THE SOFT MACHINE Volume 2 MUCH RARER ORIG UK 1969 BLACK PROBE 1st PRESS EX+ LP.

	£		180
	$		239

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World in Quality, Safe Packing.

Postage: UK £4.75 (£1 per extra record). Europe (including Russia) £12.50 (£2 per extra record). Rest of World (including ALL parts of the USA) £16.50 (£3 per extra record). All boxes signed for in quality, safe packaging – I NEVER use mailing envelopes that offer virtually no protection at all – in fact I think these things should be banned as records WILL arrived damaged in them at some time. More details on my packing nearer the end of the listing.

Posting to Russia: Yes, I do post to Russia. But delivery can take up to 4 to 6 weeks from the UK. So please be patient. I will submit a tracking number to the winning bidder, and when the packet arrives there it can be followed online using the Russian post website.

ALSO: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment to keep things moving – cash-flow is important to any small business. I will always keep my P&P prices as low as possible, and even after yet another Royal Mail price hike from April this year, I have NOT raised my prices and will never compromise on solid, safe packing that is invariably heavier than most you will get. My P&P offers probably the best value-for-money for vinyl records available, and I even will pay for full insurance on any record that sells for over £100 at NO extra cost – that is UK and abroad. Also I aim to post the very same day after payment is received. You WILL see the difference when my packet arrives.

Artist or Band: THE SOFT MACHINE

Album Title: The Soft Machine – Volume Two.

Producer(s): The Soft Machine.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Rivmic Melodies: Pataphysical Introduction – Pt. 1, A Concise British Alphabet – Pt. 1, Hibou, Anemone and Bear, A Concise British Alphabet – Pt. 2, Hulloder, Dada Was Here, Thank You Pierrot Lunaire, Have You Ever Bean Green?, Pataphysical Introduction – Pt. 2, Out of Tunes.

Side 2: As Long as He Lies Perfectly Still; Dedicated to You But You Weren’t Listening; Esther’s Nose Job: Fire Engine Passing with Bells Clanging, Pig, Orange Skin Food, A Door Opens and Closes, 10.30 Returns to the Bedroom.

Label/Format: Probe – first issue black and silver format with matt, smooth surfaces and Gramophone rim text.

Label Conditions: Both clean, very fresh and attractive with any of the few spindle marks being mainly fine and light. These labels are highly revealing so they can be seen a little, but more with angled viewing. In terms of the genuine 1969 first issue, all evidence of usage is minimal, this is a very impressive all-round copy.

Cat Number: SPB 1002.

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: 133 grams. A very good weight for this one.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Scarce: the very first Soft Machine album to be issued in the UK, the debut was an American release initially. First issues of this album were on the black and silver label, quickly changed to the more familiar pink Probe format. Black copies are considerably harder to find, especially in very fine condition.

Original Year of Release: 1969

Matrix Nos: SPB 1002 A-1G / SPB 1002 B-1G

Mothers / Stampers: 1 R / 1 A (very low stampers being the second and third in the sequence)

Musicians: Robert Wyatt – drums, lead and backing vocals; Mike Ratledge – piano, Lowrey Holiday De Luxe organ, Hammond organ, harpsichord, flute; Hugh Hopper – bass guitar, acoustic guitar, alto saxophone. With Brian Hopper – soprano and tenor saxophone.

Brief Info: The first British released album, but second overall as the title clearly suggests. Now without Kevin Ayers who left due to musical differences, and now including Hugh Hopper. This now added some jazz elements to the psychelic rock and is a superb follow-up to the American issued debut. Acting on advice from Frank Zappa, the long tracks are divided into shorter songs. After this, the band’s sound changed considerably into full-on jazz-rock and their first albums can be considered psych-prog classics. This a very impressive first press original with a very clean cover and rarer black label record, it plays beautifully for most-all with just a couple or three clicks and little else. How many complex albums such as this will not have the odd tiny blemish as a bare minimum?, let’s be honest. Even by the end of the end of the 1960s, the use of very basic and heavy tracking mono record players were still very much in use and records like this were hugely susceptible to wear and damage. This 1969 issue and one of the very first made has survived that difficult era almost unscathed and looks a beauty – as does the cover. I am a very big fan of Soft Machine, and if I did not already own this, and all of their first six classics, this superb copy would not be available for sale. This one easily matches my own and could even prove a significant upgrade for many.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(++): a single format with front lamination. This only covers all the closed folded edges and ends on the back atop three large external flipbacks. The main back panel is unprotected with a smooth matt finish. Printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse.

Lamination & Front: The front is in beautiful condition and easily matches my own personal copy. The laminate retains supreme shine, freshness and clarity with barely any hint dulling or friction rubs, even viewed under angled light. Only gentle rim impression from the quite thick Probe record and the graphic offers breathtaking colour, the lack of ageing or significant creasing makes this a joy to hold and view. No lifting and only a tiny chip on the top left corner tip, even the right edge where the laminate ends naturall short of full width, as barely any hint of wear or grubbiness. A classic late 60s cover front that will take a huge amount of beating.

Cover Back: Very dark and unprotected, and clearly prone to all forms of wear. This has little to fault with the lack of handling marks and no flipback damage major pluses, as is the total lack of ringwear or creasing. Slightly later examples omitted the flipbacks altogether, these only seen on the very early-made covers. All three are fantastic: solidly adhered with no burring and clean, neat ends. This ultra wear-prone dark back, like the front, will prove massively difficult to match, let alone find better. Even at excellent(++), I think I may have undergraded this difficult cover.

Top & Bottom Edges: Quite straight and unworn with super-smooth surface devoid of scuffs or chips.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, quite sharp with little wear, any thickening or burring mild and faint as seen viewed end-on. Record enters on this edge that is guaranteed untrimmed or enhanced in any way, this has the more ‘rustic’ trim in manufacture.

Spine and Text: An equally impressive spine: solid, straight with minimal compression, all text present and perfect and unworn under the solid and unpeeled laminate. Centred a fraction low being ultra critical, all seen in my close-up picture.

Corners: A smallish tip rub on the top left, any others tiny with very fine to excellent shape retained.

Cover Summary: A very strong and visually striking all-round example of this clearly wear-prone late 1960’s cover, one that will prove very difficult to find better. This first flipbacked version is very delicate, especially the back, but try finding this better. It should please most collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT: a plain white solid unlined inner that has only lightly aged with the usual toning of the adhesive areas of the seams. Minimal creasing and no edge splits or repairs.

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.]

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading & Sound: EXCELLENT(+): and arguably even better, this hardly does this beautiful looking record full justice. Black label copies are rare enough in their own right, let alone this clean. An impressive visual copy that is very clean, shiny and very solidly pressed. A copy with only very modest plays on all the evidence with any surface trace marks tiny few, very light and faint as seen critically under bright angled light. A tiny mark that is difficult even to see has a couple of clicks and just one other later on side one, but little else was heard from what is a superb very early pressed record. A very complex album musically and with intricate grooves which tells any vinyl ‘reader’ what to expect in terms of quality when played. So many written-off by basic, almost crude record players of the time, this beauty has survived close to unscathed with the information intact and distortion-free. Any surface sound minimal and faint, this also being played on very sensitive equipment. So if the tiny few clicks are okay (and how many of these will have less?), this vintage first issue record will prove very difficult to find better and is strongly recommended. Classic psych-jazz-rock for the connoisseur listener.

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 10,000+ items sold in over 12 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] = £4.75

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]) = £12.50 (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]) = £16.50 (£17.50 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’.