BLACK SABBATH - V. RARE UK 70 ORIG VERTIGO SPIRAL EX LP

	£		202
	$		268

ONEADAYRECORDS – Delivering Quality Music to the World.

…“Still falls the rain, the veils of darkness shroud the blackened trees…

Artist or Band: BLACK SABBATH

Album Title: Black Sabbath

Producer(s): Roger Bain.

Engineer(s): Tom Allom and Barry Sheffield.

Cat Number: VO 6 (847 903 VTY).

Rarity & Special Note: Getting scarcer almost by the day, this is fast disappearing along with the rest of the Vertigo Sabbath albums, with a huge surge of interest in this legendary band. This genuine original first pressing is rare, make no mistake. Only the first-pressed UK copies had the Philips credit on side two of the label (please see this in close-up) and most-all examples seen or offered omit the Philips text making them slightly later pressings at best. Remember, this was not initially a vast seller, but did briefly peak at No 8 in the charts. For those who did buy this at or around issue time, most played them into the ground as they soon discovered they has purchased something very special. When repressed, the Philips text was omitted and these are not quite so difficult to find. Many Spiral connoisseurs want the ultimate, and that is the very first run copy, they are highly sort-after and incredibly elusive. Only one in hundreds will be a ‘Philips copy’ and examples in fine condition are (of course) highly prized. The cover that comes with the first-pressed record also seem ‘different’. The inside an intense black witih a very flat-matt finish. The inverted cross has the text of course but I noticed the ‘Warning’ text inside is different too. Most of the early examples refer to Copyright subsists in all Vertigo recordings’, later changed to ‘this label’ instead of ‘Vertigo’. This one has ‘Copyright subsists in all Stereo recordings’, which, being honest, I have not seen before ever. The Swirl inner has the 1970 code. Let’s be clear: compared to the regular Swirl pressings of this album, and there are two others, one being pretty much the same as this bar the crucial Philips text being omitted, the second having the small spiral on side two and the outlined text, this is a rare original and this is a splendid very solid excellent example. Most Spiral collectors will treasure this one – oh Lord yeah!!

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Black Sabbath; The Wizard; Behind the Wall of Sleep; NIB.

Side 2: Evil Woman; Sleeping Village; Warning.

Label/Format: Vertigo – Full Spiral format on side one and large Spiral on side two that includes the crucial and rare Philips Record Product text that only came with the original first pressings. – please check my scans for verification with the close-up of the vital credit.

Label Conditions: Very clean with only very light and faint spindle marks and no wear around the hole area whatsoever – the spiral design rock perfect from rim to hole. The snowy whiteness of side two is incredible, clearly little handled, so often this label darkens and shows fingermark or grubbiness – we have all seen them. A truly stunning pair of Spirals that will please most collectors.

Cat Number: VO6 (847 903 VTY).

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: 130 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.

Original Year of Release: 1970

Matrix Nos: VO6 1Y 1 420 1 2 1 / V06 2Y 1 420 1 2 2

Brief Artist & Album Info: Issued to scorn and damnation by the critics but eventually universally loved by the real fans of rock, Ozzy gave the finger and they thrived and became superstars of the heavy metal genre. Black Sabbath played real heavy metal – an awesome quartet that were very dark, with real menace, sang songs of doom, gloom, war and the occult - this is what they did best and no-one ever came close to matching them. Even today, after hearing this classic a hundred times, the sound of that rain falling on the opening grooves and the loud thunderclap with the distant tolling bell sends a shiver down my spine. For full effect have the cover in your hands at the same time - the ghostly spectresque girl standing in the woods will make you shudder. What is this that stands before me?; Figure in black that points at me. screams ‘The Prince of Darkness’ and just before the band go into overdrive he lets out with blood curdling power Oh no, no, please God help me totally awesome. The opening track Black Sabbath has to be one of rock’s defining moments - the birth of metal and the critics had to fade away. It’s hard to believe this came out in 1970, I remember buying this all those years ago, not this copy hasten to add. Led by Ozzy Osbourne, now a cult figure extraordinaire but let’s not forget the other three: Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward. The pure heaviness and awesome bass heavy sound they produced was phenomenal (and still is). I saw a youngish Black Sabbath back in the 1970s at Hammersmith Odeon and it remains entrenched and vivid in my memory. All the Spiral era material was played, and how. This is a classic Vertigo issue, the cover is chilling, the text on the inverted cross inside is as dark as the music inside. An album to be played loud, as loud as possible. I still remember that huge stack of Marshall’s on stage with all the speakers being moved to maximum extent. The Spiral four are often said to not being terribly well produced, all I can say to that is these listeners have not heard them on decent kit – only Paranoid is a little muted at times. These have an in-built power and quality brings it out (as well as volume). Just listen to the detail of the splashing rain and the tremenous thunderclaps at the beginning. The bass grinds and rattles with awesome power riffs - it can shake the foundations, the drums pound and the cymbals crash, the guitars soar into sheer manic nirvana and of course Ozzy’s blood curdling screams speak for themselves - oh nowwwwww!!! I honestly state too, the sound from this Philip’s credited original sounds ever more detailed. It’s no wonder the audiophile collector insists on the earliest pressings they can get for none ever sound better than the first off the line. Forget your lightweight soundalikes, nobody does it better than Sabbath. This stunning lesson in gloom was rarely bettered, even by them, the distant bell tolls… and still falls the rain.

No collection should be without this one. A fine example here too – a superb playing record that with NO pops or clicks and barely even a trace of surface sound (but who would notice anyway?). The cover has minimal wear and remains very attractive. It has the unusual WARNING text as mentioned above and the VO 6 and 847 903 VTY number on the top left of the back cover. The inner is the original Swirl format type and is also in great condition. Vinyl loving Sabbath fans will enjoy this copy its a great all round copy - Oh Lord Yeah!

Cover’s Potential for Wear: High – only a tiny few in the Spiral range ever had laminate which include, Uriah Heep’s debut and some copies of Paranoid. All potentially wear badly and are more often seen in tatty and worn conditions with all forms of wear rife.

Cover Grade and Format: Strong EX with any wear light, probably undergraded being honest, this is really with a (+). A gatefold format unprotected like most all in the Spiral series. Has the more unusual ‘warning’ inside as already mentioned. No printing credit but definitely made in the UK.

Cover Front: Very attractive indeed and with very little to fault. Ultra fine surface trace blemishes visible only under light and very slight burr-rub traces on the right edge in a few small places. Very clean indeed with no rubbing and practically crease-free with rich artwork colour retained, that ghostly figure still packs genuine eeriness. No price sticker issues and with so many affected, it’s always worth reitterating when none are present.

Cover Back: Almost the same again, the lack of rubbing and ringwear is quite unusual and with no creases again too, this is pretty exceptional. Again, any faint surface marks are mainly only visible when scrutinised under light. The entrance edge again has traces of mild burring and one tiny (and I do mean ‘tiny’) nick split. Talking a couple of millimetres here and when you consider this is most ‘damage’ on this outstanding cover, it should reitterate just how fine this is.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Still deep, rich black, and this is really intense and does look ‘different’ to others I have had before. Without doubt the earliest I have personally ever had – this being my first-ever Philips original. This has a very flat-matt. finish but has no grubby fingermarks which when applied, are near impossible to remove. No rubbing and barely any discernible speckle, most of the later printings seem to have it but this is mainly solid black. I have photographed the right side in close up to help those who need to see the details on this one.

Top Edges: Any minor rubbing is very light and both look very fine and dead straight too.

Bottom Edges: There is some mainly light patchy rubbing, more towards the right side on the back.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean and reasonably sharp with any wear modest and very light, there is no feathering but when viewed end-on, some mild thickening has occurred. Record entered on right outside back edge.

Spine and Text: Solid, straight, uncompressed and square with little wear. One small ‘graze’ on the back foldline but little else, any rubbing being fine and faint and few will ever show less, especially on the really early printings. This one has all its text present with no wear or erosion.

Corners: All have some rubbing, the spine pair only very mild and light. Overall shape is neat with fine definition retained by most.

Cover Summary: A splendid all round example of this classic, but fragile early 70’s cover, one that will prove difficult to find significantly better. When so many of these are found in very poor, even tatty conditions, this strong and attractive example should please many, if not most collectors.

The Swirl Inner: Again probably undergraded at EX, there is barely any real wear, just age discolouration and some glue darkening on the seams as most seem to have these days. This has the 70 code and retains its polylining seen through a very neat and clear window. Hardly any noteworthy creasing and all edges unsplit or torn (with on repairs). A vintage Swirl inner that arguably looks just perfect for its considerable age.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EX, with just a small few light surface marks/hairlines that have NO effect on sound whatsoever. A very fine visual copy that plays to perfection from start to finish. Very clean, shiny, intense black and very solidly pressed. The labels give clues to modest use and the sound quality reitterates it more. 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 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 dark metal masterpiece plays beyond its high visual grading with nothing to fault. Massively powerful distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is fantastic with a wide dynamic range and very heavy sound, best enjoyed loud to bring out the sonic power. Laden with massively powerful riffs, the prince of darkness rarely sounded better than this. Any surface sounds barely even register and this is a very clean pressing. This heavy metal classic has its odd quieter moments, but not that many, but these too play very quietely indeed and few copies will match or better it. Both channels are clean and sharp, I feel certain this record has been played lightly and has been generally well stored and looked after. Tracking is effortless and all is focused with no clipping or sound degrading, the minor surface blemishes are ignored totally. Clearly never subjected to worn or heavy stylus, this has wonderful gut-grinding dynamics and the analogue format really is unbeatable for the heaviest rock available. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this classic metal debut. A copy that will prove very difficult indeed to find significantly better that includes the prized-Philips credit on the label. An album that spawned a host of immitators but none (for me anyway) even some close. Real metal, no glam, just gloom – these four giants in the world of heavy rock are living legends and long may they continue – Oh Lord Yeah!!!!!!!

…The cataract of darkness form fully, the long black night begins, yet still, by the lake a young girl waits, unseeing she believes herself unseen, she smiles, faintly at the distant tolling bell, and the still falling rain”.

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 (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).

Posting & Packing: ALL EUROPE & SCANDINAVIA including RUSSIA and nearby countries. (Airmail Only):

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

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’.