JETHRO TULL This Was RARE ORIG UK 1968 EX+ ISLAND MONO LP, BRILLIANT COPY/SOUND.

	£		122
	$		162

ONEADAYRECORDS – Serving-up a Christmas & New Year Feast of Entertainment

I would like to wish all my customers, regulars and newcomers, a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR

Over the Holiday Period, I am offering some interesting Christmas ‘Crackers’ – lovely albums – some rare – ENJOY!

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, and records WILL arrive damaged in them at some time as most record buyers will already know. Here, you get what you pay for – SAFE PACKING in BOXES using 7mm DOUBLE-WALL STIFFENERS including full side protection and bubble wrap, the records removed from the covers of course. All this very safe packing means I lose money on every box I post, but safe delivery is, and will always be paramount. You WILL see the difference when my packet arrives. Also, I will pay for 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 if possible. PLEASE NOTE: I will NOT send any item, no matter what its value without a Royal Mail or courier tracking number. ALL my items must be signed and trackable to comply with Ebay delivery rules. Please do NOT ask me to make any exceptions to this rule as no country offers 100% reliable service without it.

Artist or Band: JETHRO TULL

Album Title: This Was

Producer(s): Terry Ellis and Jethro Tull

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: My Sunday Feeling; Some Day the Sun Won’t Shine For You; Beggar’s Farm; Move on Alone; Serenade to a Cuckoo.

Side 2: Dharma For One; It’s Breaking Me Up; Cat’s Squirrel; A Song for Jeffrey; Round.

Label/Format/Conditions: Island – first pressing with eyeball logo and matt, rough textured surfaces. This the second variant including the ‘MADE IN ENGLAND’ text. Both in stunning ultra clean fresh conditions with the most beautiful shade of pastel pink colour. Any spindle traces tiny, very few and faint and this elusive mono record plays superbly.

Catalogue Number: ILP 985

Mode / Speed: Mono / 33.3 rpm.

Weight of this Record: 165 grams.

Country of Manufacture: England

Rarity: Mono copies of this debut classic are scarce and only available for a relatively brief time before being withdrawn. Finding copies in better condition is also very difficult – remember, those who still chose to buy mono in 1968 did so to play on mono record players, and most took heavy wear and degrading. This beautiful record appears little used and plays superbly, any minor visual blemishes purely superficial with no affect on the fantastic sound. The cover, with its original famous very wide spine, often gets crushed and flattened which this again has avoided as clearly seen on my picture. Such copies are fast becoming rare and prized.

Original Year of Release: 1968

Matrix Nos: ILP + 985 + A / ILP + 985 + B (these deeply punched and very clear)

Musicians: Ian Anderson – flute, mouth organ, claghorn, piano and vocals; Mick Abrahams – guitar, nine string guitar and vocal; Glenn Cornick – bass guitar; Clive Bunker – drums, hooter and charm bracelet.

Brief Artist & Album Info: Jethro Tull’s debut classic and many agree it was never bettered, it even charted at 10 in the UK. A debut of incredible maturity that fitted in nicely between blues, rock and prog. Mick Abrahams was the darling of the clubs, and for a brief moment offered a challenge to Clapton, especially with his showpiece ‘Cat’s Squirrel’. Shortly afterwards he left the band to form Blodwyn Pig. Anderson became the undisputed leader and live he and the band were tremendous. On record they rarely got much better, ‘Dharma for One’ that opens side two has probably the best ever (short) drum solo ever – this just has to be heard in the dynamic full-on mono mix – breathtaking sound, as is the whole album and an impressive example to view and enjoy with one of the greatest Island covers in truly lovely fresh condition.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(+): and arguably better. A gatefold format with front and back laminate. The inside is mostly matt and smooth. The top edges both have laminated flipbacks, and the bottom edges both have wide laminate ends. This has the massive wide spine as seen that includes the correct ‘MONO ILP 985’ text as-seen. This a prized feature on the first covers and here looking hugely impressive. Later ones has a much narrow standard spine and the inside flipbacks were omitted. Printed and made in England, uncredited. The polylined white inner sleeve is included.

Lamination – Front & Back: Beautiful artwork seen to near maximum advantage under very shiny, fresh and clear laminate that has hardly any lifting (a tiny trace on the front bottom right corner tip), and minimal traces of dulling, including the back, even under light. That far more unusual with such a heavy, thick record inside all these years. Only marked down from the extra (+) for a few surface laminate creases near the right edge with very few others apart. The famous graphic has incredible detail and clarity and retains superb deep colour. This still defies its considerable age and looks really impressive.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Little wear at all and still very clean. The odd very fine crease and a minor one to the right of the right fold hinge that is near impossible to avoid on covers with such a wide spine, these always seem to form, here only very light. Both flipbacks on the top edges are solid and clean with no issues of note. Their ends have not stuck together, pulled or formed any grime lines to the laminate ends. All very impressive overall as-seen.

Top & Bottom Edges: All four straight, very smooth and unworn with all laminate perfectly tight and intact.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Both edges are naturally open (no adhesive on the inside front or back). Any thickening patchy and light as seen viewed end-on.

Spine and Text: Still mainly solid, straight with minimal compression, still upright and erect, not crushed, damaged or flattened like so many these days, a minimal hint of tilt only near the very ends. Folded square, so the edges meet up very closely together and parallel. The text is pristine under the solid and uncracked laminate, this also beautifully centred on the wide depth that gives this very special first issue sleeve all its character. PLEASE NOTE: I will support this spine with card to ensure safety and shape when packing for transit to the winning bidder.

Corners: Most of any tip rubs small and light. Very fine to mostly excellent shape retained with no knocks.

Cover Summary: A very strong all-round example of this classic, quite delicate 1960’s cover, one that could prove difficult to find much better. The wide spine clearly proves difficult to maintain in fine condition over many years, as proven by the number of crushed and damaged ones seen, so this beautiful item should please many collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT(+): with little more than mild natural crinkle to the white paper that has aged or darkened little. Two crisp undamaged window circles with the polylining fresh and clear. No hard heavy creasing and all edges naturally intact. This has the UK?Patent No. 1,072,844 and ‘Foreign Patents Pending’ text.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(+): arguably better. A very fine visual copy that is very clean with equally fine shine and heavily pressed on thick robust vinyl. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence with any surface marks few, mostly very light and faint as seen critically under bright light. Two or three gentle scuffs on side two do nothing whatsoever. No penetrating stylus scratches, viewed in average room light, little else even registers. Visually a super record that should please many, and possibly even most 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 equipment, all listed further down.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This brilliant mono mix debut album 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 a very clean pressing with no tracking issues* or inherent pressing noises. This never to be dismissed lightly on these early pressings. Few available copies will outperform this early first pressing I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I am certain this record has been played very 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 amazing record. 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. Records are a ‘contact’ format, and few will avoid the odd minor sound blemish.

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 the item being offered with no digital enhancements. 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. 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 805 Nautilus (bi-wired with Tellurium Black terminated cable) with REL subwoofer. All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional Nessie 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 Nessie 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 17­ 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. 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’.