BIG BROTHER AND THE HOLDING COMPANY Cheap Thrills RARE ORIG UK 1968 MONO EX LP.

	£		51
	$		68

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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, and records WILL arrive damaged in them at some time as most record buyers will already know. Here, you get what you pay for – SAFE PACKING in BOXES using 7mm DOUBLE-WALL STIFFENERS including full side protection and bubble wrap, the records removed from the covers of course. All this very safe packing means I lose money on every box I post, but safe delivery is, and will always be paramount. You WILL see the difference when my packet arrives. Also, I will pay for 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 if possible. PLEASE NOTE: I will NOT send any item, no matter what its value without a Royal Mail or courier tracking number. ALL my items must be signed and trackable to comply with Ebay delivery rules. Please do NOT ask me to make any exceptions to this rule as no country offers 100% reliable service without it.

Posting to Russia: Yes, I do post to Russia. But delivery can take longer 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.

ANY ITEM or ITEMS TO BE PAID WITHIN A MAXIMUM OF 6 DAYS or they will be cancelled – NO EXCEPTIONS.

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. Please only bid on my items if you want them.

Artist or Band: BIG BROTHER and THE HOLDING COMPANY

Album Title: Cheap Thrills

Producer(s): John Simon

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Combination of the Two; I Need a Man to Love; Summertime; Piece of My Heart.

Side 2: Turtle Blues; Oh, Sweet Mary; Ball and Chain.

Label/Format: CBS, first press format with intense orange matt surfaces that are textured – note, this is a rare mono copy.

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and attractive with only light, mostly fine and quite faint spindle marks and no wear around the hole area. This record plays clean and very impressive.

Catalogue Number: 63392

Mode / Speed: Mono / 33.3 rpm.

Warps or Lateral Movement: Assume all records I offer have no significant warping or lateral movement to cause sound or tracking issues. All should play fine even on budget turntables.

Weight of this Record: 141 grams.

Country of Manufacture: England

Rarity: UK first issues are scarce and quite rare in mono, especially in very little played condition.

Original Year of Release: 1968

Matrix Nos: 63392 A2 / 63392 B1

Musicians: Janis Joplin – vocals; Sam Andrew – lead guitar, bass, vocals; James Gurley – guitar; Peter Albin – bass, lead guitar; Dave Getz – drums. With: John Simon – piano.

Brief Info: The second album by the American acid psychedelic rock band Big Brother and The Holding Company. An album that introduced the amazing blues vocals of Janis Joplin. All songs bar the last are studio recorded, the production is raw and powerful, Joplin’s vocals are full-on and many consider this is the greatest recorded work by her. The album sold well in the United States where it topped their chart. However UK sales were minimal in comparison where it failed to sell at all well, mono copies are highly elusive and rarely seen in better condition when they do surface. Not only famed for the stunning performance of Joplin, the cover has become a rock icon. The cartoon artwork created as Janis was fond of underground comics, the original title was to be ‘Sex, Dope and Cheap Thrills’, but frowned upon by the record company, so cut to ‘Cheap Thrills’. The mono mix to my ears is way superior to the standard stereo version. It has more power, detail, dynamics and warmth in this mode, this being the first worthy copy of this I have heard in many years. Few were pressed in mono and this mix has long been out-of-print. A lovely copy, the only blemish being some rubbing to the highly vulnerable spine edge that was not originally laminated and exposed to shelfwear. The record was a joy to play-grade and hear in this much rarer mode. A rare chance for fans of one of the greatest and expressive blues-rock voices of the era.

Cover Grade and Format: NEAR EXCELLENT: and mainly only marked down for the spine rubbing with few will avoid as this narrow area was not laminated on first press covers. A single format with the front laminated, this covers just the top and bottom edges. The spine and back are matt and smooth. Printed and made in England by Ernest J. Day & Co Ltd, includes the CBS orange promotional inner sleeve.

Lamination & Front: A superb looking front for this most famed 1960s rock album. As stated, my more cautious grading is purely for patchy light to moderate rubbing of the spine that has eroded the text. But this laminated front is impressive with rich deep colour and retaining excellent shine, freshness and clarity with minimal hint of any dulling. Most of any creasing on the edges as fine hairline types. The lack of lifting always a plus on such covers as well. One to hold and view with pleasure, and apparently the Frisco Hell’s Angels approved as well.

Cover Back: Clearly the matt very dark back is very prone to wear, but this has hardly any, just the odd trace of rubbing the spine fold and little else to fault. Thin card, but this has pretty much avoided creasing and the lack of ring wear is a massive bonus with a thicker early mono record inside.

Top Edge: Thin, but straight and laminated with minimal traces of any wear.

Bottom Edge: As above and even better if anything.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Any thickening quite light on the front edge that is slightly proud of the back which has little. Record enters on this edge.

Spine and Text: Again thin, but solid and straight. Unfortunately this was not manufactured with laminate protection as was the style for some CBS covers at this time. Hence this has rubbed over many years with light to moderate patchy rubbing which has eroded some type. These seldom escape this spines are so often exposed even if cover-protected.

Corners: Any tip rubs very small and light, very fine to excellent shape retained with no major knocks.

Cover Summary: The spine rubbing apart, a very strong all-round example of this wear-prone classic 1960’s cover, one that will prove very difficult to find much better. This the correct mono cover with no reference to stereo for the catalogue number. This beautiful item should please many collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT: an unlined CBS promotional inner sleeve with two crisp unworn window circles and all edges naturally, and strongly intact. Just one neat corner crease, often deliberate to stop the record sliding out, any crinkle little and light. The paper clean and fresh with minimal hint of ageing. These are quite hard to find this nice as well.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT: arguably better. A very fine visual copy that is very clean with equally fine shine and very solidly pressed. A copy with few plays on all the evidence with any surface marks very light and faint as seen critically under bright light. No penetrating stylus scratches, viewed in average room light, hardly anything even registers. Most will know the state many, if not most vintage psych mono records will be found in these days, few are worthy of a second look (or listen). Visually a super record that should please many collectors.

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 equipment, all listed further down.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This classic blues-psych album plays even above it’s high visual grading with little at all to fault. Offering strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear – sound quality is high with a full dynamic range and detailed sound. The production quite raw and warm, the mono certainly to my ears sounded more dynamic and open with more edge and detail to the mix. Any surface sounds are minimal indeed and this is a very clean pressing with no tracking issues* or inherent pressing noises. Few available copies will outperform this early UK mono mode first pressing I feel sure. The acid rock albums were rarely purchased by hi-fi connoisseurs and so many records suffered accordingly. Both channels are clean and sharp when played on a standard stereo system, Joplin’s challenging vocals are sharp unclipped. I am certain this record has been played only lightly and has been generally carefully handled and stored within a non-smoking environment. Nothing of any note spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this impressive record. I am quite sure it is the very first mono version I have yet offered. The spine rubbing apart, it will prove very difficult to find significantly better and can be strongly recommended. The record has more than withstood the perils of the 1960s the record players of the time.

* As played-graded on a high-end Linn LP12 Sondek turntable with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Quintet Black moving coil cartridge tracking at 2 grams. Records are a ‘contact’ format, and few will avoid the odd minor sound blemish.

I am one of the most established sellers on Ebay, trading since 2001 and offering the finest 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 all elements of the items I offer for sale. You may notice I only submit records quite 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 story. I will try to 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 near mint condition as the real rare items. All the pictures I use for your guidance are the item being offered with no digital enhancements. Room light factors can make things vary sometimes, that is hard to control, especially in winter. I hope the item below is to your liking – any questions can be emailed and I will do my best to answer you. I am enthusiastic, and have a fair degree of knowledge about many genres and I promise quality items. Please assume all records I offer have NO jumps, sticks, major 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 Black moving coil cartridge (tracks at 2 grams). Amps: Naim Supernait 2 with Project USB phono stage and Tellerium Black interconnects. Speakers: B&W 805 Nautilus (bi-wired with Tellurium Black terminated cable) with REL subwoofer. All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional Nessie 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 D7500 DSLR 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.

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 bid retractions. 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 only 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 2 days for communication and 7 days for payment to arrive – if not I will relist the item or offer to the runner-up.

My Guarantee: If any winning bidder is not satisfied with their purchase I will offer a complete refund if the item is returned in the same condition is was sent e.g. as per the listing pictures.

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, 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.