CARAVAN 1st Pillar Sleeve ORIG UK Verve MONO '69 RARE

	£		73
	$		97

CARAVAN – Same (Pillar Sleeve) ORIG Verve LP / VLP 6011 (UK, Mono, 1969)

Here’s Caravan’s very first LP in its original UK Mono format but in a Stereo ‘pillar’ sleeve.  PLEASE NOTE:  Although this record plays all the way through, there is a warp which crosses the first tracks on either side.  It looks like the edge of the record (around an inch in width) has been exposed to a heat source at some stage.  That said, apart from a noticeable ‘whoosh’ each time the stylus passes the warp, there were no jumps or sticks on my system with a tracking weight of around 1.8g on the tone arm.  This only really affects the first tracks on each side (‘Place Of My Own’ on Side 1 and ‘Magic Man’ on Side 2), it’s not a drastic hiss and is generally lost under the music.  The rest of the LP plays fine and of course is VERY HARD TO FIND IN ANY CONDITION.

The front-laminated, tri-flipback sleeve was made in the UK by Garrod & Lofthouse Ltd.  It’s an OK example but has some issues and is generally showing signs of tiredness/age.  There’s quite a bit of established creasing to the front, mainly to the right opening edge side, which also shows some established feathering.  The corners show considerable blunting and some wear.  The rear isn’t too bad, all flipbacks in place but there’s grubbiness to the handling side and a couple of tiny tears (not big, not compromising stability) to the opening edge here.  There is moderate ring wear noticeable on the rear and there is a scrape/tear which has been touched in on the front.  All this considered (I’m outlining all defects away from mint), it’s still got life left; the spine is still fine with no splits, the edges have no damage and there is no writing.  Grades G+ (Good Plus).

The original Verve Forecast brown and white labels are fine, some slight rubbing and moderate spindle evidence but no writing, stickers or residue.

The medium weight Mono vinyl has the following matrices:

VLP 6011 A-1 (Side 1)   / VLP 6011 B-1 (Side 2)

The Mothers/Stampers are   1   G  (Side 1) and 1   R  (Side 2)

Like I said, this disc has a warp which affects the 1st tracks on each side.  That apart, there is quite a bit of light scuffing to Side 1 and several light hairlines.  Side 2 looks better with less scuffing, still some hairlines and a smaller, more prominent scuff to track 3.  There aren’t any heavy scratches and none of the marks are ‘feelable’.  IT HAS BEEN CAREFULLY LISTENED TO and apart from the whooshing sound as the needle passes over the warp, there’s not much to fault in the audio.  Several light ticks to ‘Where but for Caravan…’ were picked up but nothing else.  SO IT’S ACTUALLY A PRETTY DECENT PLAYBACK ON THIS RARE MONO.  The disc looks around a VG (Very Good).  Be aware and understand that the warp may need you to adjust your tracking weight.

Life left in this copy, though obviously not for top-grade collections.  In Mint you’d be paying over £500 so here’s a chance to bag it much cheaper.

No reserve.

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