Rare first pressing of The Beatles’ ‘White Album’ in charity auction
A rare first pressing of The Beatles’ self-titled 1968 album, commonly known as the White Album, has been donated to the British Heart Foundation. The copy is in excellent condition and includes all original inserts, including a fold-out poster.
Before much later re-issues, the White Album was pressed with numbered record sleeves, making each unique. Ringo Starr owned No.0000001 before he sold it for a record-breaking $790,000 in 2015.
“We used to play the vinyl in those days,” Starr told Rolling Stone of his ultra-rare copy. “We didn’t think, ‘We’ll keep it for 50 years, and it will be in pristine condition.’ Whoever gets it, it will have my fingerprints on it.”
The copy that’s currently up for sale at the British Heart Foundation was handed in at the Sutton Coldfield branch. It is expected to bring in a large sum because it contains a misprint unique to the first pressing of the record, of which there are only 10,000 copies.
The charity has listed it on eBay, with bids starting at £999.99. Collectors will be able to bid for it until the evening of Monday, May 22nd.
“Our music and vinyl experts were thrilled when this valuable piece of music history was donated to the BHF,” Richard Pallier, from the charity, told the BBC. He confirmed that the album was in “good condition” despite being 55 years old.
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