SPOOKY TOOTH Ceremony SCARCE Orig UK 69 Island Pink LP

	£		74
	$		98

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Postage: UK £4.25. Europe £11.75. Rest of World £15.75. ALL signed for. – NOTE: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment – returns within 14 days only. I try to keep my P&P as low as possible after the very significant Royal Mail price increases.

Artist or Band: SPOOKY TOOTH with Pierre Henry

Album Title: Ceremony – An Electric Mass.

Producer(s): Pierre Henry and Spooky Tooth.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Have Mercy; Jubilation; Confession.

Side 2: Prayer; Offering; Hosanna.

Label/Format: Island – original pink i format. These have a real deep rich pink colour.

Label Conditions: Both clean, fresh and attractive with a lovely deep hue. Spindle marks are very light, fine and faint and show little.

Cat Number: ILPS 9107.

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: 137 grams. A very good average for it’s era.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Scarce.

Original Year of Release: 1969

Matrix Nos: ILPS 9107 A // 1 1 3 & ILPS 9107 B // 1 1 1 2 1

Musicians: Gary Wright - Lead vocals, organ; Mike Harrison - Lead vocals; Andy Leigh - bass; Luther Grosvenor - lead guitar; Mike Kellie - drums; Pierre Henry - electronics.

Brief Artist & Album Info: Spooky Tooth were formed from Art who made one album on Island. For some reason, which always remains a mystery to me, this album, the band’s third, never gets the praise it fully deserves. For me it’s their very best. A blend of their usual style but with a taste of the avant garde with Pierre Henry, a French electronics wizard guesting. The album is subtitled An Electronic Mass and takes on a form of a progressive church service. This was a very different Spooky Tooth album and I always applaude experimentation, who wants the same album sound time and time again, ‘dare to be different’ I say. Not quite the most experimental album on Island however, that still belongs to the White Noise debut album, that was light years ahead of it’s time, but this is runs it close and not too dissimilar at times. I really don’t find Ceremony that strange anyway, it’s just a great far more ‘progressive’ album, and one of the more challenging albums within the Island catalogue. This controversial record found no new audience for the band and sold less than most of their others. The cover was as equally daring and unusual, with bizarre artwork from John Holmes. This is without doubt one of the hardest albums to find in top conditions – that is both record and especially cover. The sleeve always wears badly being black, matt and unprotected, few survive without significant wear and this one has a moderate sized sticker pull that the original owner filled in. The record plays superbly and is one of the cleanest pressings I have yet heard and that I feel more than compensates for the sticker damage.

Cover Grade and Format: Difficult to grade a cover with a moderate sticker pull that has been pen-enhanced. As the rest of the cover is in very fine condition a grading of Very Good is not far out. Minus the sticker marks – there is a much smaller one opposite the moderate one too – I would have graded nearer excellent. An unlaminated gatefold format with matt surfaces. Printed and made in England, uncredited.

Cover Front: A classic Island cover and as uncompromising as the record with daring artwork. Such a shame this was not laminate protected as it rarely wears well. As mentioned already, there is a moderate (1.5 x 0.5 inch approx) sticker tear near the top left corner which has been tipped-in by the previous owner. A smaller trace of the same on the opposite top corner shows little. This apart, not a great deal else to fault on a very intolerant cover. Any rubbing or creasing very light and few and the graphic still looks impressive.

Cover Back: Faint rub traces and a reasonably fine crease on the spine edge, but the lack of ringwear is unusual and a real bonus. This back is certainly one of the better ones I have seen.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Modern art or just plain weird? This bizarre centrefold has little wear at all with any traces of rubbing very light and few indeed.

Top Edges: There appears little wear but I can see a few small chips that have been tipped in.

Bottom Edges: Some rubbing on the back edge and again some enhancement on the black area.

Right Edge(s), and Type: The left closed edge is very neat with minimal traces of any wear. The back open edge also shows little wear with any thickening or burring mostly mild.

Spine and Text: Given just how wear-prone this cover is, the spine has survived in very fine condition and is one of the few I have seen where most of text is present and with very little wear. Solid, straight, minimal compression and folded square, so the edges meet up closely together, flat and parallel. There is mildish tilt to the left.

Corners: Fine shape with some reasonably discrete colour enhancement.

Cover Summary: Clearly the original owner wanted his covers to look as visually pleasing as possible and decided to improve rubs and tears which I suppose is understandable on such a dark cover. The left corner sticker tear is the most significant factor by a distance because that apart, the main surfaces are probably above average in context of a difficult cover. Clearly not for the more discerning but as stated, the impressive original Island record more than compensates. The owner also put the record inside a replacement lined inner and that is the only one included with this set.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT / EXCELLENT(++): a very fine visual copy that is very clean, with fine shine, intense black and very solidly pressed. A copy modestly played with only very fine and faint surface marks seen under light – these have NO sound and this is superbly pressed and offers very enjoyable sound. Side one has a couple of marks, possibly cutting marks in manufacture that follow the grooves, again these have no sound. This record has deep, wide and very complex groove patterns that indicates to ‘vinyl readers’ this has intense and dynamic sound with vast frequency ranges and extremes of volume and quietness. This would have been a difficult album to track for vintage pickups and many older pressings could have been damaged very quickly. This record has avoided such abuse and only shows very light use overall. A visually pleasing Island pink record that should please many, if not most collectors.

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.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: As suggested by the groove patterns, this intense record plays with impressive high fidelity sound and audio quality is even higher than the visual grading, it plays with practically nothing to fault and that is very unusual for this highly complex recording. A very difficult record with highs and lows of sound volume and strong dynamics. One passage sounds like a hammer being being knocked against a drain-pipe and it literally sounds in the room. A copy that offers distortion-free sound, with all frequencies sharp and clear. Sound quality is very impressive with a wide dynamic range and detailed sound. Any surface sounds are minimal indeed, practically absent throughout, even on the difficult passages and no pops or significant clicks were noted and this is an exceptional clean pressing for one of the most demanding Island titles ever. Few copies will outperform this early pressing significantly I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I feel very sure this record has been played very lightly. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record. The actual record will prove very difficult to find significantly better and it’s long overdue the recognition it deserves and demands to be played again soon.

End Piece: Ignore the critics and books about this album this is a brilliant journey into the world of experimental electronic-rock – a Ceremony with a difference. If you like Spooky Tooth I can think of no reason not to like this one, it just takes a little more time as their sound became far more ‘progressive’ and experimental. Clearly Pierre Henry’s influence was vast. The critics who gave this the thumbs down years ago are long since gone, but this fine record has survived. An album with genuine hi-fi sound that will excel on a worthy system. For a band to shift their sound and experiment so quickly, and bravely was to be applauded and I strongly recommend this title. The record one the cleanest sounding I have heard for a while but the cover is not for the more discerning.

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 as 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] = £4.25

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]) = £11.75 (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 [£46 maximum]) = £15.75 Add £3 per extra LP. (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’.