NICK DRAKE Five Leaves Left RARE Early Island Pink Rim

	£		100
	$		133

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: NICK DRAKE

Album Title: Five Leaves Left.

Producer(s): Joe Boyd.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Time Has Told Me; River Man; Three Hours; Way to Blue; Day Is Done.

Side 2: Cello Song; The Thoughts of Mary Jane; Man in a Shed; Fruit Tree; Saturday Sun.

Label/Format: Island – Pink rim second pressed format. (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Both very clean and quite fresh looking with only very light, fine and faint spindle marks. This record was initially pressed in very small numbers on the pink black block label, then it jumped to the pink rim format when eventually repressed.

Cat Number: ILPS 9105.

Mode / Speed: Stereo / 33.3 rpm.

Weight of this Record: 128 grams. Around average weight for this one.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Original Year of Release: 1969. This second issue was pressed around 1970

Matrix Nos: ILPS 9105 A-3U / ILPS 9105 B-3U

Mothers / Stampers: 1 M / 1 P

Rarity: Very rare as a ‘first pressing’, and even the price guide put a massive price on it, this very early pink rim pressing is elusive too. This Island ‘block’ label design was not available very long anyway before being changed to the more familiar full pink i version and then the pink rims. This poor-selling album skipped the pink i format and went directly to pink rim with just a matter of months. In his short recording lifetime, his albums failed to sell and this title is one of the rarest and most sort-after albums within the Island catalogue. Like so many other classics it was often doomed to bargin-bins, often with large damaging stickers applied as the lack of interest at the time took its toll. Now there simply not enough around to meet the ever increasing demand, many collectors now have to rely on considerably later pressings or modern reissues, and this man’s work as always been ‘in-print.’ How times and opinions change: for many, now the Holy Grail of folk albums, its status amongst the ‘Greats’ is undiminished and is actually elevating for every year as it ages. For those wanting a very clean and superb sounding copy without forking-out vast sums for a very first issue, this is a splendid opportunity. Although the cover has some light wear and a sticker mark on the back, the record has little to fault and offers wonderful clean sound that easily matches the very first pressing – the only visible differences – the label and the matrix numbers – so this still very early issue should represent top value for money.

Musicians: Nick Drake - vocals and acoustic guitar; Paul Harris – piano; Richard Thompson – electric guitar; Danny Thompson – double bass; Rocki Dzidzornu – congas; Clare Lowther – cello; Tristram Fry – drums & vibraphone.

Brief Info: Born Nicholas Rodney Drake on June 19, 1948 and died November 25, 1974. An English folk-singer-songwriter of immense talent. He made just three albums and they all failed to sell during his lifetime. Over time, his work has since grown in popularity and stature and all three are highly sort-after and he is now regarded one of the most influential folkesque singer-songwriters of the last half decade. He signed to Island Records when only 20-years-old, and released this, his debut album Five Leaves Left. His first two albums are reputed to have sold less than five thousand copies as first issues and his reluctance to perform live or give interviews were major factors to his total lack of commercial success. He suffered with depression and insomnia and his song lyrics often portrayed these troubles. He died after the completion of his third album from an overdose of an anti-depressant. On this timelessly beautiful record he is backed by Richard Thompson (Fairport Convention) and Danny Thompson (Pentangle) amongst others. His vocal lacked a great range but it remained highly expressive nonetheless and indeed it took me some time before appreciating this now iconic artist myself. Like most others, his albums bypassed me for many years but the wait was well worth it. This is such a rare album and incredibly difficult just to find, especially in better condition. So many have very worn covers and badly scratched records. With so few originals sold or existing on the original pink block label, a lovely clean looking and playing pink rim is hardly a compromise, it’s close to mandatory. Not all record lovers can afford or wish to spend sometimes nearly figures on a near mint first pressing (if indeed if one can be found). Bought and appreciated by only a lucky few initially, this man’s original works are amongst the most sort-after for album collectors these days. The lack of sales at the time were not helped by mediocre reviews either – opinions on that have also turned around. Such is the strength of this pink rim record, it more than justifies the memory of this sadly tragic young man. An important historic piece that does him and the album itself practically full justice. Clearly not as rare as the ‘block’ first issue, but never underestimate how difficult this very early repressing is either – I have found neither easy and that is no understatement.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: Very High+. Deep green and unprotected, this suffers all forms of wear and is very rarely found even excellent. This cover on offer appears exactly the same as the first examples made.

Cover Grade and Format: VERY GOOD(++): marked down because of an old price sticker pull on the back. These missing a graphic part of the cover, it has far less visual impact, it’s around an inch below Drake’s shoes. The deep green ink is ruthlessly fragile and rubs freely unless kept in cottonwool, and very few ever were. An unlaminated gatefold cover that was printed and made in England by Ernest J. Day & Co Ltd. There are the odd minor cover variations for this album, this one has the trimmed edges on both sides, the standard cover for the pink was the tucked and glued on the front. It appears a few original covers were used first before remanufacture, so this indeed if the very first printed cover which is quite a bit rarer than the second – both were still printed by EJD.

Cover Front: In terms of wear for this totally unforgiving cover, this has modestly little. Some light patchy rubbing but hardly any creasing at all with few marks. Some fine edge rubbing is near impossible to avoid, but here again, modestly light.

Cover Back: The only issue of any real nice is a small sticker tear as mentioned above. How tempting would it be to put a fake sticker over the top and offer this back as near perfect? WELL NO! – this seller does not resort to such dishonesty – what you see is what you get, and if any cover or label I offer has a sticker, I will be 99.99 per cent certain it is genuine and for certain, never applied by myself. It’s all too easy to cover up damage this small, but I refuse to do so. I would rather give away an item than deceive any collector, it’s that simple. Anyway, this back is still very impressive even with the small flaw. Still very clean with barely any traces of wear, rubbing or grubbiness. The lack of ringwear is always a bonus and I have seen few better.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Very mild rub traces near the edges, again an intolerant solid colour, this time brown, but overall, this has withstood the test-of-time well.

Top Edges: Consistent moderate surface rubbing but both straight and this cover lies dead flat and flush.

Bottom Edges: Very similar to above, a little less maybe.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, quite sharp with little wear and guaranteed untrimmed. As stated, this has the first-style cut and trimmed format edges. Both are open, the front has a merest trace of adhesive from manufacture and had little chance of remaining closed. Of course, I could have sealed with cover with PVA, but this new wet glue would react with the card and cause curl and possible bowing, so leaving it alone is the sensible and honest approach again. Record should enter on the back edge, but how can go in either.

Spine and Text: The spine shows only modestly light wear, a little light rubbing, a few small tip-ins likely, but modestly inconspicuous if so. Another trait of this cover is the spine area often reacts badly to light and fades or even changes colour. This is still brown as it should be and the fine text is pretty all present with minimal traces of wear. Still solid, straight with no compression or crushing, it was made quite thin in manufacture.

Corners: All corners have light to moderate rubbing, fine shape retained.

Cover Summary: Even with edge rubbing and a small sticker tear, this is a very fine example of this very rare and fragile late 60’s cover. One that will prove difficult to find much better, finding another at all will not prove easy anyway. Remember, this is the first-printed format. Totally uncompromising and difficult, it simply refused to store well and is intolerant of handling, light and less than careful storage. Not for the perfectionist of course, but many collectors will enjoy it.

The Inner Sleeve: NEAR EXCELLENT: a plain solid white inner that has darkened with age but has little else to fault.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(++): a superb visual copy that is very clean, shiny, intense black and very solidly pressed. A copy played very little on all the evidence reitterated by clean playing surfaces and superb, near reference quality sound. Any surface marks or hairlines are ultra fine, few and faint, look hard under light to see any. 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: I found tapping out words and spaces impossible while listening to this record, hence I played this in it’s entirety uninterrupted and doing nothing but admiring what I was listening too. This Island rarity plays up to, and even exceeds its high visual gradings with practically nothing to fault. Strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is wonderful with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Beautifully produced with a genuine atmosphere, this is a gateway into the recording studio with Drake’s voice and guitar having an in-the-room presence. Any surface sounds registered liuttle and no pops or significant clicks were heard, this is an exceptional clean pressing for a very challenging album. Mainly a low-volume melancholic album, this has few passages to hide the odd minor blemish but glad to state there are barely any anyway. Few albums like this and of such an age will play through devoid of the odd single groove tick, the format hardly allows it but this gives a stunning high-class performance and was a sheer thrill to listen to. Never forget, this pink rim copy was issued only a few months after the pink block original, with the pink rim being available for longer, many overlook the fact it started in 1970. Few copies will match or outperform this very early pressing significantly I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I feel very sure this record has been played very lightly and has been generally, well stored and carefully handled, almost certainly in a non-smoking environment. Sticker tears happen, negligible fault of the owner, it’s the retailers who applied the wretched things on unlaminated covers. These early ones did not peel off like later ones (if you were lucky). The temptation in removing stickers was always high, but once you start, you almost have to follow it though. I remember almost holding my breath years ago taking these things off - it simply became a lottery of was the sticker going to play ball or cling on and tear? Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record, a true delight, it really is a shame this did not sell in greater quantities simply to satisfy the amazing rise in interest for this man’s work. An album of immense beauty, possibly not immediately apparent, but when these songs get into the subconscious, little else will better it. A work of true genius, the song arrangements are simply breathtaking and the purity of the voice and instruments are sheer high fidelity class. ‘The Cello Song’ is simply sublime. With so few originals around, the reissues are an option for the more average collector. Just imagine, this copy was actually in the shops when the man himself was still with us. This copy will certainly prove difficult to find significantly better and is strongly recommended. A beautiful rare record that more than justifies the memory of the legendary, mysterious and elusive artist. If the cover wear is an issue, 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/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’.