PASSING CLOUDS Hawks & Doves 1969 TRIPPY BAROQUE FUZZ PSYCH LP Left Banke LISTEN

$

35

PASSING CLOUDS "HAWKS AND DOVES" LP

ORIGINAL 196 LP ON THE US PETE LABEL, STEREO S1106

COVER IN VG+ shape, moderate ringwear, promo sticker on front

VINYL plays VG++ to EXCELLENT

Well now, here’s one that’s escaped my radar until now, and that’s my loss.  But better late than never I guess, so now I can pass on my excitement over finding another low-key mellow late night acid psych groover in the Gandalf / Common People / Falling Angels vein, although this one’s probably a baby step below those in terms of consistency.  They sure didn’t make it easy discovering their album’s hidden charms, these Passing Clouds, with a drab sleeve that doesn’t clue you in at all to the trippy goodness inside like, say, the sleeve art for the 2nd Fallen Angels LP.  And if the cover didn’t turn you off, then Side 1 tried its best.  Not that it’s bad.  It’s just, well, non-eventful, at least until you get to the last song.  But like my Momma used to tell me, good things come to those who wait, so like a good boy, I waited until the first album side ended with the baroque popsike KILLER title track, all reedy organ and fey falsetto vocals and ba-ba-ba-bum breaks like something Curt Boettcher might’ve written for the Left Banke to perform with Brian Wilson arranging in what would be a hundred psychedelic pop fan’s wet dreams.  Then there’s the whole of Side 2, which starts with a bang – an unexpected British toytown multicolored calliope popsike MASTERPIECE bang called “Magazine Man” that would’ve sounded right at home on any of the old Bam-Caruso RUBBLE compilations and no one would have even considered these cats were really from the West Coast of the USA.  “Take The Blame” follows in a groovy Doors-y light jazz psych vibe with shimmering psych-o-delic haze organ, kinda like a small label kindred spirit to “Blue Sunday.”  And then, near the very end, the Clouds go all-out acid trip mind-melt with the jaw-dropping one-two punch of “At The Head Of The List” and “Dr. Bernstein’s Dream,” the former of which is a positively BRILLIANT acid-drenched shimmering jazz psych synapse-fryer with buzzing fuzz and meandering piano like Rick Wright’s “Remember A Day” recut for an American audience.  It’s a shame really, that a better running order a groovier sleeve coulda made this the sought-after late-night bliss-out psych bomb it SHOULD be, but rest assured HAWKS AND DOVES is a lost classic.  Just stick with it, and good things will come.

PLEASE NOTE I NO LONGER SHIP TO ITALY DUE TO A CORRUPT POSTAL SYSTEM (THERE, NOT HERE).  BUYERS FROM ITALY AGREE TO PAY FOR GLOBAL PRIORITY MAIL INSURED ONLY!

The less exciting stuff

Media mail shipping with delivery confirmation starts at $4.00 in the US, with each additional record only $1 additional shipping.  Overseas shipping has, unfortunately, gone way up in the fast few months, which translates to $15 for the first LP to Canada ($3 each one thereafter) and $24 for the first LP everywhere else in the world, with each add'l LP an extra $5 (so it pays to buy more, nudge nudge wink wink).   I accept payments through Paypal. 

I try to grade as best as I can, and I list as many blemishes/imperfections I can find (writing, ringwear, scuff marks, etc.) – Also, please note that I DO listen to these albums – I may not listen to every track, but my grades are based on LISTENING, not just looking at it, since chances are you’ll be listening to the record you buy, not just looking at it.  Most of the albums I sell are the ones I’ve enjoyed for years – and I treat my records with kid gloves.  But sounds speak louder than words, so check out the sound clips below – they’re from the actual record you’re bidding on. 

SHIPPING AND PACKAGING

Listen, I buy a bunch of records too (when I’m not getting outbid at the last second, which is more often than not) – and I know what it’s like to get a rare, one-of-a-kind album packaged dangerously in a flimsy bubblewrap package.  I hate that too.  So rest assured, I ALWAYS package albums with stiff cardboard reinforcements, same for 45s.  And yes, the records are removed from the sleeves (for albums).  I ship out once a week, every Friday, because I have a regular day job.  But I’d be willing to give that up if you’d all be so kind as to bid my items up to stupidly high amounts. 

 For more security and international tracking, you may request GLOBAL PRIORITY MAIL - but bear in mind the cost of this service is upwards of $30.  For expensive items, however, it may be well worth it.  Unfortunately, there isn’t a cost-effective way of tracking parcels to foreign countries yet, and shipping times vary depending on your country’s postal system.   Italy in particular seems to be really bad at delivering packages quickly, or delivering packages at all, now that you mention it.  I will always email you when your package ships, but once it’s on its way, please don’t ask me when it will arrive because I don’t know.  If the world’s postal systems can ever agree on a universal tracking system that’s affordable, I’ll be the first to use it.

NOW IT’S YOUR TURN…

I will always leave positive feedback for successful transactions, and would appreciate the same in return.  All I ask of you is the following – please pay for your items within 14 days of the close of auction.  Compared to other sellers, that’s a generous amount of time, so if you don’t pay within 2 weeks, then I have to assume something’s wrong.  You’ll get an Ebay payment reminder at that point, and possibly a decapitated horse head in your bed.  If, after 30 days, you still haven’t forked up the cash, I’ll relist the item and yell at you if I ever see you in town.