CROSBY, STILLS & NASH Rarer Orig UK 69 'Plum' 1st Press

	£		92
	$		122

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Artist or Band: CROSBY, STILLS & NASH

Album Title: Crosby, Stills & Nash.

Producer(s): Crosby, Stills & Nash.

Label/Format and Conditions: Atlantic, original red and maroon (‘Plum’) format. Beautiful clean examples that show only very faint and few spindle traces under light. As fresh and intensely coloured as when first made over 40-years-ago, clearly these have hardly been handled or likely played. Indeed I doubt if this record or cover has seen light-of-day for decades and at last, a truly stunning all-round copy of this immensely fragile classic.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Suite: Judy Blue Eyes; Marakesh Express; Guinnevere; You Don't Have to Cry; Pre-Road Downs.

Side 2: Wooden Ships; Lady of the Island; Helplessly Hoping; Long Time Gone; 49 Bye-Byes.

Cat Number: 588189.

Mode / Speed: Stereo / 33.3 rpm.

Weight of this Record: 142 grams. An above average weight for this album.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: The album itself is not hard to find at all, but conditions are paramount to one of the most delicate and fragile packages of the late 60s. Firstly the cover, made with the softest of textured card imaginable. Impossibly intolerant of friction rubs and anything less than ultra careful handling and storage. Many are seen faded with woolly edges and the gorgeous artwork eroded. Many actually penetrate right through the soft card and few avoid, often severe ringwear. This cover has very little wear, any present on the edges but only mild. This very early original includes the wide spine, yes this was made with a wide and thinner format spine. The wide ones are rarer and far more elegant, but unfortunately, most are crushed and threadbare – not this one (please see my close-up of the fragile text and note the width). Also this includes the practically the ultimate in original inner sleeves actually date-coded almost on the day of issue. Just look at my close up of this inner sleeve, the text 1/069 (1st week of June, 1969), an ultimate first pressing of this record. Finding this classic within it’s original inner sleeve that has definitive proof of its issue date is immensely difficult and this record is a beauty and for once, plays to perfection, no easy task to say the very least. Lastly, this one includes the much rarer textured lyric insert, most seen are smooth and this one naturally folds with the text outside, again most are folded the other way. This is the earliest and rarest example of this gem you will see, the matrixes below are practically the lowest made, I dream of the day of finding an A1 / B1, but I will never believe they even exist until I actually see one – I am sure they don’t. Do not under-estimate just how this set is complete, so early and in such wonderful all-round condition.

Original Year of Release: May 29th, 1969.

Matrix Nos: 588189 A // 2 1 5 and 588189 B // 2 1 1 1

Musicians: David Crosby – rhythm guitar, vocals; Stephen Stills – lead guitar, bass, organ, vocals; Graham Nash – vocals, percussion, acoustic guitar; Dallas Taylor – drums, percussion.

Brief Artist & Album Info: A much loved work, often regarded in the past as inferior to the Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young classic Déjà vu simply because it’s less varied, and of course Young is not featured. But the quality of the harmonies is simply breathtaking. Three youthful men singing songs about their relationships and changing partners. All songs are magnificent – Graham Nash’s ‘Lady of the Island’ (about Joni Mitchell), Stills’ opus-like ‘Suite: Judy Blue Eyes’ (about Judy Collins) and a slim Crosby singing of his sadly deceased sweetheart Christine on ‘Guinevere’. But for me the finest track is the sublime ‘Wooden Ships’ yes the same song covered by Jefferson Airplane on their masterwork Volunteers. A point worth noting about this song on the early copies is the censoring of the line: ‘Say, can I have some of your purple berries?’ This line which tries to come out of the right hand speaker, but is completely faded out – the obvious drug reference was clearly a worry back in 1969 and deemed to risky to leave uncut. Such censoring on the Jefferson Airplane version also from 1969 was deemed unnecessary, but Jefferson Airplane laid down their own rules on that album, which even included the word M****F***** expletive which RCA only let go only reluctantly. I thought this edit was highly significant of mention because it makes the record sound (briefly) strange, but I assure you IT’S PERFECTLY NORMAL (as intended) – all the early copies are the same with the ‘berry’ line edited-out. Just to make matters more laughable, the full words are printed on the lyric insert – how ironic is that? Only when the Kinney repressings came along in late 71, was the word 'Berries' allowed back in. This mini-classic reached 25 in the UK and 6 in the US and includes that large folded lyric insert which is the much scarcer textured paper version. Far more delicate and hard to find in top conditions. This early EJD album cover has to be contender for one of the most fragile ever made (I know I may have said this before for other sleeves and am sure to say again); but this truly is ultra difficult to find with little wear. Its heavily textured and printed on very soft paper, the type that frays just by looking at it! It wears and fades so easily, finding a copy that looks anything like excellent is an achievement, this one just exudes beauty, the only wear of small note is on the edges, but barely any on the very wide spine, again this is much harder to find like this. Later copies had this soft textured paper replaced by a traditional harder card cover which was often glossy too. This cover is fully textured inside and out and still very firm – if over-handled or abused, this becomes very soft and almost pliable – it becomes woolly and tatty very quickly indeed. All the main faces are magnificent with virtually no ink loss, fading or rubbing – never, ever take this for granted – I hope my picture does this one justice. The record too is superb and plays beautifully, I have encountered so many that crackle and even with some distortion, this has none of that at all and sounds wonderful. This looks great and plays perfectly and is a truly beautiful recording, but delicate with intricate harmonies, most collectors should treasure this incredible and scarce, complete set.

Cover’s Potential for Wear & Damage: Very high++. That is something of an understatement, few if any will even exist today with zero wear and finding one with this little is a huge achievement. For cover connoisseurs, this one is genuine eye-candy, this too from the earliest ever issued.

Cover Condition and Details: EX++ (at the very least), you think is any form of wear or damage, and this one usually has it. It’s a gatefold format with moderate texturing on all surfaces and made with delicate card that rubs and damages so easy. The more it’s handled, the more it seems to soften, the edges become tatty and frayed and not pretty at all. This one remains very firm with little wear at all which is conclusive proof this one has been handled little and almost certainly cover protected for most of it’s existence. It includes the scarce lyric insert, the rarer textured one. Printed and made in England by the E. J. Day Group. The earliest date-coded Polydor inner makes this set complete for the discerning collector.

Cover Front: Wow, this should speak for itself, and it seldom gets seen like this. Super attractive, clean and is is close to ‘unworn’ as you will ever see or get. I can hardly imagine finding this front in much better overall condition than this. Nit-picking: the faintest and smallest trace of corner tip rubs, but look very hard, and very faint rub traces on the spine fold near the very centre. I cannot emphasise enough how hard this one is to find devoid of rubbing, ink erosion and especially fading. The colours are strong and pastel-like and totally unfaded or marked, the texturing is gorgeous with no stains or toning. All ink present right down the edges with no scuffs or indentations, truly exceptional and even brand new ones often never made it to the racks like this. This has much richer and deeper colour than many I have seen some that appear washed-out and tired looking. Any winning bidder will immediately see the difference, this front will be near impossible to find much better.

Cover Back: Stunning also: Near identical in every way, the only tiny blemish, purely in manufacture, is the imprint text on the bottom edge is slightly low, but practically all is present and unworn. The lack of ringwear on this side is little short of remarkable. [is the guy behind the door a Mr Neil Young?]

Cover Gatefold Inner: Absolutely stunning! Totally unrubbed, deep, rich colour and breathtakingly fresh and attractive. One of the greatest ever inner gatefold spreads and one worthy of framing. This even thrilled me on opening. Take another look, please – What a BEAUTY!

Top Edges: Any rubbing is very light indeed and shows little, no woolliness.

Bottom Edges: Mainly light rubbing only, almost the least possible on these impossibly fragile ‘resting’ edges. Just sliding this cover in and out of a protective cover will rub this impossibly soft paper-card. Any traces of woolliness, which is nigh-on impossible to avoid on the softest, earliest covers, is minuscule to none.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Remarkably clean and sharp with no wear and NO feathering, again almost impossible to avoid, but this one has, conclusive proof this record has hardly ever been removed of handled. Both these perilous edges are guaranteed untrimmed. Record entered on right outside back edge, the front being closed.

Spine and Text: This is one of those spines that will rarely, if ever be found with no wear, damage or defects. Firstly, this is the more elusive wide spine format and these even more intolerant of everything. This one is very solid and straight. Still erect with no crushing or any noteworthy compressions and folded square. Both right edges meeting up quite closely together and very parallel. Only ultra faint traces of any rubbing on the foldlines and the main area of the spine face itself, almost unworn with all the text pristine and beautifully centered. Again, please see my close-up of this detail, few will get even close. Minor tip rubs top and bottom, and this being somewhat critical.

Corners: Cornerwear is very light indeed and all retain very strong shape and definition. Viewed ‘face-on’ all corners show little to no wear at all. Fraying and wooliness has been avoided and all corners are pretty exceptional again in context.

Cover Summary: I can rarely get so excited about this cover simply because it’s so rarely seen looking so lovely, and rarely with such an early original record, inner and insert inside. This beautiful item should please most-all collectors, if you want the genuine classics in near top-draw conditions, well this sets the bar high and will not be beaten easily.

The Lyric Insert: Practically Mint: clean, white and crease-free (bar the manufactured fold). How many actually know there are two distinctly different inserts for this Atlantic ‘Plum’-pressed album? This first-issued example is made with high quality textured paper with ‘weave’ lines’ seen under light. Also with large watermarks, one being either a huge crown or castle tower, the castellations are clearly visible. Also a scripted word which is not that easy to read. I have compared this ‘deluxe’ original lyric insert with one from a slightly later, but still ‘Plum’ pressing. That is made with a totally different, standard paper that is smooth, whiter and has NO watermarks at all. This fine detail separates the standard from the higher-quality originals and makes the real difference for the specialist collectors. Also is naturally folded with the text on the outside rather than in the middle. In terms of condition: all edges crisp and sharp and virtually mark-free, no splits, no tears. A lovely insert to make this set extra special.

The Inner Sleeve: EX, the earliest copies included the Polydor-style polylined inners and this one, again for the most discerning collectors, includes the near impossible to find earliest date codes of 1/069 (as explained and mentioned further up and seen in close-up). There is no doubt these will prove massively elusive and trying finding the same one from another album, these I feel will almost unique to the very first issues of this album. This has only lightly aged, or I prefer to say ‘matured’. Some glue darkening on the seams and one mild corner crease. The window is immaculate with super crisp circles and a very clear lining. No edge splits or repairs and looking just right for a 41-year-old inner. I know it’s only an inner sleeve, but those numbers tell you so much and verifies that exact date this was issued.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: Mint(-) with just the odd microscopic faint hairline trace that just catches the light if the angle is right. Ultra clean and shiny, intense black and clearly little handled or likely played. This must rank as the best copy of this one I have ever seen (or heard). What a joy to see these playing surfaces so clean and fresh looking, without doubt this fragile album has never been near any old blunt, heavy tracking old record players of its era.

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 minuscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: A delicate recording at times but this plays superbly with no distortion or groove wear. Superb, rich sound that has a slight emphasis on bass. The vocal harmonies, that show no audio stresses whatsoever, are always susceptible to clipping and lack of focus if played on less than wonderful equipment, this simply has not happened on this copy. The bass on this album has always been forward with depth but will cause no problems for worthy systems. Any surface sounds barely even registered and no pops or clicks were noted and this is an exceptional pressing and it needs to be for maximum enjoyment. Nothing heard on play-grade spoilt my pure delight in hearing this beautiful album again. I will reitterate again: the brief loss of volume on the right channel on ‘Wooden Ships’ is quite intentional and was just the over sensitive censor-man editing-out the reference to ‘Purple Berries’ with its very obvious drug reference. The orange and green repressings from 1972 onwards, allowed this line to go unedited. This gorgeous record will please most-all collectors.

End Piece: This trio made beautiful music with sublime harmonies, all at the peak of their powers and rarely sounding much better than here. When such a clean, complete all round, and importantly, original copy comes along on the Plum label it’s one that can be fully appreciated. The classic cover with the young artists, this is a pure piece of rock history and seen so clean, it’s a treasure. I don’t think I will ever find the totally perfect cover for this title, but this is probably as good as it ever gets. I really enjoyed hearing this classic again and most collectors will enjoy this one too. If this album is required, this is a near reference standard copy and I unreservedly and strongly recommend it. Do NOT lose this one.

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/Hercules/Cirkus with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Rondo Red moving coil cartridge (tracks at 2 grams). Amps: Naim Nait 5i with Project USB phono stage and Chord interconnects. Speakers: B&W 704 Floorstanding 3-way Monitors (bi-wired with QED Silver terminated cable). 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 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 [£40 maximum]) = £9. (insurance optional extra £3). Add £2.50 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]) = £13. Add £4 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’.