CARMEN McRAE BY SPECIAL REQUEST MEGA-RARE ORIG'56 DECCA MONO PINK LABEL PROMO LP

$

58

WE CURRENTLY HAVE  MORE THAN 300  LISTED ITEMS

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·       CARMEN McRAE (with MUNDELL LOWE, KENNY CLARKE AND BILLY STRAYHORN) - BY SPECIAL REQUEST - ORIGINAL 1956 DECCA RECORDS MONO LP DL-8173

·       ORIGINAL U.S. PRESSING

·       *** PINK LABEL PROMO ***

·       ORIGINAL DECCA LABEL, MID-'50s STYLE, PINK PROMOTIONAL VERSION

·       DEEP GROOVE PRESSING

·       FLAT-EDGE PRESSING

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

·       ORIGINAL, THICK CARDBOARD COVER (AMERICAN STYLE)

·       THICK, HEAVY VINYL PRESSING

·       CLEAN, WEAR-FREE LABELS

·       MACHINE-STAMPED MATRIX NUMBER IN TRAIL-OFF VINYL (DEAD WAX) OF THE RECORD

·       MATRIX NUMBER IN TRAIL-OFF VINYL (DEAD WAX) ENDS WITH '-1/-2'.  ON SOME LABELS,  SUFFIX '–1' DENOTES THE VERY FIRST, ORIGINAL 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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Second in vocal prowess and impeccable vocal delivery only to Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRae commanded respect, resentment, envy and rejection at every stage of her long career. Her idiosyncratic vocalizing and distinct sense of phrasing and diction left her with many detractors and even more admirers and worshipers. When it came to Carmen McRae, there was no middle ground: she was either a reigning queen of jazz (which was my opinion; certainly she was one after Billie Holiday passed away) or simple heretic. What I have here is one of Carmen’s five - very tough to get in decent shape - albums she recorded at the very onset of career for Decca label.

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Other than a record for Bethlehem and a few scattered selections, this LP (most of which has been reissued on CD) has Carmen McRae's earliest recordings. Although her voice is higher than it would be and her style is not as recognizable, she was already a top-notch singer at this early stage. Some numbers have McRae joined by the Mat Matthews Quintet (featuring Matthews on accordion and the young Herbie Mann on flute), while others have her joined by pianist Dick Katz, guitarist Mundell Lowe, bassist Wendell Marshall, and her ex-husband Kenny Clarke on drums. McRae plays piano on "Suppertime," and Billy Strayhorn sits in on his own "Something to Live For." Among the other songs that McRae uplifts and swings are "Give Me the Simple Life," "Sometimes I'm Happy," "Yardbird Suite," and "This Will Make You Laugh."

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

     The PROMOTIONAL, RADIO STATION-, AUDITION OR DEMONSTRATION COPIES AND RELEASES (such as the one we have here) were often distributed among 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", which is to say the VERY FIRST generation and the VERY FIRST pressings of the particular title; a PROTOTYPE and the earliest known official pressing of the record.

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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 VG++, JUST A NOTCH BELOW NEAR MINT. A few light abrasions (probably just sleeve scuffs inflicted in storage over the years) ARE VISIBLE, but they appear fairly  insignificant relative to the overall condition of the vinyl, and are only moderately visually distracting. For most part, the vinyl looks impeccable, without any MAJOR visual flaws or imperfections. Much of the original luster is intact, and the vinyl shines and sparkles almost like new.

(a)          The record is 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!

(b)          This is the original FLAT EDGE pressing.

(c)           The record is STILL in its original inner, perforated plastic baggy, which has - apparently with success - shielded the record from the harmful impact of elements over many years!

(d)          The record has a "deep groove" (an indent in the label about 1/2-inch from the edge of the label, which on SOME labels is associated with very early or first pressings).

(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 70:1.

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

·       COVER

THE COVER IS ABOUT VERY GOOD+(+)

The following flaws or imperfections are noted on the cover:

-        Cover has a small, rectangular, sticker residue (small yellowish discoloration from the removed price sticker)

-         Cover has some light ring wear (nothing significant); 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 4

-         Back cover has circular tarnish (grayish, dust-covered sections, which closely follow the contour of the record),  probably caused by friction or by rubbing against other covers during the storage. The tarnish is similar in appearance to a common ring wear, but, UNLIKE ring wear, these grayish areas may be possible to clean up with a minor effort and with a right cleansing solution.

-         Cover shows some light yellowing on back side, apparently from aging  (nothing significant).

-         Cover has a few tiny wrinkles along the spine

-         Cover has a minor 'bump' (dent) on the spine (BARELY VISIBLE)

-         Cover has a minor wrinkle (crease) in the cardboard base on the back panel

-         Visible shelf wear noted on the seams

-         Cover has a light "wrinkle" (crease)  in one of the corners.

-         Cover has one corner slightly dinged (nothing significant)

NO OTHER IMPERFECTIONS ON THE COVER:

-        No split seams

-        No cut-out (drill) holes.

-        No cut-out corners

-        No saw-marks or indents

-        No writing

-        No stamps

-        No peel-off marks

-        No mold or mildew spots

-        No stickers or labels

-        No water damage

-        No razor marks, scratches, pressure marks, lines, streaks, or  cuts.

-        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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