SHIRLEY & DOLLY COLLINS Anthems in Eden Harvest Orig 69

	£		45
	$		60

Hi, I am Mike, I am 46 and have been a music collector and enthusiast for over 33 years now. We all wish we could turn back the clock and buy those wonderful brand new records from the 60s and 70s, but alas, this is not possible; so I always try to offer the finest and most accurately described and graded records I can find. No vinyl/music lover really would choose to buy second-hand, but this is only way now to own these valuable, prized and ellusive items now. 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, hence the name - time rarely allows for more as I Play-Grade virtually every record I offer in their entirity, not just bits to guess a grade (on a Rega 3 deck with Ortofon cartridge) - 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 reader – 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. The only thing I cannot guarantee one hundred percent is exact colour matching - this depends on the lighting at the time and that is out of my control, but I feel sure most items will be very close to the actual real item. Variation can sometimes occur too in colour of the label scans and labels taken next to the sleeve with a digital camera, the scanned full label pictures should be the most accurate. If any picture I take looks more flattering than the actual item for any reason, I will clearly state the fact in the advert. 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 or sticks or writing on covers or labels unless clearly stated to the contrary. Thanks for your interest and Good luck – MIKE.

Please Note: I will now offer any item to the runner-up after the mandatory Ebay 3 days if no contact is made by the winning bidder. The same applies if no payment is received within the mandatory 7 days so any bidder who has just lost out can still email me to reserve the item as priority second chance. Item wants are always welcome - email me with anything needed, you never know - I may just have a copy in stock. I by quality single items and collections also (Email me please if you have quality items for sale).

Debutant Bidders: Many sellers refuse first time buyers: I do not follow this practice (everybody has to start somewhere), but I would appreciate any first timer letting me know their intentions of their intended payment method and very prompt communication, preferably before any bid or soon after the auctions ends. This gives confidence that their intentions are honourable, and I in return guarantee extra special good feedbacks to get zero rated Ebayers off to a flying start to help them with future transactions. NOTE: I WILL NOT ACCEPT BIDS FROM UNREGISTERED USERS, I will cancel them immediately, and sorry, I cannot give valuations on people’s personal items just for their own curiosity, no item can be accurately valued blindly.

Please read all the information carefully - these adverts take an age to compile properly - so it’s well worth a few minutes of your time to read the details thoroughly. I really cannot take any responsibility if any bidder fails to read any facts that are clearly stated in the advert - Thankyou.

Artist or Band: SHIRLEY COLLINS & DOLLY COLLINS

Album Title: Anthems in Eden.

Track Listing: A Song Story: A Beginning; A Meeting (Searching for lambs); A Courtship (The Wedding Song); A Denying (The Blacksmith); A Forsaking (Our Captain Cried); A Dream (Lowlands); A Leavetaking (Pleasant and Delightful; An Awakening (Whitsun Dance); A New Beginning; Rambleaway; Ca’ the Yowes; God Dog; Bonny Cuckoo; Nellie the Milkmaid; Gathering Rushes in the Month of May; The Gower Wassail.

Label/Format: Harvest (Classic yellow and green format). This is a very early pressing, a pre-EMI copy with no EMI logo on the labels. It also has the ‘Sold in UK subject to resale Price conditions, see price lists’ text.

Label Condition: Virtually mint examples that will never be found looking better. Barely a spindle mark to be found and no wear around the hole of course. Breathtakingly fresh Harvests that defy their age. (Please see label scans for all information needed).

Cat Number: SHVL 754 .

Mono or Stereo: Stereo (not issued on mono).

Country of Manufacture: Gt Britain.

Rarity: Quite rare, sales of this one would have been pretty modest. The record found in this condition will be very rare.

Original Year of Release: 1969

Matrix Nos: SHVL 754 A2 and B1 The stampers are 1R / 1R

Brief Artist & Album Info: Proving yet again the diversity of this amazing ‘progressive’ label, Athems in Eden was the first of two this duo made for Harvest. I unreservedly rate this as one of the finest ever albums to adorn this label, a brilliant Mediæval Suite with a definite progressive edge. The use of wonderful instruments from a bygone age including the haunting organ by Dolly. Instruments used are: Bass viol, violone; rebec, treble and bass viol, cornett, descant and treble recorders, sackbut, harpsichord, bells, soprano and alto crumhorns, bass rackett, tenor sordun with a backing chorus too - all creating a soundscape from the distant past. Vocals by Shirley are quite immaculate (as always) - without doubt one of the finest ever folk singers. This is a special record, detail and musicianship is exceptional and the production by Austin John Marshall is stunning. Now what’s the condition like? - well good news and slightly bad news. The good news: the record is superb, it looks hardly played. The bad news: well its not that bad but I am ultra fussy, the cover entry edge on the back only has a little damage, its clearly taken a knock and made three smallish damaged areas with small tears and burrs - these probably show up on the back picture. Better news though: the rest of the cover is real nice with little else major to really fault. Yes I probably would have swapped this cover to make a near perfect package but where realistically will I find another cover for this that wont include the rare record? So what I will honestly say is, if you need a superb early pressed copy of this Harvest classic and can tolerate a small piece of cover damage, this could be the copy for you. For certain this album wont get offered too often and the record itself with match or better most.

Cover Grade and Format: Slightly difficult to grade overall as the damage is confined mostly to just one area, the opening back edge (the front is unaffected and fine). So I put a grade of EX as a general guide, take off what you think the damage does. This is a gatefold format, lamianted front and back. It was printed and made by Etnest J. Day & Co. Ltd, London.

Lamination: Solid and clean laminate that retains a deep shine. Little creasing on the front but a few mild ones on the back, a slightly heavier one near the top corner where the knock has occured, it does not show too much around the white areas. No peeling or dry areas and no nasty indentations, a few surface marks that only really show under angled light. This laminate looks nice, the fact this cover has a lot of white makes it appear very slightly ‘aged’ - probably suits this record just fine when you think about it.

Cover Front: The front is really attractive and the only real wear that just shows is a rub to the top spine corner and a very mild bend on the bottom right. Other than that this front looks superb, the actual artwork is perfect with great colour and definition, very clean and little discolouration this important front should please most collectors.

Cover Back: The edge damage apart and the odd light crease this back has little to fault either, the damage to the entrance edge is in three small sections: the first knock has removed a small part of the cover, the owner has put a piece of white tape inside to ‘make good’ the very small gap. The second knock directly below has made a small nick tear and a burr, the final knock about half way down has made a small nick tear and a very small burr. I hope this will not detract interested parties in this album because I may be over exaggerating the damage, nothing encroaches more than 0.25 inch and when you consider most of the rest is superb this is only quite minor put into context - but it there - a temptation possibly to ‘shave’ the edge, not a practice I employ, but the winning bidder may wish to do this, it would improve the area considerably. Now the rest, well little else to fault really, a clean and neat back with just the odd light crease. A few odd minor marks that of course cannot be hidden on a mainly white background but all mega light and minor.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Just the odd light crease - backed from the front and back obviously but little else to fault, wonderfully bizzare.

Top Edge: Faint rub traces

Bottom Edge: Very faint rub traces.

Right Edge(s), and Type: The front flap inner and outer are fine, very light hint of minor feathering if being critical. The back flap inner is near perfect and has escaped the damage (how, god knows). The outer back has the damage as detailed above.

Spine and Text: The spine is near perfect right up to the very top and bottom ends that have the customary rubs, but only light. All text is pristine perfect under the uncracked laminate.

Corners: All four show some wear or tip creasing, most pretty light, slightly more on the spine top and bottom (as per usual).

Cover Summary: I still rate this rare cover highly, the front looks terrific and the back, even with the edge damage still looks fine, little to fault with the inner either. EX is appropriate minus the damage.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EX++ A superb visual copy . Super clean, with solid shine, jet black and very heavily pressed. Just a couple of faint hairlines or surface trace, this looks really lovely. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence. Visually a super record that should please most collectors again.

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This super record plays pretty much up to its high visual grading with little to fault. Strong, undistorted sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is astonishing with crystal clarity and very full sound - Shirley’s vocals are sublime, she could almost be in the room. Any surface sounds are minimal but this does have quiet moments with solo voice etc so the odd minor sound may be heard, but I emphasise little and few copies will play much better than this. A long album with fine, compact grooves, this is a testing recording, and super clean copies this age turn up rarely. Both channels are clean and sharp, I feel very sure this record has been played very lightly and and record has been well cared for - accident do happen and the cover has had it knock - how many vinyl owners have never dropped a cover? - let’s be honest. Little, if anything spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this gem. This copy could prove near impossible to find significantly better.

Mono vs Stereo, an overview: Always a matter of opinion which is better or more important. For any serious collector where there is a choice e.g. Beatles, Stones, Hendrix etc. both are essential. True Stereo albums give great imagery and presence whereas mono albums usually are more dynamic, louder and present the detail more clearly. Mono albums are far harder to find in genuinely top playing condition. Most were heavily played, particularly the truly great bands and artists, often covered in mark and scratches, many severe and labels that were a mass of spindle marks. The majority were played on vintage and unsubtle decks with heavy tonearms and thick styli (often sapphire, not diamond, that chipped more easily) that rendered heavy wear in a very short time to many a fine classic record. Wear to the delicate groove walls, particularly the innermost tracks to the labels were most vulnerable where the tracking angle became more severe and the backdrag actually stripped the delicate groove walls. This resulted in surface noise and mild/moderate distortion or worse. These old decks tracked by sheer weight and little of any refined engineering. Next time you see such a deck at a local record fayre, feel the weight of the arm, it almost makes you wonder how any records survived at all. The point of this paragraph is emphasise that when a truly clean, lightly played and great sounding 60s mono album (or stereo come to that) is offered, treasure it, because for sure they are truly getting vary rare and precious - beware - demand only play-graded records. As a general guide to rarity, mono was the far more common format from 61–65; Around 66–67 the balance was roughly equal, then from 68-69 the balance swung more to stereo, making monos from these dates far scarcer, even rare - this guide is important and effects values greatly.

Album Played For Grading: Yes.

Final Summary: A rare one, and a Harvest classic, few other labels were this diverse. If, like many I would guess you have never heard this delightful album, its an experience to enjoy. Both S&D albums on this most collectable cult label deserve to be heard - if you missed this first time round, dont miss it again. I strongly recommend this fine set - with the cover damage the only slight reservation for the perfectionists – Mike.

Having the Powerseller Logo: This is recognition from Ebay for the highest possible customer services, satisfaction and quality, it should reassure any potential bidder that all items are described, graded and shipped to the highest standards possible. Customer care of the highest order is a standard feature here and I am proud to have achieved this recognised standard of excellence from Ebay with help from collectors and buyers from all over the World - I thank you all.

Payment Details please read carefully - I know its boring but essential:

UK First Class: = £3.00; Recorded Delivery (Recommended) = £5.50 Special Delivery (Next day, insured up to £250), the best service available = £7.00

Europe Air Mail: = £4 Insured: £8.00

Overseas, non-Europe e.g. USA, Japan, Australia etc. Airmail:= £7; Insured with recorded delivery (where available) = £11.00

Singles: (Packed to the high standards of the LPs)

UK First class: = £2.00 Insured: £4

Europe Air Mail = £3.00 Insured: £5.50

Overseas, non-Europe (as above) Airmail £3.50 Insured: £6.00

Doubles add extra £1, triples add extra £2. Box sets add extra £3 (£4 overseas and Europe)

Any item that sells for over £85 will be sent Special Delivery in the UK at no extra cost. Items over £125 get the same service Overseas. This is gives peace of mind for the winning bidder and myself for valuable items. Reduced postage of course for multiple items.

The winner bidder chooses his/her posting method and if uninsured is chosen, its their decision and they have to stick with it, I can accept no responsibility if an item is lost in the post. I can only try to claim at standard levels if no enhancement is chosen (£28). PLEASE NOTE: I will NOT use surface mail, its too slow, with a higher risk of loss and damage.

Mailing Details: Please note I do NOTprofit on postage (my packing standards are high and the package weighs a little more and I often actually lose money on this part of service - I simply refuse to compromise with poor packing. All records are sent in plastic covers with the record taken OUT of the sleeve and sent in professional mailers with FOUR professional stiffners for extra protection (if space allows), I do NOT use old cardboard boxes or cereal packets for protection. More expensive items are also inserted into a de-luxe heavy duty padded bag AS WELL to give that extra protection. I truly want ALL my items to arrive to their destination in the same condition they leave me. I will also include in most cases a brand new lined inner, but will include the original inner if available and in a condition to be worthwhile.

I can accept cash for payments worldwide in UK Pounds Sterling, Euros or US Dollars - but this at the senders OWN risk. Please send registered and insured if this method is chosen. I cannot accept responsibility if any cash payments do not turn up. This system is very reliable and rarely goes astray. The same goes for any shipped uninsured item, I can only try to claim for any undelivered or damaged article at basic insurance levels if no enhanced insurance is requested and paid for (unless the value threshold is high enough for me insure as standard, see above)

Overseas bidders please note conversion rates for Pounds to Dollars and Pounds to Euros will be charged at 1.7 to cover PayPal or cash conversion costs.

PLEASE NOTE: Any PayPal user can now pay me with UK Sterling if they wish with no need to convert to US dollars (although they still can if they wish to). Any instant PayPal transaction from anywhere in the world will mean the item will be sent immediately - it makes deals fast and very efficient.

Potential Bidders: Please do not bid if you have negative feedback unless checking first, I will cancel any bids I feel are timewasters. I now only accept PayPal, International money orders or cash from overseas bidders (UK Sterling, US dollars or Euros). Cash, cheques, postal orders and PayPal are fine from the UK. I allow maximum 3 days for communication and 7 days for payment to arrive - if this does not happen I will relist the item and may send negative feedback unless an explanation is given. Fast deals get great feedback from me. Any questions - please ask. Please keep watch on my Ebays, I have other interesting items coming very soon. Thanks for looking.

My Guarantee: As listening to every single record I offer all the way through is difficult timewise, can I make it clear if any winning bidder is not satisfied with their purchase I will offer a complete refund minus the Posting and All Ebay costs as long as the item detail has been read and understood. I will not refund if any defect detail is clearly stated on the advert and missed by the buyer. I still endeavour to play all the items in their entirity for grading if at all possible and is usually the case.