TRAFFIC Mr Fantasy RARE ORIG UK 1967 Island Pink EX LP

	£		57
	$		76

Hi, I am Mike, now 50 – yes the big FIVE-O! Old enough to remember the golden era of original, high quality music, bands, artists.

Also records from the 1960s and 70s bought from the shops from new, I have been a music collector and enthusiast for over 37 years now. We all wish we could turn back the clock and buy those wonderful brand new records from the 60s and 70s, but alas, this is not possible; so I always try to offer the finest and most accurately described and graded records I can find. No vinyl/music lover really would choose to buy second-hand, but this is only way now to own these valuable, prized and elusive items now. 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 reader – 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 one hundred percent is exact colour matching for covers - this depends on the lighting at the time and that is out of my control, but I feel sure most items will be very close to the actual real item. 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 Ortophon 520 Mk II cartridge (tracks at 1.75 grams). Amps: Arcam 2 x 125W Pre-Power. 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: I post all my UK items on FRIDAY every week, most will arrive Saturday to make signed-for delivery easier. 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 massively thick stiffners for even extra protection and bubble wrap if deemed necessary. These stiffners are the thickest possible and custom supplied for ‘Oneadayrecords’ – these are NOT commercially available and you will not have seen thicker protection anywhere. 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 as well as ‘Fragile’ tape for that extra professional touch for the packet. 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 NOT surface mail abroad. I never make profit on posting and offer probably the cheapest and safest shipping possible. I will invoice any winning bidder as soon as possible after the auction ends, with the total costs including ‘standard’ or ‘optional extra insurance’ P&P – ALL UK and Russian packets go out non-negotiable Recorded Delivery. My ‘loss’ or ‘damage rate’ is less than 0.1 per percent based on over 3,500+ items sold in over 5 years of Ebay trading (I am now one of most established sellers via Ebay) and I consider that pretty exceptional.

PLEASE NOTE: I will now only send packets to Russia with Recorded Delivery at a cost of £7 per single LP. If this is unacceptable to Russian collectors, please do not bid. I only want my records to arrive safely and this gives packets a better chance to do so. Also ALL UK packets will be sent with either Recorded or Special Delivery as standard (both have to be signed for). All shipping costs and rules can be found after my description. If they are not acceptable, please do not bid.

Album Title: Mr Fantasy.

Producer(s): Jimmy Miller.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Heaven is in Your Mind; Berkshire Poppies; House For Everyone; No Face, No Name and No Number; Dear Mr Fantasy.

Side 2: Dealer; Utterly Simple; Coloured Rain; Hope I Never Find Me There; Giving to You.

Label/Format: Island – Original Pink with ball logo and rough textured finish with very deep ridge and raised block around the hole. (Please see this in detail on my label scans).

Label Conditions: Two beautiful examples of the very rare, first-made stereo version of this famous old label. Both look fantastic with a real pastel pink colour and only very light and faint spindle marks of which there are very few of. No wear around the hole rim and this is still has a snug fit around my Linn spindle. Although this copy has a more worn cover, this in no way reflects in the quality of the record which is truly lovely.

Cat Number: ILPS 9061.

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: 151 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: Getting rare and the first pressed stereo version is the rarest Traffic album. The mono format was still very much the market leader at this time and only a smaller percentage of listeners owned stereo equipment.

Original Year of Release: December 1967

Matrix Nos: ILPS + 9061 + A / ILPS + 9061 + B

Brief Artist & Album Info: Traffic’s stunning psych debut without doubt one of the most sort after albums on the classic progressive Island Pink label. This is an exceptionally difficult album to find these days, copies do turn up but are invariably trashed or played so much the sound quality is badly affected – noisy, scratched with distortion, most often with horrendous covers too. This is a lovely has a superb record which has few marks and plays beautifully. The cover is a very solid VG with most of any traumas on the inner gatefold – both outside faces look nice. Mr Fantasy was released at the height of flower power and is beautifully produced by Jimmy Miller. Traffic were originally the perfect ‘tangerine candy coloured bicycle’ group. Mason’s hippy ditties blended with Winwood’s more ambitious musical aspirations. Although they were given the same title, the US and UK albums had different track-listings. The US version arguably has the edge because it includes the hit singles ‘Hole in My Shoe’ and ‘Paper Sun’ as well as ‘Smiling Phases’, which was covered by Blood Sweat and Tears. The UK version (as per this) has ‘Utterly Simple’ and ‘Hope I Never Find Me There’ in their place. Thank goodness both versions included the magnificent title track with the definitive Winwood guitar solo (or was it Mason?), a breathtaking moment on a stunning album. Of course both versions are absolutely essential, the UK album peaked at 8 and the US album surprisingly only made 88. A wonderful landmark debut, issued in the greatest year in rock, the summer of love 1967 - this remains one of the greatest from that amazing year. An album always featuring high in any all time greats lists whether compiled by critics or the record buying public and justifiably so. This album is special, very special and finding the ultimate first pressed stereo version this good is highly unusual, I hope the winning bidder enjoys it as much as I did.

Musicians: Steve Winwood - organ, guitar, bass, piano, harpsichord, percussion and vocals; Jim Capaldi - drums, percussion and vocals; Chris Wood - Flute, saxophone, organ and vocals; Dave Mason - guitar, mellotron, sitar, tambura, shakkai, bass and vocals.

Cover Condition and Details: VG – the front and back outside faces being actually better than this. The main trauma lies on the inside right edge which has pulled or rubbed. Not in any huge way but around a third of an inch in near the centre area for around a couple inches. I don’t know the history of this copy so I cannot really speculate what happened and any opinion would simply be guesswork, so I won’t even try. I prefer to explain what the cover actually appears like now. This is another one of rock’s classic sleeves that does not wear well and most are found very tatty and often with significantly more damage than this one. A gatefold format with front and back laminate, the front is only single thickness and these are horribly prone to substantial creasing and even tears. The inner gatefold has two large flipbacks on the right face at the top and bottom. This was printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse. Yes the imprint is there, but hidden inside the inner entrance area.

Lamination: Front & Back Actually still in very nice condition and retaining a fine shine and clarity. Minimal friction rubs and very little dulling, any present being a record impression on the back. Practically all solidly adhered with just one small lift on the front left edge just below centre, a real bonus on this one as many have enormous blisters that are often cracked – we have all seen them on this and similar covers. There is some light creasing but this is largely absorbed for visibility by the cover’s incredible intensely coloured artwork which still looks fantastic both sides – you can almost feel the heat from that open-grate fire. There is a very small surface tear on the back top right corner area and a tiny edge split on the front top edge as well as a little burring near the left corner – all very minor imperfections on a highly intolerant cover – few will worry about these minor blemishes I feel. .

Cover Inner Gatefold: The right edge central area is rubbed as I have mentioned above, also a very small surface pull to the top left edge near the left corner – this is very minor. That is pretty much all the damage. The flipbacks are very sound with only a little mild toning on the top. The record is stored via the inside spine area hence a little split top and bottom of the spine with a trace of mild erosion is not unusual to say the least. Overall, and unusually the spine is solid and strong and few will ever be found with no wear to the very ends. A few light marks and surface creases but overall this inner is more than reasonable. If the relatively small rubbing on the right edge can be lived-with, this is a more than respectable example of a very vulnerable cover.

Top Edges: The back edge has little wear at all, the thin, fragile front has a tiny split as mentioned above and only minimal traces of any burring or thickening.

Bottom Edges: Both bottom edges are in very find condition given all the facts and format.

Right Edge(s), and Type: The closed back edge has rubbed in places but not in an unsightly way. The front edge is still very neat and quite sharp, protected by the usual spine compression which has drawn it to the right a little – try to find one where this has not happened.

Spine and Text: A spine with a near impossible task of supporting this cover and this one has taken a little wear, mostly to the very top and bottom, note the weight of this record inside for over 40 years, hardly any will not have some minor split on the entrance area and in real terms this is very small indeed - even dare I say, tiny. There is just one other chip near the bottom corner and that apart, little other wear at all. Still quite straight and as far as these go, solid. It has compressed from right to left so the right edge has pulled over a little but not to any major degree in context. This fragile spine has retained all its laminate and importantly, ALL text that is unworn and with the rarer original stereo.

Corners: The spine top has a very small split but any erosion is very small and light. The other corners are – probably surprisingly – in highly respectable conditions with any wear very modest and even retaining very decent shape and definition.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: The cover may show some modest wear and minor damage but the record remains exceptional. Side one is a fraction below EX visually with a mild surface scuff with NO sound whatsoever and a few few light surface marks, all superficial and only visible under light. Side two is a little above EX, similar to side one but with no scuff. An overall grading of EX I think is very appropriate and this is a lovely copy. There are no what I deem proper deep needle scratches on this record which remains super clean with fine shine, jet black and very heavily pressed. The deep grooves allow for deep penetration by modern stylii and all the surface marks are simply ignored. A different story on later pressed thinner records as we all know. The grooves are totally unworn with all their vital information fully intact and clean sounding. I feel certain this vintage mono record has only received very modest plays reitterated by superb clean sound and it still visually pleases. It will please many collectors but not quite the perfectionists of course. Very few people would leave this copy in the racks at record fairs, just compare to other classics of this era, this will blow most away.

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 truly magnificent record plays even above its high visual grading with practically 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. I still prefer the stereo mix on psych-type albums where the stereo separation is important for the maximum effect of this sound. My only minor concern was with the small scuff on side one, but shouldn’t have worried, any fears this might possibly sound were soon erased with my play-grade which proved to be a delight and even exceeded my expectations. The very light spindle marks gave good clues to lack of plays and although this is never definitive, it’s always a fair indicator. Any surface sounds are minimal indeed and no major pops or clicks were noted and this is an exceptional clean pressing for a fairly challenging album. Few copies will match or outperform this earliest stereo pressing significantly I feel sure. Being totally honest, this I feel is the very best ‘Mr Fantasy’ original I have ever heard, they don’t come along too often of course but this is one I will certainly remember. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record, still a landmark recording of one of the UK’s finest bands. This copy will prove very difficult to find significantly better on the original label and can be strongly recommended to most collectors.

Final Summary: One of most essential classic stereo albums ever made. Blending pop, rock, psychedelia, jazz, folk and R&B this sublime work is Traffic at their very best. Here a quartet Mason’s early influence with his love of exotic sounds and instruments was huge, this fantastic first pressed record captures it all. The earliest stereo examples of this evergreen masterwork simply hardly show up these days. A blemished cover, sure, at this great age I feel it’s earned the right to have a few minor imperfections, but little more than that in context. The record is wonderful and the sound is fantastic and one I feel sure will please many collectors, if perfection is demanded, keep looking and saving. I feel most will enjoy this one.

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 & OPTIONS:

Posting & Packing: UK & CHANNEL ISLANDS all now sent Recorded Delivery:

1 LP (First Class Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = £4 (OPTIONAL).

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £7 (OPTIONAL).

Posting & Packing: EUROPE & SCANDINAVIA (NOT RUSSIA, see below) (Airmail Only):

1 LP (Small Packet Standard with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) = £5.

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with included Insurance to Item’s ‘Sold’ Value, £500* Maximum) = £9 (OPTIONAL).

Posting & Packing: RUSSIA (Recorded Only, if this is unacceptable, please do not bid):

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ only £7) = £9 (OPTIONAL extra insurance as above).

Posting & Packing: OVERSEAS (non-European) e.g. US; Australia; Far East; (Airmail Only: I NEVER use Surface Mail):

1 LP (Small Packet Standard with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) = £8.

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with included Insurance to Item’s ‘Sold’ Value, £500* Maximum) = £13 (OPTIONAL).

* If Rules allow for that country.

PLEASE NOTE: I always get a Royal Mail ‘Proof-of-Posting’ receipt for ALL packets that are sent out and I am happy to prove this to any customer who wishes to see it via email.

Payment Conditions:

I prefer PayPal or cheque from UK winning bidders. I can accept PayPal from overseas bidders.

The customer can choose their method of shipping with the exception of second class or surface mail overseas – these I will NOT use. The winner bidder chooses his/her posting method and if uninsured is chosen, its their decision and they have to stick with it, I can accept no responsibility if an item is lost in the post. I can only try to claim at standard levels if no enhancement is chosen (£35).

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’.