SAM COOKE- Mr. Soul Mono rare 1963 Long Play 33 1/3 Deep Groove PROMO NEAR MINT

$

75

              PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AT MY OTHER eBAY SOUL, FUNK AND HIP-HOP              AUCTIONS                                         

SAM COOKE -  "Mr. Soul" in mono on RCA Victor LPM-2673.  Stunning copy, I don't see a mark on this record; deep groove pressings were rare in 1963 and this is a promo (not a white label promo) but there is a stamp on the back that says "Not For Sale, Promotional Use Only".   Comes with original grey RCA inner sleeve too.

NOTE:  When interpreting record grades, please read my standards and definitions below. Some sellers are overly conservative graders, some just the opposite.  Some sellers nail it. I try to be conservative. Records are generally not play-graded unless it's stated that they are. I have a no hassle return policy as long as I'm notified within 2 weeks of your receipt. Please message me through eBay before filing a claim with them. In almost all cases, I'm able to work things out with the buyer, either through a full refund upon return or a partial credit. I have good feedback and have been selling on eBay for almost 20 years.

DISC GRADE:  Near Mint

SLEEVE GRADE:  Near Mint Minus

LABELS:  Black and silver, "Long Play 33 1/3" on the bottom of the labels.

Tracklist 

Companies, etc.

• Recorded At – RCA Victor's Music Center Of The World

Credits

• Engineer – Dave Hassinger
• Liner Notes, Producer – Hugo & Luigi
• Orchestrated By, Arranged By – Horace Ott

ABOUT THE ALBUM:

AllMusic Review by Bruce Eder  [-]

Sam Cooke released two albums in 1963, and the second, Night Beat, is often cited as the best of all his long-players. But the first, Mr. Soul, shouldn't be ignored, despite some flaws in its conception and execution. At the time, the powers-that-were at RCA Victor didn't know which audience to aim for with Cooke's albums. LPs were seldom huge sellers among teenage listeners, so the notion of trying to connect to an adult audience -- à la Nat King Cole -- probably seemed logical, and Mr. Soul suffered somewhat from this uncertainty of purpose and audience; it is a soul album, to be sure, but by the standards of the time a somewhat tentative one in many spots. Unlike Night Beat, which was an exercise in production restraint, Mr. Soul is over-produced and relies too much on strings where they aren't needed and choruses that are overdone, even when they work. But Cooke rises above all of it, and turns even some of the more questionably arranged songs, such as "Send Me Some Lovin'," into mini-masterpieces. A couple of tracks off of this album, "(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons" and "Nothing Can Change This Love," were part of Cooke's live repertoire at the time and have, indeed, found a separate life on various compilations, but the rest was unavailable for over 45 years, until Sony/BMG re-released most of Cooke's RCA library. The best of that rest -- which is most of it -- shows him still rising to the peak of his powers, his voice wrapping itself around lyrics and melodies that might seem too familiar ("Cry Me a River," etc.) and bland, and making them much more significant and powerful than they seemingly have a right to be. The strings are overworked at times, but where they are held back, as on "Little Girl," their presence only adds to the impact of the track -- and elsewhere, Cooke quietly overpowers them. Modern listeners should bear in mind that, as a soul album, this is a fairly laid-back record -- those expecting anything like the exuberance of Otis Redding, or Clyde McPhatter or Ben E. King, may be disappointed at first; Cooke does work up a sweat on various parts and phrases, but a lot of what is here, by virtue of the label's wishes for a crossover record, is what might be terms "cool" soul -- smooth and sometimes bluesy, in a low-key way, quietly emotive on numbers such as "These Foolish Things," with the hot moments in special abundance on numbers like "Chains of Love" and "Send Me Some Lovin'." But even in these cool, restrained settings, Cooke's was still one of the finest voices of his century, and worth taking in for every breath and nuance.

All records are carefully graded. In an attempt to give customers an accurate impression of condition rather than adhere to somewhat arbitrary criteria, I give an "overall presentation" grade, supplemented when necessary with additional remarks. Please refer to my grading system below for a more detailed explanation.

MY GRADING SYSTEMS: I?ve been told that I grade conservatively. My NM (near mint) is my highest grade for opened records (which would also include unplayed records). It?s a 9 or 10 on a 1-10 scale. M- would be equivalent to an 8; VG++ to a 7; VG+ to a 6; VG to a 5; VG- to a 4; G to a 3; F to a 2 and P to a 1. The same scale applies when I grade covers (jackets). Significant defects are specifically noted and taken into consideration in the grade.

GRADING DESCRIPTIONS

• GRADING is based on the following criteria
• Sealed = store stock new
• Near Mint = like new or near new with only one or two small insignificant defects, a 9 or better on a 1-10 scale
• Near Mint Minus (or NM-) = very nice. Would be Near Mint, except for a couple of light hairlines or scuffs, which do not affect play
• VG++ = still a very nice record with all or nearly all of its original gloss but may have a few more light, surface marks, hairlines, needle tracks or the like which should not materially effect play
• VG+ = a nice, but used record that may have a series of light scuffs or scratches. It probably plays with a few pops, but has no serious problems.
• VG = a well-used record that still should sound OK when played, but may have moderate surface noise, pops, etc.
• VG- = a well-worn record that plays through without skipping, but will do until a better copy comes along.
• Good = not actually good at all but probably will play through but with much in the way of surface noise, pops, crackles, etc. Still, will have no cracks, chips, serious warps that affect play or the like
• Fair = you're getting this record just to own but not to play
• Poor = the sky's the limit, generally I will discard a record this bad (and sell the cover, jacket or sleeve alone) unless the label holds some particular interest

  VISUAL GRADING: All records are visually graded only unless I state that they are play-graded. Some major labels were pressed on better quality vinyl and will sound better than a record which visually appears the same on "budget" labels which were pressed on lower quality vinyl. Recording techniques also varied. The sound on live albums may be far inferior to studio recordings. There may also be defects in the pressing which are invisible. The point is that an album on a high quality label that was visually graded VG+ may sound better than an album on a budget label that was visually graded Mint- or even Near Mint. Please refer to my return policy, below. But please don?t be shocked if a record visually graded Near Mint doesn?t sound state of the art. If I base my grade on a PLAY GRADE, I will state this specifically in my grading section.

  COVERS: There are really too many possible defects regarding covers to be as specific in my definitions as I had been with my record grades. But please keep in mind these general grading guidelines:

  • I will give greater weight to the condition of the front cover than back cover when assigning an overall grade
  • No cover with a cut out hole or saw mark will be graded Near Mint even if it is still in factory shrink and there is no other wear
  • I will not reduce the grade of a cover for stickers which are glued to the jacket by the record company (eg. Contains the hit song Expressway to Your Heart); but will reduce the grade for stickers glued on the cover by stores, previous owners, etc.
  • If I write that a cover has a bb hole, I'm talking about a small cut out hole
  • A saw mark is a narrow cut in the perimeter of the cover, could be anywhere and vary in length from 1/2 inch to 2 inches at the most.
  • The overall grade takes into consideration any stated defects. For example, if I grade a cover VG+ and then state it has 6 inch top and bottom seam splits - I've already reduced the grade because of the seam splits. If the seams weren't split, the cover would be graded higher such as VG++ or Mint-.

    Shipping Costs: CURRENT SHIPPING RATES AND POLICIES.

    The winning bidder pays for shipping.

    DOMESTIC SHIPPING WITHIN THE UNITED STATES: Due to increase in postage rates, I have sometimes been losing money on shipping as I send all records in sturdy professional Bags Unlimited mailers with one or more fillers. Therefore, I am now using the eBay postage calculator to determine postage. This will also result in a more equitable charge for priority mail shipments. Instead of a flat fee, those who live in the southeast and mid-east will reap the benefit of reduced priority mail rates. However, most U.S. buyers select MEDIA RATE for substantial savings on shipping costs.
    

    DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL SHIPMENTS: COMBINED SHIPPING - Save money when I mail 2 or more records in the same package. Please wait until I send you an invoice or request an invoice when combining two or more records or cd's in one shipment -prior to making payment.

    INTERNATIONAL SHIPMENTS: Overseas customers are invited to bid. As with U.S. shipments, I will use eBay's postage calculator for all overseas shipments. Postage to Canada is substantially less than to other countries - if you live in Canada and don't see a separate rate for Canada , please e-mail me and I'll modify the invoice to reflect the lower shipping charges. Surface mail is no longer available for overseas. Express Mail International and Priority Mail International are available - rates are substantially higher than first class international and will be quoted for each purchase if buyer requests this service. First class priority international or first class express international is now required for purchases over $100 AS I REQUIRE TRACKING FOR HIGH END PURCHASES. Generally, Priority International costs $55 for 1 album and additional albums are about $5-6 more. Add about another $10 for express mail service. eBay calculates the shipping costs.  I am sorry but the increased risks and costs must be passed on to the international buyer. On the bright side of things, Express Mail International will get you the package faster and it is safer.  Please wait until I send you an invoice or request an invoice when combining two or more records or cd's in one shipment -prior to making payment.

    Please check out my other eBay auctions and stores listings.

    I've been listing all types of records - mostly LP's - including 50?s and 60?s rock and roll, country, folk jazz, blues, personalities, new wave and punk, surf, psych, spoken word, comedy, etc., etc....... I try to list unusual, unique or obscure records, not the ones that you see all the time. While a majority of my listings are albums, you?ll often find a nice selection of 45?s, EP?s or picture sleeves...and an occasional 78 or two.

    My return policy: . You may return an item if it's not in the condition described. You may not return items just because you don't like the music. In addition, the item must be returned in its original condition , i.e. the way it was shipped when it left my hands. While a very high percentage of my records arrive safe and sound (I use professional mailers and a filler or two, more for 78?s), they occasionally are damaged in transit. If that happens, I won't accept the return of the record or other item.

    Sealed Records: After a sealed record is paid for, I will gladly open it before mailing to make sure that the record is new & unplayed. If the record is not, I will give a full refund. Even though it is easy to spot most resealed records from the 50's and 60's [I will mention that in the desription if it looks like a possibility], not all records from the 70's & 80's are quite as obvious. Please ask for any details about the seal of a particular record & I will be happy to answer.