KING CRIMSON Lark's Tongues… SCARCE ORIG UK 73 EX++ LP

	£		207
	$		274

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: KING CRIMSON

Album Title: Larks’ Tongues in Aspic.

Producer(s): King Crimson.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part One; Book of Saturday; Exiles.

Side 2: Easy Money; The Talking Drum; Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part Two.

Label/Format: Island – original pink rim format (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and attractive with a lovely intense colour. Any spindle traces are ultra fine, few and faint and hardly even register. This superb example has clearly been played little and with utmost care on a quality system.

Cat Number: ILPS 9230.

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: 120 grams. A quite typical weight for this one.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Moderately scarce: the big issue here is the pressing quality for one of prog-rock’s most difficult and complex albums. I seldom offer this album simply because so many I have heard are too noisy and the vinyl quality not up to the job, either by over or careless usage or manufacture issues. As much as I love the Island label, pressing standards were not always as good as they could have been. This album along with almost the entire King Crimson catalogue are a complete lottery for sound. Any ‘vinyl reader’ only has to look at this record to know exactly what to expect – a mass of dark and light rings, some ultra fine and compact and some wide with the loudest passages you can imagine. A maze of intense sound at the highest and lowest volumes and complexity – this record has more complex rings than Saturn. One that looks more like a hi-fi test record rather than a regular rock album. For those who listen to classical music on vinyl will know exactly what I mean. This copy plays superbly and is one of the very best I have ever heard bar none. I detected just one click on a record that goes way beyond ‘difficult’. A rollercoaster ride in sound extremes: ultra quiet areas of almost silence with sparse sound, including the ultra fragile opening grooves, then a wall of powerhouse, full-on intensity – those full-throttle riffs on the first title song are simply stunning and will rock the building’s foundations. So, another one worthy of offering and this really can be enjoyed to the maximum. Total silence is near impossible, but this is supremely well pressed and even played on a very revealing system, it excelled and few will match or better this. The fact-of-the-matter is, I have seen other copies that look this clean and little used, but with considerable surface noise and pressing issues – it is a pure lottery and only a stringent play-grade will reveal all what is great about this legendary recording as well as the bad. There is nothing remotely ‘bad’ here. Never underestimate how difficult this incredible album is to find anything like enjoyable on vinyl. Lastly – this copy includes the scarce original lyric inner sleeve – most seem to lack this and was not included with all. This has aged a little, but better than than missing. Finally, the cover, that is equally difficult, and this one has little to fault and aged little. The deeply pinched spine ends are fantastic, neat and unworn as can be seen on my close-up pictures. A top EMI pressed Island classic that will prove immensely difficult to match or find better – yes, such copies are very scarce indeed.

Original Year of Release: 1973

Matrix Nos: ILPS 9230 A-2U / ILPS 9230 B-2U

Mothers / Stampers: 1 RO / 1 GP

Run-Out Groove Etchings: ‘SARK’ [on side one]

Musicians: Robert Fripp – guitars, Mellotron, devices; John Wetton – bass, lead vocals; Bill Bruford – drums; David Cross – violin, viola, Mellotron; Jamie Muir – percussion, allsorts.

Brief Info: Studio album number five for this most cherished of progressive bands of the 1970s. This up there with the very best and including a one-off appearance of percussionist Jamie Muir. The band again has a different sound and this is one of their most difficult albums ever. With reference to my ‘Rarity’ paragraph above, this is a massively difficult album for vinyl with some of the most complex groove patterning you will ever see on a rock album. It looks more like a classical record with countless rings of varying shades of black denoting the extremes on sound levels. Ranging from near silence to jagged wide areas for the most ferocious power-riffs. This copy does it maximum justice with barely anything unwanted. One of the cleanest pressings you could wish for and easily acceptable for this sensitive listener. Buying any copy of this album without a play-grade is a huge risk and most-all with disappoint as I have discovered on several occasions. I regard this as one of Fripp’s masterpieces and Muir’s percussion work is captivating.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: High: like the record, this cover is often seen in poor condition. The lack of protection means it often ages badly with grubbiness and severe discolouration.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(+): and this does it scant justice. A single unlaminated format with smooth matt surfaces. Printed and made in England. This one has the deeply pinched spine ends as seen on my close-up picture. Also the elusive and quite scarce lyric inner sleeve is included. Most copies seen did not include it and this seems a fairly limited part of this set.

Cover Front: A really nice looking front and example. Any hints of ageing are very faint indeed with just the odd small mark or rub trace. A small scuff mark near the bottom edge is the most significant factor which should reitterate how fine this cover is. Barely any noteworthy creasing and the white area still just that, white. No rim impression and just a little tip rubbing on the right corners. But given how difficult this one is, this has overall been preserved very well indeed.

Cover Back: The back is even more difficult being predominately white, but again in impressive condition with just a couple of three small and very faint toning spots. Again no rim impression and barely any hint of creasing or grubbiness. The flats on the spine ends superbly defined which really gives this sleeve extra class.

Top Edge: One tiny surface chip and a fairly small tip rub on the right corner. Still very straight and clean.

Bottom Edge: Small tip rubs apart, this vulnerable storage edge has little else to fault and again, very straight.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, sharp with barely any wear, thickening or burring. Record enters on this edge which is guaranteed untrimmed.

Spine and Text: Little short of immaculate, and very fragile with those very deeply pinched ends. Solid, straight with minimal traces of any compression. Those beautifully defined ends look fantastic and retain very fine shape with barely any hint of rubbing. All text is fully present and unworn as seen in my close-up pictures. All these factors are seldom seen and finding this fragile spine much better will also prove difficult.

Corners: Small tip rubs to the right pair, the two on the spine are superb with little to fault at all. Excellent to near mint (spine) shape is retained.

Cover Summary: A very strong all-round example of this very fragile 70’s cover, one that will prove difficult to find much better. With only light and few blemishes, and only gentle clues to it’s age, this very attractive item should please many collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT(-): this being the scarce lyric inner sleeve that only came with early examples, this has the blue ‘PATENT NO 1.125.555’ and ‘MADE IN ENGLAND’ overprint. An inner printed only on one side and unlined. This has barely any damage and even the fragile edges are intact with just a tiny nick tear on the top opening on the back. Just one corner area crease. The main issue for being marked down is age darkening and a fairly mild stain near the bottom right corner (printed side). These are at a premium and this is still a very respectable original.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: MINT(-) / EXCELLENT(++): a superb visual copy that is very clean with excellent shine, intense black and solidly pressed. A copy hardly even played or handled on all the evidence with any surface marks very few, ultra light and faint as seen with scrutiny under bright angled light. In fact side one looks stunning with barely anything to be seen at all. Side two with merely a tiny few mega fine hairlines, hardly enough to drop the grading, but I did anyway. With such complex and some super-fine groove width, this is a record that will mark very easily and can be totally destroyed by being played with any heavy-tracking thick stylus of which it is highly intolerant. No such worries here, I doubt if this record has seen light-of-day for decades. The grooves on the beginning of ‘The Talking Drum’ are so fine and compact, they appear almost invisible and look like bare vinyl. This band area fairly wide too so incredibly vulnerable, but this difficult area of slow build-up plays beautifully. Visually a super record that should please most-all 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: This almost impossibly demanding record plays up to and most-all beyond it’s high visual grading with barely anything to fault. Strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Any surface sounds barely registered, and this is one I could hardly think I could ever state as such. Several areas of sparse sound and quietness – only a really top pressing will ever offer the sound the audiophile wants – but this one truly does. Vinyl records are a ‘contact’ format, and passages of near zero sound or instrumentation are the utmost test. I heard just one click on the whole record, no others worthy of special note. This is a top quality pressing that has not been mistreated or ruined by unworthy equipment or heavy handling. The sonic delivery of the intricate sound is sublime with all the details of the mastertape. Crank up the volume on that thunderous riff on the title song on side one – it follows one of the most gentle and quietest of intros – and when the back kick in hard, this can almost take the breath away. All the instruments are sharp and fully focused and the lack of irritating crackle makes this an exceptional example that can be played and enjoyed to it’s maximum potential. Few copies will match or outperform this early pressing significantly I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I am certain this record has been played very lightly and has been generally well stored and certainly carefully handled. The one click apart (and how critical is that being?), nothing else affected my sound pleasure on this masterful prog classic. This copy will prove very difficult to find significantly better and merits my strongest recommendation – this is progressive rock near it’s very best.

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’.