THE CRAZY WORLD OF ARTHUR BROWN - SCARCE ORIG UK 1968 STEREO EX++ LP. inc 'FIRE'

	£		120
	$		158

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World in Quality, Safe Packing.

Postage: UK £4.75 (£1 per extra record). Europe (including Russia) £12.50 (£2 per extra record). Rest of World (including ALL parts of the USA) £16.50 (£3 per extra record). All boxes signed for in quality, safe packaging – I NEVER use mailing envelopes that offer virtually no protection at all – in fact I think these things should be banned as records WILL arrive damaged in them at some time. Here, you get what you pay for – SAFE PACKING in BOXES using 7mm DOUBLE-WALL STIFFENERS. Full details nearer the end of the listing.

Posting to Russia: Yes, I do post to Russia. But delivery can take up to 4 to 6 weeks from the UK. So please be patient. I will submit a tracking number to the winning bidder, and when the packet arrives there it can be followed online using the Russian post website.

ALSO: I now apply the Ebay ‘2-day’ rule for non-payment to keep things moving – cash-flow is important for any small business. I will always keep my P&P prices as low as possible, and even after yet another Royal Mail price hike from April this year, I have NOT raised my prices and will never compromise on solid, safe packing that is invariably heavier than most you will get. My P&P offers probably the best value-for-money for vinyl records available, and I even will pay for full insurance on any record that sells for over £100 at NO extra cost – that is UK and abroad. Also I aim to post the very same day after payment is received. You WILL see the difference when my packet arrives.

FINALLY: Late payers, non-payers and ‘0’ bidders will now be blocked or cancelled at my discretion. As will any bidder who cancels a bid. I do not like this practice as it is most often used to phish out the price to beat. Ebay does not approve and neither do I – so only bid on my items if you want them.

Artist or Band: THE CRAZY WORLD OF ARTHUR BROWN

Album Title: The Crazy World of Arthur Brown

Producer: Kit Lambert

Executive Producer: Pete Townshend

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Prelude–Nightmare; Fanfare–Fire Poem; Fire; Come and Buy; Confusion.

Side 2: I Put a Spell on You; Spontaneous Apple Creation; Rest Cure; Money; Child of My Kingdom.

Label/Format: Track – intense black with original matt and gently textured surfaces.

Label Conditions: Both in fantastic condition: very clean, fresh and attractive, any spindle traces are fine and faint – very few at all. An amazing copy without doubt lightly played and then with due care, this reiterated by superb, clean sound on this most complex of albums.

Cat Number: 613005

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: 140 grams. Impressive weight and above average.

Rarity: Scarce: stereo copies seem more elusive than the mono version and this little played copy is a super example with sound to match.

Original Year of Release: 1968

Matrix Nos: 613005 A 1 1 5 2 / 613005 B 1 1 3

Musicians: Arthur Brown – vocals; Vincent Crane – keyboards; Sean Nicholas – bass guitar; Drachen Theaker – drums.

Album Information: A progressive-psych classic and featuring one of the UK’s wildest and most eccentric performers, this unique debut features the classic single Fire. For those around at the time, who could forget Brown’s performance on ‘Top of the Pops’ back in those mind-bending days of the late 1960s? On came this dervish man coated in face paint and bellowing ‘I AM THE GOD OF HELL FIRE, AND I BRING YOU, FIRE!’ while his famous headpiece blazed away - this guy was always ahead of his time, it must have caused some mild panic in case he burned the studio down. He soon gained a cult following in the UK underground rock scene. This famous debut features Vince Crane, latterly of Atomic Rooster and note the executive producer, a certain Pete Townshend of The Who. This copy on offer is the scarcer stereo version and includes a very clean record and cover. The sleeve being very hard to find even in respectable conditions, always being prone to heavy creasing and laminate problems with lifting and poor adhesion often rife. The silver and black back always wears very badly unless kept very carefully, ringwear often grinds into this one. This one has little to fault and has survived the years well. The record is equally difficult to find that plays well, the intense sound and vocals often the victim of old heavy-tracking and worn stylus from yesteryear, resulting in crackle and distortion. The sound is equally impressive and is devoid of the issues this intensely recorded album often suffers. This vintage one-off classic will prove very difficult to find better.

Cover Condition and Details: EXCELLENT(+): a single format with a laminated front that wraps around all the closed edges and on to the back via the spine. One of the true psych classic covers, my photographis not out of focus, it was intentionally made blurred for effect. A notoriously difficult cover to find in anything like attractive condition. Printed and made in England by Polydor and includes a polylined inner sleeve.

Cover Front & Lamination: The zany colourful artwork is massively attractive and shows little real wear other than a few gentle surface creases. It retains excellent shine, freshness and clarity with only gentle traces of dulling seen under angled light. One of the very few I have seen without lifting, also this has overall fine adhesion. Viewed normally full-on, this looks fantastic, the graphic with deep colour and hardly aged at all. Just the fine exposed strip on the right where the laminate ends has a little grubbiness.

Cover Back: Totally uncompromising with silver colour ink that is exposed with no protection. Hence most are seen rife with fingermarks and ugly penetrating ring wear. This has very little to fault and looks very impressive. Any marks, creases or blemishes to the unforgiving surface are few, gentle and mainly light. Clean, fresh with no ringwear which is immensely difficult to find. Given all the facts, both sides will take a fair degree of beating.

Top Edge: Straight, crisp and neat with no scuffs or chips.

Bottom Edge: Largely as above with just a little thickening to the end panel nearer the right corner.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, mainly sharp with minimal traces of any wear and guaranteed untrimmed. Any thickening or burring light as viewed end-on, this cover made with very thin card. Record enters on this edge.

Spine and Text: Solid, mainly straight with any compression light. The ends taper in manufacture. All the text is unworn and fully present as seen under solid and unpeeled, mostly still smooth laminate. This being well centred on quite a limited depth.

Corners: Hardly any tip rubbing or wear, no knocks, so minimal hints of any tip creasing. Very fine or better shape being retained.

Cover Summary: An impressive example of a fragile and deceptively difficult sleeve. One I have seen a fair number of times, and most do not even come close to this. It tolerates rough handling and poor storage badly, and only the most lightly handled examples had any chance. This one could even prove a significant upgrade for some and will please many collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT(++): with little to fault bar a little darkening of the seam adhesive mostly near the top entrance. The Polydor-style polylined inner has largely avoided creasing and has a clear window seen through two immaculate window circles. All edges unsplit with no repairs. This is date-coded 1/069 – so printed in 1969.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(++): very clean with excellent shine and very solidly pressed. Any surface marks very fine and faint as seen under bright angled light, there are no penetrating stylus scratches at all. This appears very gently played and offers fantastic clean sound – never to be taken for granted on this challenging recording. A super copy to please many, if not most collectors, like the cover, this could also prove a major upgrade for many.

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 psych classic plays even above it’s high visual grading with barely anything to fault. Offering 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 are minimal indeed and this is an exceptional clean pressing with no tracking issues*. Few copies will 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 generally well stored and carefully handled, almost certainly in a non-smoking environment. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record, this is always a difficult one, many ruined by overplaying on the most basic of record players of the time, this simply has not happened on this copy which I am certain has hardly been used. It will prove very difficult to find significantly better and can be strongly recommended.

* As played-graded on a high-end Linn LP12 Sondek turntable with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Quintet Black moving coil cartridge tracking at 2.2 grams.

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 as I Play-Grade every record I offer in their entirety – also on higher-end equipment – 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 it’s 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. Room light factors can make things vary sometimes, that is hard to control, especially in winter. 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 Quintet Black moving coil cartridge (tracks at 2.2 grams). Amps: Naim Supernait 2 with Project USB phono stage and Tellerium Black interconnects. Speakers: B&W 704 Floorstanding 3-way Monitors (bi-wired with Tellurium 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, better quality packaging costs, I offer probably the best-value and safest shipping possible for ultimate confidence. The boxes and ultra thick double-wall stiffeners 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 minuscule in over 14 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. Oneadayrecords is a MAILER-FREE ZONE – they offer next-to-no-protection, and should be banned, no ‘professional’ should consider using them in my opinion. 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 TWO days if no payment is received. I will then cancel the dispute to end the bid, 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 as will any suspicious bids or bid withdrawals. 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] = £4.75

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £7.50. (this includes insurance of £500). Add £1 per extra LP.

Posting & Packing: EUROPE & SCANDINAVIA. (Airmail Only):

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£50 maximum]) = £12.50 (enhanced Royal Mail insurance is an optional extra £3). Add £2 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]) = £16.50 (£17.50 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’.