MILES DAVIS Kind of Blue VERY RARE UK NIMBUS SUPERCUT LP. BEST JAZZ ALBUM EVER?

	£		251
	$		333

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: MILES DAVIS

Album Title: Kind of Blue.

Producer(s): Michael Cuscuna & Cal Lampley.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: So What; Freddie Freeloader; Blue in Green.

Side 2: All Blues; Flamenco Sketches.

Label/Format: CBS – A very Rare Nimbus ‘Supercut’ audiophile pressing (that is NOT stated on the labels). As per others, the evidence is seen on the dead wax area, further information further down (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and attractive with only light and very light, mostly fine and quite faint spindle marks and no wear around the hole area. These seen more under angled light, I am very sure this record has hardly been played, and the few spindle marks appear to be aligment ‘searching’ for spindle types.

Cat Number: BPG 62066.

Mode / Speed: Stereo (audiophile Nimbus ‘Supercut’ pressing) / 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: 117 grams. About average for it’s era.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: This Nimbus pressing is very rare indeed and seldom do they appear on the open market. It had a very limited run made available through ‘Hi-Fi Today’ magazine and not available in shops. It offers ultra clean audiophile quality sound and details and was a pure joy to listen too. Whilst play-grading, I made a copy to CD for my own future use as this is one of my favourite albums of all-time, and I have never heard a better copy or sound from any source. Indeed this very rare UK ‘Supercut’ pressing is so elusive, it has even escaped the attention of the price guide I use. The runs on these Nimbus pressings were very small indeed and from memory, they were quite expensive to obtain, thus only a small few sound connoisseurs did so and all titles made briefly available from this company are rare and elusive. Although the record may appear as a standard 80s repress, little could be further from the truth in terms of sound it offers. A careful check of the dead wax area has to be made for visual verification you have the real thing. ‘NIMBUS ENGLAND’ is seen in very small punched capitals on both run outs which this record has. The cover has the H-Fi Today sticker on the front as seen in close-up. This copy has a small few light surface paper scuffs on side one but plays beautifully with practically nothing unwanted. The sound simply defies it’s vintage and this legendary session has an in-the-room quality. A rare opportunity to own what many consider to be the greatest jazz album ever made with quite possibly the greatest ever sound available – this is simply indispensable and very special indeed and even putting this on the open market is proving very difficult for me to do. A record that more than maintains the Nimbus standard and legendary status and justifies why they are in such demand.

Original Year of Release: 1959. This very limited specialist audiophile pressing from the early 80s.

Matrix Nos: BPG 62066 - A2 / BPG 62066 - B2

Run-Out Groove Etchings: ‘NIMBUS ENGLAND’ (stamped in very small punched letters on both sides). This is the ultimate hallmark of authenticity for this very rare cut. I have tried to show this in close-up, but being so small, this is not easy, but it should be pretty clear.

Musicians: Miles Davis – trumpet, band leader; Julian ‘Cannonball’ Adderley – alto saxophone; Paul Chambers – double bass; John Coltrane – tenor saxophone; Bill Evans – piano; Wynton Kelly – piano.

Brief Info: For me, the coolest and one of the most wonderful albums ever made – and that within any genre of music. This is simply a masterpiece and it has to be Davis’s greatest ever piece of work. Any music-lover, and even non-jazz fans could not be failed to be impressed with this beautiful album. Melodic, smooth and catchy with tunes that get into the subconscious immediately. It features the legendary John Coltrane on tenor and all musicians play impeccably. The session was beautifully recorded and it sold in considerable numbers for a jazz record, it is said to be the biggest selling album within the genre, but only a tiny number were pressed by Nimbus for the audiophile market. This very special Supercut pressing encaptures the pure essence, spirit and soul of this legendary musician and his greatest ever work – you will be kind of blue if you lose it.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(++): a single unlaminated format with varnished surfaces. No printers credits and presume English made. The most important factor by far is the very rare Nimbus Supercut sticker ‘Mastered and Pressed Exclusively for Readers of Hi-Fi Today’. This has NOT available in shops and only by mail order with a coupon within the aforementioned monthly magazine. I remember these myself as I was an occasional buyer of the magazine, but I did not buy any of the titles they offered – I thought as the time, they were expensive as very limited edition items invariably are.

Cover Front: Clean, fresh with few marks or creases, any present are tiny and faint. It retains a nice sheen with a rich depth of colour. The Nimbus Supercut sticker is immaculate as made, clearly never removed or picked at as seen in close-up.

Cover Back: The back is little short of immaculate as well and as made. No creasing, clean with no discolouration, ring wear or ageing.

Top & Bottom Edges: Both straight, unworn, smooth and unsplit.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, mostly very sharp with minimal traces of wear, any thickening or burring tiny and faint as seen viewed end-on. Record enters on this edge that is guaranteed untrimmed.

Spine and Text: Perfect: solid, straight with no compression. All text is perfect and unworn and all very clean and white.

Corners: Any tip rubs are tiny and faint, all retain excellent or better shape.

Cover Summary: A very strong all-round example of this very rare stickered specialist cover variant. One that will prove very difficult to find much better – if indeed you can find another at all. This beautiful item should please most-all collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT: a plain white soft-lined inner that has only a little fairly gentle darkening. Little else to fault.

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.]

Vinyl Condition/Visual & Sound Grading: Around EXCELLENT: for looks, which hardly tells the real story. It plays better than Mint(-), and I will rarely state anything is ever perfect as I play all my records on a hugely revealing Linn LP12 turntable. This does have a few purely superficial surface scuffs, mostly on side one with one mark on the last song showing more. But I stress these are purely on the surface and have NO audio affect whatsoever. In fact the record plays practically perfectly with barely anything unwanted at all. There are NO penetrating scratches, thus no pops or noteworthy clicks – the odd super-faint tick is nigh-on impossible to avoid on the odd ultra quiet passage, but this tremendous record will blow most-all others away. A very fine visual copy that is very clean, shiny, intense black and fairly solidly pressed. I am certain this has barely been played, maybe once or twice and possibly a little heavy-handedly, but no real harm done as the sound is ultimately clean and practically noise-free. I can hardly imagine many first issues surviving to offer sound of this supreme quality. The music is hauntingly beautiful with evergreen smooth jazz melody. Davis trumpet playing is sensitive and enthralling with spellbinding effect to the senses – did he ever sound better than this? The backing by high-class musicians is magnificent, I am a huge fan of John Coltrane, and here he plays beautifully without going off into extreme. The stereo imagery is sublime and those beautiful basslines deep and fully controlled. In fact, every instrument is distinct and clear, the trade mark of real high fidelity sound. And for any who think a vintage recording cannot have audiophile sound, well think again, this does. I am no jazz expert, but any person with an ear for quality and performance, cannot fail to be moved by this album. Crackle-free and barely anything unwanted at all – special mention for the gorgeous drum, and especially cymbal work. Nimbus have encaptured this to perfection with ultimate realism and zing. So crisp and precise, the set sounds in the room. The music rich and warm that only the analogue format really offers. A true work of genius by one of the legends of jazz, ‘A Kind of Blue’ will never age and sounds as wonderful as I am sure it did when it first hit the market back in the late 50s. Yes the record has a few surface marks that may detract the visual perfectionist, but that apart, this has little else to fault and even as such, this is unreservedly recommended. This is why music-lovers shell out for quality audio equipment and historic recordings like this have rarely sounded better. The greatest jazz album ever never sounded better than this - one to treasure forever.

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’.