VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR H to HE - SCARCE UK 1970 A-1U/B-1U VG++ NICE EXAMPLE.

	£		77
	$		102

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: VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR

Album Title: H to He, Who am the Only One

Producer(s): John Anthony.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Killer; House With No Door; The Emperor in His War-Room: Part 1 - The Emperor; Part 2 - The Room.

Side 2: Lost: Part 1 - The Dance of the Sand and Sea; Part 2 - The Dance in Frost; The Pioneers Over C.

Label/Format: Charisma – pink scroll with matt, smooth surfaces.

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and highly attractive. Spindle marks are on the lighter side of moderate and these are largely fine and faint as mostly seen with angled viewing.

Cat Number: CAS 1027.

Mode / Speed: Stereo / 33.3 rpm.

Weight of this Record: 130 grams. A good average weight.

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.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Scarce.

Original Year of Release: 1970

Matrix Nos: CAS 1027 A-1U / CAS 1027 B-1U (large and punched matrixes)

Mothers / Stampers: 1 H / 2 RR

Musicians: Guy Evans – drums, tympani, percussion; Hugh Banton – Hammond and Farfisa organs, piano, oscillator, vocals; bass guitar; Peter Hammill – lead vocals, acoustic guitar, piano; David Jackson – alto, tenor, and baritone saxophone and devices, flute, vocals. With:Nic Potter – bass guitar; Robert Fripp – guitar.

Brief Artist & Album Info: ‘H to He’ was the third VDGG album and another progressive classic. Fronted by the eccentric and intense vocalist Peter Hammill, they made some of the most complex and inspired sounds of the early to mid-70s. David Jackson, the saxophonist often played two simultaneously creating a mesmerising sound and often an amazing racket. These electric reeds were heavily treated and made the dual saxes sound more like eight. Musically complex using constantly changing time structures and like fellow progsters, King Crimson their albums have great highs and lows in volume. This album preceded the legendary Pawn Hearts, that still for me ranks as one of the greatest true progressive rock albums ever. A marvellous original band that were under-appreciated at the time, but adored by the few (myself included) – Hammill remains one of rock’s great exponents of originality and mild extreme. Again like King Crimson – Fripp guests on this one – their albums are very hard to find that will play clean, without pressing issues or noise. Charisma records, especially the earlier ones with the textured labels pressed by Pye, were a lottery. This one is pressed by EMI, and lacks the surface noise, pressing rasps, distortion and crackle so many seem to have. However, it does have a few sporadic clicks here and there, this due to tiny marks on the vinyl likely caused by usage. But most plays great, but this one is not for the purist who wants perfection at any cost. But this copy has more positives than negatives and finding an example of this album with nothing to fault will prove immensely difficult – this I know from experience – a very hard record and cover, and few even grade excellent these days.

Cover Grade and Format: VERY GOOD(++): an unlaminated gatefold format with matt smooth surfaces. Printed and made in England by the E. J. Day Group and with the first B&C credits. Includes the white inner sleeve.

Cover Front: Dark ink with a finish that in most cases rubs, and often badly, this one more lightly affected than most. Hardly any creasing and still quite fresh looking. My grading must be taken in context of a cover that is very rarely seen without often heavy wear. There is nothing remotely heavy on this cover, and actually one of the better ones I have seen for a while, the lack of sticker issues is a bonus as well, as this is highly intolerant of them.

Cover Back: Very unusual to state, the back is even better, instantly noticeable is the lack of ringwear, again this is rarely avoided. Hardly any creasing with any rubbing pretty confined to the corner tips. I consider this back exceptional.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Barely any real wear at all, just some surface creasing to the right of the fold hinge, this cover also does this naturally. There is not way this can be creased accidentally like this, only the inside area is affected, NOT the outside, I think it is purely within the construction of the sleeve itself.

Top Edges: Both straight and flush with light to moderate patchy rubbing.

Bottom Edges: Largely the same again.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, quite sharp with little wear. Any thickening or burring gentle and light as seen viewed end-on and both guaranteed untrimmed. Record entered on the back edge.

Spine and Text: Again, put in context, this is an impressive spine. Very solid, thick, straight with hardly barely any trace of compression. This folded very straight, so the edges meet up very closely and parallel. Any surface rubbing very little and light and (for a change) practically all text intact and very strong, as seen in close-up. A little minor patchy rubbing to the surface and folds, but way, way less than average. Many are actually seen threadbare devoid of ink at all. This retains probably 99 per cent. And all text is pristine perfect, totally unworn and strong, there is fading either.

Corners: The corners have faired generally well, all have rubbed which is no surprise, but most less than moderately and have avoided any bashes or dinks. Fine to very fine shape is retained.

Cover Summary: Notoriously prone to all forms wear, this being a very respectable and still attractive example of this VERY difficult cover. Not for the perfectionist of course, but many collectors will be happy with it. If indeed anyone owns this one in ‘perfect’ condition, treasure it because few that surface seldom come close.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT: and arguably better, only marked down for minor darkening. A plain white solid unlined inner with gentle creasing and expected rim impression. All edges now intact with just one small side edge split neatly repaired by myself to stop it potentially widening in the future.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: VERY GOOD(++): cautiously graded really, side one is more like excellent. Still clean with very fine shine and very solidly pressed. Most of any marks are fine and faint with a few tiny deep marks which are quite tiny, but these being the culprits for a few sporadic clicks here and there. Viewed in normal room light, little is seen at all, in fact the record looks impressive. Typically for this type of album, it has complex grooves indicating volume and quiteness, it looks more like a classical record than a rock album. But quite typical for progressive rock, and especially VDGG and King Crimson et al albums. Like the cover, not for the visual or audio perfectionists, but it will please the more tolerant collectors who realistically expect blemishes on this complex and difficult recording.

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 miniscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This magnificent progressive rock classic plays for its majority a near rung of the grading ladder above what I have graded it at. A very high percentage with very little to fault and without pressing crackle, rasps or tracking issues*. But, as stated above, it does have some sporadic clicks here and there, mostly on side two – so not for audio purists this time. However, finding one of these on the pink scroll label especially without something to fault will prove beyond difficult. I have heard near mint looking copies of this that offer appalling sound with horrendous distortion and invisible pressing noises, some cringeworthy – this has nothing like that at all. It offers strong, totally distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear. Sound quality is very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Complex sounds on a challenging album, these intricate grooves are so easily damaged by less than worthy record players, few will play this focused and sharp throughout. Any actual surface sounds (crackle) being minimal and faint, hardly any noted – but several sporadic clicks ARE present. Charisma records did vary in pressing quality and such is the vast range of quiet to loud, silence throughout is near impossible on vinyl, I am pretty sure the clicks are not the fault of the pressing itself on this occasion, and this appears to be made with pure vinyl, without the dulling and mottle seen on many. The EMI pressings always more reliable for this. Both channels are clean and sharp, and I still found this a very fine and enjoyable copy. Personally, I can tolerate a few clicks, it is the groove wear and distortion I hate, and those I will not offer or buy. Always one that thrills on vinyl, with that inbuilt power and dynamics other formats still fail to match. A fine example for the right – more tolerant collector – warmly recommended, but not for the purists who only want ‘silence’ at any cost.

* As played-graded on a high-end Linn LP12 Sondek turntable with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Quintet Blue 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 Blue 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’.