NIEMEN Strange Is This World (CBS 64896) Black Sabbath RARE UK 1st Pressing EX+
$
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Description
NIEMEN Strange Is This World (CBS 64896) Black Sabbath RARE UK 1st Pressing EX+
RARE UK first pressing of Czes?aw Niemen`s sensational English-language debut, "Strange Is This World" on CBS Records (1972).
Backed by Polish prog-rockers SBB, Niemen`s astounding Strange Is This World straddles a multiverse of sounds, from progjazz versions of soul classics (Otis Redding`s "I`ve Been Loving You Too Long") and twisted Southern gospel supplications ("A Song For The Deceased") to the almost Black Sabbath-like invocation of lovelorn demons in the minor-key masterpiece "Why Did You Stop Loving Me". Speaking of which, any fan of Black Sabbath`s high occultism or of the fearful, psych-tinged landscapes evoked by Arthur Brown or Vanilla Fudge should immediately pick up this long-lost gem. Unreservedly recommended.
"With a backing band including the members of SBB, Czes?aw Niemen's first English-language album is a wild trip through spacey, psychedelic territory. Niemen's vocal performance brings to mind the mighty lungs of old-time psychedelic greats like Arthur Brown, whilst the musical backing warps these songs - including Otis Redding's "I've Been Loving You Too Long" and the title track, which is a mutation of a track from significantly earlier in Niemen's career - into weird, not-quite-ambient atmospheric jams. The end result is a fascinatingly original collaboration between some of the great names of 70s-era Polish prog which will be of interest to all fans of the trippier end of prog." - Warthur, progarchives.com (2012)
GRADING:
EX++ COVER. Original unlaminated sleeve in very fine all-round condition. Please see photos for details.
- Minor discolouring, due to age.
- Superficial scuff from sticker removal (at top right).
- Other than that, the cover is pretty much perfect.
- Also includes custom-printed CBS inner sleeve in undamaged EX+ condition.
EX+ RECORD with a few minor signs of previous play.
- For the most part perfect vinyl on both sides, with impeccable audio reproduction throughout.
- A tiny scratch (4 mm long; in "Strange Is This World") is absolutely inaudible.
- Superficial thumbnail scuff (not a scratch; in "I`ve Been Loving You Too Long") is equally inaudible.
- An error in the vinyl stamping process has resulted in a partly jagged record edge, as shown.
- Original first-pressing red CBS Records labels with a lone spindle line on Side One.
- The matrix stamps in the run-off grooves read "S 64896 A1" and "S 64896 B1".
- This record is certified to be a very first UK pressing of "Strange Is this World", released in 1972.
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