JOHN MAYALL BLUESBREAKERS Crusade RARE Orig UK 67 EX++

	£		34
	$		45

ONEADAYRECORDS – Delivering Quality Music to the World

Please see my Detailed Packing Description Further Down & All Shipping Costs and Options – NOTE: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment.

Artist or Band: JOHN MAYALL’S BLUESBREAKERS

Album Title: Crusade.

Producer(s): Mike Vernon.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Oh, Pretty Woman; My Time After Awhile; Snowy Wood; Man of Stone; Tears in My Eyes.

Side 2: Driving Sideways; The Death of J. B. Lenoir; I Can't Quit You Baby; Streamline; Me and My Woman; Checkin’ up on My Baby.

Label/Format: Decca – original unboxed format with deep ridge. This is a very first issue and a real beauty too (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Both look fantastic: very clean, fresh and attractive with only light, few and faint spindle marks. For a mono record especially, these spindle marks are almost as light as they ever get, and without any doubt, this superb record has hardly been played.

Cat Number: LK 4890.

Mode / Speed: Mono / 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: 135 grams. Around average.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Very scarce, and a first pressing in this condition even more so. Far harder to find than just about any other UK Mayall album and mono copies this clean are immensely sort-after. The cover may have aged a little on the back, but the record is pretty exceptional and does defy it’s great age and plays to nigh-on perfection. A beautiful piece that will delight most-all fans.

Original Year of Release: 1967

Matrix Nos: ARL-7995-1A / ARL-7996-1A

Mother & Stamper Codes: 1 GC / 1 I

Musicians: Mick Taylor - lead guitar; John Mayall - vocals, piano, guitar, harmonica; John McVie - bass guitar; Hughie Flint and Keef Hartley - drums; Rip Kant and Chris Mercer - saxophones.

Brief Info: Brilliant follow-up to ‘A Hard Road’, it features the young Mick Taylor, pre-Rolling Stones era who is arguably the real star of this set which features some outstanding songs. For me, the hardest Bluesbreaker’s album to find, I have had several ‘Beanos’, ‘Hard Roads’ and ‘Bare Wires’ over the years, but few of these and only one that matched the superb clean sound of this example. A bold statement on a mono record I know, but true. This has suffered no old needle abuse and the audio quality is practically as new. The cover’s nice too with only a little mild wear on the back, it even includes it’s original polylined inner, also in super condition. For fans of this legendary bluesman, this is a very exciting find and one that can be treasured indefinitely if treated with the same respect as the previous owner.

Cover Grade and Format: NEAR EXCELLENT: a single format with front Clarifoil laminate, the wraps around the closed edges but only on to the back via the spine, there are no flipbacks. This is a dedicate mono cover and has NO peep-hole mono/stereo indicator, these came later in 1969. Printed and made in England by MacNeill Press.

Lamination & Front: Overall, attractive with only mild darkening with little real wear. The laminate has no issues that Clarifoil often gets. Meaning, no lifting or blistering, all is fully adhered and there is barely a crease to be seen. Still clear and shiny with no friction rubs or dulling, even under angled light. The top left corner tip has darkened, but the rest are excellent and overall, this is a very fine front.

Cover Back: The back has again darkened and has a few marks, the most noteworthy on the top edge, any others are very small and few. In terms of real wear, barely any with no rubbing and again, barely any creases and no ringwear. Slight grubbiness but most of the darkening are natural traits of age.

Top Edge: Barely any wear at all and very straight, just that small darkened left corner tip.

Bottom Edge: Barely any wear again.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, sharp with no wear and guaranteed untrimmed. Record enters on this edge.

Spine and Text: A fine spine: solid, straight with minimal compression. The ends are gently pinched in manufacture and look quite neat. All text is perfect and unworn under the solid and unpeeled laminate that is practically crack and crease-free.

Corners: Three of the four are in superb condition, just the top right has a darkened tip, all retain excellent to near mint shape.

Cover Summary: An impressive all-round example of this elusive original 1967 mono cover, one that will prove difficult to find much better. At 44 years-of-age, I think a little ageing is more than acceptable and I feel sure it will please many, if not most collectors.

The Inner: EXCELLENT: mildly darkened but barely any real wear at all. One neat corner crease only and all edges unsplit with no repairs. Both window circles immaculate and ultra crisp and the lining crystal clear with barely any trace of crinkle, firmly attached also. The lack of wear on this vintage inner gives very clear and strong indication the record has hardly made the trip out.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(++): a superb record that almost merits my highest grading of Mint(-). Any surface traces are ultra fine, few and faint and what a wonderful world it would be if all mono records of the 1960s could look this clean and lightly used. Very clean, shiny, intense black and a solid Decca pressing as you would expect from this master vinyl company. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence reitterated by supreme sound of the highest quality. We all what these old mono records were likely to be subjected too and few survive so clean and lightly played with audio clarity that almost reminds of new. Visually a super record that should please most-all 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 miniscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This very well preserved record plays up to it’s high visual grading with nothing to fault. Strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Even surface sound barely even registered and no pops or clicks were noted and this is an exceptional clean pressing, but again typical of Decca whose standards were second to none. Unfortunately, so many were heavily played on old mono record players, that is what they were made for let’s face it. Where there was a choice, people who bought mono usually played it on mono equipment. Often with blunt, inferior sapphire stylus that wore very quickly and were rarely replaced in time to save the records from damage. The lack of groovewear on this impressive copy must and can never be taken for granted and so few play with fully focused and sharp sound. This does and how, this was a joy to listen too. The guitars and especially the brass instruments are unclipped and precise with pristine clarity. Almost a gateway into The Bluesbreakers recording studio itself. Few copies will match, let alone outperform this very early pressing I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I am certain this record has been played very lightly and has been clearly carefully handled. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record. This record will prove very difficult to find better and merits strong recommendation. It is little short of connoisseur standard, and the matrixes confirm it’s indeed an early 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 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.

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 prompt payment is a problem, please do not bid.

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 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. The boxes and ultra thick double-wall stiffeners 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 7,000+ items sold in nearly 10 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 stiffeners 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 FIVE 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 now exercise my right to open a dispute after the Ebay rule of FOUR days if no payment is received. I will then cancel the dispute to end the, 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 and they take the Ebay consequences (a strike or removal from the system). Small businesses need prompt payment to trade and these strict rules WILL be applied. If you cannot pay, DO NOT BID.

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 [£46 maximum]) = £10. (Royal Mail insurance is an optional extra £3). Add £3 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 [£46 maximum]) = £14. Add £4 per extra LP. (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: Please do not bid if you have negative feedback unless checking first, 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’.