I don't know what the gray stuff is but here's a reference data point: I have bought a couple Emarcy 
records on eBay that seem to have been stored in somewhat damp but not wet conditions (based on 
somewhat musty smell of sleeves). They all have some or a lot of that gray stuf (luckily I bought 
them for the otherwise very good condition cover fronts). Meanwhile, no gray stuff on the many 
Emarcy albums from the family collection, stored for decades in a non-airconditioned, shaded 
second-floor room in NYC suburbs. So my theory is that moisture has something to do with the gray 
stuff but I don't think it's mold. I've never seen it on any other type of vinyl records, but that 
doesn't mean it's not present on other labels' wares.

-- Tom Fine


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Aaron Levinson" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, November 30, 2009 3:31 PM
Subject: [ARSCLIST] Pressing Haze: Help Needed


>I own an otherwise flawless copy of the following LP:
>
> Clifford Brown and Max Roach at Basin Street
> Mercury MG-36070 (Black and Silver "Drummer" Label)
>
> While the overall condition is quite nice the A side of the record has what appears to be a grey 
> haze (when viewed from an angle) that covers all of the first track and two thirds of the second 
> track, the rest has a typical bright gloss. The hazed portion plays terribly with a lot of 
> background noise, when the haze ends the record instantly sounds beautiful. What is this, what 
> caused this and can it be cured? My guess is that It cannot which is a shame. Luckily, I have 
> another very clean Japanese pressing to listen to. Has anyone else encountered this before and if 
> so what were your conclusions?
>
> Thanks in advance and I hope everyone in the US had a restful holiday weekend,
>
> AA
>