Traffic SHOOT OUT AT THE FANTASY FACTORY Superb

	£		22
	$		29

A BREAKDOWN OF THE ARTIST/S :-

Formed in 1967, this stellar UK band comprised Steve Winwood (Born 12 May 1948, Birmingham, England; keyboards, guitar/bass/vocals), Chris Wood (Born 24 June 1944, Birmingham, England, d. 12 July 1983; saxophone/flute), Jim Capaldi (Born 24 August 1944, Evesham, Worcestershire, England; drums/percussion/vocals) and Dave Mason (Born 10 May 1945, Worcester, England; guitar/vocals). Winwood had conceived, plotted and formed Traffic just prior to his departure from the Spencer Davis Group. Traffic were archetypes of psychedelic Britain in 1967 in dress, attitude and music. They were the originators of the "getting it together in the country cottage" syndrome, which found so many followers. Their potpourri of musical styles was innovative and daring, created in the communal atmosphere of their cottage in Berkshire. Their first single, "Paper Sun", with its infectious sitar opening was an instant hit, closely followed by "Hole In My Shoe" (parodied in a 1984 number 2 UK hit by Neil the hippie, from BBC Television's The Young Ones) and the film theme "Here We Go Round The Mulberry Bush". Mason left at the end of an eventful year, just as the first album, Mr. Fantasy was released. From then on Traffic ceased to be a singles band, and built up a large following, especially in the USA.

Their second album, Traffic, showed refinement and progression. Dave Mason had returned briefly and two of his songs were particularly memorable, "You Can All Join In" and "Feelin' Alright" (later covered by Joe Cocker). In "Who Knows What Tomorrow May Bring?", Winwood sings, "We are not like all the rest, you can see us any day of the week, come around, sit down, take a sniff, fall asleep, baby you don't have to speak". This lyric perfectly encapsulated the hippie lifestyle of the late 60s. Another outstanding song, "Forty Thousand Headmen" combined a lyrical tale of pure fantasy with lilting flute and jazz tempo. Last Exit was a fragmented affair and during its recording Mason departed once more. The second side consisted of just two tracks recorded live with the band as a trio. Winwood bravely attempted to hold the ensemble together by singing and playing Hammond organ in addition to using the bass pedals to compensate for the lack of a bass guitar. At this point the band disintegrated leaving Winwood to wander into Blind Faith. The others teamed up once again with Dave Mason to form the short-lived Mason, Capaldi, Wood and Frog. The Frog was Mick Weaver (aka Wynder K. Frog). Neither band lasted; the former made one highly successful album and the latter were never committed to vinyl.

Following a brief spell as a member of Ginger Baker's Airforce, Winwood embarked on a solo project, to be called Mad Shadows. He enlisted the help of Wood and Capaldi, and to the delight of the music press this became Traffic once again. The resulting album was the well-received John Barleycorn Must Die. Rick Grech, formerly of Family, Blind Faith and Airforce, also joined the band. In 1971 Welcome To The Canteen appeared with Dave Mason rejoining for a third time. This disappointing live album contained an overlong version of "Gimme Some Lovin'" from Winwood's days in the Spencer Davis Group. Ironically it was Mason who shone, with two tracks from his superb Alone Together album. Drummer Jim Gordon (from Derek And The Dominos) and Reebop Kwaku Baah (Born 1944, Lagos, Nigeria; d. 1982) joined in 1971, allowing Capaldi to take the role as frontman. The excellent The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys (1971) was followed by Shoot Out At The Fantasy Factory in 1973. The latter saw the substitution of David Hood and Roger Hawkins for Grech and Gordon. Both albums achieved gold status in the USA. Throughout their turbulent career Traffic were never able to reproduce their inventive arrangements on stage. Witnesses would concur that Traffic were erratic when playing live. This trait was highlighted on their penultimate album, On The Road. The final Traffic album was When The Eagle Flies in 1974, another fine collection with Rosko Gee on bass and "Gentleman" Jim Capaldi back behind the drum kit.

Traffic did not so much break up as fizzle out, although they did record together again when Capaldi became involved on Winwood's later solo work. Traffic had already left an indelible mark as creators of inventive and sometimes glorious music and it was a delight that 20 years after they dissolved, the name was born again with Capaldi and Winwood attempting to recreate their unique sound. The album Far From Home was warmly rather than ecstatically received and they followed it with a major tour of the USA supporting the Grateful Dead and then a short European tour. The album was a true joint effort, but the strong structured soul sound of the record erred towards a Winwood solo outing rather than the wandering and ethereal beauty of Traffic. Outstanding tracks include the funky "Here Comes The Man", and "Some Kinda Woman" and the almost Traffic-like "State Of Grace", with its spiritual feel complemented by the rousing gospel piano introduction for the glorious "Every Night, Every Day". Ten years after the release of Far From Home, in March 2004, Traffic was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

Discography:
Mr. Fantasy (Island 1967)****, Traffic (Island 1968)*****, Last Exit (Island 1969)***, John Barleycorn Must Die (Island 1970)****, Welcome To The Canteen (Island 1971)***, The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys (Island 1971)****, Shoot Out At The Fantasy Factory (Island 1973)***, On The Road (Island 1973)**, When The Eagle Flies (Island 1974)***, Far From Home (Virgin 1994)***.

THE RARITY OF THE RECORD :-  7th studio release from Traffic and although not as rare as some of their earlier releases it is an incredibly hard record to find in good condition owing to the nature of the delicate sleeve and inner sleeve which is bespoke for this album.

THE COVER :- Fully laminated two cut corner sleeve

THE LABEL :- Pink rim Island label

THE VINYL VISUALLY :- On initial inspection the vinyl sits perfectly flat on the turntable and retains most of its original very deep glossy shine and looks clean for a 37 year old record. There are one or two paper scuffs and some minor hairlines that do not affect play. I cannot see any areas of major concern.

THE VINYL PLAY GRADED :- On play grading this fantastic record I have found it to be a very clear and vibrant sound that hasn't lost any of it's magic over the past 37 years. It certainly hasn't been played overplayed, there are some small signs of static and crackle, but generally only heard inbetween tracks, these will more than likely go away once the album has been played and cleaned a couple of times by its new owner. Overall I would say the vinyl plays to an Excellent condition

THE SLEEVE FRONT CONDITION :- This is the very earliest 1st press sleeve. There are no seam splits and only signs of shelf and rubbing wear at the corners and opening. Some very minor signs of ringwear when angled into the light. It still retains all of its original feel and sheen even after 37 years. I would rate the cover as Excellent condition

THE SLEEVE REAR CONDITION :- Laminated rear cover with  full track details and a large picture of the members of the band. It contains brief production credits and notes. Printed by Robor Ltd. There are no stickers or writing which frequent albums of this age. I would rate the rear as Excellent condition with only the same shelfwear that is displayed on the front cover

THE LABEL SIDE ONE CONDITION :- Original Pink Rim Island label in near perfect condition free from stickers or writing and no damage at all, only slight signs of minimal plays around the spindle hole. Excellent condition.

THE LABEL SIDE TWO CONDITION :- Original Pink Rim Island label in near perfect condition free from stickers or writing and no damage at all, only slight signs of minimal plays around the spindle hole. Excellent condition.

THE SPINE CONDITION :- The spine is in Excellent condition

THE INNER SLEEVE CONDITION :- Bespoke Island logo inner sleeve for this album. One small seam split on the inner easily repairable.

THE EXTRAS :- No extras were given with this album

THE CATALOGUE NUMBER :- ILPS 9224

THE YEAR OF RELEASE :-  1973

THE COUNTRY OF ORIGIN :-  UK

THE MATRIX NUMBERS :-  ILPS 9224 - A1//U  &  ILPS 9224 - B1//U

TRACK LISTING :-

SIDE ONE :-

1. SHOOT OUT AT THE FANTASY FACTORY 
2. ROLL RIGHT STONES 

SIDE TWO :-

1. EVENING BLUE 
2. TRAGIC MAGIC 
3. (SOMETIMES I FEEL SO) UNINSPIRED 

WHAT WE PLAY THE RECORD ON :- 

We use a Project 6 Perspex Turntable to play grade our records which delivers a rich authoritative sound and achieves a rich and weighty vibrancy unrivalled by the majority of decks within its price range

HOW WE CLEAN YOUR RECORD :- 

We use a V.P.I. HW-16.5 record cleaning machine to clean your vinyl. "A highly recommended machine" as quoted by Stereophile magazine. This removes any excess dirt before playing

HOW WE PACKAGE YOUR RECORD :- 

Your record will be package very securely to minimise any risk of damage during transit. We remove the record from the outer sleeve unless asked not to do so. This helps to minimise the risk of seam spliting. We use a high quality record mailer which is designed to give superior protection for your vinyl record. We place stiffeners either side of the record for added protection. The album will also be placed in a 450 gram Poly outer sleeve for even extra added protection

POSTAGE AND PACKAGING CHARGES FOR UK CUSTOMERS :-

We advise that items reaching over £39.00 in price to be insured and sent by Special Delivery. This protects both of us and ensures better handling of the parcel during transit.We are in no way out to make money from postage. The postage price includes the record mailer, stiffeners and plastic sleeve. We just want your item to reach you in the best possible condition. A breakdown of insured postal services are listed below. Please choose to use the relevant postal service for your own protection as once these rare records are lost they can quite often seldom be replaced

FIRST CLASS RECORDED FOR RECORDS INSURED UP TO £39  :-   £3.75

SPECIAL DELIVERY NEXT DAY :- £6.40

POSTAGE AND PACKAGING FOR THE EUROPEAN UNION :-    

All records reaching under £15.00 are sent to the European Union by Airmail small packets. We will not ship abroad without insured post for items reaching over £15.00.

AIRMAIL SMALL PACKETS  :-  £6.00 (For items under £15.00)

INTERNATIONAL SIGNED FOR :-  £9.75 (For items £15.00 - £39.00)

INTERNATIONAL SIGNED FOR :- £11.99 (For items over 39.00)

POSTAGE AND PACKAGING FOR THE USA AND CANADA :- 

All records reaching under £15.00 are sent to the USA & Canada by Airmail small packets. We will not ship abroad without insured post for items reaching over £15.00.

AIRMAIL SMALL PACKETS  :-  £8.00 (For items under £15.00)

INTERNATIONAL SIGNED FOR :- £11.75 (For items £15.00 - 39.00)

INTERNATIONAL SIGNED FOR :- £16.00 (For items over £39.00)

POSTAGE AND PACKAGING FOR THE AUSTRALIA AND JAPAN AND ROW :- 

All records reaching under £15.00 are sent to the Australia & Japan by Airmail small packets. We will not ship abroad without insured post for items reaching over £15.00

AIRMAIL SMALL PACKETS  :-  £8.00 (For items under £15.00)

INTERNATIONAL SIGNED FOR :- £11.75 (For items £15.00 - £39.00)

INTERNATIONAL SIGNED FOR :- £16.00 (For items over £39.00)

NOTE FOR INTERNATIONAL BUYERS:

PLEASE AWAIT AN INVOICE BEFORE PAYING SO WE CAN WORK OUT THE CORRECT POSTAGE/SHIPPING CHARGES

BUYERS OF MULTIPLE ITEMS :- 

Postage prices and courier methods for multiple purchases will be calculated after the auction end. It is impossible for us at the pre auction stage to determine these prices as the final weight is unknown.If you are the winner of multiple items the please await contact from us or alternately contact us yourself for a breakdown of the shipping costs.You will only pay the stamp price + relevant packaging charges so there are big savings to be made with multiple purchases

HOW TO PAY FOR YOUR RECORD :-

We can accept the following payment methods

UK BUYERS :- 

• PayPal
• Personal cheque (Please allow to clear)
• Bankers Draft
• Postal Order

OVERSEAS BUYERS :-

• Paypal only

TERMS AND CONDITIONS :-

We always try to appraise the record for sale as openly and honestly as possible and provide plenty of pictures for you to look at but please be aware that errors however rare do occur and not everyone has the same audio  equipment. There is no problem that cannot be worked out in a civilised manner. We urge you to contact us so that we can discuss any small problems that may occur. We offer a refund of the purchase price for returned items within 7 days of purchase and are happy to help you with any questions or concerns you may have during the auction

SAVE US TO YOUR FAVOURITES LIST AS WE INTEND TO LIST MANY MORE RARE VINYL TREATS OVER THE COMING MONTHS AND YEARS