THE ANIMALS Most of… SCARCE Orig UK 1966 Mono EX++ LP

	£		36
	$		48

ONEADAYRECORDS – Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Artist or Band: THE ANIMALS

Album Title: The Most of the Animals.

Producer(s): Mickie Most.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: We’ve Gotta Get of This Place; Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood; Boom Boom; Baby Let me Take You Home; Bright Lights Big City; I’m Crying; House of the Rising Sun.

Side 2: It’s My Life; Mess Around; Dimples; Bring it on Home to Me; Gonna Send You Back to Walker; I’m Mad Again; Talkin’ ’Bout You.

Label/Format: Columbia – original turquoise and black format with the embossed ‘K T’ tax codes on side two. The ‘K’ has lost a trace of its ink on the lower part of the letter and both remain ultra sharp.

Label Conditions: Both very clean and highly attractive with only very light and faint spindle marks and no wear around the hole area.

Cat Number: SX 6035.

Mode / Speed: Mono / 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: 142 grams. [These days, many modern Audiophile reissues are pressed on super-heavyweight 180 gram vinyl. Only a small percentage of ‘vintage vinyl’ was ever pressed this heavy. Records pressed in the 1960s averaged around 135 to 145 grams. Records pressed in the 1970s were usually lighter and averaged more around 115 – 125 grams. Some records pressed around 1973 were very thin and light due an oil crisis and shortage around this time. Some records were even issued on recycled vinyl from this period and sounded poor with crackle and surface noise evident from the very first play. If any record I buy is deemed ‘recycled’, I will never offer it, I have a very simple test to detect these records if I suspect this to be the case other than audible imperfection. Some records from this period were even pressed on other materials the most notable was ‘Dynaflex’, used by RCA around this time. Although inferior to vinyl, this at least mostly sounded reasonably acceptable but pressings on this material were wafer thin and flimsy. Beyond the 70s, many records often became thinner and lighter still but most played fine but were never quite the quality as from the ‘Golden Era’]. (This was based on ‘average’ weights for 50 records from these eras.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Fairly scarce and much rarer in superb, little played condition.

Original Year of Release: 1966

Matrix Nos: XAX 3040-1 / XAX 3041-1

Mother & Stamper Codes: 1 AO / 1 RO

Original Musicians: Eric Burdon - vocals; Hilton Valentine - guitar; Alan Price - keyboards; Chas Chandler - bass; John Steel - drums.

Brief Info: A superb collection of classic early Animals songs featuring the brilliant vocal talents of Eric Burdon. Brilliant blues-beat with real grit and power, this album features all the classics as can be seen on the track list above. A copy in the most superb condition and mono records rarely get heard with better or cleaner sound than this. A magnificent example and clearly little played and the cover is equally as good too. If only one Animals is wanted in your collection, it simply has to be this one – totally magnificent.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: Quite high.

Cover Grade and Format: EX++ a single format with front laminate that wraps around the closed edges on to three large rear flipbacks. The back has a vintage ‘Harlequin’ sticker applied near the bottom edge. These were commonly seen around this time and once applied, they are near impossible to remove. Most collectors will be more than familiar with them. I never degrade any cover that has original old shop stickers as it’s part of the cover’s history. Printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse Ltd and including the ‘Patents pending’ text.

Lamination & Front: This vintage laminate looks fantastic as does the front in general. Very shiny, ultra clear and fresh and the brilliant early Animals pictures can be truly enjoyed to maximum advantage. All fully adhered with minimal traces of any friction rubs or dulling. Four mildish half moon creases lie near the right edge but these are the only ones that are situated away from the edges and there are the usual fine edge types. The intenseness of the black artwork has to be seen to be b believed and this front really does look magnificent.

Cover Back: The back complements to front superbly with minimal traces of ageing or wear. The main back panel is virtually devoid of any wear and any traces of grubbiness are minuscule. No rubbing or ringwear and still a fine shade of white with no toning or yellowing. I have mentioned the ‘Harlequin’ sticker already above, suffice to say it’s very neat and sensibly, no attempt has been made to remove it. The flipbacks are very neat indeed and are all close to perfect. A tiny rub trace to the top one’s end near the centre being the only tiny (and I do mean TINY) blemish. All neat, and solidly adhered with hardly any creases and very clean indeed with no grime-line formation to the ends. Both front and back will prove immensely difficult to find better.

Top Edge: Unworn

Bottom Edge: Unworn.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Very slight rub traces to the extreme edge on the front which has very slightly thickened and only really noticeable when viewed end-on. Still neat with little wear and no real feathering, the record enters on this vulnerable edge.

Spine and Text: A superb fine that remains pure white. Solid, straight with minimal compression, all text is perfect and unworn under the solid and uncracked laminate, the ends gently tapered in manufacture.

Corners: Very small tip rubs only and all retain fine shape.

Cover Summary: A very strong and highly attractive all round example of this famous 1960’s cover, one that will prove very difficult to find much better. This beautiful item should please most collectors.

The Inner: EX and including the ‘Patents applied for’ text. These were not lined and delicate, the heavy record has just made a very small split on the centre of the bottom edge. Clean with little creasing and very little traces of glue darkening on the seams.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EX++, A superb visual copy that is super clean, shiny, intense black and quite heavily pressed. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence with just a couple of small light surface marks on side one that have no sound at all. How many popular mono records of this vintage will have no blemishes at all, let’s be honesty. We all know what these types were usually subjected too and the states they care seen in today. This is a visually superior 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 snippetts 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 miniscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This fantastic record plays even above its very 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 register and no pops or clicks were noted and this is an exceptional clean pressing. Mono records of this vintage were never really made to be played on clinical stereo systems but when found in such lovely clean conditions, they truly excel. Few copies will match or outperform this early 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 – all the classics will be hard to hear better and sure beat worn-out scratchy singles. 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 with Ittok Mk IV arm and Ortofon Samba Moving Coil cartridge (tracks at 1.8 grams). Amps: Naim Nait 5i with Project USB phono stage and Chord interconnects. Speakers: B&W 704 Floorstanding 3-way Monitors (bi-wired). All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional Moth vacuum machine before play-grading for the cleanest and best possible sound and will include a brand new lined inner and protective cover too.

First-time, zero-rated bidders, who do not ask permission to bid, will be cancelled immediately and blocked – NO exceptions. For winning bidders who I consider excessively slow to make contact or submit payment, I will use my right to block future bids. If any bidder who wins in the final seconds is present to do so, surely they can at least email me to inform of intention and payment method? If swift or promp payment is a problem, please do not bid.

POSTING & PACKING: What You Get: To confirm to the strict Ebay rules on shipping, I must now send ALL my packets out ‘Signed-For’ with NO exceptions. Both buyers and sellers want their packets to have a safer journey and this is no bad thing. Also: any item with a value over £40 will have to be insured as well, but for any item that sells for over £150, I will pay the extra insurance (then the lower shipping price applies).

I now offer the fastest possible posting, mostly the very next day after payment is received or within three days maximum (unless on holiday). All records are posted in professional boxes (NOT mailers) with the record(s) 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 TWO VERY THICK stiffners for even extra protection – these are FOUR TIMES thicker than commercial stiffners and are custom-made for oneadayrecords. Really rare and expensive albums will be Double Boxed. The cover will be placed within a BRAND NEW heavy duty soft protective sleeve and the actual record will be professionally cleaned on my Moth Pro vacuum system to give ultimate clean grooves and playing surfaces and the best possible looks and ultimate sound quality. Printed address labels are used for clarity as well as a sender label. 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. 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 offer probably the best-value and safest shipping possible. I will invoice any winning bidder as soon as possible after the auction ends. My ‘loss’ or ‘damage rate’ is less than 0.1 per percent based on over 4,000+ items sold in over 8 years of Ebay trading and I consider that pretty exceptional. I discount of course of multiple purchases with a maximum of FOUR records per packet. I will not respond to questions on shipping costs as all the details are included in the advert.

NOTE: First Time Bidders: I will cancel ALL first-time bidders with no feedbacks or excessive negatives who do not ask me if its OK to bid first – NO EXCEPTIONS.

Please Note: I will now offer any item to the runner-up after the mandatory Ebay 3 days if no contact is made by the winning bidder unless prior notice of any delay is given beforehand. The same applies if no payment is received within the mandatory 7 days so any bidder who has just lost out can still email me to reserve the item as priority second chance – it’s always worth asking.

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. (Only for items under £40)

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £7 (Compulsory for items over £40).

Posting & Packing: ALL EUROPE & SCANDINAVIA including RUSSIA and nearby countries. (Airmail Only):

1 LP, value less than £40 (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£39 maximum]) = £8.

1 LP, value greater than £40 (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Insurance to Item’s ‘Sold’ Value, [£500 Maximum]) = £11.

Posting & Packing: ALL OVERSEAS (non-European) e.g. USA (any part); Australia; Canada; Japan and other Far East; (Airmail Only: I NEVER use Surface Mail):

1 LP, value less than £40 (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£39 maximum]) = £12.

1 LP, value greater than £40 (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with included Insurance to Item’s ‘Sold’ Value, £500 Maximum) = £15.

For items that sell over £150, I will pay the insurance, so the lower shipping price will apply.

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: Please do not bid if you have negative feedback unless checking first, I will cancel any bids I feel are timewasters. 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 minus the Posting and All Ebay costs as long as the item detail has been read and understood. I will not refund if any defect detail is clearly stated on the advert and missed by the buyer. If any overseas collector does not understand anything in my listing, please email and ask me to help.

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 neccessarily 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’.