DULCIMER - AND I TURNED .. 1st UK Press 1971 EX NEPENTHA Forest Vertigo swirl

	£		137
	$		182

DULCIMER -

AND I TURNED AS I HAD TURNED AS A BOY

NEPENTHA  6437 003

1st UK press 1971 

machined matrices 1Y//1 2Y//1

I am happy to offer this gem for auction. It is an album in the same / similar vein as Forest, ISB, Dr. Strangely Strange etc. This is one of those acid psych/folk albums which are very much of its time from 1968 to 1972. Some stunning very interesting song writing and musicianship was displayed in this golden era and was luckily recorded for us to enjoy and transport to a happier time ....

The next mention of the Progressive label was on the 16th of January 1971, when it was stared that Nepentha (previously Rocking Horse) had signed a three-year deal with Philips.  The label was intended for 'writer / artists', and the first six albums would probably appear in March.  One of them was intended to be 'Showcase' by David Matthews, but in the event that LP appears to have been shelved.  When March rolled around the launch date was put back to May.  Five albums and three singles eventually appeared, but on the 29th of April 1972 'Record Retailer' said that a statement about the label's future was expected from Larry Page.  It came in the issue of the 6th of May, and it said that in future Nepentha would be known as 'Page International' (q.v.).  Page wanted a more mundane name for it, and he said "I probably goofed by chosing such an esoteric name."  The handful of albums by Pete Dello, Dulcimer, Zior, Robin Lent and Earth & Fire are all very highly collectable nowadays.  The three singles appear to be even rarer than the albums, though obviously they aren't as pricey.  Numbering was in a 6129-000 series, which continued to be used by Page International after 6129-003.  Unusually, Nepentha used a handwriting font for its label credits; offhand, the only other company I can think of which did that was Fly (q.v.).   Presumably the 'quill' part of the label design signified the intention to feature songwriters' material.  Manufacture and distribution were by Philips / Phonodisc.  In common with the other Philips and Polydor labels, singles can be found with either pushout centres (1) or large central holes (2).  Demo copies were merely issue copies with a sticker on them (2). (From:  7tt77.co.uk)

I've seen Dulcimer classified as Folk-Rock in the past but that would be an erroneous description as they do not utilise drums. The music is composed of multiple acoustic guitars with some mandolin and a few sundry instruments, such as recorder with, as one might expect, the hammered dulcimer. The acoustic instrumentation is accompanied by a bass backing, rather as Baroque music uses the harpsichord as a bass continuo. I'm not sure how many artists used this particular combination but they are certainly in the minority and that's a shame because it works so much better that the traditional Folk-Rock instrument make-up. The term Psych-Folk would also be spurious and misleading because there's not a lot of psychedelia going on here. The stylistic influences are pure English folk, simply presented in a very modern way.

The acoustic guitars are beautifully recorded and sound lush and rich. The vocals are well delivered and have nice tonal qualities, even if the lyrical content does sound a little dated, dealing as they do with pastoral and bucolic subjects - concepts that became hackneyed and clichéd by the conclusion of the Seventies. The bass guitar underpins the sonic palette and adds to the sensuous qualities without ever being overbearing; this element cannot be overstated, as it is core to the feel of the whole album.

It is, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the most beautiful albums in my collection and also, one of the most beautifully crafted. It is a joy throughout and imbibes the listener with a rosy, warm glow - and it it doesn't then they are all but heartless! I'm being slightly ironic but you get the drift.

Vinyl: EX . Stunning deep glossy and heavy vinyl. This has not been played much. A beautiful glossy vinyl without any marks or major hairlines.  Just two very wispy hairlines can be made out on side two but these are very faint indeed and do not affect the audio at all. Under a strong light just some wispy retraction paper traces/lines can be seen. These are mostly invisible in normal daylight. I subjected the record to a detailed listen on my high end system and it sounded stunning. Lovely channel separation without any distortion or crackle. This vinyl is a beautiful upgrade. Light spindle traces. Definitely in the upper quartile for this album which is hardly ever found these days.

Gatefold sleeve: EX+.  Without doubt a hard gatefold sleeve to still find intact but this one is simply superb!!! The art work is absolutely stunning with very vivid colours. The spine is 100% legible and in top condition as are the top and bottom edges with barely any wear at all. The opening is still super crisp.  There are no creases. There is a small tear on the inside gatefold near the bottom left from the spine (pic 11).  A great, well looked after album that has been stored with care for the past 48 years. 

This is a unique investment opportunity!!! The next prog album to go completely through the roof. Finding this album in any condition at all is nearly impossible so late in the day. Get this while you still can. This value of the album is only going to go one way ... up and up ... until it will be totally unavailable at all for a reasonable price.

Important : International postage will be registered and insured if over GBP 30.00.  In the UK, if over £100.00 this will be sent special delivery. Please wait for an amended invoice before paying. Postage will be according to Royal Mail rates. Postage is NOT a money spinning exercise for me.

Though there are rarely ever any problems with my items, I always try my very best to describe everything exactly!  PLEASE REMEMBER to contact me FIRST,  if you have any problems at all, before you leave feedback and star ratings, so I get a chance to turn any negative experience into a positive one!  I can always happily sort anything out for you, if you let me know you have a problem!  This way no one has to leave Negative/Neutral feedback - and we both walk away happy! Similarly with the amount of stars, anything less than a full 5 * rating is effectively detrimental to a seller's rating as lower ratings will incur higher Final Value Fees  and lower priority in the bidlists eventually making it unattractive to list items on Ebay at all. I know of at least one major previous Ebay seller who has decided not to list via Ebay again. Please do NOT bid if you cannot give me at least 1 chance to sort everything out to your FULL satisfaction in the unlikely event of a problem.  Thanks again!!

This an excellent investment opportunity!!! Any questions please ask me and I will try to answer soon.

This an excellent investment opportunity!!! Any questions please ask me and I will try to answer soon.

Though there are rarely ever any problems with my items, I always try my very best to describe everything exactly!  PLEASE REMEMBER to contact me FIRST,  if you have any problems at all, before you leave feedback and star ratings, so I get a chance to turn any negative experience into a positive one!  I can always happily sort anything out for you, if you let me know you have a problem!  This way no one has to leave Negative/Neutral feedback - and we both walk away happy! Similarly with the amount of stars, anything less than a full 5 * rating is effectively detrimental to a seller's rating as lower ratings will incur higher Final Value Fees  and lower priority in the bidlists eventually making it unattractive to list items on Ebay at all. I know of at least one major previous Ebay seller who has decided not to list via Ebay again. Please do NOT bid if you cannot give me at least 1 chance to sort everything out to your FULL satisfaction in the unlikely event of a problem.  Thanks again!!

This an excellent investment opportunity!!! Any questions please ask me and I will try to answer soon.