GENTLE GIANT Octopus RARE ORIG UK 1972 VERTIGO SPIRAL EX LP, SUPER SOUND & COVER

	£		129
	$		171

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

Postage: UK £4.75 (£1 per extra record). Europe (including Russia) £12.50 (£2 per extra record). Rest of World (including ALL parts of the USA) £16.50 (£3 per extra record). All boxes signed for in quality, safe packaging – I NEVER use mailing envelopes that offer virtually no protection at all – in fact I think these things should be banned as records WILL arrive damaged in them at some time. Here, you get what you pay for – SAFE PACKING in BOXES using 7mm DOUBLE-WALL STIFFENERS. Full details nearer the end of the listing.

Posting to Russia: Yes, I do post to Russia. But delivery can take up to 4 to 6 weeks 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. I will always keep my P&P prices as low as possible, and even after yet another Royal Mail price hike from April this year, I have NOT raised my prices and will never compromise on solid, safe packing that is invariably heavier than most you will get. My P&P offers probably the best value-for-money for vinyl records available, and I even will pay for full 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. You WILL see the difference when my packet arrives.

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. I do not like this practice as it is most often used to phish out the price to beat. Ebay does not approve and neither do I – so only bid on my items if you want them.

Artist or Band: GENTLE GIANT

Album Title: Octopus

Producers: Gentle Giant

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: The Advent of Panurge; Raconteur Troubadour; A Cry For Everyone; Knots.

Side 2: The Boys in the Band; Dog’s Life; Think of Me With Kindness; River.

Label/Format: Vertigo – original Spiral format with matt, smooth surfaces.

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and attractive with only light, quite fine spindle marks and no wear around the hole area, these only really seen with angled viewing. This looks very modestly and generally carefully played with sound quality superb.

Cat Number: 6360080

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 this Record: 134 grams. An excellent weight for this album.

Country of Manufacture: England

Rarity: Quite rare: an album fast disappearing these days. Being a late Spiral, it was only available for a relative brief time on this format before being repressed on Spaceship.

Original Year of Release: 1972

Matrix Nos: 6360080 1Y//1 420 1 3 2 & 6360080 2Y//1 420 1 1 1

Musicians: Gary Green – guitars, percussion; Kerry Minnear – all keyboards, vibraphone, percussion, cello, Moog, lead and backing vocals; Derek Shulman – lead vocals, alto saxophone; Philip Shulman – saxophones, trumpet, mellophone, lead and backing vocals; Raymond Shulman – bass violin, guitar, percussion, vocals; John Weathers – drums, percussion, xylophone.

Brief Info: The band’s fourth album and all released on the famous Spiral format for Vertigo, this being the last before being repressed on the Spaceship label, then two new albums appearing on WWA. Also, this was a late album in the Swirl catalogue and only quite briefly available before the repressings. Gentle Giant were always a little more challenging than some progressive bands. Complex music patterns with many time and structure changes – they were not for everyone. For sure they were original and had their own unique very polished sound and were always superbly produced. They usually appealed to fans of Yes, King Crimson, van der Graaf Generator and similar bands. ‘Octopus’ has another superb Roger Dean cover in the UK ,but a very different design on the US version. This one in particular is never too easy to find with a decent cover and a fine playing record. Even from new, this cover appeared to have wear but most of this lies within the design and the top areas of the cover sometimes give the appearance of wear but actually isn’t. This one is very impressive with minimal blemishes, it being significantly better than average. The record plays with stunning quality sound, beautifully produced and hardly anything unwanted. That for a typically challenging Gentle Giant album is far from common. Lastly, for good measure, the Swirl inner sleeve is equally fine and clean, also unsplit. A copy that could indeed prove a significant upgrade for some, these do not surface often.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(+): and arguably worthy of the extra (+) I feel, simply based on just how wear-prone this beautiful cover is. It almost cries-out for lamination, but alas, never the case, in the UK anyway. As per the majority of the Spiral cover series, this was unlaminated with a matt, smooth surface. A fantastic Roger Dean graphic gatefold spread and seldom seen much better these days. Printed and made in England, uncredited. Includes the later style Swirl inner sleeve with the now softer lining.

Cover Front: Uncompromising and challenging to find like this. For rubbing, one of the most difficult in the Spiral run. This front has hardly any and has hardly any creasing, any present near the bottom left corner and very fine and faint, hardly even registering unless viewed right up close. Any marks or blemishes due to ‘wear’ minimal and faint. A little adhesive marks seen near the bottom edge, those purely from manufacture and hardly unusual – these covers were all glued together of course – again little seen unless up close under light. The depth of colour and freshness remains intense and high, that has no fade lines, another issues this cover often suffers. Lastly, no sticker tears, any residue traces are bordering on minuscule, may a hint near the top right corner, but look very hard. Not seen too many better overall, this front is impressive.

Cover Back: The back is very similar, the lack of ugly penetrating ring wear is massive bonus on a cover that rarely avoids it. A gentle trace near the top, and almost as light as it ever gets. A minor and gentle dink trace on the left edge towards the top, again look hard. If anything even harder to find in near top condition than the front, this I regard as exceptional.

Cover Inner Gatefold: In terms of real wear, barely any – very gentle traces of toning near the very edges. This being somewhat critical again and very faint. This gives only the gentlest hint of age which I actually think enhances a 46-year-old cover.

Top Edges: Both straight, flat, parallel, clean and practically unworn with no colour fading or changes, try finding these better.

Bottom Edges: Largely the same, which is near remarkable for storage edges like these.

Right Edge(s), and Type: The front has a real tucked and folded edge. It is in super shape being little worn with just a couple of very small, minor rubs, also retaining excellent colour. The back storage edges are also very impressive, the inner one, being slightly shorter in manufacture than the outside, is immaculate and very sharp. But the outer one is almost the same with any thickening minimal and little – all edges are guaranteed untrimmed.

Spine and Text: A hugely impressive spine, again with barely any wear or rubbing, even to the corner areas, this is a very solid example. Any fading to the surface is gentle and faint, it retains impressive colour, which is quite unusual. Robust and very straight, uncompressed and folded square, so all edges meet up perfectly flush and parallel. All text and graphic being fully present and unworn which can be considered a massive plus on this unforgiving Spiral cover. Even the perilous fold hinges have avoided wear, more great news.

Corners: Any tip rubbing is tiny and light. Better than excellent shape is retained with no knocks or dinks, how many of these will be devoid of tip creasing? – well this pair have.

Cover Summary: In terms of colour hue and graphic design, this has to be one the most challenging and difficult of the Vertigo Swirl covers, there are some others that run it close, but those green ink colours are immensely prone to all forms of wear and rubbing. The complexity of this sleeve has to be seen for real to fully appreciate it – I am not saying it is perfect – but I would put this against most and I feel few will better it significantly. With so little wear, even to the edges, this should speak volume for the rest. This classic Roger Dean design cover should please many, if not most collectors – and good luck finding a much better one.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT(+): and largely even avoid the usual seam adhesive darkening. This correctly has the later softer lining as seen through two crisp and totally undamaged window circles. The fragile lining has a natural single line crease each side, but little else, all edges are unsplit with no repairs. One of the cleanest I have seen for some time, these soft lining late Swirl inners are quite rare in their own right – thus modern reprints are becoming widely available. But there is no faking the real thing, and never easy to find like this.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT: an impressive looking record that appears only modestly played. Very clean, fresh with excellent shine and very solidly pressed. Any surface marks or blemishes are very fine and faint as seen critically under bright angled light. There are no penetrating stylus marks and sound quality is superb. Visually a super record that should please many collectors.

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: This prog-rock classic plays even above it’s high visual grading with hardly anything 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. Any surface sounds are minimal indeed and this is an exceptional clean pressing with no tracking issues*. Few copies will outperform this very early pressing significantly I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I am certain this record has been played only lightly and has been generally well stored and carefully handled, almost certainly in a non-smoking environment. Nothing of any note spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record. An album, band and labe in high demand, these seldom surface much better these days. It will prove very difficult to find significantly better and can be strongly 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 2.2 grams.

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 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 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 it’s 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. Room light factors can make things vary sometimes, that is hard to control, especially in winter. 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 Quintet Black moving coil cartridge (tracks at 2.2 grams). Amps: Naim Supernait 2 with Project USB phono stage and Tellerium Black interconnects. Speakers: B&W 704 Floorstanding 3-way Monitors (bi-wired with Tellurium Black terminated cable). All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional VPI-17 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 D5000 SLR Digital 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.

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 new VPI-17 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 boxes (NOT Mailers, these do not offer any real protection). The record(s) are 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 at least TWO, 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. When larger boxes are used, 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. I do not profit on posting, better quality packaging costs, I offer probably the best-value and safest shipping possible for ultimate confidence. The boxes and ultra thick double-wall stiffeners 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 minuscule in over 14 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. Oneadayrecords is a MAILER-FREE ZONE – they offer next-to-no-protection, and should be banned, no ‘professional’ should consider using them in my opinion. I discount of course for multiple purchases with a maximum of FIVE records per box (one double can sometimes be included subject to total weight). All postage costs are below and at the top of the listing.

NOTE: First Time Bidders: Please ask me first.

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 withdrawals. Small businesses need prompt payment to trade and these strict rules WILL be applied.

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] = £4.75

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

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

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£50 maximum]) = £12.50 (enhanced Royal Mail insurance is an optional extra £3). Add £2 per extra LP.

Posting & Packing: ALL OVERSEAS (non-European) e.g. USA (ANY PART OF); South America; New Zealand; 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 [£50 maximum]) = £16.50 (£17.50 for double sets). Add £3 per extra LP. (enhanced Royal Mail insurance is an 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: I will cancel any bids I feel are time-wasters. 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 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, 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’.