LOU BOND SAME-TITLED 1st ALBUM ULTRA-RARE SEALED ORIG '74 "WE PRODUCE" (STAX) LP

$

53

WE CURRENTLY HAVE  NEARLY 500  LISTED ITEMS

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·       LOU BOND -  THE SELF-TITLED FIRST (AND ONLY) ALBUM BY THIS CULT SOUL POET ("LOU BOND") - ORIGINAL 1974 'WE PRODUCE' (A STAX/ENTERPRISE SUBSIDIARY) STEREO LP XPS-1904

·       ORIGINAL U.S. PRESSING

*** INSANELY RARE STILL SEALED GUARANTEED ORIGINAL FIRST PRESSING ***

·       GUARANTEED ORIGINAL  YELLOW 'WE PRODUCE' LABEL WITH RED LOGO (FOR ALL WE KNOW, THIS MAY BE THE ONLY TITLE EVER RELEASED ON THIS SHORT-LIVED LABEL AFFILIATED WITH STAX AND ENTERPRISE LABELS)

·       THE THICKNESS OF THE VINYL, THE APPEARANCE AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE COVER, LABEL’S LOGO AND OTHER PERIPHERAL ELEMENTS OF THE COVER, ARE ALL PERFECTLY CONSISTENT WITH THE ORIGINAL, FIRST PRESSING OF THIS TITLE.

·       TWO “BREATHE” (AIR) HOLES NOTED ON THE SHRINK WRAP

·       THIS IS THE ORIGINAL, AUTHENTIC, FIRST U.S. PRESSING; THIS IS NOT A REISSUE, AN IMPORT, OR A COUNTERFEIT PRESSING.

·       ORIGINAL, THICK CARDBOARD COVER (AMERICAN STYLE)

·       ORIGINAL GLOSSY, LIGHTLY LAMINATED COVER

·       THICK, HEAVY VINYL PRESSING

(►PLEASE SEE THE IMAGE OF THE COVER, LABEL OR BOTH, SHOWN BELOW)

(Note: this is a REAL image of the ACTUAL item you are bidding on. This is NOT a "recycled" image from our previous auction. What you see is what you’ll get.  GUARANTEED!)

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Lou Bond is one of the forgotten heroes of Stax Records. Before he cut this record, his one and only album, he'd made two singles -- "Oh Cheater" b/w "What Have I Done," and "You Shake Me Up" b/w "Don't Start Me Crying." England's Northern soul collectors now treasure both records, but the music on his self-titled album is its own animal. Black psychedelic crooners are few and far between, and, in fact, Bond may be the only one. Perhaps that's why Stax originally released this album on the We Produce subsidiary. Bond and his producer/arrangers -- Jo Bridges (Rufus Thomas, the Temprees), Lester Snell (Isaac Hayes), and Tom Nixon (Rufus Thomas) -- really went out on a limb here by presenting Bond's soulful, folk-influenced singer/songwriter protest songs with a blend of Memphis soul, orchestral strings, and jazzy horn charts. The tempos stay slow and dreamy, which may have made it a hard sell on its original release in 1974, but it's just as likely that the combination of soul and folk wasn't something people were ready for. Pity, because Bond's unique vocal style is nothing short of amazing. He has a passionate growl that can slide up easily to a spine-tingling falsetto, and a unique lyrical approach. He opens with Jimmy Webb's "Lucky Me," a treacle-drenched tune that Bond turns into a wrenching lament. The soaring strings are almost a parody of pop, but Bond's bluesy delivery keeps everything down to earth. "Why Must Our Eyes Always Be Turned Backwards" is a Bond original with popping bass, acoustic piano, and understated strings. He slips into his falsetto for this meandering protest song that references Vietnam, Pakistan, Attica, school bussing, religion, and other hot button topics. When he drops a quote from "American the Beautiful" into the mix, it oozes with irony. "To the Establishment" is the album's masterwork, eleven minutes of protest music that ranks up there with Marvin Gaye's "What's Goin'On." Bond uses his playful high register to ornament the melody, and finishes the tune with several minutes of gospel-esque improvisations full of sighs, cries, stuttered notes, growls, and wails. He also applies his falsetto to Carly Simon's cynical ode "That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be" and wrings every once of painful ambivalence out of the lyric. The glacial groove is full of subtle percussive touches. "Come on Snob" could just as easily be called "Come on Whitey." It sports another kaleidoscopic, ever-shifting lyric that decries discrimination and materialism. The arrangement features flute, strings, and the bass strings of Bond's acoustic. His pleading refrain of "Please, please, please, please, please" references James Brown without overt imitation, and his moaned improvisations are superb.

 (EXCERPT FROM AN ONLINE REVIEW BY ALL MUSIC GUIDE  /ALLMUSIC.COM/)

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·                               CONDITION:

·                               RECORD

(IMPORTANT NOTE: unless otherwise noted, ALL records are graded visually, and NOT play-graded!; we  grade records under the strong, diffuse room light or discrete sunlight)

(a)          THE ALBUM IS STILL FACTORY SEALED AND IS BELIEVED TO BE PERFECTLY MINT. Please note: sealed items are assumed to be mint and are sold as-is, as we have no way of inspecting them. For our policy on still sealed records ►click here (PLEASE READ BEFORE PLACING A BID).

(b)            The record is  apparently pressed on a beautiful, thick, inflexible vinyl, which was usually used for the first or very early pressings. Usually, the sound on such thick vinyl pressings is full-bodied, vivid, and even dramatic. Do not expect to obtain such a majestic analog sound from a digital recording!

(c)           Of course, this is a full-bodied ANALOG recording, and not an inferior, digital recording!!!

·       COVER

COVER IS NEAR MINT, STILL SEALED AND COVERED IN ITS ORIGINAL ►SHRINK WRAP  (A SMALL PIECE OF SHRINK WRAP IS MISSING)

The following flaws or imperfections are noted on the cover:

-        Cover has a visible cutout corner.

-         Cover has JUST A HINT of ring wear (nothing significant); On the scale from 1 to 10 (1 being the least, and  10 being the most severe), we assess the severity of ring wear as 1    (VISIBLE ON BACK SIDE ONLY) .

-         Minor shelf wear noted on the bottom seam (nothing significant)

-         Cover has a light "wrinkle" (crease)  in one of the corners.

NO OTHER IMPERFECTIONS ON THE COVER:

-        No split seams

-        No cut-out (drill) holes.

-        No saw-marks or indents

-        No dirt/dust rubbing stains (friction marks caused by rubbing against other covers)

-        No yellowing from aging

-        No writing

-        No stamps

-        No tearing: no chips, dents or nicks on the seams

-        No peel-off marks

-        No stains

-        No mold or mildew spots

-        No stickers or labels

-        No water damage

-        No razor marks, scratches, pressure marks, lines, streaks, or  cuts.

-        No warping

-        No wax, glue, paint or liquid drops on the cover

-        No glue traces or wax residue.

-        No bar codes

-        No RIAA stamps or stickers. 

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POSTAGE & SHIPPING:

We offer THREE postage rates for both Domestic and International Mail: Media Mail, Priority Mail and Express Mail for domestic, and First Class, Priority International Mail, and Express International Mail for international orders. INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMERS PLEASE NOTE: WE RECOMMEND that you pay for USPS International Priority Mail OR International Express mail when making a payment in order to obtain tracking information, which is NOT available for First Class International shipments.

INTERNATIONAL POSTAGE rates vary from country to country. For SPECIFIC international and domestic postage rates ►click here. While you can be rest assured that ►our packaging is careful, sturdy and impact-proof, please note that damage, loss or theft in transit is always possible, and in the case of some countries even PROBABLE. To discuss this potential problem and ensure flawless delivery, please contact us thru eBay BEFORE placing a bid.

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OUR REFUND POLICY :

WE OFFER UNCONDITIONAL MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE WITHIN 30 DAYS FROM THE RECEIPT OF THE MERCHANDISE, NO QUESTIONS ASKED (THE BUYER PAYS FOR THE RETURN POSTAGE); Still sealed items MUST be returned sealed in order to be eligible for a refund Some restrictions apply. Please read our complete refund policy before placing a bid. ►Click here  for the full text of our policy

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