YES "Fragile" 1971 UK ATLANTIC RED/PLUM 1st PRESSING

	£		59
	$		78

YES "Fragile" 1971 UK ATLANTIC RED/PLUM 1st PRESSING
MacNeill GF SLEEVE w/ATTACHED BOOK, SENSATIONAL AUDIO
YES
Fragile

HERE WE HAVE A SUPERB, UK ATLANTIC (2401 019 DE LUXE) FIRST RED/PLUM PRESSING (November 1971) OF YES' TREMENDOUS PROG CLASSIC, "Fragile"

The band's breakthrough album, dominated by science-fiction and fantasy elements and new member Rick Wakeman, whose organ, synthesizers, Mellotrons, and other keyboard exotica added a larger-than-life element to the proceedings. Ironically, the album was a patchwork job, hastily assembled in order to cover the cost of Wakeman's array of instruments. But the group built effectively on the groundwork left by The Yes Album, and the group had an AM-radio sucker-punch, aimed at all of those other progressive bands who eschewed the notion of hit singles, in the form of "Roundabout," the edited version (sort of "highlights" of the album version) of which pulled in millions of young kids who'd never heard them before. The single clicked, most album-buyers liked the long version and all of the rest of what they found, and the band was made.
The Roger Dean design and artwork including the prototype YES logo also served to unite the bands 'concept'


PRESSED ON QUALITY MID-WEIGHT VINYL WHICH DELIVERS ABSOLUTELY OUTSTANDING, CRYSTAL CLEAR AND VERY SHARP AUDIO WITH AN IMPRESSIVE LOUD CUT

THE LP HAS THE FIRST PRESS ATLANTIC RED/PLUM LABELS AND WAS ONE OF THE LAST UK RED/PLUMS TO BE ISSUED. VERY SOON AFTER THE NOVEMBER 1971 RELEASE ATLANTIC CHANGED TO LABEL DESIGN TO THE MORE COMMON GREEN/ORANGE COLOUR ON WHICH THE VAST MAJORITY OF COPIES OF 'FRAGILE' ARE TO BE FOUND

THE LP HAS THE FIRST PRESS MATRIX: 2401019 A//1 1 2 1 6 / 2401019 B//1 1 3 8
AND IS HOUSED IN THE ORIGINAL MATTE GATEFOLD SLEEVE "Printed and made by MacNeill Press Ltd., London, S.E.1" WITH INTERNALLY FIXED 8 PAGE FULL COLOUR BOOKLET AND COMES COMPLETE WITH THE ORIGINAL POLYDOR POLY LINED INNER SLEEVE

SLEEVE NOTES: Five tracks of this album are the individual ideas, personally arranged and organised, by the five members of the Band. "Cans And Brahms" is an adaptation by Rick Wakeman on which he plays electric piano taking the part of the strings, grand piano taking the part of the woodwind, organ taking the brass, electric harpsichord taking reeds, and synthesizer taking contra bassoon. "We Have Heaven" is a personal idea by Jon Anderson in which he sings all the vocal parts. "Five Per Cent For Nothing" is a sixteen bar tune by Bill Bruford, played twice by the Group, and taken directly from the percussion line. In Chris Squire's "The Fish", each riff, rhythm, and melody is produced by using the different sounds of the bass guitar. Steve Howe concludes with a solo guitar piece "Mood For A Day"
The remaining tracks on the album are Group arranged and performed.

A REALLY SUPERB COPY OF A FANTASTIC LP - AN ESSENTIAL CLASSIC, WHICH PLAYS BEAUTIFULLY THROUGHOUT AND IN ALL HONESTY I THINK A FINER EXAMPLE WOULD BE VERY HARD TO LOCATE INDEED

Track Listing:
Side 1: Roundabout / Cans And Brahms / We Have Heaven / South Side Of The Sky
Side 2: Five Percent For Nothing /  Long Distance Runaround / The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus) / Mood For A Day / Heart Of The Sunrise  

LABELS: The first issue RED/PLUM labels are CLEAN and BRIGHT with NO unwanted marks/writing and only a few spindles evident when angled under a bright light
VINYL Visual: Both surfaces have their original DEEP, GLOSSY SHEEN. There are a couple of surface marks on Side Two but these are purely superficial and have NO audio consequence
VINYL Audio: The audio is absolutely SENSATIONAL - CRYSTAL CLEAR, RICH, WARM, SHARP, STRONG and VIBRANT SOUND. Unbeatable depth and clarity on these first presses simply not found on later issues. There are NO scratches, NO sticks, NO jumps, just a few light clicks on "Mood For A Day" (very minor) (and I play-graded at an EXTREMELY LOUD VOLUME - I simply ADORE this LP - it was the first Yes album I bought new upon release so it has a sentimental place in my collection). The album plays to a very high standard with SUPERB AUDIO CLARITY, NO groove-wear and NO distortion and must be very critically graded as EXCELLENT+ for audio. SOUNDS ABSOLUTELY STUNNING and NOT over-graded in ANY way as I use STRICT RECORD COLLECTOR grading standards (please refer to my feedback and 'about me' page). OUTSTANDING COPY
SLEEVE: The 1st issue matte gatefold cover with internally fixed booklet is in EXCELLENT condition. This sleeve is incredibly prone to wear (being untreated) but this is is a very fine example. There is a nick/indentation mark on the top edge of the sleeve (please see close-up photo) otherwise, the outer surfaces are CLEAN with only some light rubbing to the top and bottom edges on the front and some light 'ring' to the back but the inner surfaces are PRISTINE and FACTORY-FRESH - as is the booklet. All text on the spine is SHARP and BOLD with only light corner 'bumping' (please see photos). Overall a very, very fine example of this easily worn sleeve

PLEASE HAVE A LOOK AT MY PICTURES - I USUALLY TAKE QUITE A FEW SO YOU CAN GET A CLEAR INDICATION OF EVERY DETAIL OF THE ITEM
I HAVE UPLOADED AS MANY PICTURES AS I CAN BUT I WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SUPPLY ANY ADDITIONAL PHOTOS ON REQUEST
THIS REALLY IS A FANTASTIC COPY OF AN ABSOLUTELY SENSATIONAL LP WITH STUNNING AUDIO DELIVERY THROUGHOUT. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
AS WITH ALL MY RECORDS THIS HAS A LOW START PRICE AND NO RESERVE
PLEASE CHECK OUT MY OTHER AUCTIONS FOR MORE RARE AND COLLECTABLE VINYL
AND PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT ME WITH ANY QUERIES YOU MAY HAVE
THANKS FOR LOOKING, CHEERS

PLEASE REFER TO MY 'ABOUT ME' PAGE FOR MORE DETAILED INFO ON MY PLAY-GRADING, EQUIPMENT USED, P&P etc

POST & PACKING
UK: 1st Class: £4.00 (Recorded Delivery)
EU: Airmail: £5.00 (Insured & Signed For: £8.50)
INTERNATIONAL: Airmail: £8.00 (Insured & Signed For: £11.50)

UK bidders: PayPal or Cheque
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REDUCED POSTAGE FOR MULTIPLE ITEMS (EACH ADDITIONAL LP: UK: £1.00, EU & INTERNATIONAL £2.00)
I will combine postage for items purchased within any 10 day period. However, at the end of each 10 day period, all outstanding items will need to be paid for in full and will be posted to you. Any items purchased after payment will be included in the next 10 period. I am continually adding new items which may be of interest to you and it is impractical for me to allow payment to be postponed indefinitely in the expectation that you might wish to bid on future items. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation
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 277 (GS 5.2 (277))