Irma Thomas 45 Minit 666 V+ Condition Ruler Of My Heart/Hittin' On Nothing

$

58

Greetings everybody! Thank YOU very much for stopping by another of my ebay record auctions, as I am very glad that you have taken time out of your busy day (or night!) to have a look at what I have to offer this time! I know that recently my auction listings have been sporadic, but I'm doing what I can to get back to action like I'm used to. Well, I'm back at my new/old job-a record store, something I've done for the past 2 decades. My new boss is also my old boss, as he's the one who got me started so long ago, and I'm thrilled to be under his leadership again, and back at work in the business! I just enjoy being around records, don'tcha know! Hopefully, some of the ones I have up for bids are ones you'd enjoy being around and listening to as well! I suppose theres only one way to find out! Let's see what's up for bids this time!

This time up, I have a 1963 7” 45rpm release on the Minit Records label, label #666, by Irma Thomas. This is the single of “Ruler Of My Heart” b/w “Hittin’ On Nothing”. Like a few of the other 45s I’m listing tonight, this came from a rather large box of 45s that I recently acquired, which is a good thing-the not so good thing is-none of them had sleeves, and were packed rather tight, and I would guess hadn’t seen the light of day in years, if not decades. But I’ve noticed over the years that Irma Thomas singles on certain labels seem to be on the collectible side-this one included (yeah, I did my research)-so I decided to give this a spin, just to hear what all the hoopla was about. “Ruler Of My Heart” is a very pretty, almost haunting tune, with Irma sounding quite subdued for the most part. Heck, there are a couple of places during the song where she’s not even singing….she’s humming! But with her soulful vocals, along with some instrumentation that sounds like it’s recorded waaaayyyy in the background (the guitar licks and piano were absolutely gorgeous!), it’s a catchy and lilting memory of a song. “Hittin’ On Nothing” is more on the uptempo side though, which is odd, considering that I could only make out a single guitar, bass and drums for instrumentation. Heck, it sounded like there were more people singing on this track than playing! But for the lack of instrumental quantity, they more than make up for it in sound! Irma’s got her chops working well in this song, and she does a fine job belting things out without overdoing it. I suppose now, I can tell why so many soul collectors dig this single! The playing surface really doesn’t look too bad, though there is storage wear (no sleeves/packed box, remember?), needle marks of varying degrees and light scratches. And manohman, does this ever need a good, thorough cleaning! Both sides did play through for me without any problems from the needle, but there was crackling in the background, more noticeable on the “Ruler..” side. Since I know this has collectors’ value, I am absolutely not going to bs anyone on the sound. This crackling (which might be lessened with a good cleaning) is just noticeable, and constant enough that there’s no way I can give this any better than my less than average grading of V+.  That’s my grading though, and my grading is considered non-standard. If you are considering placing a bid, please read the paragraph that follows this one, as it will show you the gradings and their respective descriptions. It won’t take long to read, please do. The labels have wear as well, storage wear, scratches, dings, abrasions, and discoloration. Plus, the “Ruler…” side’s label also has a stamp in white ink that says “Thank You (name too blurry)”, the kind of stamp usually placed there by a distributor to help get it some airtime. The text has faded and worn spots, but can still be read-though having a good light source nearby would be of help. If you need more pictures or description, I can and will be happy to provide. If you have any comments or questions, please send them to me, and I will reply as soon as possible. 

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IMPORTANT NOTE FOR NON-U.S. BUYERS!!!!
All items I sell will be sent with postage printed up from eBay. This way, the prices are automatically listed for customs purposes and cannot be altered. Yes, this does mean that the customs people will know the value, but since I get a bit of a price break on postage, I can keep the prices low for you-the buyer.  I will not "mark item as a gift", just so you can evade import rules.  The people at my post office know me, and they will check overseas packages for inspection.  I hope you will understand my position about this, my apologies if you are not able to comply.

Also, international bidders, the price listed for postage on my listings are for domestic mailing.  I wish I could send overseas for that price, but reality speaks different.  I place a fair price on all international postage.  Watch for the invoice if you win.

ALSO-I need to let international bidders know of a certain problem that doesn't always happen, but will arise from time to time.  All International mail sent from this region has to go through the U.S. Postal Service sorting center in Sandston Virginia, by our local airport.  This sorting center has been named the least efficient sorting center in the entire U.S. Postal Service.  They prove this from time to time by mis-routing packages.  If this happens-and I will monitor the delivery-usually it will add at least an extra week for it to arrive.  If there are any problems, please contact me first, and I will do what I must to make sure you are satisfied with the order.
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