STEELY DAN Countdown to Ecstasy SUPERB UK Copy & Sound.

	£		39
	$		52

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Postage: UK £4.25. Europe (including Russia) £12. Rest of World £16. ALL signed for in quality, safe packaging – I NEVER use mailing envelopes.

PLEASE NOTE: Overseas packets that go through the customs system, can take up to 4 to 6 weeks to process and deliver, this IS normal. For Russia, this can take even longer and is out of my control, so please be patient.

ALSO: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment. I try to keep my P&P prices as low as possible and will never compromise on solid, safe packing that is invariably a little heavier.

Artist or Band: STEELY DAN

Album Title: Countdown to Ecstasy.

Producer(s): Gary Katz.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Bodhisattva; Razor Boy; The Boston Rag; Your Gold Teeth.

Side 2: Show Biz Kids; My Old School; Pearl of the Quarter; King of the World.

Label/Format: ABC (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and attractive with possibly one spindle mark on side one.

Cat Number: ABCL 5034.

Mode / Speed: Stereo / 33.3 rpm.

Warps: Assume all records I offer have no warping of any significance and all tracking is easy and effortless and should play on all turntables and even ‘budget’ decks.

Weight of this Record: 105 grams. Quite light, but sounds fantastic.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Moderate. Initially issued on Probe, this a slightly later pressing, but a really good one.

Original Year of Release: 1973

Matrix Nos: ABCL 5034 A-1 / ABCL 5034 B-1 [both punched with error corrections struck out]

Musicians: Donald Fagen - acoustic and electric pianos, synthesiser, lead vocals; Walter Becker - electric bass, harmonica, background vocals; Denny Dias - electric guitar; Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter - electric and pedal steel guitars; Jim Hodder - drums, percussion, background vocals. Others: Ray Brown - string bass, Ben Benay - acoustic guitar, Rick Derringer - slide guitar, Victor Feldman - vibraphone, marimba, percussion, Ernie Watts - saxophone, Johnny Rotella - saxophone, Lanny Morgan - saxophone, Bill Perkins - saxophone. Backing vocals: Sherlie Matthews, Myrna Matthews, Patricia Hall, David Palmer, Royce Jones, James Rolleston, Michael Fennelly.

Brief Info: The second Steely Dan album, and following the classic debut was never going to be easy. But ‘Countdown’ more than pulls it off and was issued to strong reviews and sold fairly well. Eight beautifully crafted songs with fantastic production, sound and detail – Fagen and Becker were clearly sound perfectionists and their albums have always been hi-fi favourites to testing equipment. This slightly later British pressings is superb, barely played and with immaculate sound. This still have the thin, flimsy textured Garrod & Lofthouse cover which is in unusually excellent condition. One that wear badly and often seen torn and split with heavy ring wear – this has little to fault at all and has an immaculate spine. For fans of this band, most will be delighted with this.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(++): a single unlaminated format with matt textured surfaces. Made with very thin flimsey card, printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse.

Cover Front: The odd tiny tip crease and the merest hint of record impression viewed right up close. But few will ever avoid this as a bare minimum and this front will take some beating. Love those strange characters on the artwork too.

Cover Back: The classic Steely Dan studio picture – the band still including Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter on guitar at this time, seen here with his feet up. A little gentle surface creasing shows little, this apart, nothing else to fault and the lack of rubbing to this darker side on this finely textured card is somewhat unusual – but most welcome.

Top & Bottom Edges: Barely any hint of wear to either, both straight too.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, mostly sharp with minimal tracs of any wear, any thickening or burring tiny, little and faint as seen viewed end-on. Record enters on this edge that is guaranteed untrimmed.

Spine and Text: Solid, but thin, straight with any compression quite light. All text is perfect and unworn and this remarkably well centred on a very narrow depth.

Corners: The odd tiny tip crease but the lack of rubbing to such fragile corners is a bonus. All retain very fine to excellent shape.

Cover Summary: A very strong all-round example of this very fragile and delicate cover, one that will prove very difficult to find much better. This highly attractive item should please many, if not most collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: PRACTICALLY MINT: a single solid unlined white inner that has barely aged at all with no creasing or edge splits (and repair-free). Such clean inners are always a great indictor the record has been used little.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(++): and as close to my full Mint(-) grading without actually grading as such. A superb visual copy that is very clean, shiny, intense black and quite solidly pressed. A copy hardly even played on all the evidence with any surface trace marks minuscule as seen with utmost scrutiny under bright angled light. 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 minuscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This wonderful record plays up to it’s high visual grading with nothing to fault. Strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Any surface sounds barely even registered and no pops or clicks were noted and this is an exceptional clean pressing. Few copies will outperform this quality ABC pressing significantly I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I am certain this record has been played very lightly and has been clearly well stored and carefully handled, almost certainly in a non-smoking environment. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record, one of my absolute favourites from this highly regarded US band. This copy will prove very difficult to find significantly better and can be strongly recommended.

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 Terrarium Black 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.

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 8,000+ items sold in over 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 2 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). All postage costs are below and at the top of the listing.

NOTE: First Time Bidders: Please ask me first.

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.

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] = £4.25

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £8. (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 [£50 maximum]) = £12 (enhanced 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 [£50 maximum]) = £16 (£17 for double sets). Add £3 per extra LP. (enhanced 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: 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’.