BEE GEES Odessa SCARCE ORIG UK 1969 NR EX LPs, PLAYS V. WELL. LOVELY FELT COVER.

	£		76
	$		101

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World in Quality, Safe Packing.

Postage: UK £4.95. Europe (including Russia) £12.95 (£1 per extra record). Rest of World £19.95 (£2 per extra record). All my records are sent in boxes and the price of them has increased over time and these are my first price increases for nearly 10 years. Royal Mail prices have also gone up again. I will never compromise on quality, safe packaging – I NEVER use mailing envelopes that offer virtually no protection at all, and records WILL arrive damaged in them at some time as most record buyers will already know. Here, you get what you pay for – SAFE PACKING in BOXES using 7mm DOUBLE-WALL STIFFENERS including full side protection and bubble wrap, the records removed from the covers of course. All this very safe packing means I lose money on every box I post, but safe delivery is, and will always be paramount. You WILL see the difference when my packet arrives. Also, I will pay for insurance on any record that sells for over £100 at NO extra cost – that is UK and abroad. Also I aim to post the very same day after payment is received if possible. PLEASE NOTE: I will NOT send any item, no matter what its value without a Royal Mail or courier tracking number. ALL my items must be signed and trackable to comply with Ebay delivery rules. Please do NOT ask me to make any exceptions to this rule as no country offers 100% reliable service without it.

Posting to Russia: Yes, I do post to Russia. But delivery can take longer from the UK. So please be patient. I will submit a tracking number to the winning bidder, and when the packet arrives there it can be followed online using the Russian post website.

ALSO: I now apply the Ebay ‘2-day’ rule for non-payment to keep things moving – cash-flow is important for any small business.

ANY ITEM or ITEMS TO BE PAID WITHIN A MAXIMUM OF 6 DAYS or they will be cancelled – NO EXCEPTIONS.

FINALLY: Late payers, non-payers and ‘0’ bidders will now be blocked or cancelled at my discretion, as will any bidder who cancels a bid. Please only bid on my items if you want them.

Artist or Band: BEE GEES

Album Title: Odessa

Producer(s): Robert Stigwood and The Bee Gees

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Odessa (City on the Black Sea); You’ll Never See My Face Again; Black Diamond.

Side 2: Marley Purt Drive; Edison; Melody Fair; Suddenly; Whisper Whisper.

Side 3: Lamplight; Sound of Love; Give Your Best; Seven Seas Symphony; With the Nations (International Anthem).

Side 4: I Laugh in Your Face; Never Say Never Again; First of May; The British Opera.

Label/Format: Polydor with matt, lightly textured surfaces. Sides two and four have factory sample stickers.

Label Conditions: All four very clean, fresh and attractive with intense red colour. Any spindle marks few, light and faint. The stickers still clean and neat as-seen. There is a faint ‘C’ stamp of pen mark to the left of each sticker. I do not know the history of this album, it was purchased from a dealer. What is for sure, both records play very well and the ultra fragile cover way above average.

Catalogue Number: 583049/583050

Mode / Speed: Stereo / 33.3 rpm.

Warps: Assume all records I offer have no warping of any significance and all tracking is easy and effortless and should play on all turntables and even ‘budget’ decks.

Weight of Records: 145 / 143 grams. Very good solid weights.

Full Matrix Nos: 583049 A//1 420 1 1 7 & 583049 B//1 420 1 2 1 & 583050 A//1 420 1 1 6 & 583050 B//2 420 1 1 2

Country of Manufacture: England

Rarity: This is a relatively scarce album, it never sold in the numbers the brilliance of the music justified. Not only that, this is a very difficult title to find in anything like decent condition. The ultra fragile and delicate felt cover rarely is seen anything like attractive and that’s no understatement. Most seen look shabby, grubby and aged, often with severe, deep penetrating ring wear and huge bald areas worn down to the card. Large chips, splits, tearing with dull darkened felt that looks ‘tired’ and covered with inground debris. Often with dust and foreign matter pressed into its delicate surface. Pale and faded, even washed out examples with large white areas are more the norm. Spines devoid of any felt at all and even split. Most collectors will have seen such examples – few will appear attractive and fresh these days. The card is thin and the surfaces amongst the most uncompromising ever made. This one on offer is very impressive indeed with amongst the least wear I have seen for a considerable time. Look at my pictures, they do not lie – no enhancements, no repairs, and importantly no damage. Even the edges retain close to full felt coverage with minimal friction rubs or grubbiness, that is just so hard to find and even achieve after around 51 years. Both records appear little used and sound remains impressive. One of my all-time favourite popular music albums from any decade, I truly consider this double set a masterpiece.

Original Year of Release: 1969

Brief Info: I always find offering this immense release a delight and a privilege, this album did not sell well and is such a hard one to find in either mode with lightly played records and a cover worthy of a second look. For the relative few who bought it, most played it heavily. An album of immense beauty that for me anyway, is the Bee Gees best ever album and a true late 1960s classic that was sadly overlooked and underrated by most at the time. The brothers Gibb wrote some incredible music and songs within the 1960s which was probably not as appreciated or recognised as it should have been at the time – with The Beatles and Rolling Stones around, many other popular music groups were often overshadowed or ignored. Time now seems to have put this right. With it’s famous felt cover that ages very badly if not stored with due care, this a still fresh and attractive example with way less wear and issues than most seen now. An album of stunning harmonies and beautiful music, the title song is sublime – and the quality simply never lets up, not a single filler is on show. Forget the ‘disco’ 1970s phase – 1960s Bee Gees were simply marvellous and very different – quite why this album failed to sell well is a complete mystery to me. That said, hands up – I confess – I only discovered the early Bee Gees later in life, but it really was worth the wait – their early records are very special indeed and all up to this album are essential. If your collection does not include any of their titles, this one will thrill and these two records do it strong justice. Any blemishes are few and light, this is beautifully recorded with intense sound and detail. Many can be degraded badly by worn stylus or heavy tracking record players (or both), groove wear and loss of clarity is rife on such records with complex vocals which this has avoided. This title was issued in both mono and stereo in the UK, both are magnificent and both are truly essential for collectors with very different sound presentation. So-much-so, the CD reissue deemed it important enough to include both modes for the discerning listener. There is no distortion or inherent pressing noises, the odd sporadic click is so hard to avoid totally, this has some quiet passages. Arguably, the most critical is the title song that opens the album, the vocals are truly immense. With few blemishes to either cover, records, sound and even the matching pair inner sleeves, this is a very fine example as I hope my pictures show.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT: and probably worthy of a plus as this is so hard to find without often heavy and damaging wear. A cover like this is difficult and subjective to grade, but compared to most I have seen, I consider this way above average. A gatefold format with all outer surfaces covered in a red felt affect. The inside is matt and smooth, this a dedicated stereo cover, it has a different catalogue number to the mono version. The front text and logo are emboseed with gold blocking. Printed and manufactured in England by Ernest J. Day. Includes the matching pair of polylined inner sleeves as seen.

Cover Front: A lavish and unique cover that would have been expensive and specialised to manufacture. Only the most carefully handled and protected examples survive in better conditions. This front has little to fault, all the text and gold is near immaculate and hardly worn as seen in close-up. A few light surface blemishes and minor surface marks detract little from the intense red surface that have no thinning or bald areas. The odd small tip rub possibly improved by the one owner The lack of ring wear, creasing, splits and inground debris are all major pluses.

Cover Back: Very similar and this side even more fragile being a full area of red felt. The odd tiny edge chip and a light pressure mark from the two thick records near the top and bottom. Then generally as per the front with no enhancement on view. Any marks of blemishes few and faint.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Nothing of note to fault inside, this is superb.

Top Edges: Both straight, flat and flush with just the odd tiny surface chip towards the right. No splits (to any edge on this cover) or weakening, edges to this cover are seldom seen much better. Usually thinned with the felt eroded or blackened with grime. Absolutely not the case on this one.

Bottom Edges: As above, and being the usual storage edges, these are near remarkable. Just a couple of tiny surface chips near the right corner tip.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Two perilous entrance areas, the card is very thin, avoiding a little burring and thickening is near impossible to avoid. These are still quite sharp with just the odd tiny surface chip on the factory cuts, and any thickening or burring very patchy and light. The previous owner told me it had been largely cover-protected which I have few doubts about.

Spine: A superb spine and rarely have I seen a better one on this cover. The felt surface still intact with no thinning or scuffing. Solid. straight with minimal hint of compression. No text was printed on this spine and it remains generally cleana and devoid of chipping.

Corners: Likely small enhancements on the front tips, with a little light rubbing. The spine pair show little at all. Very fine to excellent shape retained with no major knocks.

Cover Summary: Given the sheer age, fragility and uncompromising nature of this beautiful cover design, this has fared very well indeed. Yes, a few mild marks, blemishes and tiny tip enhancement, but this will never prove easy to find much better. The surface like baize on a snooker table, it will mark and attractive dust and debris freely, so protection is the only way this can still look anything like attractive, clean and nice. With most of the red felt surface intact and still visually pleasing, this should please many collectors.

The Inner Sleeves: EXCELLENT(+): a matching pair and both largely the same for condition. Clean with only light ageing and paper discolouration. Four crisp and undamaged window circles, the polylinings clear and still fresh. Any paper creasing or crinkle light, all edges naturally intact. .

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: NEAR EXCELLENT / EXCELLENT(–): and arguably this grading does this fine pair scant justice. Fine visually and quite heavily pressed. Surface marks are mostly fine and light, even wispy as seen under bright light. Fine ‘brush’ marks, often the result of using those vintage cleaning cloths recommended back in the day. No penetrating stylus scratches, both records play very well and the play-grade prove enjoyable. A set to please many collectors, but not for visual perfectionists.

Album Played For Grading: Yes. [I play ALL records I offer before submitting to Ebay, also the record is played in its entirety unless clearly stated otherwise. I do NOT play snippets or joining grooves to check for sound quality and quietness – I play from the beginning to end via clinically revealing B&W speakers that include the legendary tweeter from their awesome Nautilus range that reveals every blemish or miniscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This magnificent late 1960s album plays above thier fine visual gradings with little to fault. Offering strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear – sound quality is very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Intense and complex vocals, all sharp and unclipped with no degrading. Any surface sounds are minimal indeed and generally clean pressings with no tracking issues* or inherent pressing noises. With some quiet passages, the odd sporadic click or contact sound here-and-there will always prove very difficult to avoid totally over four sides. Few available copies will outperform this early stereo pressing significantly I feel sure. Little at all spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this classic double set, but not entirely blemish-free, will any one ever truly be? It could prove difficult to find significantly better all-round and can be highly recommended.

* As played-graded on a high-end Linn LP12 Sondek turntable with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Quintet Black moving coil cartridge tracking at 2 grams. Records are a ‘contact’ format, and few will avoid the odd minor sound blemish.

I am one of the most established sellers on Ebay, trading since 2001 and offering the finest records I can find. I pride myself on offering a variety of genres to keep my site as interesting as possible. I will rarely offer any record that falls below a true Excellent grading, unless its of a certain rarity which will justify offering a lesser grade. I try, to the best of my ability to describe as accurately and as honesty all elements of the items I offer for sale. You may notice I only submit records quite sparingly on Ebay as I Play-Grade every record I offer in their entirety – also on higher-end equipment – not just bits to guess a grade – visuals alone do not always tell a true story. I will try to mention any defects or flaws no matter how small that I notice to be fair as possible to any interested collector – I am very fussy and my buyers have the right to be too. Every record I offer, whether it be a common or rare item deserves the same respect as far as I am concerned and will be treated the same – just because an item is rare does not always mean it’s good. I get just as much pleasure offering a relatively common record in near mint condition as the real rare items. All the pictures I use for your guidance are the item being offered with no digital enhancements. Room light factors can make things vary sometimes, that is hard to control, especially in winter. I hope the item below is to your liking – any questions can be emailed and I will do my best to answer you. I am enthusiastic, and have a fair degree of knowledge about many genres and I promise quality items. Please assume all records I offer have NO jumps, sticks, major warps or writing on covers or labels unless clearly stated to the contrary. Thanks for your interest and Good luck – MIKE.

Deck: Linn LP12/Hercules/Cirkus with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Quintet Black moving coil cartridge (tracks at 2 grams). Amps: Naim Supernait 2 with Project USB phono stage and Tellerium Black interconnects. Speakers: B&W 805 Nautilus (bi-wired with Tellurium Black terminated cable) with REL subwoofer. All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional Nessie vacuum machine before play-grading for the cleanest and best possible sound and will include a brand new lined inner and protective cover too. Pictures taken with a Nikon D7500 DSLR Camera.

PACKING – THIS IS WHAT YOU GET.

What You Get: To confirm to the strict Ebay rules on shipping, I must now send ALL my packets ‘Signed-For’ with NO exceptions. Both buyers and sellers want their packets to have a safer journey and this is not a bad thing.

PLEASE NOTE: I now exercise my right to open a dispute after the Ebay rule of TWO days if no payment is received. I will then cancel the dispute to end the bid, again after the mandatory FOUR days and then offer the item to the runner-up or relist. The non-payer will also be blocked from my Ebay site as will any suspicious bids or bid bid retractions. Small businesses need prompt payment to trade and these strict rules WILL be applied.

Payment Conditions:

I prefer PayPal from­ winning bidders. I only accept PayPal from overseas bidders or direct payment into my bank account.

Potential Bidders: I will cancel any bids I feel are time-wasters. A maximum 2 days for communication and 7 days for payment to arrive – if not I will relist the item or offer to the runner-up.

My Guarantee: If any winning bidder is not satisfied with their purchase I will offer a complete refund if the item is returned in the same condition is was sent e.g. as per the listing pictures.

SOME GENERAL GUIDES TO WEAR AND CONDITIONS TO HELP YOU DECIDE

My Use of Description Terminology: Surface Marks = Superficial, usually light marks, hairlines or light scuffs that rarely sound. Scratch = a needle mark that goes below the record’s surface, some will sound, some will not, my play-grade will inform. Original = a record that has been pressed with the first label design which does NOT necessarily mean a very first pressed record. First Pressing = A record that I believe or know to be a genuine very first pressed record. I do not claim to always know for sure, and that’s why I state the stamper and matrix numbers if at all possible, for those who claim to know what they all mean, the information is there for the collector to decide. I prefer to use terms like ‘Early Copy’ rather than ‘First Pressing’ if I am not totally sure. Surface Sound = Mild, light sound, usually light crackle or similar. Distortion = Break up of the actual sound caused by groove wear or damage from a chipped stylus – the most undesirable form of unwanted sound, vintage mono records were the most prone to this happening but not exclusively so. The symptoms of distortion are high frequency clipping, moderate constant crackle or an echo type sound quality. Violin, piano and vocals are most prone to groove-wear distortion. Feathering = Fraying or softening of the entry edge of a cover. Covers with feathered entrance edges are more likely to have had the actual record inserted and removed more than a non-feathered, sharp-edged cover which are always far more attractive. Set Off, a printer’s term for dark ink leaving mild residue on pale or white ink when rested upon. e.g. when a gatefold cover has black ink closed against white, this can leave some black residue on the pale area – this is mostly unavoidable or course.