JONI MITCHELL Ladies of the Canyon ORIG 1970 UK EX LP

	£		71
	$		94

ONEADAYRECORDS – Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Artist or Band: JONI MITCHELL

Album Title: Ladies of the Canyon.

Producer(s): Joni Mitchell.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Morning Morgantown; For Free; Conversation; Ladies of the Canyon; Willy; The Arrangement.

Side 2: Rainy Night House; The Priest; Blue Boy; Big Yellow Taxi; Woodstock; The Circle Game.

Label/Format: Reprise - tri-colour original (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Both very clean and attractive with only light and faint spindle marks and no wear around the hole area. Odd minor handling trace if being ultra critical but a lovely vintage original pair.

Cat Number: RSLP 6376.

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: 158 grams. [These days, many modern Audiophile reissues are pressed on super-heavyweight 180 gram vinyl. Only a small percentage of ‘vintage vinyl’ was ever pressed this heavy. Records pressed in the 1960s averaged around 135 to 145 grams. Records pressed in the 1970s were usually lighter and averaged more around 115 – 125 grams. Some records pressed around 1973 were very thin and light due an oil crisis and shortage around this time. Some records were even issued on recycled vinyl from this period and sounded poor with crackle and surface noise evident from the very first play. If any record I buy is deemed ‘recycled’, I will never offer it, I have a very simple test to detect these records if I suspect this to be the case other than audible imperfection. Some records from this period were even pressed on other materials the most notable was ‘Dynaflex’, used by RCA around this time. Although inferior to vinyl, this at least mostly sounded reasonably acceptable but pressings on this material were wafer thin and flimsy. Beyond the 70s, many records often became thinner and lighter still but most played fine but were never quite the quality as from the ‘Golden Era’]. (This was based on ‘average’ weights for 50 records from these eras.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Scarce as a first pressing, being issued in 1970 on this label meant only available for a relatively brief time before being repressed on the tan format but still initially with the RSLP Cat. No. First pressings are elusive.

Original Year of Release: 1970

Matrix Nos: RSLP 6376 A3 H / RSLP 6376 B3 H

Mother & Stamper Codes: D 1 / A 1

Musicians: Joni Mitchell - guitar, piano, vocals; Teresa Adams - cello; Paul Horn - clarinet, flute; Jim Horn - baritone saxophone; Milt Holland - percussion; The Saskatunes - vocals; The Lookout Mountain United Downstairs Choir - vocal chorus.

Brief Info: Following her second classic album ‘Clouds’ would never be easy but this supremely talented Canadian lady again excelled. A little more expansive in sound and a slow drift away from solo folk music and including some sublime and well-known songs including the surprise hit single ‘Big Yellow Taxi’ and her anthem ‘Woodstock’ which has been covered by various other artists. Her last album on this famous format of the Reprise label but only briefly available before the change. Never easy to find and although quite popular, not so on the this label, much more elusive than ‘Clouds’. Although more instruments are used, still an album that has its gentle moments and never easy to find sounding clean and ‘perfect’. This little played copy plays very well but does have a little gentle surface sound in places but (in my opinion anyway), not enough to spoil the wonderful entertainment included in these very clean grooves. These type of albums from this golden period – yes this is now 40-years-old - are never easy to find pristine, but both playing surfaces of this very heavy pressed record will not be easy to find better and same goes for the labels. A little brief, gentle surface sound is almost the least that can be expected on such fragile pieces, especially when playing on higher-end revealing equipment. Although not silent for all, most plays beautifully and little heard spoilt the listening experience of this vintage classic. This is Mitchell near her very best and what a talent this lady is and continues to be – a priceless gem.

Cover Grade and Format: EX(-), a highly wear and grubbiness prone white unlaminated, gatefold cover, seldom seen even respectable with the prized RSLP Cat No. Printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse and including the ‘Patents pending’ text.

Cover Front: Another immensely challenging cover and unless kept in cottonwool for 40 odd years, never easy to find even VG. This has aged a little and has some blemishes, but little of major note. This is still a nice shade of white with only light traces of handling or grubbiness. Any marks are few and light but there is a small stain on the bottom edge near the right corner – this is reciprocated on the back in the same area. Any faint traces of toning are on the extreme spine fold area and barely even show. Barely any creasing and the artwork looks real nice, all considered, a pleasing front for many.

Cover Back: Similar in most aspects, the same stain again present and a little more handling marks, most near the spine. A very mild record rim impression has darkened slightly – light ringwear in other words, but only light on such a revealing cover – few will ever avoid this with such a heavy record inside all these years. Again few creases, like the front, any present near the edges but barely any. Again, this is a quite nice and sets a very decent standard.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Not a lot to fault inside here, any age discolour is very mild indeed and there is barely any traces of wear. Includes the song lyrics.

Top Edges: Clean, straight and barely any traces of wear or grubbiness.

Bottom Edges: Minimal evidence of any rubbing due to the white colour. Light marks in a couple of areas but again straight and any discolour to the white being very light.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, quite sharp with little wear and no feathering, both guaranteed untrimmed. Record enters on the back edge, the front is closed.

Spine and Text: Solid, straight, uncompressed and square, both right edges meet up perfectly together and parallel. Again white and only slightly darkened, all text is perfect and unworn which on this is a considerable bonus I feel.

Corners: Any evidence of corner tip rubs is minimal as all are white. These also retain very fine shape.

Cover Summary: Graded EX(-) but in real terms arguably better, this is more often seen in a real unsightly mess of yellowed, grubbied and worn card. This an all round fine and still attractive example. Not good enough for the discerning connoisseur collector but so delicate and somewhat elusive with an original pressing inside, a little compromise sometimes has to be made or collectors will have to wait forever for the near impossible. I feel this will please many collectors, the facts are here, you decide.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EX, A superb visual copy that is super clean, shiny, intense black and heavily pressed. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence and with very few marks, those present are very fine and faint. Visually a super record that should please 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 snippetts 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 fine record mostly plays up to and a high percentage above its visual grading. But there is a little light surface sound on the innermost tracks on each side. Very gentle but revealing equipment makes it apparent. Few available examples of the earliest pressings of this and similar albums will play ‘silent’. Just imagine what many were actually played on, so many written-off with deeply damaging scratches and badly worn grooves. This has avoided this type of abuse and has no significant pops or clicks, just slight surface sound as mentioned. A lovely recording and still enjoyable unless perfection is non-negotiable. If silence is mandatory, well the small digital format will offer that, but there is something extra special when holding and hearing an original record. I am certain this record has been played only lightly and any marks are few and very faint surface traces or ultra fine hairlines. Little spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record, if this did not please me, I would not offer it. This copy will prove quite difficult to find significantly better and can be warmly recommended. Not quite for the audiophile purist or those who cannot tolerate a little minor sound blemishing, if you have any doubts, do not bid.

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 with Ittok Mk IV arm and Ortofon Samba Moving Coil cartridge (tracks at 1.8 grams). Amps: Naim Nait 5i with Project USB phono stage and Chord interconnects. Speakers: B&W 704 Floorstanding 3-way Monitors (bi-wired). All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional Moth vacuum machine before play-grading for the cleanest and best possible sound and will include a brand new lined inner and protective cover too.

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 promp payment is a problem, please do not bid.

POSTING & PACKING: 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, mostly the very next day after payment is received or within three days maximum (unless on holiday). All records are posted in professional boxes (NOT mailers) with the record(s) 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 TWO VERY THICK stiffners for even extra protection – these are FOUR TIMES thicker than commercial stiffners and are custom-made for oneadayrecords. Really rare and expensive albums will even be Double Boxed. The cover will be placed within a BRAND NEW heavy duty soft protective sleeve and the actual record will be professionally cleaned on my Moth Pro vacuum system to give ultimate clean grooves and playing surfaces and the best possible looks and ultimate sound quality. Printed address labels are used for clarity as well as a sender label. 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. 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 offer probably the best-value and safest shipping possible. I will invoice any winning bidder as soon as possible after the auction ends. My ‘loss’ or ‘damage rate’ is less than 0.1 per percent based on over 5,000+ items sold in over 8 years of Ebay trading and I consider that pretty exceptional. I discount of course for multiple purchases with a maximum of FOUR records per packet. I will not respond to questions on shipping costs as all the details are included in the advert.

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 will now offer any item to the runner-up after the mandatory Ebay 3 days if no contact is made by the winning bidder unless prior notice of any delay is given beforehand. The same applies if no payment is received within the mandatory 7 days so any bidder who has just lost out can still email me to reserve the item as priority second chance – it’s always worth asking.

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 (SECOND Class Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = FREE. This is the new Ebay rule. HOWEVER I STRONGLY URGE UK WINNERS TO PAY THE £3 FOR THE FIRST-CLASS SERVICE AS THE PACKETS WILL ARRIVE MUCH FASTER AND SAFER.

1 LP (FIRST-CLASS Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = £3.

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

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

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£39 maximum]) = £8. (insurance optional extra £3).

NOTE: I NO LONGER SEND TO THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION. ANY BIDS WILL BE IGNORED.

Posting & Packing: ALL OVERSEAS (non-European) e.g. USA (any part); 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 [£39 maximum]) = £12. (insurance 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 timewasters. 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 minus the Posting and All Ebay costs as long as the item detail has been read and understood. I will not refund if any defect detail is clearly stated on the advert and missed by the buyer. If any overseas collector does not understand anything in my listing, please email and ask me to help.

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 neccessarily 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’.