ZAPPA / MOI Absolutely Free MAJOR MIS-PRESS UK 67 LP

	£		69
	$		91

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Please see my Detailed Packing Description Further Down & All Shipping Costs and Options – NOTE: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment.

Artist or Band: THE MOTHERS OF INVENTION

Album Title: Absolutely Free.

Producer(s): Tom Wilson.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1 (STEREO): Absolutely Free – Plastic People; a) The Duke of Prunes; b) Amnesia Vivace; c) The Duke Regains His Chops; a) Call Any Vegetable; b) Invocation and Ritual Dance of the Young Pumpkin; c) Soft-Sell Conclusion..

Side 2 (MONO): The MOI American Pageant – America Drinks; Status Back Baby; Uncle Bernie’s Farm; Son of Suzy Creamcheese; Brown Shoes Don’t Make It; America Drinks and Goes Home.

Label/Format: Verve – early intense black and silver format with MGM credits. Also ‘Sold in the UK…’ text. (Please see my label scans).

Label Conditions: Both very clean and attractive with only light and fine spindle marks that show little.

Cat Number: VLP 9174.

Mode / Speed: Mono & Stereo [Yes true] / 33.3 rpm.

Rarity & Info: The actual record itself is quite scarce. But, and this is a huge BUT, this without any doubt is one of the rarest Zappa items I have ever seen or heard – and the same goes for any record I have ever had really. This a geniune variant mis-pressing and it could even be unique. The cover and labels all seem normal inasmuch both confirm this is a mono VLP copy. When I played this record however for my sound check, I found that side one is STEREO and side two is MONO – yes true. Not wishing to think my hearing had gone awry, I then checked the matrix numbers – these do not lie – and yes, it confirmed this record had been seriously mis-pressed. Side one matrixes are V6 5013 A-1G (V6 is the stereo version) and side two matrixes are V 5013 B-1 (this the mono version). Just to make absolutely sure, I checked both my own personal mono and stereo copies of this album, and the information is correct. Just how many of these were pressed in error I have no idea, but I would imagine very few indeed, and even fewer would have made the shops for selling. So often, records that have incorrect labels are sold as mis-pressings, this is not so, those are label errors and have nothing to do with the actual pressing of the record. But this is exactly that – a rare and serious error in manufacture – clearly one side had the stereo pressing ‘plate’, the other the mono – this is something that does not happen often and I have never seen such an example on any Zappa/Mothers album before. Not only that, the actual cover is strange too. It appears some sort of shift or flaw on the black printing plate. There is a ‘ghost’ image of the ‘MOTHERS’ text in black near the top and Zappas face has black streaks or shading that is printed UNDER the laminate on the main card (as can be seen on my close-up picture), I have never seen this before either clearly making this cover strangely unique too. Putting this up for auction proved a difficult decision as I am an ardent and keen Zappa collector myself. This without doubt is more of a specialist item, not a perfect copy with some surface marks but sound quality is mostly impressive I enjoyed immensely. The king of weird, and this is a very bizarre copy – quite frankly – it is unlikely to be seen or offered again.

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: 148 grams. A very good weight for this record and above average.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Original Year of Release: 1967

Matrix Nos: V6 5013 A-1G / V 5013 B-1 [confirming side one is stereo and side two mono]

Stamper Codes: 1 R / 1 A

Musicians: Frank Zappa – guitar, conductor, vocals; Jimmy Carl Black – drums, vocals; Ray Collins – vocals, tambourine; Roy Estrada – bass, vocals; Bunk Gardner – woodwinds; Billy Mundi – drums, percussion; Don Preston – keyboards. Guests: Don Ellis – trumpet. John Rotella – percussion, Jim Fielder – guitar, piano, Pamela Zarubica – vocals.

Brief Artist & Album Info: Zappa’s second classic: Freak Out! sold just 30,000 copies according to Frank - MGM deemed it a flop. He was reduced to a budget of $11,000 for it’s successor. He lost Elliot Ingber - the quintessential underground/psychedelic guitarist resurfaced as Winged Eel Fingerling in Captain Beefheart’s Magic Band - but he gained other musicians to add to the Estrada/Black rhythm section: drummer Billy Mundi, saxophonist Bunk Gardner and keyboardist Don Preston. Preston hadn’t played on Freak Out! because he apparently ‘couldn’t play rock ‘n’ roll’. Now, after gigging with a few rock bands, he was ready to join Zappa - and take avant garde music to the masses. This was again produced by Tom Wilson, all selections were composed, arranged and conducted by Frank Zappa.

Absolutely Free is a more challenging record than even Freak Out!. First-time listeners found it hard to believe that this wild melange of spoken-word, political jokes and tuneless vocalising could become a favourite, but repeated listens reveal wonders. ‘The Duke of Prunes’ and ‘Call Any Vegetable’ have terrific melodies, the latter was Zappa’s first extended guitar work-out on record, and stunning it is too. The main centre-piece for this lies on side two: ‘Brown Shoes Don’t Make It’, it’s a song with bassoons, violins and electronics constructed into a seething mosaic of contemporary subjects and ills - it was again outrageous for the time and I am still surprised, even today, this was allowed to be issued uncut, taking into account the heavy censoring on the following album We’re Only it For the Money and the labels nervousness for anything Zappa did. The only censorship comes in ‘Call Any Vegetable’ where the word ‘joint’ (on the more familiar version) is replaced by ‘ham’ (or is it hand?) - an extraordinary decision considering the sexual content and activity in ‘Brown Shoes’ (What would ya do Daddy?) and a full blown orgasm on Freak Out! (‘Monster Magnet’) - obviously drugs were more taboo in those days than teenage sex within the UK anyway. The cover varies immensely: this original was a single format with flipbacks - the more familiar Select reissue had a gatefold version which was never laminated. The condition on these old rare classics is the most critical factor: these were seldom purchased by hi-fi purists and most are seen badly scratched, dulled and clearly unlooked-after. This copy has light surface marks but no penetrating scratches, if the label evidence was to be believed, this has been played little at all – but spindle marks on labels can deceive. I state again, this is a very unusual and rare example with side one playing in stereo and side two in mono – both labels are VLP mono. The sound throughout is enjoyable with little to really fault, some mild, gentle surface sound in places, but the majority plays great – makes me wonder if the original owner even noticed this had been seriously mis-pressed. As it was purchased in mono, probably not.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT: a single format with a laminated front, this wraps around the closed edges and ends on three rear external flipbacks. This is the original mono cover with it’s VLP 9174 cat. number. It was printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthous with the early ‘Patents Pending’ text. The back also has the ‘Mothers Teach You’ text by Mike Raven.

Lamination & Front: I mention again, this has some kind of black plate error (or flaw), or the ink has somehow shifted. There is ‘ghosting’ on the the ‘Mothers text near the top, but more obvious and apparent is the streaking on Zappa’s face, I have never seen anything like this before and without doubt, this is a manufacturer error too – not as serious as the record pressing but still an interesting variant. I guarantee, this has been printed on the card itself as it lies beneath the laminate – there is no way such a strange effect could happen any other way bar in the printing process. The laminate retains a fine shine, clarity and freshness with no lifting and barely any creasing at all. Any friction rubs or dulling is very light with a mild rim impression seen under light. An attractive looker and certainly an unusual one for the specialist collector.

Cover Back: The top right states: ‘File under POPULAR : Pop Groups’. Well these Mothers were not pop or popular, I am delighted to say. Again, this has aged well overall. These were rarely bought by hi-fi specialists and so many are seen very tatty and damaged. The main unprotected back panel has only mild traces of any grubbiness or set-off. Still quite white overall with minimal discolouration or toning. No major marks or creases and again, any record impression quite slight. The flipbacks have faired well: no real grubbiness on their ends and any burring very few and small. One small lift near the bottom right corner and of course, a small few light hairline surface creases. For a cover now 44-years-old, this has largely defied the years – not perfect, but still attractive with just about enough to remind of it’s vintage and type.

Top & Bottom Edges: Both show hardly any wear at all with solid and unscuffed laminate still present.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Remaining quite sharp with little wear and no feathering or trimming. Anu thickening or burring light and mild with just a couple of small, light ‘waves’. Record enters on this edge.

Spine and Text: A very fine spine that shows minimal traces of any wear, just a very mild scuff near the very top. Solid, straight with minimal compression, the ends are gently tapered in manufacture. All text is perfect and unworn as can be seen on my close-up picture.

Corners: All corners are impressively shaped with minimal traces of wear or creasing.

Cover Summary: Overall, quite an impressive cover and certainly a collectable variant from the normal. It will please many collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT(++): a plain white solid unlined inner. Aged little and clean with barely any creasing and all edges unsplit with no repairs.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: VERY GOOD (++): a fine visual copy that is clean, shiny, intense black and very solidly pressed. A copy with light surface marks and hairlines, but no penetrating scratches, so this record plays well. With two superb labels, a little surprised by the surface marks, but these are mostly very fine and faint indeed and most are seen under angled light. Being critical, a record a little more typical of this type, but rest assured, this will still better many originals seen (whether in mono or stereo) and here, you get a rare choice. So not for the visual perfectionist, but many collectors will enjoy it.

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: Who Could Imagine, finding a copy of this album with a stereo mix on one side and mono the other? – well this has exactly that – will anyother even exist? This still very solid example plays above it visual condition with little to really 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. Tom Wilson put his reputation on the line producing Zappa’s first three Verve albums and even with the lesser budget, this still has marvellous sound and effects. Incredible and vast amounts of information amongst the weirdness – I absolutely love this album, and this still does it very fine justice. Any surface sounds are light, gentle and infrequent, mild hints in places to remind of what you are listening to – a 44-year-old underground psych, even weird record. This play-graded on a revealing system, no pops or significant clicks were noted. Tracking effortless and easy, little spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful set. This possibly unique record will near impossible to find again.

End Piece: All The Mothers Verve titles were issued in mono and stereo (‘Mothermania’, the Verve compilation seems very doubtful in mono) and never easy in top playing conditions and this copy still delivers - in both. The back of the original (S)VLP covers included text by Mike Raven which states:

“Listen to the songs the Mothers teach you. Out of the crawing compost of a heap of rotting plastic flesh the sweet and sour stench of the great American nightmare will steal upon you blind mind’s nose. While shrieking vegetable sounds born of necessity tear through your brain. Leaving their train of shining slime and painfully disturbing images of thought like painted discords electronically projected from the womb-world where the Mothers drift. Excreting comment on the passing show of iridescent rubbish that surrounds their lives. And yours and mine and mine deeper and deeper into the empty cess-pits of our souls. Our souls are cheap today but values may be found. Unlooked for in the wreaths of smoke blown through the almost uncorrupted minds of those society rejects. The voice is here for those with ears to hear. The plastic people will hear nothing but a noise.”

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 QED Silver 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 7,000+ items sold in nearly 10 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 3 or 4 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). I will not respond to questions on shipping costs as all the details are included here and on ALL of my adverts. Details below:

NOTE: First Time Bidders: Please as 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.

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £7.50. (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 [£46 maximum]) = £10. (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 [£46 maximum]) = £14. Add £4 per extra LP. (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’.