The Beatles Yesterday and Today "Butcher Cover" Stereo First State Album Cover Prototype With Queens Litho Envelop... (Total: 2 Items)

Description

The Beatles Yesterday and Today "Butcher Cover" Stereo First State Album Cover Prototype With Queens Litho Envelope and Delivery Receipt (1966). There is rare, and then there is rarer than rare! Known to be only two in existence, we are proud to present a prototype for the Beatles' Yesterday and Today first state "Butcher Cover" in stereo! Finding one is 10 times harder than finding a mono first state "Butcher Cover," never mind locating a stereo prototype! John Lennon himself was the only other person confirmed to have owned a blank-back stereo "Butcher Cover" prototype. In May of this year, that other Prototype "First State" Stereo Butcher Cover sold for $234,000.

The Beatles Yesterday and Today release was first prepared for release in the United States on June 15, 1966 on Capitol Records in both mono (90 percent) and stereo (10 percent). The initial front cover artwork featured a photo of the Beatles wearing butcher smocks with decapitated baby dolls and raw pieces of meat draped around them. Capitol Records prepared 750,000 covers for the album's release featuring this cover artwork before testing consumer reaction. This fateful mistake resulted in the destruction of nearly all manufactured covers and posters for this album until a new design could be substituted on June 20, 1966 at a cost of $250,000. The new album cover design featured the Beatles sitting around a steamer trunk, thus giving it the "Trunk Cover" nickname.

During the design cycle for the Yesterday and Today album, prototype mock-up images and (only two confirmed) fully constructed covers were manufactured for internal review as well as review by the artists themselves. This particular first state stereo "Butcher Cover" prototype was manufactured at the Capitol Records subcontractor's pressing plant, Queens Lithography Corp. in Long Island City, New York. Established in 1950, Queens Litho printed all early US Beatles and Rolling Stones LP covers distributed along the East Coast and Midwest of the USA during the 1960s.

This fully constructed cover features the stereo "Butcher Cover" image on the front with a solid blank back cover, as the back cover artwork was not yet fully prepared or approved. The additional text of "File Under: The Beatles ST 2553" normally found on the cover's front top-right corner area had yet to be added. Being a prototype cover, there is no vinyl album included, as prototype covers were never issued with discs.

Artwork measures 12.2" x 12.2". In Near Mint Minus condition, save for some light storage creasing along the bottom left edge. Included is the original pink Queens Lithographing Corporation receipt taped to the delivery envelope used to ship this prototype stereo "Butcher Cover." Barely legible on the Queens Litho receipt is the handwritten "Cover - The Beatles Yesterday and Today." This World-Class One-of-a-Kind Beatles Album comes with a two-page LOA from Beatles Expert and Author Perry Cox. COA from Heritage Auctions.

Heritage Auctions provides as much information as possible but strongly encourages in-person inspection. Condition statements are offered as general guidance only, not as complete representations of fact, and do not constitute a warranty or assumption of liability by Heritage. Some condition issues may not be noted but may be visible in the photos, which are considered part of the condition report. Lots estimated at $1,000 or less are not de-framed for inspection, and we may be unable to provide additional details for lots valued under $500. Heritage does not guarantee the condition of frames and is not liable for damage to frames, glass/acrylic coverings, original boxes, display accessories, or artwork that has shifted in the frame. All lots are sold "AS IS" under our Terms & Conditions of Auction.