SPOOKY TOOTH - CEREMONY PINK "I" Island 1st UK PRESS 1969 LED ZEPPELIN

	£		29
	$		38

SPOOKY TOOTH / PIERRE HENRY -
CEREMONY

An Electronic Mass

 1969 1st UK PRESS

ILPS 9107

Matrices: A//1  B//1

On offer here is a VERY rare LP on the first press ISLAND label. A superb example with a beautiful barely played heavy vinyl.

Brief Artist & Album Info:

 Spooky Tooth were formed from Art who made one album on Island. For some reason, which always remains a mystery to me, this album, the band’s third, never gets the praise it fully deserves. For me it’s their very best. A blend of their usual style but with a taste of the avant garde with Pierre Henry, a French electronics wizard guesting. The album is subtitled An Electronic Mass and takes the form of a progressive church service. 

This was a very different Spooky Tooth album and I always applaud experimentation. Who would really like the same album sound time and time again, ‘dare to be different’,  I say. Not quite the most experimental album on Island however, that still belongs to the White Noise debut album, that was light years ahead of its time, but this runs it close and not too dissimilar at times. I really don’t find Ceremony that strange anyway, it’s just a great far more ‘progressive’ album, and one of the more challenging albums within the Island catalogue. This controversial record found no new audience for the band and sold less than most of their others. The cover was equally daring and unusual, with bizarre artwork from John Holmes. This is without doubt one of the hardest albums to find in top conditions – that is both record and especially cover.

Vinyl: EX+.  Both surfaces retain their original deep, glossy sheen. A SUPERB VINYL COPY and barely played, if at all!!! There are a couple of the usual sleeve retraction paper traces.   The record sounds sensational, the vinyl being the extremely thick variety like the early Island issues and the equivalent of a Rolls Royce in private motor cars.
 Outstanding audio delivery in all respects with a crystal clear, deep, rich, warm and detailed sound and on playback at a loud volume (which is how I always listen to my LPs prior to listing and it's always an immense pleasure to return to this one) there is barely any surface noise. This is a beautifully clean pressing (and I must emphasise again how difficult it is to find a copy which plays this well). The whole LP sounds absolutely stunning and plays to an extremely high standard with superb clarity, no groove-wear and no distortion and is very strictly graded a strong EX+  for replay  - great copy!! Of course, NO skips, NO jumps, NO ticks.

 Sleeve:  VG+.  Great laminated sleeve with hardly any wear. Perfectly flat without any wear, even the edges are perfect!! A fully 100% legible spine. No creases or writing whatsoever. The opening is super crisp the spine is 100% legible. Cannot be faulted at all apart from a wispy underlaminate spinal crease, blink and you'll miss it. An upgrade for most prog collectors.

Vinyl:  NM.  Both surfaces retain their original deep, glossy sheen. A SUPERB VINYL COPY WHICH WILL PROVE HARD TO BETTER!!! Indeed, it has barely been played or might possibly be totally unplayed!!! There are NO spindle traces at all!! There aren't even any hairlines or paper scuffs. An absolute upgrade for the serious collector when all that counts is CONDITION!! The whole LP sounds absolutely stunning and plays to an extremely high standard with superb clarity, no groove-wear and no distortion and is very strictly graded a strong NM for audio and visual appearance - great copy!!  I have played this on my very revealing setup with a Linn Sondek cartridge and thoroughly enjoyed it.  Of course, NO skips, NO jumps, NO ticks, hardly any static.

I have played this in FULL> The replay is ASTOUNDING!!! There are not any jumps, pops or skips.  Very remarkable for this 1975 vinyl!!! This copy has barely been played. The heavy vinyl with high groovewalls provide a fantastic audio experience with channelling not equalled by the later re-issue. I played this on my Technics turntable with a Linn cartridge and through my very revealing B&W three way speakers!!! A beautiful CLASSIC with supreme songcraft, a joy to listen to!!!! 

ELUSIVE PROGMONSTER!!!! VINYL IN A UNIQUE EX+ CONDITION!!!

!!!!AN IMPOSSIBLE FIND!!!GORGEOUS NM!!!  This is SOOOOOOOOOOO very rare in this marvellous condition!!!!!

****ELUSIVE PROGMONSTER!!!****PERPLEXING SONGCRAFT!!!***AN INSPIRATION TO MANY SUBSEQUENT TOPACTS!!!***

!!!!A VERY HARD FIND!!! Most have been bought up by collectors!! This is hardly offered these days as an original first press!!

 Sensational sound quality, I have played this through in its entirety and it was a great joy!!! NO skips or jumps. NO clicks or crackle, this is really a stunning heavy glossy jet black vinyl .The audio is impeccable. Inspected under an intense lightsource and angled.

***This is a unique prime investment opportunity!!! Finding this album in any condition at all is nearly impossible!!! This is  a great and seriously collectable super album!!  You will buy into a piece of  prog jazz core history.*** 

Important : International postage will be registered and insured if over GBP 20.00.  These fees in England have gone up significantly last May. Please wait for my invoice before paying. Postage will be according to Royal Mail rates. Postage is NOT a money spinning exercise for me.

***This is a unique prime investment opportunity!!! Finding this classic album in any condition at all is nearly impossible!!! This is  a great and seriously collectable super album!!  You will buy into a piece of  superb prog history.*** 

This is a unique investment opportunity!!! The next prog album to go completely through the roof. Finding this album in any condition at all is nearly impossible so late in the day. Get this while you still can. This value of the album is only going to go one way ... up and up ... until it will be totally unavailable at all for a reasonable price.

Important : International postage will be registered and insured if over GBP 20.00.  Please wait for my invoice before paying. Postage will be according to Royal Mail rates. Postage is NOT a money spinning exercise for me.

Though there are rarely ever any problems with my items, I always try my very best to describe everything exactly!  PLEASE REMEMBER to contact me FIRST,  if you have any problems at all, before you leave feedback and star ratings, so I get a chance to turn any negative experience into a positive one!  I can always happily sort anything out for you, if you let me know you have a problem!  This way no one has to leave Negative/Neutral feedback - and we both walk away happy! Similarly with the amount of stars, anything less than a full 5 * rating is effectively detrimental to a seller's rating as lower ratings will incur higher Final Value Fees  and lower priority in the bidlists eventually making it unattractive to list items on Ebay at all. I know of at least one major previous Ebay seller who has decided not to list via Ebay again. Please do NOT bid if you cannot give me at least 1 chance to sort everything out to your FULL satisfaction in the unlikely event of a problem.  Thanks again!!

This an excellent investment opportunity!!! Any questions please ask me and I will try to answer soon.