THE KINKS Something Else… RARE ORIG UK 1967 MONO EX LP

	£		258
	$		342

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Postage: UK £4.25. Europe (including Russia) £12. Rest of World £16. ALL signed for in quality, safe packaging – I NEVER use mailing envelopes.

NOTE: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment. I try to keep my P&P prices as low as possible after the very significant Royal Mail price increases and will never compromise on solid, safe packing.

Artist or Band: THE KINKS

Album Title: Something Else By The Kinks.

Producer(s): Shel Talmy & Ray Davies.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: David Watts; Death of a Clown; Two Sisters; No Return; Harry Rag; Tin Soldier Man; Situation Vacant.

Side 2: Love Me Till the Sun Shines; Lazy Old Sun; Afternoon Tea; Funny Face; End of the Season; Waterloo Sunset.

Label/Format: Pye – intense pink-magenta and black format with a matt finish. (Please see my label scans).

Label Conditions: Both are in amazing condition given the vintage and mode. They are very clean, fresh and attractive with only three or four very light, fine and faint spindle marks – and these only show under angled light. A rare mono copy that appears little played and so few are found like that. A few light surface marks that are ignored, no damaging worn-out mono stylus have ruined this classic album. For those who chose to purchase this in mono back in 1967 and beyond, most played it to destruction resulting in noisy and badly scratched copies surfacing today. This offers super sound (or I would no offer it) and for looks and audio quality it will not prove easy to find better. I have never seen better labels on this album before.

Cat Number: NPL 18193.

Mode / Speed: Mono / 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: 175 grams. Even by Pye standards of this era, this is a super-heavyweight with real thickness and mass. This company did not skimp in the 60s, but seldom make this incredible weight.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: The title itself on vinyl is rare enough and considered the rarest ever ‘normal issue’ Kinks album. Personally, I think the stereo is slightly harder to find but that’s debatable. With the record in very impressive condition and sounding fantastic with little unwanted, this is a major Kinks rarity – it will prove difficult to find much better. The record has only a small few light surface marks which are pretty much ignored and plays quietly with NO distortion or groovewear. The cover is fragile with no laminate protection and flipbacked, hence most are seen badly rubbed and ring worn, often with major damage to the flip backs. With such a massive record inside for 45 years, it could be no surprise. So in terms of wear on this one, any is quite modest but enough to remind of the facts. Mono copies so little played for me is the main factor, one that has escaped deep scratches and sound degrading – one that can be played and enjoyed to the near maximum – these are much more of a premium and seldom found these days. So a rare album in-itself and one in very fine condition – and a true masterpiece of popular music.

Original Year of Release: December 1967

Matrix Nos: NPL 18193 A-1 * M (this side has a small matrix correction) / NPL 12193 B-1 *M (this side has a major matrix correction) MPL 18193 B-1 M has been struck through.

Stamper Codes: F 1 / H 1 (these are tiny and faint and very difficult to even locate).

Musicians: Ray Davies – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, harmonica; Dave Davies – lead guitar, 12 string guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals (on tracks 2, 8, 11); Pete Quaife – bass, backing vocals. Guests: Nicky Hopkins – keyboards, piano, organ, harpsichord; Rasa Davies – backing vocals.

Brief Info: One of the UK’s greatest music treasures, this album is up there with the very best albums of all-time. Brilliant pop music and their sound had now progressed beyond pure RnB. Ray Davies writes most of the thirteen songs on offer with his brother Dave writing two – the classic ‘Death of a Clown’ was co-written by them both. Ray especially in the 60s, wrote some of the most brilliant songs of this famous decade. Catchy tunes with superb lyrics, but their albums did not sell in the numbers they should have done. Although the singles still did well, the albums declined which is mystifying as they simply got better and better and better. This is a very rare record and the mono version now commands a realistic high catalogue price, it’s very difficult to find lightly played. Tired, dull looking vinyl with significant marks, scratches and bad sound is almost the norm for today. With ‘Peppermania’ sweeping the country, masterpieces of this type were largely overlooked, in my humble opinion, I consider this album superior to the far more famous title. In terms of rarity, well Pepper would have sold several thousand to just one of these. Hardly any wonder it’s all but disappeared. Baring this in mind, only one in many will ever have a record like this. This did briefly peak at 35 in the UK albums charts, a lowly effort for such a beautiful album and faired even worse in the States with a miserable high of 153. Maybe the change of direction from beat to art-pop was not what their early fans wanted. Only as the years passed have these classic Kinks albums been so cherished and highly sort-after, few survive in top conditions with many trashed or even written-off. Viewing and hearing this mono cut is a privilege not to be taken lightly. No piledriver thick, heavy stylus have ruined this one the few marks present are of little to no audio consequence. Both surfaces are fresh and shiny and the labels superb. A record that plays with NO distortions or noteworthy surface sound on the music with all focused and sharp with no clipping to the high frequencies. Minor gentle crackle traces between three or four songs, again little else – just enough to remind it is a vinyl record that is being listened too, not a cold clinical CD version. No single channel noise caused by uneven wear to the grooves which is so common on such records. All traits that mono records suffer when not treated with due respect. Four or five fairly gentle clicks at the very start of side two, but little else and how unusual will that be on a record this age? Remember, one jolt or needle drop from a Dansette or similar mono record player that tracked at massive weights could have destroyed this or any similar record. Pop nostalgia never gets better than the Kinks and this is one of their very best ever – the timeless ‘Waterloo Sunset’ brings this perfect album to the perfect end - and maybe even a tear to the eye?

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(-): a single unlaminated format, this being unusual for the time and most of the Kinks 60s albums were laminated. It has three large rear external flipbacks. This was printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse Ltd and has the ‘Patents pending’ text. This is a dedicated mono sleeve with the NPL 18193 number on back and spine which was also used on the stereo version, often a sticker was included to denote the record was stereo.

Cover Front: VERY prone to all forms of wear and rarely without some. The main issue on the front is rubbing with moderate vertical evidence near the left edge. Any elsewhere is lighter and less and with no sticker marks. The graphic is barely worn at all and looks strong. Some rubbing and tip creasing to the corners but the overall lack of creasing is a significant bonus and the surface does remain clean. Given all the facts, this front remains quite attractive and will better many.

Cover Back: The main back panel has little wear or rubbing and no ring wear which is some achievement with such a massive record inside all these years. A few light traces along with a little creasing and a small mark near the bottom right corner just inside the flipback. The most of any creasing is seen on the bottom flipback near the right corner with a little gentle burring on the same one. That apart, they are all solid, neat and attractive, importantly intact – the bottom right possibly lifted in the past but now sound. Small corner tip rubs that are near impossible to avoid totally, but this back for most has survived well and sets a very respectable standard.

Top Edge: Moderate, consistent rubbing, but straight.

Bottom Edge: As above.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, quite sharp with any wear modest with no feathering and guaranteed untrimmed. A few small burrs and mild thickening as viewed mostly end-on. Record entered on this edge.

Spine and Text: Against the odds, the spine is in overall fine shape with any rubbing being modest and largely confined to the top and bottom. Solid and quite straight with some compression more towards the bottom. Amazingly ALL the text is present, bold and strong and totally undamaged or eroded (please see my close-up pictures to verify). To say this is unusual would be an unstatement. Equally unusual, both folds show hardly any wear and retain most-all ink with NO tipping-in.

Corners: All corners have moderately rubbed which I guess is no surprise. They have remained quite solid with some tip creasing, just a trace of softening on the bottom right.

Cover Summary: Those who know this cover well will know it is a fragile one. A pale silver-grey ink with no protection means they rub and wear badly. Given all the facts, this has survived generally well, but will not be for the more discerning. That said, many collectors will be happy to own it and intact clean examples are not seen often.

The Inner Sleeve: NEAR EXCELLENT: a plain white tracing paper lined inner is included in very fine condition. Clean, fresh with two immaculate window circles and the lining in superb condition. Some corner creasing and three small edge splits I neatly repaired to stop them getting bigger – now barely even noticeable. The one original owner put a small piece of tape on the bottom edge to strengthen it which was quite wise to support such a massive weight record.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(+) / NEAR EXCELLENT: as stated, side two has a couple surface marks (only light scuffs really) but are largely ignored. A very fine visual copy that is very clean with super shine, intense black and massively pressed on unusually thick, heavyweight vinyl. These vintage Pye pressings were usually of vast weight, but this is exceptional even by their standards. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence but not visually unscathed. The important factor is NO penetrating deep scratches, so NO arm drops or jolts, thus, SUPERB sound on ALL songs with any minor blemishes on the first half dozen revs on side two (light clicks) and a little crackle between around four songs on the joining grooves – again how many 45-year-old mono records will be truly silent – especially being played on a very high-end stereo turntable for which this disc was not really designed. Under light, a few super-fine hairlines but little else and visually a super record that should please many collectors, but not the absolute purist who wants to records to appear as new.

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 and Audio Grading: This wonderful Kinks classic plays even above it’s generally impressive visual grading with very little to fault as mentioned above. Strong, distortion-free sound, never, ever take this for granted on any mono record, all frequencies are sharp and clear. Sound quality is very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed, punchy sound. Barely any surface sounds worthy of note on the actual music – four of five light clicks on the very beginning of side two, but little else. A little surface sound on the joining grooves of three or four songs, again difficult to avoid totally - the songs are of such quality, my mind was more focused on enjoyment rather than nit-picking. I remind I play all my records on very revealing equipment which can be deemed almost unfair on records this vintage and mode, but the music simply excelled. A very clean pressing, ALL sound FULLY focused, precise and sharp with great detail from a very early pressed copy. What a joy to hear this monumental classic so clean, this was a real pleasure – I have no qualms with the odd tiny, gentle reminder I am listening to an original record, not a much later or modern repressing or digital version. Few examples these days will outperform this very early mono pressing significantly I feel sure - and early is the word for this - actually purchased within the year of issue. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this true classic. A copy that will prove difficult to find significantly better and the music and it’s sonic clean reproduction is unreservedly and especially 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/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] = £4.25

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]) = £12 (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 (£17 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’.