I will declare a lower amount on the customs form for all countries so as to avoid/decrease high import charges.  However, in the case of the EU all purchases are subject to VAT which eBay collect at point of sale. No shipping to Russia currently.

King Crimson : Lizard A-2U / B-2U 1970 Pink Rim Island Label

This first pressing from the always collectable King Crimson plays with exceptional quality and the only intrusion is a little static during the first verse on 'Cirkus'.  This of course does not last long and this static is not loud anyway.  Aside from that the audio is absolutely stunning!  The clarity, depth and power of the audio is so impressive and the classic 'Lizard' on S2 has to be the finest version I have ever heard.

The laminated cover is in excellent condition and has only a few of the usual laminate creases that you so often find.  They are relatively faint and kept to the sides, they do not traverse all the way across each side at all!  The original Island inner has some light fading/marking around the edges and some creasing also but nothing major.

This first pressing has the A2U/B2U matrix and Island Records Ltd is not on either label.  The labels have a pink rim also.

ILPS 9141 // A - 2U / B - 2U // P 1 / M 1

The audio on S1 is Mint(-) (T1 first verse Ex- / T2 & T4 Near Mint)

The audio S2 is Mint(-)

The gatefold is Ex

The labels are Near Mint

The original Island inner is VG+

Visual description

The vinyl is in excellent condition with no scratches.  S1 has a very strong glossy sheen and has only a couple of very minor 'spots' and some very faint sleeve removal hairlines.  S2 does have 2/3 minor blemishes and five small almost circular fade areas in one section but they are not large.  The good news is they are only faint and have no impact on the audio whatsoever.  Some light hairlines also of course.  The pink rimmed labels are super clean with no marking and have only minimal spindle wear.

Play grading

The quiet piano intro on 'Cirkus' is perfect and then Haskell's opening vocal plays with a little static but no clicks or pops.  The next verse is faultless and it continues to play with genuine quality.  The only 'background' is one very light static tick during the quiet instrumental piece about 3/4 of the way through.  The final instrumental section has no intrusion and overall the clarity, power and depth of the audio is very impressive.  It's only the first verse that grades as Ex- the rest is Mint- the playback is superb.

'Indoor Games' has only one tick on the intro and the opening vocal is close to perfect with just one tick on the second verse.  From then on it plays beautifully with no intrusion not even during the quieter section of the long instrumental, the clarity is stunning with no background static at all.  The final vocal is equally as good and the only interference is one click near the end of the laugh!  I will grade as Near Mint but the majority is better than that.

The powerful intro on 'Happy Family' is 'as new' and the 'jazzy' first verse has no interference either.  It continues to play with impeccable precision - no ticks, clicks, pops or static and Mint is 100% deserved.

The quiet flute intro on 'Lady Of The Dancing Water' plays beautifully with no 'background' and the opening vocal is almost on a par with that.  There is just a minimal amount of very quiet background static - it is so minimal and does not intrude on the overall listen.  It continues to play with very impressive clarity right through to the final vocal.  This is Near Mint the audio really cannot really be faulted.

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The epic 'Lizard' on S2 plays with exceptional quality throughout - the audio is STUNNING!  I will attempt to try and do it justice and describe each section...

The opening section 'Prince Rupert Awakes' is stunning!  The first verse, featuring Jon Anderson of course, is so quiet and yet the clarity is equal to that of any unplayed record.  The vocals are so clean and precise and that also applies to each instrumental passage.  With only a couple of barely audible dust ticks this grades as Mint such is the sonic quality on offer.

'Bolero - The Peacock's Tale' then plays with sublime clarity and depth for its duration.  I heard only a couple of minor static ticks and as is the case with a very clean vinyl there is no underlying static.  Running at 6.5 minutes you might expect some interference but no the playback is as pristine as you could wish for and Mint- is certainly a fair assessment of the audio.

The intro on 'The Battle Of Glass Tears' has a couple of light ticks at the start and then as it progresses you cannot help but be impressed by the clarity again.  One or two more light ticks again but nothing intrusive and then Haskell's vocal then plays perfectly and remember this 'Dawn Song' section is extremely quiet!  'Last Skirmish' then plays to the highest standard possible with no interference and no distortion on the top end either.  There is so much going on during this instrumental and yet each note is so clean and precise, the sound quality is not affected in any way.  The quiet sections also play with unbelievable clarity - superb audio all the way through!  The 'Prince Rupert's Lament' section ends this prog classic with stunning precision...again.  There are just three light ticks near the end but they not intrusive.  Even with that I am more than happy to grade this entire 11+ minutes as Mint- as I really cannot fault the audio quality.

'Big Top' ends the side with genuine quality once more.  There is no interference and Mint is the only grade I can give.

In summary this first pressing plays to a wonderful standard with barely any intrusion.  In fact you could say the only section that is slightly intrusive is the first verse on 'Cirkus' but even that is not loud and of course does not last long.  The clarity and definition of the audio on both is so impressive and as for 'Lizard' on S2 well I don't think I have ever heard better!  This album may not be on a par with their previous two classics but there is no denying the quality of the audio and I am sure the winning bidder will agree with that.

The Gatefold & Inner Sleeve

The laminated E.J. Day cover is in excellent condition with only minimal shelf wear.  The only obvious wear is some crease lines on the laminate which happens to be a very common issue with this album.  On the front cover there are 5/6 short ones next to the spine and on the right 3/4 even small ones.  On the back there are a few more on the left that are a little more obvious and 4/5 faint ones on the right.  In my opinion it doesn't really detract from the overall 'look' and they haven't damaged the cover in any way, there is no splitting.  The edges are in superb shape and only the bottom edge of the front cover has one tiny rub.  The wide spine is also in fantastic condition and all of the corners are so 'clean' with zero wear.  The opening edge has no handling wear either.  The front cover itself is very clean with only a handful of very faint spots near the bottom and the back cover is even cleaner with no spotting.  The inside of the gatefold is near perfect with just one very small faint mark near the foot of the left panel and it has barely any fading around the edges.  A fine example overall even with the laminate lines.

The original poly-lined Island inner has some light fading around the edges plus some creasing but has no side splits or tears.

Play tested on my Rega P2 Turntable / Denon PMA-520AE Amp / B&W 684 Speakers

This record has been cleaned on a Pro-Ject VC-S machine

ILPS 9141 // A - 2U / B - 2U // P 1 / M 1

I grade according to "Record Collector" guidelines

Any questions please feel free to ask

Please pay within 4 days of auction end

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Postage & Packaging

I NOW ONLY SEND ITEMS WORLDWIDE VIA TRACKED SHIPPING. THIS PROVIDES 'PEACE OF MIND' IN CASE OF LOSS OR DAMAGE. ALL COSTS ARE SHOWN BELOW AND COMBINED POSTAGE IS ALWAYS OFFERED. ANY OVER-PAYMENT WILL ALWAYS BE REFUNDED BACK TO THE BUYER.

THE ROYAL MAIL ONLY INSURE ITEMS UP TO THE VALUE OF £250 SO IF AN ITEM SELLS FOR MORE A COURIER SERVICE MAY BE USED (e.g. Parcelforce, DPD).  AN EXTRA INSURANCE PREMIUM WILL BE REQUIRED BUT I WILL NOT KNOW THE EXACT AMOUNT UNTIL THE FINAL SALE PRICE IS KNOWN.  HOWEVER, SOMETIMES I WILL ESTIMATE A COST AND THIS WILL BE STATED IN THE LISTING.  PLEASE WAIT FOR THE INVOICE BEFORE MAKING ANY PAYMENT BUT IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS PLEASE FEEL FREE TO GET IN TOUCH.  MANY THANKS.

ALL VINYLS ARE PACKAGED IN STRONG CUSTOM MADE OVER-SIZED MAILERS WITH EXTRA CARDBOARD PROTECTION. THEY ARE PUT IN SEPARATE POLY-LINED INNERS OUTSIDE OF THE COVER SO AS TO AVOID SEAM SPLITS. THEY ARE ALSO PLACED INSIDE A PVC SLEEVE TO PROVIDE EXTRA PROTECTION. I PRIDE MYSELF ON MY HIGH QUALITY PACKAGING AS MY FEEDBACK TESTIFIES AND IF ANY CUSTOMER HAS ANY SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS I WILL ALWAYS ENDEAVOUR TO HELP.

I ONLY USE HIGH QUALITY MAILERS AND THESE COST ME £1.00 EACH. I WILL OFTEN USE 3 OR 4 CARDBOARD STIFFENERS AND THESE COST AT LEAST £0.15 EACH AND THEN THERE IS THE COST OF THE POLY-LINED INNER AND PVC SLEEVE TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT. IT ALL ADDS UP! NOT FORGETTING EBAY TAKING 10% OF THE SHIPPING FEE ALSO!!

UK Postage Rates (First Class Recorded - Max 2kg)

LPs/12" singles : £5.95 up to 1kg then £1.00 per extra item 

EUROPE (Tracked - Max 2kg)

LPs/12" singles : £17.45 then £2.00 per extra 

REST OF WORLD (Tracked - Max 2kg)  

LPs/12" singles : £25.95 then £2.50 per extra

I AM MORE THAN HAPPY TO LEAVE FEEDBACK AFTER PAYMENT HAS BEEN MADE, NONE OF THIS WAITING BEFORE I RECEIVE FEEDBACK FROM YOU - I HAVE CONFIDENCE IN MY LISTINGS!  IF YOU ARE NOT ENTIRELY HAPPY WITH YOUR PURCHASE PLEASE CONTACT ME BEFORE LEAVING FEEDBACK AND I WILL ALWAYS RESOLVE ANY PROBLEM, 100% GUARANTEED.  IF YOU WOULD PREFER TO SEND THE ITEM BACK I WILL OF COURSE OF COURSE PAY THE RETURN SHIPPING COST IF I AM AT FAULT.  I AM ONLY HUMAN AFTER ALL!