SLAB of The Month:
VELVET UNDERGROUND & NICO
“Sunday Morning”
The original pressing of “The Velvet Underground & Nico” is exceptionally rare due to its unpeeled Andy Warhol-designed banana cover and unaltered back cover image, preserving the album’s raw, avant-garde essence. It stands as a coveted treasure for collectors and music enthusiasts, offering an authentic glimpse into the band’s groundbreaking debut.
Discover the Ultimate Destination for Vinyl Record Grading, Authentication, and Protection at Vintage Media Grading (VMG).
With VMG, each album is ultrasonically sealed in our patented cases. Protect and preserve your vinyl while maximizing the value of your collection today!
This popular album has been released with many signed variants. VMG does not authenticate aftermarket autographs that we did not personally witness. However, we will grade and authenticate sealed albums that were sold from the factory and include autographs. Once the album is opened, we cannot authenticate the autograph itself, and will only be able to authenticate that the signed item was included with the original factory produced album if there is a unique identifier provided that determines its origins. In cases where autographed inserts, labels or sleeves cannot be proven to have pre-market origins, we will grade and authenticate the vinyl and the sleeve as we would any other album.
Sealed albums present all sorts of investment and collecting opportunities, but also can present all sorts of authentication and identification problems. Sometimes, the exact pressing or year of the album is impossible to determine from just its sleeve. In the case of Rubber Soul, unique identifiers on the album sleeve DO help to identify some of the characteristics that make this pressing different form dozens of other versions of Rubber Soul produced. They include:
- A line on the bottom of the paragraph on the back stating “this stereo record should be played with a stereo cartridge and avoid needle damage”
- “New Improved” in brown letters inside the front photo
- Jacket code of “9” on the back bottom right
- No “File under” inside the top front border
All of these findings help to narrow down exactly which sealed variant you have, and VMG’s research staff is able, in this case, to identify this year as a 1966 pressing. VMG’s label is the most information intensive label available, providing these crucial identifiers to make it easier to collect, buy and sell some of these tricky items.
VMG
Discover the Ultimate Destination for Vinyl Record Grading, Authentication, and Protection at Vintage Media Grading (VMG).
With VMG, each album is ultrasonically sealed in our patented cases. Protect and preserve your vinyl while maximizing the value of your collection today!
Why Use VMG?
Vinyl records are works of art designed perfectly for collectors.
The sound, the vinyl record itself, the cover art, the sleeve design – these, like any work of art, are beautiful, unique, and, just like a prized painting, deserve to be preserved, shared and displayed.
Submit to VMG
Our process starts with you!
At VMGvinyl.com, you can enter your record information under our submission tab. We have some simple questions for you regarding the album you are sending. The more you know, the more efficient the process can be.
Join the VMG Club
Join Us At Your Level
The first step to getting your albums graded is joining the VMG community.
We offer a service level to support any price point. The higher the service level the more you save.
VMG Services
VMG’s Products and Services
VMG uses a highly accurate, industry standard 10-point grading scale to evaluate collectibles.
Learn more to see the Standard Grading Scale for Open Albums, and Sealed Albums
VMG Resources
Resources
New to collecting? No problem. Utilize our resources to learn the lingo, validate VMG certification numbers and join the collector community.
VMG was founded by hobbyists with a passion for music, collectibles, and most importantly, the integrity of collecting.
– VMG
