GRYPHON 1st - Scarce Orig UK 1973 Transatlantic N/M LP

	£		19
	$		25

ONEADAYRECORDS – Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Artist or Band: GRYPHON

Album Title: Gryphon.

Producer(s): Lawrence Aston and Adam Skeaping.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Kemp’s Jig; Sir Gavin Grimbold; Touch and Go; Three Jolly Butchers; Pastime with Good Company; The Unquiet Grave.

Side 2: Estampie; Crossing The Stiles; The Astrologer; Tea Wrecks; Juniper Suite; The Devil and the Farmer’s Wife.

Label/Format: Transatlantic - original Globe and white format (Please see my label scan and picture).

Label Conditions: Both look brand new, I am struggling to even find a single spindle trace, another from that collection of barely played records.

Cat Number: TRA 262

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. An unusually substantial weight for this later Transatlantic format and way above the average for a 1973 record. [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.

Rarity: Moderately scarce: never commercial enough to sell in vast numbers but the truly stunning cover, for me, one of the most lovely ever made, would have attracted a fair amount of attention.

Original Year of Release: 1973

Matrix Nos: TRA 262 A-2E / TRA 262 B-2E

Mother & Stamper Codes: A 1H / A 1F

Musicians: Brian Gulland - bassoon, crumhorns, recorders, keyboards, vocals; Richard Harvey - recorders, crumhorns, keyboards, guitar, mandolin; Dave Oberlé - drums, percussion, vocals; Graeme Taylor - guitars, keyboards, recorder, vocals.

Brief Info: Is there such a genre as ‘Progressive-Mediaeval-Folk-Rock’? Well if not, there should be as this band’s debut album is simply that. With one of the most visually stunning cover’s ever issued, this unusual gem features music like few others that will be sold under ‘popular music’. Featuring an unusual array of olde musical instruments that give this album an almost unique sound. How many other bands use crumhorns almost as a lead instrument? An instrumental with a eerie deep sound and nothing else can really compare to it. This is slightly ‘out-there’ folk music with a hint of humour, totally captivating and quite brilliant. A superb copy too, the record maybe played once and typical from this collection. The cover gorgeous, the front almost as new, a little mild rubbing and odd crease on the back, my camera flash actually over-emphasising any ringwear to a fairly high degree, when seen for real, there is little. Special mention of the weight of the record also, way over average for its era and certainly for this version of Transatlantic. Taking to extremes, but true, I had a Pentangle album on this same label from a similar year awhile ago that weighed around 70 grams less, yes over 50 per cent lighter than this impressive 150 gram heavyweight.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: Very High+, rarely seen anything like this lovely.

Cover Grade and Format: EX++ and the stunning front grades practically Mint. An unlaminated gatefold format with textured, soft card on all surfaces including the centrefold. Printed and made in England by Howards Printers Ltd.

Cover Front: Breathtakingly beautiful and worthy of a frame. This is practically pristine Mint, I can (just) see the odd ultra faint and fine hairline crease under light and one tiny rub being almost smaller than microscopic. Simply one of the greatest front covers ever. This is fresh, ultra clean and totally unfaded with no rubbing or speckle to the raised textured surfaces. Simply too beautiful for words.

Cover Back: The back is more prone to wear because the records rests against it, often under pressure in storage. With a 150 gram record inside for around 37 years, few will avoid light traces of ringwear. This has a light arc at the top and bottom and the faintest of faint traces around the label area. I state again, my camera flash has over-emphasised this far too much, any wear on this back is light and faint and with just one light crease near the bottom edge, it too looks lovely.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Almost as made with just a couple of tiny speck marks.

Top Edges: One microscopic rub trace but nothing else, both dead straight and very clean.

Bottom Edges: Faint rub traces only, exceptionally low wear for these resting edges, this too with soft card.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, sharp with barely any traces of wear and no feathering. Record enters on the back edge. The front being sealed and folded inside for maximum neatness and strength.

Spine and Text: One tiny pressmark away from as made. Solid, straight, uncompressed and square, both right edges meet up perfectly together and parallel. All text is perfect and unworn, any discolour to the white surface minimal.

Corners: Tiny tip rubs only and all retain super shape with lovely pointed definition.

Cover Summary: A gorgeous all round example of this very fragile 70’s cover, one that will prove very difficult to find much better. The front artwork is worth any price alone and it will truly be nigh-on impossible to find better. This beautiful item should please most collectors.

The Inner: The plain white unlined inner is included, one corner crease and some mildish darkening with age. Fully intact with no edge splits or tears and looking highly respectable.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: Mint(-), A superb visual copy that is super clean, shiny, intense black and unusually heavily pressed. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence with just one faint mark on side one, a fraction thicker than a hairline but superficial and non-sounding, this looks practically as new. Visually a super record that should please most collectors again.

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 lovely original record plays up to its 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. This is beautifully produced and those strange vintage instruments from yesteryear sound wonderful. Any surface sounds are minimal indeed and no significant pops or clicks were noted and this is an exceptional clean pressing, especially so for Transatlantic that could often be variable. Few copies will outperform this early pressing significantly I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I am certain this record has been played very lightly and has been clearly well stored and carefully handled. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record, my first worthy copy for some considerable time. This copy will prove immensely difficult to find significantly better and can be strongly recommended.

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: EUROPE & SCANDINAVIA. (Airmail Only):

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

NOTE: I NO LONGER SEND TO THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION. ANY BIDS WILL BE IGNORED.

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’.