CAPTAIN BEEFHEART The Spotlight Kid Orig UK 72 N/M Copy

	£		21
	$		27

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Artist or Band: CAPTAIN BEEFHEART AND THE MAGIC BAND

Album Title:   The Spotlight Kid.

Producer(s):   Don van Vliet.

TRACK LIST:  

Side 1: I’m Gonna Booglarize You Baby; White Jam; Blabber ‘n Smoke; When It Blows It Stacks; Alice in Blunderland.

Side 2: The Spotlight Kid; Click Clack; Grow Fins; There Ain’t No Santa Claus on the Evenin’ Stage; Glider.

Label/Format:    Reprise – original dark tan format with no Warner logo.

Label Conditions:  Both immaculate: very clean, attractive with just a single spindle trace on side two. Try finding this legendary album better.

Cat Number:    K 44162.

Mode / Speed:    Stereo / 33.3 rpm.

Weight of this Record:  111 grams

Country of Manufacture:  England.

Rarity:  Scarce, hardly a big seller and this vintage early copy includes the original, scarce lyric sheet insert. Never an easy one to find this clean with record, cover and insert exceptional.

Original Year of Release:  1972

Matrix Nos:  K 44162 A1 / K44162 B1

Musicians:      Don van Vliet (Captain Beefheart) - vocals, harmonica; Zoot Horn Rollo (Bill Harkleroad) - guitar, slide guitar; Rockette Morton (Mark Boston) - bass guitar; Drumbo (John French) - drums, percussion; Ed Marimba (Art Tripp) - drums, percussion, marimba.

Brief Artist & Album Info:  This famous cover sees the Captain attired in a western styled Nudie suit and looking real dapper. This all looks very ‘normal’ for a Captain Beefheart album until you notice the strange eerie yellow glow that surrounds him. This I feel is the most underrated album in the Beefheart catalogue, yes it is more subdued than previous, even dark, but a brilliant real blues work out. Musically more conventional than the free-form avant garde mayhem that dominated on the Trout Mask Replica and Lick My Decals Off, Baby albums, this is a little less challenging to listen too than the aforementioned pair that were far too ‘out there’ for many (if not most). An eagerly awaited album, but it surprised many as it was deemed by some as a step backwards to the earlier blues-based sound of the pre-Trout Mask Replica period. Was this an early stage to commercialism? This is far from the truth, here was a blend of steamy swamp-blues that still defied the ‘conventional’. The record has a very warm sound with an emphasis on bass, it can even sound muddy on some systems that can’t handle it. It includes more amazing work from this great Magic Band line-up with some catchy hooks and complex arrangements that only this band could ever play. Van Vliet still sounds like Howlin’ Wolf and rarely has his voice been better than on this fine recording. The heavy, deep blues of ‘Blabber ‘n Smoke and the sublime ‘When it Blows it Stacks’ are truly memorable. But many of the songs are noticeably downbeat with lyrics to match especially the demanding ‘There Ain’t No Santa Claus on the Evening Stage’ where even the jingle bells have a funeral deathly sound. One of the real highlights is the classic ‘Click Clack’ which is one of Beefheart’s greatest ever songs. The Magic Band take a train ride in song with lovely rhythm and sound and great use of the harmonica, you could even be there for the ride. Even better for me is the surrealistic ‘Grow Fins’ which delivers the lines ’I’m gonna grow fins and go back in the water again; I’m gonna take up with a mermaid and leave you landlubbin’ women alone’ – bizarre stuff from the King-of-Weird. Just the one instrumental on this set, ‘Alice in Blunderland’ and that cloth ripping soprano saxophone has gone leaving more time to hear this man’s amazing voice on the other songs. The Spotlight Kid is an important album, it was the stepping stone between the free-form experimental ‘fun’ albums and the path to the more conventional without selling out. The following album Clear Spot has much to do with rock as the more blues-based sounds here and is a ‘happier’ record in many respects, but never under-estimate this fine record, blues music was never supposed to be ‘happy’. This album demands to be heard again and full recognition of its brilliance is long overdue. This is a great UK copy that includes the elusive insert, the record is superb and looks almost like new. The cover  has to be the best I have seen since the 1970s, it rarely wears well and this almost as good as the record. Most collectors and fans of this unique talent should enjoy this outstanding copy.

Cover’s Potential for Wear:   High, all the ingredients for rubbing and ringwear.

Cover Grade and Format:   Mint(-). This is a single format, unlaminated and includes the lyric insert. Printed and made in England by Shorewood Packaging Co Ltd.

Cover Front:    What a superb picture of the Captain, shame is was not laminated and most found have rubbed and show ringwear. This is THE definitive picture of van Vliet for me and this front still looks superb. This is supremely clean with no rubbing and has deep, vibrant and rich colour. That yellow ‘halo’ around the man gives him an eerie appearance and that suit is something else. The odd tiny surface crease or faint, small mark with close viewing but this has to be the least-worn ‘Spotlight’ fronts I have yet seen.

Cover Back:    With four surreal pictures by The Captain himself of four of the Magic Band members: Rockette Morton; Winged Eel Fingerling; Ed Marimba and Zoot Horn Rollo (missing is Drumbo, the great John French).  Again very clean and attractive with any blemishes tiny and faint. The lack of creasing, grubbiness and ringwear makes for a refreshing and unusual sight.

Top Edge: The odd ultra faint rub trace only and very straight too.

Bottom Edge:    Look barely worn, odd tiny tip-in on the black possible.

Right Edge(s), and Type:    Clean, sharp, no wear and no feathering, no trimming either. Record entered on right  edge.

Spine and Text:  A superb spine that retains its solid boxy shape. Solid, straight with any compression tiny and very minor.All text is fully present, bold and strong with no wear, minor set-off traces being critical.

Corners:    Odd tiny tip rubs and all retain superb shape and neat definition.

Cover Summary:  Great picture, classic cover and looking superb. I feel the majority of collectors will enjoy it. Never under-estimate how hard this classic sleeve is to find like this.

The Insert:  Practically Mint as made. This is an orignal, printed on one side only on thick card with all lyrics. Clean, uncreased with sharp edges. Elusive and difficult to locate, this is an essential part of this album and finding it better will prove near impossible.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading:  Mint(-), and looking at this, I am asking myself ‘where is the minus?’. A fantastic visual copy that’s super clean with great shine and intense black. Barely a mark or blemish to be seen and this is truly exceptional for any Beefheart record. This copy clearly has hardly been played and could easily pass for new. A full Mint grading for this record would not have been unreasonable as it looks played just the once.

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 snippetts 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 amazing record plays beautifully with strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear. The production puts plenty of emphasis on bass, which gives a rich, solid, slightly murky sound – the whole album has a very downbeat tone which I guess was fully intentional. As the good Captain produced it, I guess this was the effect he desired. Lesser systems may struggle to cope with the lower frequency emphasis but on capable equipment, this does sound impressive. Free of surface sounds and no pops or clicks were noted. This one has clearly been lightly played and carefully handled.  This copy will prove near impossible to find better.

End Piece:  Hearing this again via vinyl was again a joy, I forgot just how deep sounding this album is. This recording really hits the depths and van Vliet’s growling blues tones are captured to perfection on this record. A slightly murky production as stated already, probably all deliberate to bring over the subdued feel this record has, but its not all gloomy, this remains a highly enjoyable album, blues albums are not supposed to be joyous – are they? Lyrically Beefheart again triumphs, obscure but compelling, this man’s genius cannot be over-emphasised. Mass appeal and commercialism was never ever going to happen and thank goodness for that. His premature retirement to concentrate on painting was a sad loss for his fans, he was a true original and this album again proves this. I hope the winning bidder enjoys this as much as I did – the word ‘genius’ of far too small for this mighty original.

Now one of the most established sellers on Ebay and still offering the finest and most accurately described and graded 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 as I can all items I offer for sale with all the relevant information I can think of to help any potential bidder and collector. You may notice I only submit records sparingly on Ebay - on average ONEADAY, a couple more at weekends if time permits, hence the name - time rarely allows for more as I Play-Grade virtually every record I offer in their entirety, not just bits to guess a grade - visuals alone do not always tell a true or full story. I will 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 its good. I get just as much pleasure offering a relatively common record in stunning near mint condition as the real rare items. All the pictures I use for your guidance are taken with a digital camera or scanned - they are NOT improved, cleaned-up or made better looking than they are with camera trickery or enhancing with digital programmes. What you see is what you get and scanned labels will give a more accurate representation of the genuine colour than flash photography where light is variable. I cannot guarantee total accuracy for colours however but most will be very close. If any picture I take looks more flattering than the actual item for any reason, I will clearly state the fact in the advert and vice-versa. I hope the item below is to your liking - any questions can be emailed and I will do my very best to answer you. I am enthusiastic, and have a fair degree of knowledge about many genres and I promise quality items - bid with confidence - excellence comes as standard and so does Near Mint regularly. Please assume all records I offer have NO jumps, sticks, warps or writing on covers or labels unless clearly stated to the contrary. Thanks for your interest and Good luck – MIKE.

Deck: Linn LP12 with Ittok Mk IV arm and Ortofon Samba Moving Coil cartridge (tracks at 1.8 grams). Amps: Naim Nait 5i with Project USB phono stage and Chord interconnects. Speakers: B&W 704 Floorstanding 3-way Monitors (bi-wired). All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional Moth vacuum machine before play-grading for the cleanest and best possible sound and will include a brand new lined inner and protective cover too.

First-time, zero-rated bidders, who do not ask permission to bid, will be cancelled immediately and blocked – NO exceptions. For winning bidders who I consider excessively slow to make contact or submit payment, I will use my right to block future bids. If any bidder who wins in the final seconds is present to do so, surely they can at least email me to inform of intention and payment method? If swift or promp payment is a problem, please do not bid.

PACKING - THIS IS WHAT YOU GET - PLEASE SEE MY TYPICAL PACKING BOX PICTURE.

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.

I now offer the fastest possible posting, often the very next day after payment is received or within two to three days maximum (unless on holiday). I only use FIRST-CLASS Mail. The record’s cover will be placed within a BRAND NEW heavy duty soft protective sleeve and the actual record will be professionally cleaned on my Moth Pro vacuum system to give ultimate clean grooves and playing surfaces and the best possible looks and ultimate sound quality. You will NOT get tired, dull looking, dust infested records inside worn and foggy covers with tatty inners from this seller and that’s a promise and guarantee. All records are posted in professional thick boxes (NOT Mailers or Cruciforms, these do not offer maximum protection). The record(s) REMOVED from their main cover to avoid edge splits and placed within a brand new polylined inner. The record’s original inner will be included if available. The boxes are then reinforced with THREE or EVEN FOUR ULTRA THICK stiffeners for maximum extra protection – these are FOUR TIMES thicker than commercial stiffeners and are custom-made for oneadayrecords. Really rare and expensive albums will even be Double Boxed if deemed necessary and possible. The thick record and stiffener ‘sandwich’ is then thickly embedded into bubble-wrap to bulk out the record inside the box to centre the item inside to reduce the risk of damage still further. Printed address labels are used for clarity as well as a sender label. Customers requests or special needs for P&P will be respected if at all possible but ‘Signed-For’ posting is NOT an option anymore. Please see my picture of a typical finished box packet that will now be used on ALL transactions as from now. I do not profit on posting and the cost of this lavish packing is NOT even charged for, I offer probably the best-value and safest shipping possible for ultimate confidence. These boxes and ultra thick double-wall stiffners and bubble wrap make a near impregnable fortress for safe shipping and this is used inland and overseas for ALL my records, not just the rare and expensive. I will invoice any winning bidder as soon as possible after the auction ends. My ‘loss’ or ‘damage rate’ is less than one in two thousand based on over 6,000+ items sold in over 8 years of Ebay trading and I consider that pretty exceptional. The only damage rate acceptable for this seller is ZERO and I think my packets will offer just that. It would take a vicious postman or postal service to damage these for sure. Even one of these stiffners cannot be bent  by hand, so what chance 3 or 4 inside a box? Oneadayrecords is a MAILER-FREE ZONE. I discount of course for multiple purchases with a maximum of FOUR records per box (one double can sometimes be included subject to total weight). I will not respond to questions on shipping costs as all the details are included here and on ALL of my adverts. Details below:

NOTE: First Time Bidders: I will cancel ALL first-time bidders with no feedbacks or excessive negatives who do not ask me if its OK to bid first – NO EXCEPTIONS.

Please Note: I will now offer any item to the runner-up after the mandatory Ebay 3 days if no contact is made by the winning bidder unless prior notice of any delay is given beforehand. The same applies if no payment is received within the mandatory 7 days so any bidder who has just lost out can still email me to reserve the item as priority second chance – it’s always worth asking.

SHIPPING COSTS & CONDITIONS – THESE comply with EBAY’S RULES - PLEASE READ CAREFULLY:

Posting & Packing: UK & CHANNEL ISLANDS all now sent via Recorded Delivery:

1 LP (FIRST-CLASS Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = £4.

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £7.50. (this includes insurance of £500). Add £2 per extra LP.

Posting & Packing: EUROPE & SCANDINAVIA. (Airmail Only):

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£39 maximum]) = £8. (insurance optional extra £3). Add £2 per extra LP.

Posting & Packing: ALL OVERSEAS (non-European) e.g. USA (ANY PART OF); Australia; Canada; Japan and other Far East; (Airmail Only: I NEVER use Surface Mail):

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£39 maximum]) = £12. Add £3 per extra LP. (insurance optional extra £3)

Payment Conditions:

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

Potential Bidders: Please do not bid if you have negative feedback unless checking first, I will cancel any bids I feel are timewasters. A maximum 3 days for communication and 7 days for payment to arrive - if not I will relist the item or offer to the runner-up. Fast deals get great feedback from me. Any questions - please ask and thanks for looking.

My Guarantee: If any winning bidder is not satisfied with their purchase I will offer a complete refund. I will not refund if any defect detail is clearly stated on the advert and missed by the buyer, so read the item description carefully. If any overseas collector does not understand anything in my listing, please email and ask me to help. Thank You.

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 neccessarily 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, actually 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.

The Argument for Vinyl Original sound and mix (mono mixes are rarely available on CD), high quality sound on clean copies (played on a hi-end dedicated analogue system – breathtaking sound!), beautiful, large format covers, artwork, inserts and even full size posters etc; huge investment potential, and the pleasure of owning ‘the real thing’.