I used to occasionally buy records off eBay from this older fella who would buy collections from estate sales then grade and review the records to sell individually.
I’d ride my bike half an hour to his home, spend 30 seconds dealing with the purchase and then spend the next 30 minutes chatting music. He used to own a record store in Tassie and when he moved to Victoria he sold 20,000 vinyls from the shop’s stock and his own 3,000 record personal collection. His knowledge was immense and it was always a pleasure to listen to these stories.
He once asked what my favourite record was. I said it was The White Album as it was played continuously on a cassette in my childhood family car, it brings back so many singalong memories. He then told me all about the original print that had the print number stamped on the cover, the paper colour of the inner sleeve, the apple logo and the extra poster and photos that came inside the sleeve.
Many months later I rode out to pick up another childhood favourite Tubular Bells. I paid for the records, had a bit of a chat on the front porch and then he suddenly remembered and asked “Did you ever track down a copy of your favourite album?”
He ducked inside and came back out with this. Showed me the number,the apple logo, the inner sleeve colour, the photos and the poster. Reminded me how that’s how you knew it was an original print. I was thinking “Crikey, I don’t have enough cash for this!!”
He then said “Everyone should have a copy of their favourite album, you can have this for $20”
It’s been ten years and I’m still gobsmacked by his generosity