URIAH HEEP Very 'Eavy, Very 'Umble Orig Vertigo Spiral

	£		260
	$		345

ONEADAYRECORDS – Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Artist or Band: URIAH HEEP

Album Title: Very ’Eavy… Very ’Umble.

Producer(s): Gerry Bron.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Gypsy; Waling in Your Shadow; Come Away Melinda; Lucy Blues.

Side 2: Dreammare; Real Turned On; I’ll Keep on Trying; Wake Up (Set your Sights).

Label/Format: Vertigo – original full spiral in side one and large spiral logo on side two (Please see my label scans).

Label Conditions: Both very clean and attractive with only very light and faint spindle marks and no wear around the hole area. The famous swirl logo on side one is gorgous and looks perfect from rim to hole with no chipping or rubs. Side two is still very white with no grubbiness. A couple of small black marks could be printing blemish or possible pen, not sure, but minor anyway. Both sides will not prove easy to find much cleaner, fresher or better looking as I hope my scans show.

Cat Number: 6360 006.

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: 135 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: Scarce, and like most on this massively collectable label, getting rarer and harder to find. The early examples in really super conditions are quite rare and fewer and fewer are becoming available. This is a fantastic copy with a super-fine record that sounds fantastic. Not easy at all like this.

Original Year of Release: 1970

Matrix Nos: 6360006 1Y 1 420 1 1 6 / 6360006 2Y 1 420 1 1 4

Musicians: David Byron - lead vocals; Ken Hensley - organ, piano, slide guitar, mellotron and vocals; Mick Box - lead guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals; Paul Newton - bass guitar, vocals; Ollie Olsson - drums, percussion.

Brief Info: Debut album with its famous macabre cover and one of early titles from the famous Spiral catalogue. Like most all their albums, issued to scorn and hostility by the critics of the day, it’s almost miraculous how this band survived and actually thrived selling millions of albums. With one of the most famous and memorable reviews in the history of rock Melissa Mills of Rolling Stone magazine started with ‘If this group makes it I’ll have to commit suicide. From the first note you know you don’t want to hear any more.’ Harsh to say the least, this is very fine album and live they are always great entertainment. I saw them on at least five occasions in the 70s and early 80s. A very solid and fine progressive beginning and this includes the sublime track ‘Gypsy’. This is the first worthy Swirl copy I have seen for ages, it was not available too long on Vertigo, being reissued on Bronze. Both cover and record are in super conditions and the record looks little played and sounds fantastic. One of Vertigo’s greatest ever sleeves will seldom be found looking better than this. For fans of this evergreen and still popular band (with fans anyway) and collectors of prog’s most sort-after label, this one will take a lot of beating.

Cover Grade and Format: EX+ with the front and back more Mint(-) and laminated. The laminate wraps around the edges and the top goes inside the centrefold for about quarter of an inch. This is what causes problems, as the laminate ends stick together when the cover is closed, hence a pulling on this area is common and few avoid it. Printed and made in England and including the original copy warning ‘Copyright subsists in all Vertigo recordings.’ This was later to changed from ‘Vertigo’ to ‘this label’.

Lamination – Front & Back: Both front and back are in superb conditions and will actually remind of what a new one once looked like. With rich shine, freshness and clarity, the stunning artwork (Mr Byron apparently) will rarely be seen looking better or more impressive (please see my close-up picture, just look at the stunning detail in the cobwebs). This is fully adhered with no lifting or blisters but a little ‘mottle’ (tiny bubbles) is seen under angled light. This is a trait of manufacture and some covers have it, I actually like the effect it gives, but that’s purely personal opinion. Even under light, there is minimal, if indeed any traces of friction rubs or dulling and this simply looks stunning. A small few very light surface marks when viewed critically but the general lack of creasing is marvellous news. A few small edge hairline types but few others and the back especially has hardly any. The laminate ends a little short of several edges, but the exposed stips are ultra clean and fresh with no wear or grime-line formation. It’s very clear this cover has hardly been handled and has been cover protected most-all of its long existence. Truly, I cannot imagine a much more attractive and impressive front and back than this on an original Spiral cover version.

Cover Inner Gatefold: A couple of small blemishes inside, thus graded down a little. One tiny surface pull has been tipped-in in black. On Buron’s shoulder area a small dot clearly pulled left to right (this is very small and minor). Also the end-of-laminate lines have stuck and pulled a little, this is very common indeed and few of these types avoid it. Here again, it’s only light but present nonetheless, it should be visible on my centrefold picture. That apart, little else to fault and all looks fresh and clean again and devoid of rubbing or creasing.

Top Edges: Immaculate, as new and dead straight and fully laminated with no scuffing.

Bottom Edges: Pretty much the same again.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, sharp with barely any wear and no feathering. Minor burr traces on the back opening if being very critical, guaranteed untrimmed. The front side is closed, record enters on the back.

Spine and Text: Again immaculate, as made: solid, robust, straight, uncompressed and square, both right edges meet up perfectly together and parallel. All text is perfect and unworn under the solid and uncracked laminate.

Corners: Tiny tip rubs being critical again, probably like this from new. All retain superb shape and neat pointed definition.

Cover Summary: A very strong all round example of this scarce, and original Vertigo cover, one that will prove very difficult to find much better. This beautiful item should please most collectors. The inside blemishes are minor in context, so even the discerning Spiral collector can consider this one.

The Inner: This has its original swirl inner, date coded 0470. This too in superb condition and grades EX++, slightly darkened with age but barely any traces of real wear. The lining fully intact, solid and clear with an immaculate window rim both sides. Any creasing light and minor and all edges unsplit with no tearing. A superb example looking just right for a 40-year-old inner sleeve.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: Mint(-) / EX+ side two has a couple of small surface marks and odd hairline. Nothing whatsoever sounds and this is an exceptional record, clearly only very lightly played. A superb visual copy that is super clean, shiny, intense black and very solidly pressed. Visually a lovely record that should please many, if not most 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 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 scarce original Vertigo record plays up to and even exceeds its 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 are minimal indeed and no pops or clicks were noted and this is an exceptional clean pressing. 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 clearly well stored and carefully handled, almost certainly in a non-smoking environment. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record. 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 ‘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, 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 even 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 5,000+ items sold in over 8 years of Ebay trading and I consider that pretty exceptional. I discount of course for 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 (SECOND Class Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = FREE. This is the new Ebay rule. HOWEVER I STRONGLY URGE UK WINNERS TO PAY THE £3 FOR THE FIRST-CLASS SERVICE AS THE PACKETS WILL ARRIVE MUCH FASTER AND SAFER.

1 LP (FIRST-CLASS Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = £3.

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

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

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£39 maximum]) = £8. (insurance optional extra £3).

NOTE: I NO LONGER SEND TO THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION. ANY BIDS WILL BE IGNORED.

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 (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£39 maximum]) = £12. (insurance 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: 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’.