THE MONKEES - Head - RARE ORIG UK 1969 STEREO LP. THEIR RAREST ALBUM.

	£		26
	$		34

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 arrived damaged in them at some time. More details on my packing 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 ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment to keep things moving – cash-flow is important to 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.

Artist or Band: THE MONKEES

Album Title: Head.

Producer(s): The Monkees and Jerry Goffin.

Album Coordinator: Jack Nicholson (yes THE Jack Nicholson).

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Opening Ceremony; Porpoise Song (Theme from Head); Ditty Diego–War Chant; Circle Sky; Supplicio; Can You Dig It; Gravy.

Side 2: Superstitious; As We Go Along; Dandruff?; Daddy’s Song; Poll; Long Title: Do I Have to Do This All Over Again; Swami–Plus Strings etc.

Label/Format: RCA Victor – original orange format with matt, smooth surfaces.

Label Conditions: Both clean, fresh and attractive examples with only light to a little above light spindle marks which are mainly fine and only seen with angled viewing.

Cat Number: SF 8051.

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: 128 grams. A quite typical weight for this label at this time.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Scarce: a poor seller and largely over-looked, it is the rarest UK Monkees album by far. The last two copies of this I have offered in recent years have been foreign, one from Japan, the other from New Zealand. This my first UK pressing for a long, long time.

Original Year of Release: 1969.

Matrix Nos: WZRS 53891 / WZRS 53890-1

Brief Artist & Album Info: ‘Hey, Hey, We’re The Monkees’ – But not as we know it on this one – until more ‘modern times’, the world’s most famous ‘manufactured’ pop group, which they actually freely-admit on this album. ‘Head’ was a movie, the screenplay was put together by the then B-film actor Jack Nicholson. It was The Monkees’ first full length big screen film after the highly successful TV series – the same success did not follow for this bizarre, arty, psychedelic big screen debut. Critics were divided by it, some thought it a psych masterpiece, others thought a self-indulgent disaster. The album, for me anyway, is a real psychedelic classic with some wonderful songs (and bizarre spaced-out dialogue). This cult album includes arguably their finest ever track, ‘Porpoise Song’ the main theme from the movie, it’s an absolute joy and worth any price alone, but it’s far from the only great song on this somewhat ‘lost’ album. As relatively common as their early albums are, this album is a different matter – this sold poorly and is seldom seen or offered as a UK original. If the early Monkees albums were a little too poppy and ‘manufactured’ for you, this album is very different. I guess it could be compared to The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour, but it was all too much for early Monkees fans who largely ignored it. Sales were already on the decline by the time of this issue anyway and quite honestly this pretty much finished them off completely. Originals are rare and often worn out when found. This very fine UK stereo is a real collector’s piece and great fun it is too.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT: or very close to. A single format with front laminate, this covers all the closed folds and ends on the back via the spine. The back is matt, unprotected with a smooth finish. Printed and made in England by Robert Stace.

Cover Front: Not the most exciting cover front ever made to be fair, but one still in very fine condition. The laminate retains a very fine shine, clarity and freshness with any marks few, fine and faint with hardly any creasing at all. A little fine spine edge lifting shows little on a white backdrop and this vintage front will take a fair amount of beating.

Cover Back: The clearly wear-prone dark back has only gentle handling marks that with normal full-on viewing, hardly even show. No ringwear and largely devoid of creasing. Not easily seen like this being honest.

Top & Bottom Edge: Both smooth with hardly any hint of wear, minor light bowing as laminate tightens and pulls over the years, but little else.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, mostly sharp with little wear and guaranteed untrimmed. Record entered on this edge that only shows a little gentle thickening viewed end-on.

Spine and Text: Quite solid, reasonably straight with a little compression in places. The ends are deeply pinched with that distinctive style in manufacture. A small few fine hairline creases that have darkened a little, so they do show a little more. All text unworn under the solid unpeeled laminate. Just enough light visual ageing to remind of the considerable vintage.

Corners: Small tip rubs that show little again on a very light cover, fine to very fine shape retained.

Cover Summary: Not one seen often and seldom in much better condition. Gentle ageing and minor handling blemishes only, this quite rare cover should please many collectors. This came to be with a plain solid white unlined inner sleeve which is generally clean with no edge splits and just one corner crease.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: NEAR EXCELLENT / EXCELLENT: a few lightly visible fine surface marks and hairlines on side one that have no sound. Very fine whispy surface marks seen under bright angled light that few records this age will avoid almost as a minimum. A very fine visual copy that is clean with fine shine and quite solidly pressed. A copy with modest plays and no penetrating scratches. Visually a splendid and rare record that should please many collectors again.

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 slightly ‘out-there’ psycy album plays even above it’s high visual grading with very little 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 are minimal and a clean pressing, never to be taken for granted on the post-Decca pressed record. The odd sporadic tick is rarely avoided with just the odd one here-and-there. Few copies will outperform this very early pressing significantly I feel sure. Nothing of any real note spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record – my personal favourite by this famous band. Possibly still an under-appreciated and rated album, this bordering on a ‘lost’ psych gem as a UK pressing. Quite a short album, but no time lost, this is great fun. Just a note for my regulars who know my fondness of Frank Zappa: he is credited on the cover as ‘Narrator’, but he is not heard on this album, he just makes a very brief cameo on the movie. This copy could 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 10,000+ items sold in over 12 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] = £4.75

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]) = £12.50 (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]) = £16.50 (£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’.