psych jazz FREE SPIRITS, Larry Coryell LP WLPromo M-

$

45

RARE CLASSIC FROM 1966, HARD PSYCH WITH JAZZ AND EASTERN OVERTONES

About the Album: AMG REVIEW: These tentative explorations into relatively uncharted jazz-rock territory retain an engaging, freewheeling verve and warm humor, although the lyrics are sometimes self-consciously hip and spacy. Coryell plays a sitar on "I'm Gonna Be Free," and "Blue Water Mother" employs the still-unusual device of two separate vocal tracks singing two entirely separate sets of lyrics. Obscure even in its day and long out of print, it's worth seeking out, though more for fans of '60s rock than jazz. — Richie Unterberger

Record Grade: Mint-

Cover Grade: VG+, minor to average wear

Labels: White promotional labels

Song Titles:

• Don't Look Now
• I'm Gonna Be Free
• LBOD
• Sunday Telephone
• Blue Water Mother
• Girl of the Mountain
• Cosmic Daddy Dancer
• Bad News Cat
• Storm
• Early Mornin' Fear
• Angels Can't Be True
• Tattoo Man

  About the Artist:

  by Richie Unterberger The beginning of jazz-rock is commonly dated in the late '60s with the emergence of Blood, Sweat, & Tears, the Electric Flag, and Miles Davis' Bitches Brew, but in fact a few sporadic efforts were made at reconciling the two forms before that. The Free Spirits, a New York group featuring the guitar, songwriting, and singing of Larry Coryell, may have been the first. Augmenting the usual guitar-bass-drums rock lineup with the tenor saxophone of Jim Pepper, the quintet's backgrounds were decidedly jazz. But their sound was considerably closer to rock, investing the early psychedelic sounds of the day with relatively adventurous, jazz-derived improvisation, horns (or one, anyway), and elastic song structures. They weren't avant-garde by any means; on their LP, their innovations were tailored to fit songs with vocals lasting between two and three-and-a-half minutes. Their moderate use of jazz idioms within pop and rock frameworks was innovative for its day and has always been unfairly overlooked

  MY GRADING SYSTEMS: I’ve been told that I grade conservatively. My NM (near mint) is my highest grade for opened records (which would also include unplayed records). It’s a 9 or 10 on a 1-10 scale. M- would be equivalent to an 8; VG++ to a 7; VG+ to a 6; VG to a 5; VG- to a 4; G to a 3; F to a 2 and P to a 1. The same scale applies when I grade covers (jackets). Significant defects are specifically noted and taken into consideration in the grade.

  GRADING DESCRIPTIONS

  
  RECORDS:
  • GRADING Grading is based on the following criteria
  • Sealed = store stock new
  • Near Mint = like new or near new with only one or two small insignificant defects, a 9 or better on a 1-10 scale
  • Mint- = extremely nice. Would be Near Mint, except for a couple of light hairlines or scuffs, which do not affect play
  • VG++ = still a very nice record with all or nearly all of its original gloss but may have a few more light, surface marks, hairlines, needle tracks or the like which should not materially effect play
  • VG+ = a nice, but used record that may have a series of light scuffs or scratches. It probably plays with a few pops, but has no serious problems.
  • VG = a well-used record that still should sound OK when played, but may have moderate surface noise, pops, etc.
  • VG- = a very well-worn record that plays through without skipping, but will do until a better copy comes along.
  • Good = not actually good at all but probably will play through but with much in the way of surface noise, pops, crackles, etc. Still, will have no cracks, chips or the like
  • Fair = you’re getting this record just to own but not to play
  • Poor = the sky’s the limit, generally I will discard a record this bad (and sell the cover, jacket or sleeve alone) unless the label holds some particular interest

    VISUAL GRADING: All records are visually graded only unless I state that they are play-graded. Some labels such as RCA, Capitol, Colpix, Atlantic, MGM were pressed on better quality vinyl and will sound better than a record which visually appears the same on labels such as Crown, Score or Design. Recording techniques also varied. The sound on live albums may be far inferior to studio recordings. There may also be defects in the pressing which are invisible. The point is that an album on RCA graded VG+ may sound far better than an album on Crown graded Near Mint. I have no problem issuing a refund if you are dissatisfied with the sound on a record as long as it’s requested as per my stated return policy below. But please don’t be shocked if a record visually graded Near Mint doesn’t sound state of the art. If I base my grade on a PLAY GRADE, I will state this specifically in my grading section.

    COVERS: There are really too many possible defects regarding covers to be as specific in my definitions as I had been with my record grades. But please keep in mind these general grading guidelines:

    • I will give greater weight to the condition of the front cover than back cover when assigning an overall grade
    • No cover with a cut out hole or saw mark will be graded Near Mint even if it is still in factory shrink and there is no other wear
    • I will not reduce the grade of a cover for stickers which are glued to the jacket by the record company (eg. Contains the hit song Tennessee Stud); but will reduce the grade for stickers glued on the cover by stores, previous owners, etc.
    • If I write that a cover has a bb hole, I’m talking about a small cut out hole
    • A saw mark is a narrow cut in the perimeter of the cover, could be anywhere and vary in length from 1/2” to 2” at the most.
    • The overall grade takes into consideration any stated defects. For example, if I grade a cover VG+ and then state it has 6” top and bottom seam splits - I’ve already reduced the grade because of the seam splits. If the seams weren’t split, the cover would be graded higher such as VG++ or Mint-.

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      As before, the buyer pays for shipping. For one or two albums, the cost for priority mail in the United States is $6.50. for media rate postage within the U.S. the cost will be $3.00.

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      . I’ve been listing all types of records - mostly LP’s - including 50’s and 60’s rock ‘n’ roll, country, folk jazz, blues, personalities, new wave and punk, surf, psych, spoken word, comedy, etc., etc....... I try to list unusual, unique or obscure records, not the ones that you see all the time. While a majority of my listings are albums, you’ll often find a nice selection of 45’s, EP’s or picture sleeves...and an occasional 78 or two.

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