THE KINKS Village Green Preservation Society ORIG. MONO

	£		218
	$		289

ONEADAYRECORDS – Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Artist or Band: THE KINKS

Album Title: The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society.

Producer(s): Ray Davies.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: The Village Green Preservation Society; Do You Remember Walter; Picture Book; Johnny Thunder; Last of the Steam-Powered Trains; Big Sky; Sitting by the Riverside.

Side 2: Animal Farm; Village Green; Starstruck; Phenominal Cat; All of My Friends Were There; Wicked Annabella; Monica; People Take Pictures of Each Other.

Label/Format: Pye – original black and blue format.

Label Conditions: Clean, attractive but showing a lot of spindle marks, far more than I normally like to see or offer. Now that said, this gives few clues to how fine this rare mono copy is. Clearly this record has been played a fair number of times but as I so often state on my adverts, spindle marks are only a rough guide to number of plays. I could literally play a record 100 times and not leave a single spindle mark on a label – conversely, some owners used the labels as guides to locate the spindle especially on record players with lids where spindle and hole alignment became more trick and potentially perilous. Hence some records have more spindle marks to plays ratios. Now I truly feel this is true on this copy simply because the playing surfaces are so clean and unmarked and sound quality is so high too. This original album plays with little unwanted and NO pops or clicks were heard at all and few monos will ever be able to boast this. The truth of the matter is the playing surfaces are little short of immaculate, so although this record has been played, probably a fair number of times, it must have been immensely carefully. (Please see my label scans, if spindle numbers on the higher side are an issue, please do not bid).

Cat Number: NPL 18233.

Mode / Speed: Mono / 33.3 rpm.

Weight of this Record: A massive 172 grams. [These days, many modern Audiophile reissues are pressed on super-heavyweight 180 gram vinyl. Only a small percentage of ‘vintage vinyl’ was ever pressed this heavy. Records pressed in the 1960s averaged around 140 to 150 grams. Records pressed in the 1970s were usually lighter and averaged more around 115 – 125 grams. Some records pressed around 1973 were very thin and light due an oil crisis and shortage around this time. Some records were even issued on recycled vinyl from this period and sounded poor with crackle and surface noise evident from the very first play. If any record I buy is deemed ‘recycled’, I will never offer it, I have a very simple test to detect these records if I suspect this to be the case other than audible imperfection. Some records from this period were even pressed on other materials the most notable was ‘Dynaflex’, used by RCA around this time. Although inferior to vinyl, this at least mostly sounded reasonably acceptable but pressings on this material were wafer thin and flimsy. Beyond the 70s, records often became thinner and lighter still but most played fine but were never quite the quality as from the ‘Golden Era’]. (This was based on ‘average’ weights for 20 records from these eras. Later pressings were usually lighter still).

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Rare in both mono and stereo formats, I have never found either format easy to find as this record did not sell well. The mono versions are the rarest and incredibly difficult to find in playable conditions, most are badly marked and sound terrible when played on very revealing systems. Massively in demand these days, there simply are not enough originals to go round. The cover is one of the most fragile ever issued and just finding in intact is a bonus. This one on offer is fully intact and has far less than the usual laminate problems usually seen. It even has the spine intact and all its text too. More information on this further down. If ‘perfect’ examples were waited for forever, this album probably would never be seen or offered. The Price Guide values on this album are now soaring but at last getting realistic. With so few sales and those that sold being trashed, finding even respectable copies is getting immensely difficult – this is one is way, way above ‘respectable’, its a very fine example. Not connoisseur standard but many collectors will be thrilled to own this one. Now regarded by many as one of the greatest albums ever issued, a sentiment I totally agree with, available copies are almost getting rarer by the day.

Original Year of Release: 1968

Matrix Nos: NPL 18233 A-13 W 3W [The A-13 is lightly struck through] / NPL 18233 B-3 W

Stamper Codes: E 1 / C 1

Brief Artist & Album Info: By 1968 The Kinks had somewhat fallen from public grace in the UK, a bizarre fact made even more inexplicable as Ray Davies was at the height of creative brilliance. Still receiving high critical acclaim, this album, totally failed to capture the imagination of most record buyers of the time. Still writing beautifully honest pop songs about everyday events no longer appealed to Kinks fans and it simply failed to sell. The attractive (but flimsy) packaging did little to help sales either. Playing this album makes its relative failure all the more confusing: every song is a classic, perfect songs performed, well perfectly. A similar fate awaited the equally wonderful ‘Arthur’ album that followed. Rarely ever has there been such an injustice of two albums failing to sell in the quantities they clearly should have done. Now after 41 years, there are not enough original copies to go around for the collectors who ignored this all those years ago (myself very much included). I think as collectors and music fans get older, they look back on the nostalgia of pieces like this, helped of course by inclusion of TV programmes like ‘Heartbeat’, a series set in the 1960s and using music from this, and other similar albums to help set the scene for the storylines – it clearly gets more people interested in these bygone classics. This a fine mono example, the labels suggest played quite a number of times but possibly in dispute and inaccurate for reasons outlined above. In terms of the playing surfaces, I have seen fewer examples looking better. There is barely a noteworthy mark or blemish to be seen, incredible but true. This clearly has been played with immense care and no mono stylus has left its mark on this one. To say this cover is fragile is something of an understatement: even within a short time time, this flattened and creased. Even with modest use and handling, the edges got burred and torn. As the spine weakened, the laminate problems really kicked-in and most all seen are badly creased and often showing massive lifts and blisters. Many actually shed their laminate in massive areas exposing the lovely artwork to all time and bad storage can offer. This has far less issues than most seen or offered but not perfect (will any truly ever be?) Most Kinks albums got played heavily, for those who did buy them initially, most did so freely and finding clean playing copies is always a huge challenge. No only has this got nigh-on immaculate playing surfaces, it plays very well too with the lovely and different mono mix still highly enjoyable. There is just a little very gentle, mild surface sound evident on the odd small passage but so light it’s easily ignored. The lack of distortion and groove damage is significant, any traces of clipping to the high frequencies is minuscule, this too on a highly revealing system. Such records were not designed to really be played on stereo equipment, but more at home on a Dansette or similar mono record player. The cover is way better than average, in fact the average is usually pretty tatty. This has no repairs or enhancements and still looks attractive with any laminate problems only relatively minor. No a perfectionists copy, but a really nice one, it will give a chance to the more average collector because if a truly EX++ to near mint example ever does get offered (and correctly graded), it is likely to command a king’s ransom.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: Very High Indeed – Almost off-the-scale in fact: a truly beautiful cover but unfortunately one of the flimsiest and most damage-prone covers from around this period ever. So-much-so, many are seen with reinforcing tape around the edges to try and hold it together from the early days. The same goes for ‘Arthur’, the follow-up, again with another very similar delicate sleeve. The front is only single thickness card and to make matters worse, the very thick and super-heavy Pye record was stored via the inside centre which put enormous pressure on the lightweight, thin spine. Most of these delicate spines were badly torn and sliced by the record’s edges and this has been avoided here (and NO tape was applied to this one and there are no repairs). Few escape major, or even severe laminate problem and very heavy creasing and tearing is also common.

Cover Grade and Format: I feel this one is somewhat undergraded at EX(-), such is it’s fragility, normal grading almost goes out of the window and this, for this cover is probably worthy of at least EX and arguably better still. It’s a gatefold format with front and back lamination. The front is single thickness card and the record enters via the centre putting immense pressure on the spine and particularly the top and bottom ends. The unlaminated inside has top and bottom external flipbacks on the right side. Printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse, this imprint is well hidden in a safe and concealed place.

Lamination – Front & Back: Unless kept in cottonwool, the laminate does not survive in good shape and usage makes this lift. If, like most, the record is stored inside, the cover is always opened and closed and this puts pressure on the laminate especially around the spine area. Most are seen with enormous blisters and these eventually crack and peel. This has only cracked on a small blister on the back spine edge and any peeling on this one is very small indeed with traces on the edges and minor drying and tiny loose fragments. There is some lifting on the spine edge on both sides but in terms of ths one, only mild and with minimal visual impact for a change. There is a little crinkle and some mainly light creases with tiny peeling on some corner tip areas. Unusually, most laminate is secure and remains clear and even retains a fine shine. The actual artwork looks splendid and has avoided any real damage. The top front edge has burred a little with a few tiny surface chips - most all have this as a bare minimum and most have considerably more. There are no tears even on the top and bottom of the spine folds. Any other issues I have mentioned in this paragraph have to be taken into context because this cover’s lastability is almost non-existent and this has survived all these years generally well and better than most and that’s the honest truth.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Brilliant artwork and this will remind more of what this looked like from new. Both flipbacks are solid and neat with no wear at all. The unprotected artwork is clean and fresh and highly attractive. Only mild burring traces to the top edge of the left face and odd minor corner tip crease. This will not too easy to find better.

Top Edges: The back edge is superb and totally unsplit. The single thickness front has thickened and burred a little but overall still fairly neat. If any razorsharp edges are seen on this cover, ask yourself, has it been trimmed?

Bottom Edge: A couple of tiny surface chips to the back and again no splits. The fragile front little worn at all with any thickening or burring very light and minor.

Right Edge(s), and Type: The back edge is sealed and has a few small chips only with no splits. The front edge is very neat indeed with little wear or burring. Guaranteed untrimmed too. The fact the spine flattens on 99.99 per cent of all these covers means this edge is slightly pulled over to the left which actually protects this fragile edge. The end of laminate lines are all still evident on the front face which is solid proof this has not been trimmed.

Spine and Text: As close to impossible to find unworn or flattened as they get. This has mostly flattened but the great news is wear is minimal and ALL the text is present and unworn, this incredibly has even retained its laminate protection. Most all flack off and expose the text and then it rubs and erodes – not on this one. The only mild wear on the very top and bottom areas and again unusually, the foldlines are solid and have avoided rubbing and abrasions.

Corners: These usually take enormous battering with resulting damage . Here they have largely survived, but not totally unscathed, miracles can happen but rarely. The tip areas on some have rubbed and thickened a little with the laminate chipped off, some show little wear and overall, these retain fine shape but clearly not as made. That truly is impossible.

Cover Summary: A splendid all round example of this ultra delicate, wear-prone late 60’s cover, sleeves of this era rarely came much more flimsy or delicate than this. When picked up opened with one hand, it will bend quickly and severely crease and ruin before you have time to support with the other hand. This is somewhat above the average one seen, EX(-) is possibly not doing this full justice - I could strongly argue better. As stated, I have seen this and ‘Arthur’ literally falling apart, split and creased into submission with the laminate actually hanging off and all edges split to shreds. This is why cellotape was often applied, even from new. Now over forty, it has aged but in a reasonable kind of way and many realistic collectors will know what this is like and many will be happy to accept it for what it is. A rare item and still looking attractive to the eye – but not for the perfectionist or highly discerning collector but certainly one that can be held and enjoyed and not hidden away waiting for the near impossible to be offered (and if it does, at what price?)

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: Although the labels are more VG, the playing surfaces on this mono record are more Mint(-). And can I quickly 100 per cent guarantee, this record has NOT been subjected to skimming or any enhancements whatsoever apart from a professional quality clean on my Moth machine, as all of my records always are. I deplore such practices such as skimming to enhance any record’s looks, if I even suspect such practices have been used on any record I will NEVER offer or purchase it. An easy way to tell if a record has been skimmed is to look at the matrixes on the run-out grooves. They become highlighted with a fine whiter looking surface, if you see such signs, do not buy. The sound quality would almost certainly be terrible but that is only usually found out after purchase. I have no idea how such practices can be done and I have no interest in knowing either, all I do know is, it’s a deplorable practice that needs eliminating. Anyway, this record is 100 per cent genuine and it looks beautiful and plays with very fine sound. A massive Pye pressing that has barely any noteworthy marks and retains a lovely shine and blackness. A copy played a fair number of time, that I will not deny, but clearly very carefully, this will please many collectors and will not prove easy to find much better in mono.

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 snippetts 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 miniscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This classic record plays mostly up to its fantastic visual grading with little to fault. Clearly the spindle marks were a concern but my play-grade proved a delight with any surface sounds light, infrequent and minimal. Even clean looking mono records can hide the dreaded distortion-factor. One chipped or worn pickup and the damage is done, this does not show but can be heard with devastating, irrepairable results. This has copy remains mostly sharp and focused and quite beautiful dynamic mono sound which is as close to distortion-free as these types get. All frequencies are sharp and clear with any clipping or echo on the high frequencies tiny and light. Just enough I guess to remind of what you actually listening too, a 41-year-old mono record, many would consider this to sound just-right for its vintage and sound quality is still very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. No pops or clicks were noted, and why would there be on such clean and barely marked playing surfaces? These thick, heavyweight Pye records were tough and it takes a really bad arm drop to penetrate deep enough to affect sound and clearly, this has never happened on this one. As stated, this has been played and enjoyed quite a few times but the evidene suggests very carefully – and there lies the difference. The mono copies were always ‘high-risk’ items and few avoided trauma. The wonderful songs and different mono mix makes for a highly enjoyable listen, this is priceless song-writing of the highest calibre with sublime lyrics. Practically nthing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this beautiful album, any minor sound imperfections were lost in the sheer beauty of the music that grabbed my entire attention as I actually did nothing else but listen to this one. The perfect pop record that even has hints of psychedelia and plenty of nostalgia. ‘Walter my old friend where are you now?’ This copy will match or beat many copies that appear as clean as this (but what is hidden in the grooves?). Sound quality is not quite pristine but it will take something very special to beat it significant and probably for colossal money. For the right collector, it’s one I can still strongly recommend. If any of the issues I have mentioned on condition are a problem, please do not bid.

End Piece: For some reason, Kinks albums when they do show up, are often more played into submission more than even Beatles or Stones albums - the reason, obvious, the people who did buy them adored them and justifiably played them a lot, it’s what they were bought for let’s face it. I have tried to be as honest as I can on this copy. Sure I would love to say all is near mint, but in this real world, not every 41-year-old album ever can be. For 1960s mono sound, this has degraded little and easily makes the grade, only playing on higher-end equipment will reveal minor any minor imperfections, and I do emphasise MINOR. The cover is so intolerant of what use, handling and bad storage has to offer but this has shrugged off most. With such a lovely original mono record inside, this is not a compromise – it’s an opportunity. It’s a copy I can offer with pride and I hope the winning bidder enjoys it as much as I did. I start my bidding low to let any interested collector decide its worth – good luck.

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 with Ittok Mk IV arm and Ortofon Samba Moving Coil cartridge (tracks at 1.8 grams). Amps: Naim Nait 5i with Project USB phono stage and Chord interconnects. Speakers: B&W 704 Floorstanding 3-way Monitors (bi-wired). All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional Moth vacuum machine before play-grading for the cleanest and best possible sound and will include a brand new lined inner and protective cover too.

First-time, zero-rated bidders, who do not ask permission to bid, will be cancelled immediately and blocked – NO exceptions. For winning bidders who I consider excessively slow to make contact or submit payment, I will use my right to block future bids. If any bidder who wins in the final seconds is present to do so, surely they can at least email me to inform of intention and payment method? If swift or promp payment is a problem, please do not bid.

POSTING & PACKING: 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, mostly the very next day after payment is received or within three days maximum (unless on holiday). All records are posted in professional boxes (NOT mailers) with the record(s) 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 TWO VERY THICK stiffners for even extra protection – these are FOUR TIMES thicker than commercial stiffners and are custom-made for oneadayrecords. Really rare and expensive albums will even be Double Boxed. The cover will be placed within a BRAND NEW heavy duty soft protective sleeve and the actual record will be professionally cleaned on my Moth Pro vacuum system to give ultimate clean grooves and playing surfaces and the best possible looks and ultimate sound quality. Printed address labels are used for clarity as well as a sender label. 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. 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 offer probably the best-value and safest shipping possible. I will invoice any winning bidder as soon as possible after the auction ends. My ‘loss’ or ‘damage rate’ is less than 0.1 per percent based on over 5,000+ items sold in over 8 years of Ebay trading and I consider that pretty exceptional. I discount of course for multiple purchases with a maximum of FOUR records per packet. I will not respond to questions on shipping costs as all the details are included in the advert.

NOTE: First Time Bidders: I will cancel ALL first-time bidders with no feedbacks or excessive negatives who do not ask me if its OK to bid first – NO EXCEPTIONS.

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 unless prior notice of any delay is given beforehand. 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 – it’s always worth asking.

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 (SECOND Class Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = FREE. This is the new Ebay rule. HOWEVER I STRONGLY URGE UK WINNERS TO PAY THE £3 FOR THE FIRST-CLASS SERVICE AS THE PACKETS WILL ARRIVE MUCH FASTER AND SAFER.

1 LP (FIRST-CLASS Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = £3.

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £7.50. (this includes insurance of £500).

Posting & Packing: ALL EUROPE & SCANDINAVIA including RUSSIA and nearby countries. (Airmail Only):

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£39 maximum]) = £8. (insurance optional extra £3).

Posting & Packing: ALL OVERSEAS (non-European) e.g. USA (any part); 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 [£39 maximum]) = £12. (insurance 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: Please do not bid if you have negative feedback unless checking first, I will cancel any bids I feel are timewasters. 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 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. If any overseas collector does not understand anything in my listing, please email and ask me to help.

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 neccessarily 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’.