ELVIS PRESLEY Golden Hits Vol. 4 SUPERB SOUND UK 1968 EX+ LP

	£		63
	$		84

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Postage: UK £4.75. Europe (including Russia) £12.50. Rest of World £16.50. All boxes signed for in quality, safe packaging – I NEVER use mailing envelopes that offer virtually no protection at all. More details on this 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 ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment. I try to keep my P&P prices as low as possible even yet another Royal Mail price hike, I will never compromise on solid, safe packing that is invariably a little heavier.

Artist or Band: ELVIS PRESLEY

Album Title: Elvis’ Golden Records Volume 4 (with a FREE copy of Volume 3).

A BRIEF NOTE: The item on offer is ‘Volume 4’. I am including FREE to the winning bidder a copy of ‘Volume 3’ because (and very unusually for Decca) it has a cutting fault on side one, and two of the songs (3 & 4 on side one) have patchy distortion and crackle. Most of the rest play fine. So I would NOT offer this record on it’s own, but prefer to give away as a bonus with the main item on offer being Volume 4 which plays, like all others thus far from this collection, nigh-on perfectly.

SPECIAL NOTE: Over the next few weeks I will be offering a large collection of Elvis Presley albums (along with my usual fare). All were bought from new by a lady owner who decided it was time to let them go. This collection of around 60 pieces is all in very impressive condition – most hardly played, and then when so with utmost care and only on stereo equipment. None have ever been subjected to any mono record-player treatment. Even the ones dating further back were first played on a stereo radiogram and the difference is immediately apparent when they are played. No groovewear and few visual blemishes, the covers very little worn either and most looking superb. Even the original inner sleeves were kept with no ‘mixing-and-matching’. None were ever loaned out or defaced, many are originals and some of the earlier titles are second repressings from the 1960s – the clear advantage of this being the avoidance of more basic equipment from the very early 60s. The earlier albums are all Decca-pressed and sound stunning, a fantastic opportunity for collectors and fans to upgrade or fill in those missing gaps – or even start a collection from this wonderful lot. I intend to list them steadily at random – as always, I will play them all prior to listing. I have seldom seen very popular records of this era in better condition, ‘The King’ himself could be in the room with you and this is exactly how they were to be enjoyed. The warmth of that wonderful voice and performance can never be beaten on modern formats and then there is the wonderful artwork too. Most Elvis albums, especially the early titles, were played to destruction and now seen trashed, unplayable or listenable. This very careful owner certainly knew how to look after records and I tip-my-hat to her for keeping this collection so nice. Some of the older covers have mild hints of ageing or minor blemishes, but in context they are exceptional. Just enough to politely remind of their considerable age, and I have no issues with that. It gives that reassuring feeling of their era and authenticity – like a quality antique should – and records of this age are almost becoming that. For me, sound quality is always of paramount importance, and I cannot imagine many will fail to please, especially the golden-era Decca pressings on the black labels. The original orange RCA albums are more of a lottery, but the fact they have been played so little and with such care gives them a great chance, the only factor will be the pressing quality of the post-Decca titles. I have rarely offered Elvis albums before – finding them in near top conditions is so difficult, but when such quality comes along, they are not to be dismissed. This is pure rock history and from the visual evidence to date, it will take near extraordinary copies to better them.

TRACK LIST (Volume 4):

Side 1: Love Letters; Witchcraft; It Hurts Me; What’d I Say; Please Don’t Drag That String Around; Indescribably Blue.

Side 2: (You’re the) Devil in Disguise; Lonely Man; A Mess of Blues; Ask Me; Ain’t That Loving You Baby; Just Tell Her Jim Said Hello.

Label/Format: RCA Victor – Matt black format with deep ring ridge and red spot logo (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and attractive with only very light, fine and faint spindle marks mostly seen critically under angled light. Beautiful examples that help to reitterate very few plays, this too on a very popular record.

Cat Number: SF-7924.

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: 150 grams. A typical heavyweight top quality Decca pressed record.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Moderate: as all collectors will know, most Presley albums in vast numbers, somewhat surprisingly, Volume 4 did not chart in the UK. Like The Beatles and Stones, it is the conditions that are the real issue. And as explained further up, this collection was hardly played and such copies are considerably rarer.

Original Year of Release: 1968.

Matrix Nos: UPRS-8483-1K / UPRS-8484-1K

Mothers / Stampers: 1 B / 1 I (‘B’ being the ultimate first stamper on Decca, this a very early copy)

Brief Info: A superb first 1968 issue of The King’s mid-60s Golden Records – this the final one of four ‘Golden Records’ albums issued. A beautiful copy in stereo that appears little played, like most-all from this top quality and truly outstanding collection The track-listing speaks for itself and all songs play perfectly.

I state again, I am giving away for FREE ‘Volume 3’ as a couple of the songs do not play up to standard due to a cutting error, with glint seen in the grooves resulting in crackle and distortion on two songs, a few brief details about this one further down.

Cover Grade and Format (Volume 4): EXCELLENT(++):a single format with front Clarifoil laminate, this covers all the closed edges and ends on the back via the spine. The back is matt and smooth. Printed and made in England by S.P. Ltd.

Lamination & Front: Stunning artwork of Elvis and seen here in superb condition. The laminate retains a beautiful shine, freshness and clarity with just an ultra fine sliver lift on the spine that hardly even shows, there is no peeling. Even under light, minimal traces of any dulling or friction rubs and the general lack of wear or ageing unusual good news for a cover this considerable age. Bright vivid artwork that has barely aged at all. A a small crease on the top right corner with a gentle and small lift but little else to really fault with any other creases tiny, super-fine edge types. As many collectors will know, Clarifoil laminate has a tendency to shrink and contract over the years usually resulting in either major lifting or bowing of the cover. Against the odds, this one has minimal traces of either

Cover Back: The back has also faired very well indeed with little to fault. Still clean with minimal traces of any grubbiness or discolouration. The odd tiny tip crease but barely any rubbing and the laminate end on the spine clean and neat. No ring wear and hardly even a trace of any rim impression, this back, like the front will take a lot of beating.

Top Edge: Minimal wear with the laminate smooth to the touch, generally straight without the usual (often significant) bowing so many seem to acquire.

Bottom Edge: As above.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean and sharp with barely any wear, the lack of thickening or burring on this entrance edge almost remarkable and it is guaranteed untrimmed. The fine unprotected strip on the front edge clean and solid with no grubbiness.

Spine and Text: A practically perfect spine: solid, straight with barely any compression which is so difficult to avoid on covers like this. All text is perfect and unworn under the solid, unpeeled and uncracked laminate, also well centred. The ends are lightly tapered in manufacture and retain very fine definition.

Corners: Any tip wear is tiny with just the small crease mentioned above. Very fine to mostly excellent shape is retained.

Cover Summary: A really impressive and lovely looking cover with very little to remind of it’s considerable age. One of the most famous portraits ever issued on an Elvis cover, this is good enought to frame. It will take an exceptional example to better it significantly and it should please many, if not most collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT(+): a Decca-style polylined inner with two immaculate window circles and very clear lining. This has aged little with only quite gentle traces of discolouration and minimal creases. No edges splits or repairs, this is exceptional for it’s vintage. The 11-68 date code represents a November 1968 copy.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(+): and arguably undergraded as that. A super visual copy that is very clean, shiny, intense black and a typical heavy-pressed Decca record that were made for RCA throughout the 1960s. A copy that appears very little played on all the evidence with any surface trace marks very few and faint as seen critically under bright angled light. It will take an amazing example to better this significantly and it has sound quality to match. This has NO penetrating scratches at all and we all know what most popular records of this vintage usually look like these days, and Elvis 1960s albums are seldom seen much better. Visually a super record that should please most collectors and a rare opportunity for collectors to own this popular hits album so clean.

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 minuscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This age-defying record plays even above it’s high visual grading with practically nothing to 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. Barely any surface trace sound at all and this is an exceptional clean pressing, but as you would expect from Decca, for me the very best record manufacturers ever. Few available copies will match, let alone outperform this wonderful 1960s pressing I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I know for a fact this record has been played very little and has been generally well stored and carefully handled within in a non-smoking environment. Only ever played with due care on a stereo record player, and the difference that makes to any old mono record is more than obvious. Nothing whatsoever spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful set. This copy will prove very difficult to find better and can be strongly recommended. This could prove a considerable upgrade for Elvis fans, fill that missing gap or to start an impressive collection of ‘The King’s’ classic albums. Many more to come, so if Elvis is your man, please keep watching, most will be in similar condition.

VOLUME 3 (The FREE One): Cover and record visually very similar to the details above for Volume 4 and the record has same label design and is also stereo. Tracks 3 and 4 on side one have unwanted sound, thus I would not offer this as it’s own and prefer to give away as a bonus as most of the songs play fine with little unwanted.

Cat Number: SF-7630.

TRACK LIST (Volume 4):

Side 1: It’s Now or Never; Stuck on You; Fame and Fortune; I Gotta Know; Surrender; I Feel So Bad.

Side 2: Are You Lonesome Tonight?; (Marie’s the Name) His Latest Flame; Little Sister; Good Luck Charm; Anything That’s Part of You; She’s Not You.

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 Terrarium 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 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 10,000+ items sold in over 12 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 2 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). 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 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] = £4.75

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £8. (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 [£50 maximum]) = £12.50 (enhanced 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 [£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’.