El Rays (Pre-Dells Dells) 78 Checker #794 Christine/Darling I Know E Condition

$

51

Greetings everyone! Thank you very much for stopping by another of my ebay record auctions. I appreciate that you took the time out of your busy schedule to click on my listing and have a look at what I have to offer!  Normally, all records that I list on ebay are my own property.  However, the record business that I work for, and have for the past 19+ years, has requested me to take some of the recent stock that has come through and list it here on ebay.  Please don't worry, everything is on the up and up, the business knows, and I have the approval to do so.  Mainly because the part of the business I work in is online only, not their walk-in retail store.  Problem is, my part of the business recently moved, and is still without internet access. So, to generate some income, I have been going through some stock that has not been added to the store's inventory-I will NOT "cross sell" between Ebay and other sites, you have my promise! But to (hopefully) garner some revenue, I get to go through it first, and give you folks first "dibs".  The first time I tried auctioning for the business, it was 10 day listings, but I have been requested to make these listings the standard 7 day.  The items I am listing are ones that I believe are scarce and/or would be excellent additions to any serious collector's selection. The opening bid prices are higher than ones I use for my own auction listings, but they are for the most part more valuable and scarce than some of the records I list for myself (Though if you'd like to have a look at my own records I have listed, I wouldn't mind!).  All proceeds of listings I do for the business will go to the business, minus the selling fees that Ebay takes. I hope that I/the store will have something you would like for your very own.  Let's see what's available this time!   

This time up, We have a 1954 10” 78rpm release on the Checker Records label, label # 794, by the El Rays, with Willie Dixon and Orchestra. This is the single of “Christine” b/w “Darling I Know”. This is another of the 78s that came from a collection the business recently acquired from a dj who was active in the 40’s & 50’s, and it’s obvious they were not kept in a non-smoking environment, and this-as will be the case on most all these 78s,-will need a very thorough cleaning. I give them all a light once-over, only to find a buildup of crud on the needle after each play. “Chistine” is a peppy, uptempo doo-wop tune (a LOT of “waaaaaa, Doo-WOP”) that will keep your toes tapping and your blood circulating! Really bouncy, and the horn section along with the piano is really a fun listen! “Darling I Know” has harmonies….if you could call them “harmony”…..that really sound… off. I mean the vocals just sound like half the group is off key, and a bit…sour, for lack of a better term. I mean it’s doo-wop, and the harmony is there, but the sound of the voices just kind of sounds…wrong! But somehow, it works! Not sure why, but it works! Maybe it’s due to the music, as it’s quite a bit slower than “Christine”, but yeah-those vocals are just plain awkward sounding. At least to me they are. Then again, my musical tastes have always been suspect at best. This 78 seems to be made mostly from vinyl with some plastic mix, as it does have more flexibility than the straight, hard plastic 78s, and definitely is not shellac. A few pressing bubbles and some light wear along the outer edges, neither of which really affect the play much, at least not for me. Still, wear is wear, and I do not wish to be called out for over grading, so I am only giving this my middle of the road grading of E. No plus or minus symbols, just plain E. My grading is considered non-standard, so if you are considering placing a bid, please read the paragraph below, as it contains my gradings and their respective descriptions. The labels have a few small marks, and wear at the spindle hole, while all the text and logos are clear and easy to read. If you have any questions or comments, please send them along to me, and you will receive a response. If you need more pictures or description, I can and will be happy to provide.

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IMPORTANT NOTE FOR NON-U.S. BIDDERS!!!!
All items I sell will be sent with a copy of the sale form, printed up from eBay.  I will not "mark item as a gift", just so you can evade import rules.  The people at my post office know me, and they will check overseas packages for inspection.  I hope you will understand my position about this, my apologies if you are not able to comply.

Also, international bidders, the price listed for postage on my listings are for domestic mailing.  I wish I could send overseas for that price, but reality speaks different.  I place a fair price on all international postage.  Watch for the invoice if you win.

ALSO-I need to let international bidders know of a certain problem that doesn't always happen, but will arise from time to time.  All International mail sent from this region has to go through the U.S. Postal Service sorting center in Sandston Virginia, by our local airport.  This sorting center has been named the least efficient sorting center in the entire U.S. Postal Service.  They prove this from time to time by mis-routing packages.  If this happens-and I will monitor the delivery-usually it will add at least an extra week for it to arrive.  If there are any problems, please contact me first, and I will do what I must to make sure you are satisfied with the order.
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All items that are sent to a U.S. address will have delivery confirmation (at my cost) attached, as I have found that it helps...a lot!....to ensure that packages are truly en route to the customer.  This is for both of our sakes.  I will be using USPS "Media Mail" as my primary shipping method, however, if needed, and for an extra charge, I can ship with "Priority Mail", and if i can get away with it for the price, I really like 1st Class, but that's weight-dependent.

Oh yes, if you are the winning bidder, and you are in the Commonwealth of Virginia, I'm afraid you are going to have to include the 5.3% Virginia State Sales Tax.

Paypal is my preferred method of payment, if you need another way, please contact me before bidding.  Or, if you have any other questions about this listing, or any of my listings, please feel free to contact me.  I will answer any & all questions as quickly and concisely as possible.

Also, I do have other listings available as well, and if you would be interested in more than one item, I have no problem with holding onto wins in case you would like to combine wins to save some money instead of multiple p&h costs.