guitar-harmonica interplay.

A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall
A particularly well recorded vocal track is revealed here, with Dylan again sounding like he's right in front of you. Hear the slight chuckle as he realizes his "mistake" on the "what did you meet" line preceding the "dead pony" verse.

Side 2

Don't Think Twice It's Alright
This is some beautiful and fragile fingerpicking, which you pretty much never heard again from Dylan - at least not quite the same way. Recorded November 14, 1962 - again with Tom Wilson, this is for sure one of the best sounding tracks on the album. On this pressing, you can hear every detail of the guitar with the gravel of Dylan's voice perfectly captured and presented in a multidimensional picture.

Bob Dylan's Dream
The driving guitar strumming carries the song down the tracks while Dylan's half-spoken reflections on the questionable permanence and impact of youthful passion and activism. The harmonica here is full of character and characteristic "wheeze".

Oxford Town
Straightforward recording with clear guitar and balanced vocal. Hear the emphasis of the clear-as-glass rhythm guitar in between the vocal lines. Dylan sounds closer to the mic than usual.

Talkin' World War III Blues
Hear the hammer-ons and pull-offs in Dylan's strumming clearly as he walks the bass notes up and down. His voice is husky and hungry on one of the most well balanced recordings on the album. Super high harmonica notes!

Corrina Corrina
The only track on the final lineup of Freewheelin' with backing musicians. It's subtle enough that it fits into the acoustic landscape of the rest of the album. The drums tap gently, and second guitar winds arpeggios around the bass line. Toward the end, the guitar sounds a bit like a banjo. The vocal is especially raspy, in a good way.

Honey Just Allow Me One More Chance
The fastest paced and highest spirited song on the album sounds like one-man-band rock n' roll. This pressing spreads the sound across the space effectively.

I Shall Be Free
Dylan goes pre-psychedelic in this unpredictable ride of a track. The guitar here sounds especially percussive and the dynamics of Dylan's vocal performance are on brilliant display.

An unparalleled listening experience with Dylan, his guitar, harmonica, and very little else. This is a record like no other, and a pressing like no other I've heard.

30-day money back guarantee

I'm offering this over and above the standard guarantee that the item will be received as described. If you are not completely happy with this record and the way it sounds, send it back within 30 days and I will promptly issue a full refund, no questions asked. Records may be returned USPS Media Mail in original shipping box, and must be in the same condition as originally received.

I ship fast and insure for full value

Orders with be shipped next business day (or same day if possible) and tracking information provided. Albums with be packaged with clear plastic sleeves in a record mailing box marked as fragile and shipped either USPS Priority or Media Mail. For either shipping method, I will add the necessary insurance to cover the item for full purchase value.

I will combine shipping

I can ship 1-4 albums in one box for the same shipping price (double albums are 2). So if you are ordering 1 album, you can order up to 3 more and pay no additional shipping.