Oak Records Pneumania 99 copies only
£
750
$
994
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Description
Pneumania - I Can See Your Face / All Your Love, Oak RGJ625
This single on the Oak label from 1969 is so rare that Record Collector are still getting the name of the band wrong - calling them Pneumonia - and if you check the Rare Record Price Guide they don't even know what the B side is!
A product from the legendary R G Jones recording studio in Morden, Surrey this is one of the few tracks that made it beyond the acetate stage onto vinyl and to avoid purchase tax only 99 copies were ever issued. 99! How many will have survived over the last 41 years assuming all 99 were sold? One of the collectables that can righteously be called ultra-rare.
The tracks appeal to psych, R&B and blues collectors. The A side "I Can See Your Face" made it into the Record Collector mammoth psych guide, probably due to the use of fuzz-tone and the "scything guitar" but they rightly label it as "a tough, late-60s beater". The last time this was offered on eBay - 4 years ago- the seller compared the guitar to early Clapton or Hendrix, which might be a bit over the top, and the vocals reminiscent of Tony McPhee, which is more believable. Even so, it is a great example of a garage band with some raw talent. The B side, "All Your Love", is a cover of the John Mayall track from the Bluesbreakers' "Beano" LP with a great fuzz-tone to the guitar and a more justifiable Clapton comparison.
The record itself is obviously well played with light wear and sleeve marks over the surface. It plays fine all the way through with no skips or pops but does have quite a lot of surface noise present at the start of both tracks that diminishes as each track plays. A good professional cleaning could possibly help there.
The A side label is beautiful, it looks like new. The B side label has a tiny stain and some spindle wear. There is a small nick taken out of the vinyl on the A side that can be easily avoided by careful cueing of the stylus - see the images for clarification - I've played it twice this morning to archive the tracks.
This is a phenomenally rare opportunity to buy one of the rarest releases in British pop history so to reflect the scarcity of this record there is a realistic reserve and a starting price to attract serious bidders.
I really hate to be letting this one go but redundancy is biting hard so good luck if you decide to bid.
Postage costs will vary if insurance is requested.
