LED ZEPPELIN II RARER FIRST 'LEMON on PLUM'. SUPERB EARLY EXAMPLE.

	£		207
	$		275

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: LED ZEPPELIN

Album Title: Led Zeppelin II

Producer: Jimmy Page.

Executive Producer: Peter Grant.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Whole Lotta Love; What Is and What Should Never Be; THE LEMON SONG; Thank You.

Side 2: Heartbreaker; Livin’ Lovin’ Maid (Shes just a Woman); Ramble On; Moby Dick; Bring It On Home.

Label format and Condition: Atlantic Red and Maroon (‘Plum’) labels with the first ‘Lemon Song’ on side one. This later replaced by ‘Killing Floor’ for legal reasons.

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and highly attractive with only light, fine and very faint spindle marks and no wear around the hole area. So unusual to find early copies of this massive album with such clear indication of little usage, this reitterated by stunning audio quality and clarity. Even under light, I used a magnifier to see any traces and both retain that deep colour that add that extra class. To the sensitive fingertip, both feel very slightly textured, and when again scrutinised closely under a magnifying glass, they indeed are. A lovely all-round example that at last again does this sublime rock classic near maximum justice.

Cat Number: 588198.

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: 140 grams. One of the heaviest pressings I have yet had.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Original Year of Release: 1969

Matrix Nos: 588198 A 2 1 2 2 2 / 588198 B 2 1 2 2 9

Musicians: Robert Plant – Jimmy Page – John Paul Jones – John Bonham.

Album Information: For many the greatest rock album of all time - a monumental classic, without doubt, ‘Whole Lotta Love’ remains the definitive heavy rock anthem ever made. The album justifiably charted at Number 1 in the UK and US. After the raw brilliance of the heavy blues rock of their debut, ‘II’ expands the horizons still further. Page, Plant, Jones and Bonham rarely ever sounded better than on this massive issue. All rock fans and collectors will know it well already – it’s content is legendary and it simply refuses to age or it’s classic status diminish. This is one of the ‘Most Wanted’ albums ever issued, and so it should be. Never easy to find with the correct paler first cover and a record little played – but this one delivers on both accounts with little to fault. The record’s sound quality totally blew me away, and I still think the ‘Lemon Song’ copies have superior dynamics and details over the ‘Killing Floor’ second issues, and all subsequent copies too.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: Very High – almost off-the-scale. This is hardly ever seen devoid of unsightly ring wear or major rubbing. This is not perfect, but how many paler early LZII covers ever are? It is without doubt, one of the best I have seen for some considerable time and few will get close. Remember, the ‘Killing Floor’ second pressings on the ‘Plum’ label, had a more mid-brown to dark brown cover, but shades can vary somewhat. This one is correctly quite pale brown, and I hope my pictures do the quality justice, few collectors will not be pleased with this I feel sure.

Cover Format and Details: EXCELLENT(++): an unlaminated gatefold format with very matt, smooth surfaces. This in the quite pale brown colour. The second and later ones were more a deeper chocolate brown and do look quite different. As stated, shades do vary slightly and this one looks pretty much spot-on to me. Printed in England by E. J. Day and includes a 1/129 (1st December 1969) inner sleeve, so this one is very early. Please study the pictures, decide for yourself what this is like compared to most seen, my pictures do not lie, there are no digital clean ups ever used on any of my graphics – what you see is what you get. Sometimes my camera flash can actually over-emphasise any mild surface blemishes, but I promise, this will be one of the finest looking original ‘LZ II’ covers you will see for possibly some considerable time.

Cover Front: This front is little short of magnificent: barely a rub or significant crease to be seen. The quite pale brown surface unfaded, aged or worn. Scritinised under light, a couple of tiny dull spots are seen near the top of the right edge, these I am certain are merely adhesive smear dulls from that edge present from manufacture. With normal viewing, they are practically invisible. Again viewing as before, there is hardly another blemish to be seen – the white area is till just that, white, with hardly even a hint of discolouration or grubbiness. A little corner tip rubbing on a 44-year-old cover is nigh-on impossible to avoid, and some even had traces from new via distribution and manufacture handling. No sticker issues or rubbing of any note at all. This front almost takes you directly back to the late 1960s when this classic sleeve first hit the shops with unusual freshness and very pleasing visuals. These come along VERY rarely like this, and although hardly impossible to find, they hardly even get seen quite this good.

Cover Back: Even harder than the front to find in decent condition usually due to major ring wear. Large single colour areas are massively prone to this. Well take a look at this, it has barely even a trace. The main blemish that stopped consideration for the extra (+) is a small thumb-crease and a tiny, near nick (NO split) near the centre of the left edge. That apart not a great deal else to fault. A gentle surface crease on the bottom edge and a possible faint gripper line near the spine, these so often seen on matt covers and hardly unusual. Like most-all covers this tremendous age, the odd faint surface mark or blemish trace if scrutinised point-blank, but this sets a very high standard for one of rock’s most famous, and famously wear-prone covers.

Cover Gatefold Inner: Superb with litte to fault, the odd light edge crease and ultra faint rub trace (being critical) – that famous huge Zeppelin rarely looked better.

Top Edges: Both very straight with barely any wear at all up to the corner tips that have small rubs.

Bottom Edges: A very small rub on the back right corner, little else and again very straight and both lie dead flat and near flush and parallel. These traditional storage edges will rarely be seen with less surface rubbing and ink-loss than these.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Both clean, sharp with little wear at all.The odd tiny burr trace or two viewed end-on with hardly traces of thickening and certainly no feathering. The record enters on the back edge, the front being closed, both almost as neat as they get and untrimmed. As stated, a fine near nick and small thumb-crease on the back near this edge.

Spine and Text: This album has the more rounded type spine, these often wear very badly, regularly tatty with the text eroded and often badly discoloured. Solid, straight with minimal compression and any tilt slight. Folded squarely so the right edges meet up very closely and near parallel. Again, I have seen some of these folded significantly off-square which never makes them look this neat. As for surface wear, barely any at all and even the folds have avoided it – and that is VERY unusual. A very small few super-fine surface hairlines, again being ultra critical, and ALL the text is pristine, unworn as seen in close-up. Even the white area is clean and devoid of grubbiness – an almost exceptional spine in all regards.

Corners: All the corner tips have small rubs, how many darker colour matt covers avoid it? Very fine to excellent shape is retained, and no tip-ins.

Cover Summary: One to hold and enjoy: a highly attractive example that sets a very high standard, few will match or better it, this view based on many examples seen where most disappoint visually. I feel confident this unusually wear-lacking LZ II cover will please many, if not most collectors. With such vulnerability, the odd blemish or two is near impossible to avoid, and a little compromise almost mandatory, even for the highly discerning fan and collector. I can hardly imagine fine this a great deal better these days.

The Inner Sleeve: NEAR EXCELLENT: with some spot toning, but not that much and mainly small. A Polydor-style lined inner with two crisp undamaged window circles and clear polylining. Some fairly fine creasing on the back and all edges unsplit with no repairs. This a 1969 date-coded one (1/129) meaning the 1st of December 1969 as seen in close-up.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(++): a very impressive copy indeed with any surface traces tiny, very few, fine and faint as seen with utmost scrutiny under bright angled light. Very solid, clean with fine shine and blackness. All the evidence suggests few plays and then, with utmost care on a quality system. Like the cover, so rarely are the ‘The Lemon Song’ originals seen so modestly used and showing so few blemishes. This record should please many, if not 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 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 miniscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality: This very impressive record plays even above it’s high visual grading with hardly anything to fault. As stated it has amazing sound quality as only the very early copies really do. This is not an easy recording, it’s like a roller coaster ride in volume and quiet passages. This has immensely powerful clean sound and is totally devoid of groove-wear distortion or pressing noises. ‘Thank You’, easily the most difficult song on the album, plays beautifully and is devoid of the usual crackle that blights so many, especially on the fragile fade-in and fade-outs. This delicate song rarely plays without some, often considerable crackle or clicks, not only due to the quiet intro and outro, but because many unfamiliar when new, lifted up the arm prior to the conclusion where the sound fades back in again after a false end. This has no such issues and any surface sound minimal and faint. Also, the intro to ‘Bring it on Home’ often causes problems with it’s quiet subdued bass opening, but again plays superbly. Overall sound quality is astonishing with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound and has minimal surface sounds or blemishes at all. No pops or significant ticks were noted and this is an exceptional clean pressing for a very complex album. The grooves are very clean and this record is a gateway into the recording studio itself. Nothing betters the earliest Plum pressings for dynamics and detail. A copy to get the pulses racing, all you need is the system to utilise the thundering dynamics embedded into these unworn grooves. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this astonishing record. This copy will prove very difficult to find better, and it merits my highest recommendation.

The Hi-Fi Zeppelin Experience: This proves beyond any doubt, not that there was much doubt anyway, that an original vinyl record will blow away any other format (and I rather partial those those excellent Japanese card format CDs these days when played on the correct equipment). The sound on this album is simply awesome and I use the word in it’s true context because this simply takes the breath away. If anybody has not heard an original Led Zeppelin II on the early ‘Plum’ labels they have not really heard it for real. This will shake the foundations (and damn near did), the inherent power, scale, drama, dynamics, detail and stereo imagery are phenomenal and give that rare tingle factor only the truly great recordings ever can. Listen to that massive ‘slam’ on ‘Whole Lotta Love’ and the channel-to-channel guitar pyrotechnics, this is hi-fi nirvana. It was fascinating watching my Ittok arm and Ortofon tracking this complex record again. The drum parts on ‘Moby Dick’ have such realism the kit could have almost been in the room. Complete silence is almost unrealistic for any vintage copy of this demanding title – but this copy has very little unwanted, any traces tiny, few and faint. If ultimate clinical silence is demanded, stick to the silver disc format, but you will miss out on a sound experience of a lifetime. The colossal low frequency on ‘Whole Lotta Love’ will test any amp and speakers to the limit and the sound can simply saturate on even mid-priced systems. I remembering hearing this album back in the 70s at an exhibition in London through a pair of Linn Isobarik speakers, using a Naim six-pack active amp set up with a Linn LP 12 front-end deck. This left an impression of sheer awe, that took the breath away. The sounds embedded into original grooves are amazing and will never be replicated or beaten by any other later pressing or format. Now I am again a LP12 owner, I really turned up the volume again and let this go. This will sort out the real hi-fi systems, because many simply fall apart trying to control the soune. A capable power amp and speaker system is almost mandatory to control the bass dynamics, especially on the famous opener - tin boxes will surrender almost immediately. Do not play this record on a less than worthy turntable. With my amp running hot, the bass thunders and growls, the drums and cymbals crash and zing, the guitars splinter into a frenzy and Plants vocals rarely ever sounded more sublime than on this wonderous record - yes I rather like this album, who doesn’t?

End Piece: The word ‘essential’ and ‘classic’ are both overused (I too am guilty sometimes when offering a beautiful condition piece for a favourite title), but I make no apology for using them for this groundbreaking (and earth-shattering) album. Timeless vintage blues-rock the likes that will never be equalled. This original version with ‘The Lemon Song’ song title on the ‘Plum’ label are truly getting rare and demand is high. I would imagine many Led Zeppelin collectors will not have this album in such conditions within their collection and also will the cover be anything like this fine? Just holding this 44-year-old masterpiece gives pleasure, when the record is seen and heard clean, it will thrill and astonish. Such a copy deserves a fine home and demands to be heard again soon. Not quite perfect, is any copy really as such?, but I feel is could be one of the best all-round copies to hit the open market for some time and most will enjoy this – for me, a difficult decision to even let it go, and that is the truth.

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 8,000+ items sold in over 10 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’.