Vinyl: The Jimi Hendrix Experience~Are You Experienced?~US Orig'67 Reprise Mono Shrink 1st Run Tri-Color "Steamboat" Label 1A/1B Matrix Number

ORIGINAL 1st US COLUMBIA RECORDS MONO PRESSING

THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE ~ ARE YOU EXPERIENCED? (1967)

1st RUN TRI-COLOR (GREEN/PINK/YELLOW) “STEAMBOAT” REPRISE RECORDS LABELS

VERY EARLY 1st -A1 / -B1 MATRIX NUMBERS

ORIGINAL 1st PRINT COVER

1st PRINT “IMPERIAL PACKING INDIANAPOLIS, IN” COVER WITH THE “4” NUMBER ON THE BACK

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Original very early 1st US Monaural pressing of The Jimi Hendrix Experience’s debut album “Are You Experienced?” released in August, 1967 which came only second after The Beatles’ “Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” in the music charts and made Jimi Hendrix a superstar. Original 1st print cover manufactured by Imperial Packing located in Indianapolis, IN contains the “4” number in the lower right-hand corner on the back and remains in the original clear loose-fitting distributor baggy. Original 1st run Reprise Records Tri-Color (green/pink/yellow) “steamboat” 2.75’ pressing ring labels with the catalog number “R-6261”, “MONO” banner at the bottom and “Made in U.S.A.” credit. This copy’s vinyl is the Terre Haute pressing plant version, very rare 1st variation with the very early 1st -1A / -1B matrix numbers . The runout groove of both sides also contains the plant’s identifier in the form of the “T” symbol. The full matrix numbers of this copy are as follows: Side 1 - 10681 R-6261-A 1-B 1 T; Side 2 - 10682 R-R-6261-B 1-B-1 T. The US issue has different tracks from the UK release, just like the cover design whose origin story we would like to write about in more details. The design of the album’s US cover art is attributed to Jimi Hendrix himself who was disappointed with the UK album’s design. The design of the US issue’s cover is different from the UK version cover that was executed by Chris Stamp and printed by the London-based Ernest J. Day & Co. Ltd. It’s hard to tell why the cover design of the UK issue disappointed Hendrix, most likely not only he didn’t see himself look like Dracula in a cape but also thought that it didn’t reflect and provoke the psychologic suffering which he incorporated into his psychedelic music. In any case, I think it’s close to the truth because finding Karl Ferris and asking the famous photographer to create the cover art for the US issue of the album Hendrix said: “Go on your psychedelic trip. As far as possible.” In order to find the inspiration Ferris asked to hear more of the Experience’s music and attended several recording sessions of the band’s second album Axis: Bold as Love and found it “so far out that it seemed to come from outer space”. He used a fisheye lens for a spherical effect and the infrared film Kodak which at the time was used on the reconnaissance aircraft Lockheed U-2 taking photos of the band at Kew Gardens in London. Ferris chose the jacket with a peacock pattern from Hendrix' wardrobe and that was given to the artist by one of his fans. After seeing Hendrix with his hair combed away from the scalp, Ferris requested that he wear it that way during the photo shoot. Hendrix's girlfriend, Kathy Etchingham, trimmed his hair to improve its symmetry, forming an afro which still wasn’t popular and worn at the time.

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The cover remaining in the original distributor baggy is graded Excellent. The baggy has preserved the cover in a beautiful state with only the back cover having a little bit of shelf wear. The cover doesn't have any splits and contains the fully readable text on the rigid spine. The glossy vinyl is graded as Very Good Plus containing some very light non-feelable surface hairlines and marks along with some light scuffs from the original inner sleeve which is in Near Mint Minus condition and doesn't have any splits or tears. The clean labels are in Near Mint Minus condition and don't have any scuffs or wear. The vinyl sounds great with a clear Monaural sound only having some very light occasional static which most likely would go away if the record was professionally cleaned using the VPI cleaning machine.

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FOR INTERNATIONAL BIDDERS' CONSIDERATION

Due to the high risks involved when it comes international shipping, we’ve recently stopped sending our items with USPS First-Class Mail International and now use only USPS Priority Mail International Express. However, if your order exceeds the amount of $5000, we’ll have to ship the package with FedEx as oppose to USPS.

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