Thank you for buying this record. What follows is its documentation: the pressing identified, the matrix / runout transcribed by hand from the dead wax, and the condition as assessed before it was listed. It is yours to keep with the record.

— Paul, Vinyl Curator

Bob Dylan

The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan

2012 · Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (licensed from Columbia/Sony Music) MFSL 2-378 · Stereo · US · 2xLP, 45 RPM, gatefold · 45 RPM

Pressing details

Label	Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (licensed from Columbia/Sony Music)
Catalogue number	MFSL 2-378
Year	2012
Mono / Stereo	Stereo
Country	US
Format	2xLP, 45 RPM, gatefold
Speed	45 RPM
Genre	Folk
Producer	John Hammond
Musicians	Bob Dylan (vocals, acoustic guitar, harmonica); on "Corrina, Corrina" and "Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance": Bruce Langhorne (guitar), George Barnes (guitar), Dick Wellstood (piano), Gene Ramey (bass), Herb Lovelle (drums)

Matrix / Runout

Side A:  MFSL2-378A1 KW@MOFI 20327.1 (3)
Side B:  MFSL2-378B2 KW@MOFI 20359.2 (3)
Side C:  MFSL2-378C1 KW@MOFI 20327.3(3)
Side D:  MFSL2-378D1 KW@MOFI 20327.4(3)

Condition

Cover: NM
Vinyl: NM

Variant chronology

1963 - US Columbia CL 1986 mono / CS 8786 stereo six-eye first pressings
1963-64 - UK CBS BPG 62193 mono / SBPG 62193 stereo first pressings
2012 - Mobile Fidelity MFSL 2-459 mono 2x45RPM audiophile reissue
2012 - Mobile Fidelity MFSL 2-378 stereo 2x45RPM audiophile reissue, misprinted back-cover barcode  <- this copy
2012 - Mobile Fidelity MFSL 2-378 stereo 2x45RPM audiophile reissue, corrected back-cover barcode

This Pressing

2012 Mobile Fidelity MFSL 2-378 stereo 2x45RPM audiophile reissue - identified by its own catalogue number, barcode and 2012 copyright date, not an original Columbia or CBS pressing.

The Album

Recorded in New York between 1962 and 1963, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan transformed its 21-year-old maker from a Greenwich Village folk curiosity into the voice of a generation, moving him almost entirely away from his debut's traditional material and into original songwriting steeped in topical protest and personal romance. "Blowin' in the Wind" and "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" became anthems of the civil-rights and anti-nuclear movements, while songs like "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" and "Girl From the North Country" showed a gift for plainspoken heartbreak that would shape folk and rock songwriting for decades. The album also captured Dylan's wit and political nerve on tracks such as "Talkin' World War III Blues" and "Masters of War," the latter a searing indictment of the military-industrial complex. Its iconic cover photograph of Dylan walking a snowy Greenwich Village street with Suze Rotolo became one of the most recognizable images in popular music. Critically, the record is regarded as the first fully realized statement of Dylan's genius and remains a cornerstone of the American folk revival, cited by generations of songwriters as a foundational influence.

Tracklist

Side 1

1. Blowin' in the Wind
2. Girl From the North Country
3. Masters of War
4. Down the Highway

Side 2

1. Bob Dylan's Blues
2. A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall
3. Don't Think Twice, It's All Right

Side 3

1. Bob Dylan's Dream
2. Oxford Town
3. Talkin' World War III Blues

Side 4

1. Corrina, Corrina
2. Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance
3. I Shall Be Free

The Label

This is the Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab MFSL 2-378 stereo 45RPM edition, catalogue number 88697926371, barcode 821797236515, with a 2012 Sony Music Entertainment copyright line on all four labels crediting manufacture at 550 Madison Avenue, New York - a date that places the pressing in 2012 or later. The labels reproduce a deep-groove ring as part of the Original Master Recording design's fidelity to the period Columbia look, a stylistic echo rather than a mark of an early pressing. Within Mobile Fidelity's own catalog this stereo 2-378 edition is distinct from the separately numbered MFSL 2-459 mono 45RPM reissue of the same title, and from the later Columbia era pressings the series pays tribute to.

Fidelity

This pressing was cut from the original Columbia master tapes by Mobile Fidelity's mastering engineers and plated and pressed by Record Technology Incorporated at 180 grams, running at 45RPM across four sides for lower surface noise and greater resolution than a standard-speed LP. Collectors and audiophile reviewers generally rate the Mobile Fidelity GAIN 2 Ultra Analog cut favorably for clarity and warmth on Dylan's early acoustic recordings, placing it above standard Columbia reissues though opinion is divided on how it compares with the original 1963 six-eye pressings for tonal character. Within Mobile Fidelity's own catalog, this stereo 45RPM edition sits alongside the separately issued mono 45RPM edition, with mono widely favored by collectors as closer to the original mix intent.

Notes

This is the Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab MFSL 2-378 stereo 2x45RPM gatefold reissue, mastered from the original tapes and pressed on 180-gram vinyl. The 2012 copyright line on all four labels dates manufacture to 2012 or later, ruling out any original-era Columbia or CBS first pressing despite the deep-groove ring on the labels. The back-cover barcode on this edition is a documented misprint belonging to another release; a later printing of the same MFSL 2-378 edition corrected it, with some copies receiving a corrected-barcode sticker on the outer sleeve.

Documenting collections

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