SEALED 1969 ARK 2 - FLAMING YOUTH UK PROG PSYCH Genesis
$
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Description
RARE 1969 conceptual PROG PSYCH from England
STILL SEALED!!!
ARK 2
Flaming Youth
\ USA - UNI RECORDS - 73075
RARE 1969 original! Unbelievably ***STILL SEALED**** never opended in over 40 years... An early UK progressive/psych conceptual album, an odd release for the UNI label who mainly issued American garage/psych albums...here, Phil Collins, starts his career, before Genesis, before the solo stuff, as a young longhaired drummer for an obscure but talented British adventurous crew who coluld play, called ARK 2 "Ark 2" is a conceptual album about a journey of an astronaut across the solar system and beyond, of course the lyrics has the influence of the times, with clear references to the search of peace and hope, and even when not as strong as they could be, the idea is interesting.The album starts with the excellent vocal intro of "Guide me Orion", somehow like a hipster West Coast folkrock sound that suddenly bursts in fire with typical British progressive invasion sound, but in this case fused with Classical music and Rock, a very good start.
"Earthglow" is a radical change, starts melancholic and Baroque, with clear references of PROCOL HARUM but with better vocals, Gordon Smith does an outstanding job with an almost religious voice and Brian Chatton playing killer keyboards, incredibly beautiful song.
The beauty of Weightless is the contrast between the clearly Baroque organ intro that without advice turns into some sort of Rock Boogie and complex instrumental changes with classical overtones, the guys were really versatile, but the stars of the track are Phil Collins in the drums and Ronnie Caryl who complement the outstanding rhythm section perfectly.
Now is the turn for the epic "The Planets" (In some versions each planet of the solar system is a song), there's little (if any) connection) with Gustav Holst's masterpiece but it's clearly inspired in this work, even the inner notes make clear references to each movement of the classical piece and as Holst they ignore Pluto.
Now lets talk a bit about the music, there's everything, from 12-bar Blues, to Classical - Orchestral, Jazz, Rock,Vaudeville, Acid Psychedelia, etc, and the "personality" of each planet is described by the music, we can find influences from THE NICE and almost every great musician of the 60's but with a unique touch. This 12 minutes track alone would be enough to pay the cost of the album.
Changes marks the point where the astronaut leaves the solar system and a turn for Phil Collins and Gordon Smith to take the lead vocals and both make a hell of a job, the sound is lost in the boundaries that divides the late first British progressive invasion from early Psych until Chatton starts to jam with the organ and crosses all the possible boundaries of rock, but that's not all, the band enters into melodic (almost Symphonic) territory, one of the best songs of the album
"Pulsar" is a frantic track in the vein of THE NICE with Chatton adding an incredibly fast keyboard performance with Phil covering him all the way, another excellent track that leads to "Space Child", which after a keyboard and guitar intro allows us to listen Phil Collins singing some sort of early Symphonic with real feeling, a bit cheesy by moments but beautiful.
Almost every release has a weak point and "In the Light of Love" is the one from "Ark 2", this guys have proved they could play almost everything, but an almost Latin percussion song is below the level of the album.
"From Now On (Immortal Invisible)" presents Brian Chatton as a vocalist (he can also sing); extremely beautiful and melodic musical piece with full arrangements and chorus, a brilliant closer for "Ark 2".
- 1. Guide Me, Orion (3:16)
2. Earthglow (2:52)
3. Weightless (instrumental) (2:37)
4. The Planets (12:47)
5. Changes (5:48)
6. Pulsar (3:05)
7. Spacechild (5:10)
8. In the Light of Love (3:26)
9. From Now On (Immortal Invisible) (4:19) -
CONDITION: The old style unipack cover usually IF found has shelf wear due to the dark color tones, this copy is STILL SEALED (never opened in over 40 years) solid seams (there is a small delete drill at top right, two scratches under the plastic, probably made from the company deletion procedure) still...sealed = new vinyl, 1969 original...Wildly collectible!!!!
A cool addition to anyone's music library!
SEE: SELLERS OTher items for similar cool sounds for "head" people...
EFFICIENT/CAREFUL GRADING
All imperfections are noted both cover & record
NOTE: All Items backed by money back guarantee! IF you have a problem PLEASE let us solve for you BEFORE leaving ANY negative feedback. Thanks! GRADING SCALE: M, M-, EX, VG++,VG+, VG, VG- M Completely clean, no marks M- Carefully used, looks clean, plays clean, shiny gloss, no marks EX Faint scuff or superficial mark, near M-, high gloss, plays clean VG++ Glossy with minimal scuffing or light mark playing very nice, clean VG+ a bit more scuff or markls still plays well with very minimal surface at worse VG more marks/scratches only minor, nothing deep, no loud clicks or pops this grade is abused by many, VG here does not mean "trashed" VG- surface noise present, will not have skips or jumps SHIPPING: (Attention: Items are sent out every Friday of each week) USA: $4.00 = Media Mail = U.S.A / delivery confirmation included (add 1.00 each additional LP/disc) $8.50 = Priority = U.S.A. /delivery confirmation included. (add $1.00 each additional LP) CANADA shipping is $8.50 AIRMAIL ...please add $1.50 for each additional LP MEXICO shipping is $9.95 AIRMAIL ... please add $1.50 for each additional Lp NOTE: Please wait until receipt of OUR invoice for proper shipping charges ***To our international OVERSEAS customers*** Due to the increase in U.S.A. postal shipping rates, we are forced to restructure shipping charges. Please see chart below. It is our hopes to provide you with our best possible service and keeping your shipping costs as low as possible. We have had problems with many international shipping orders costing us more than actual (higher) charges; The more Lp's you get in one parcel, the better the shipping costs, so we urge you to take advantage that we will HOLD your purchases to save YOU on shipping costs. IMPORTANT: Pay each invoice you receive, and, if you wish, ask us to HOLD your order reach lowest shipping costs. We value ALL our customers and will continue to list MANY interesting "rare" 60's & 70's Lp's that we obtain in our constant search and travels over all parts of the U.S. Thank you for your continued interests. International AIR MAIL shipping charges (all countries apply): 1 Lp = $14.00 2 Lp = $18.00 3 Lp's = $24.00 4 Lp's = $30.00 5 Lp's = $36.00 6 Lp's = $42.00 7 Lp's = $45.00 8 Lp's = $48.00 9 Lp's = $51.00 10 Lp's = $54.00 11 Lp's = $57.00 12 Lp's = $60.00 13 Lp's = $63.00 14 Lp's = $66.00 15 Lp's = $69.00 MULTIPLE LP SETS COUNT EACH DISC FOR SHIPPING COST (double Lp count as 2-Lp, etc.) Items In All Parcels Are Well Protected = The disc of an LP will always be separated from its cover (avoiding seam splits,etc) ALL PAYMENTS SHOULD BE MADE WITHIN 5 DAYS Of AUCTIONS END Appropriate Feedback Is Left AFTER Yours Is Left BIDDERS PLEASE = Do Not Bid If You Are Not Serious About Following Through The Transaction! ALL ITEMS GUARANTEED FOR WINNING BID - LESS SHIPPING!
