YOUNG RASCALS FREEDOM SUITE RARE ORIG '69 WHITE LABEL PROMO 2-LP SET w/INSERTS

$

91

WE CURRENTLY HAVE   MORE THAN 1,000  LISTED ITEMS

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·       THE RASCALS (YOUNG RASCALS) – FREEDOM SUITE – ORIGINAL 1969 ATLANTIC RECORDS STEREO DOUBLE ALBUM SD-2-901

·       ORIGINAL U.S. PRESSING

·       ORIGINAL “SILVER FOIL” COVER (SIMILAR TO THE CREAM’S “WHEEL OF FIRE” ALBUM) WITH THE INLAID (RAISED) PHOTO OF THE BAND ON THE COVER (SOMEWHAT SIMILAR TO CROSBY, STILLS, NASH & YOUNG’S DÉJÀ VU ALBUM)

·       *** WHITE LABEL PROMO ***

·       ORIGINAL ATLANTIC RECORDS LABEL WITHOUT WEA LOGO ALONG THE LABEL’S EDGE AND WITH BROADWAY, NY ADDRESS, WHITE PROMOTIONAL VERSION

·       INCLUDES ALL THREE ORIGINAL INSERS/LITHOS (TWO ABSTRACT DRAWING AND A REPRODUCTION OF EL GRECO'S 'JESUS CARRYING THE CROSS')

·       INCLUDES ORIGINAL COLOR-CODED (YELLOW AND PINK) INNER SLEEVES

·       THIS IS THE ORIGINAL, AUTHENTIC, FIRST U.S. PRESSING; THIS IS NOT A REISSUE, AN IMPORT, OR A COUNTERFEIT PRESSING.

·       ORIGINAL GATEFOLD COVER, MADE OF THICK CARDBOARD (AMERICAN STYLE) 

·       CLEAN, WEAR-FREE LABELS

·       THICK, HEAVY VINYL PRESSING

(►PLEASE SEE THE IMAGE OF THE COVER, LABEL OR BOTH, SHOWN BELOW)

(Note: this is a REAL image of the ACTUAL item you are bidding on. This is NOT a "recycled" image from our previous auction. What you see is what you’ll get.  GUARANTEED!)

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Adventure has to count for something. When the Rascals dropped the word "Young" from the front of their name, it offered listeners and fans the signal was that everything would be different from then on. While the band could -- and would still -- write infectious, sophisticated blue-eyed soul numbers, they'd heard Blonde on Blonde, Pet Sounds, and Sgt. Pepper's. They were also keenly aware of the time they lived in. Once Upon a Dream, issued in February of 1968, was their first reach into previously uncharted territory, being constructed as an album instead of as a collection of singles. In the 21st century, it stands as one of rock's great overlooked classics with its ambitious production, multi-part expanded songwriting exercises, and some of the most ambitious vocalizing the band had yet attempted. But if that outing had been ambitious and even visionary, Freedom Suite, released in 1969 as the group's fifth album, was off the map. The band dug in and wrote a single LP's worth of solid tunes including a quartet of fine singles. First, there is "People Got to Be Free," which spent five weeks at Number One on the pop (and hit number 14 on the R&B chart as well). Then there's easy summer soul and gospel groove on "A Ray of Hope," which may have only gotten to number 39, but it's among the most enduring cuts in the Rascals legacy. The track "Heaven," which closed the first disc of Freedom Suite, was also wrapped tightly in urban gospel.

"People Got to Be Free" is not typical of the Rascals massive offerings, but neither is it atypical of the first LP in the collection, which contains 11 more or less conventionally written (by Rascals standards) songs. While the four previously mentioned cuts stood out from the rest, there wasn't any filler on that first platter, either. Arif Mardin co-produced with the band and arranged and conducted strings and large horn sections. Some of the soloists included King Curtis on "Of Course," and David "Fathead" Newman on "Adrian's Birthday." Tom Down engineered a couple of cuts, but Adrian Barber did the rest of the session. Eddie Brigati and Felix Cavaliere wrote all but three songs on the first disc, and were as tight a team as ever. Gene Cornish wrote a pair on the first platter including the killer piano soul-jazz cum rock number "Me and My Friends." But it's disc two that flips out everyone at first, wondering if this is indeed the Rascals after all. There's the jazzed up (think Ramsey Lewis Trio groove) "Adrian's Birthday," which was downright funky with popping bass by Chuck Rainey, fuzzed out stereo-effects guitar from Cornish, and a loose as a goose feeling more like a basement jam than a Rascals cut, especially with the gutbucket tenor break from Newman.

But it is a portent of things to come with the two nearly side-long cuts that follow. First, there's "Boom," which clocks in at nearly 14 minutes. It's a Dino Danelli drum solo, all of it. True, Danelli, who'd played with New Orleans jazz legend Henry "Red" Tyler and Lionel Hampton's band could play the hell out of the drums, but 14 minutes on a rock & roll album? Then there's "Cute," running over 15 minutes, which is a jam, period. Beginning with Cavaliere's Hammond B-3 and Danelli's popping drum kit, Cornish digs deep into his soul-jazz hit. This sounds more like a Prestige date by Jack McDuff up until a third of the way through, with one of the three session bassists (Rainey or Gerry Jemmott or Richard Davis; the player isn't named), pulling out he stops and driving the trio. At about five minutes in it begins to slip into tripped out, improvisational territory. For most acts this would be the death knell, but not for these cats. They let it wander for a minute or so and bring the groove back and then let it wander and come back, but Danelli takes too long a drum break given you'd just had nearly 14 minutes of one a track earlier. It's excessive, but it rocks too. The jam works as such for most of its length because the grooves are so dirty and heavy, and the cracking rhythms with killer breakbeats are just what the doctor ordered after an album of pop tunes. But its excesses do overreach, and therefore, that second disc in the set becomes all but superfluous. Freedom Suite reached number 127 on the chart, because of its reach, and would be the second to last Rascals album to produce any singles in the Top 40.

 (EXCERPT FROM AN ONLINE REVIEW BY THOM JUREK, ALL MUSIC GUIDE  /ALLMUSIC.COM/)

THE WHITE LABEL PROMO, RADIO STATION-, AUDITION OR DEMONSTRATION COPIES AND RELEASES (such as the one we have here) were often distributed to the radio stations before the record was released to the public, sometimes as much as four months ahead. These records are generally considered to be the "first among equals": the VERY FIRST generation and the VERY FIRST pressings of the particular title; a PROTOTYPE and the earliest known official pressing of the record.

TO SEE IF WE HAVE OTHER LISTED ITEMS BY THIS GROUP OR ARTIST ►  CLICK HERE

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·       CONDITION:

·       RECORD

(IMPORTANT NOTE: unless otherwise noted, ALL records are graded visually, and NOT play-graded!; we  grade records under the strong, diffuse room light or discrete sunlight)

(a)          WE GRADE THE VINYL AS STRONG VERY GOOD+(+) . CAUTION: The vinyl is NOT MINT or NEAR MINT, but is nevertheless in a very nice and clean condition. There are some surface marks and abrasions, mostly light and superficial, although some may be longer than 1.1/4 inches (1 inch = 2.5 centimeters)

(b)          The album comes with all three inserts intact.

(c)           The records come in their original, custom, color-coded inner sleeves, unique to this album (we can actually see them through the opening side)

(d)          The records are pressed on a beautiful, thick, inflexible vinyl, which was usually used for the first or very early pressings. Usually, the sound on such thick vinyl pressings is full-bodied, vivid, and even dramatic. Do not expect to obtain such a majestic analog sound from a digital recording!

(e)             White Promo Label version of this title is much rarer that a regular, commercially released, version of this title. We estimate that stock copies of this album outnumber promo copies by a ratio of at least 50:1.

(f)            Of course, this is a full-bodied ANALOG recording, and not an inferior, digital recording!!!

·       COVER (THIS IS THE ORIGINAL, REFLECTIVE “FOIL” COVER)

THE COVER IS NICE --- ABOUT VERY GOOD++ (VG++).

The following flaws or imperfections are noted on the cover:

-        Cover has a small cutout hole in one of the corners

-        Cover has some ring wear. On the scale from 1 to 10 (1 being the least, and  10 being the most severe), we assess the severity of ring wear as 5.

-         The cover has a few scratch marks (this is a common problem with almost all copies of this album)

-         Cover has three corners slightly worn / dinged / bent.

NO OTHER IMPERFECTIONS ON THE COVER:

-        No split seams

-        No cut-out corners

-        No saw-marks or indents

-        No dirt/dust rubbing stains (friction marks caused by rubbing against other covers)

-        No yellowing from aging

-        No writing

-        No stamps

-        No peel-off marks

-        No stains

-        No mold or mildew spots

-        No stickers or labels

-        No water damage

-        No warping

-        No wax, glue, paint or liquid drops on the cover

-        No glue traces or wax residue.

-        No bar codes

-        No RIAA stamps or stickers. 

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POSTAGE & SHIPPING:

We offer THREE postage rates for both Domestic and International Mail: Media Mail, Priority Mail and Express Mail for domestic, and First Class, Priority International Mail, and Express International Mail for international orders. INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMERS PLEASE NOTE: WE RECOMMEND that you pay for USPS International Priority Mail OR International Express mail when making a payment in order to obtain tracking information, which is NOT available for First Class International shipments.

INTERNATIONAL POSTAGE rates vary from country to country. For SPECIFIC international and domestic postage rates ►click here. While you can be rest assured that ►our packaging is careful, sturdy and impact-proof, please note that damage, loss or theft in transit is always possible, and in the case of some countries even PROBABLE. To discuss this potential problem and ensure flawless delivery, please contact us thru eBay BEFORE placing a bid.

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OUR REFUND POLICY :

WE OFFER UNCONDITIONAL MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE WITHIN 14 DAYS FROM THE RECEIPT OF THE MERCHANDISE, NO QUESTIONS ASKED (THE BUYER PAYS FOR THE RETURN POSTAGE); Still sealed items MUST be returned sealed in order to be eligible for a refund Some restrictions apply. Please read our complete refund policy before placing a bid. ►Click here  for the full text of our policy

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