URIAH HEEP "The Magician's Birthday" UK 1st PRESS NM
£
112
$
148
£ 112
Sold For
May 16, 2011
Sold Date
May 6, 2011
Start Date
£ 24
Start price
12
Number Of Bids
Great Britain
Country Of Seller
eBay
Auctioned at
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Description
URIAH HEEP "The Magician's Birthday" UK 1st PRESS NM
ROBOR GF w/UNSPLIT INNER, UNMARKED VINYL, SUPERB SOUND
URIAH HEEPThe Magician's Birthday
ORIGINAL UK BRONZE RECORDS (ILPS 9213) FIRST PRESSING (December 1972) OF URIAH HEEP'S CLASSIC "The Magician's Birthday" LP - COMPLETE WITH THE ORIGINAL (un-split) LYRIC INNER SLEEVE AND IN VIRTUALLY UNPLAYED CONDITION (only one/two light spindles on one side, none on the other) - DELIVERING CRYSTAL CLEAR, IMPRESSIVELY CLEAN, SHARP AND BRIGHT AUDIO THROUGHOUT - FANTASTIC COPY
PRESSED ON QUALITY HEAVYWEIGHT VINYL (very thick and chunky) WITH THE ORIGINAL BRONZE LABELS WHICH CARRY THE "Marketed and distributed by Island Records Limited" CREDIT ON THE BOTTOM RIM WITH THE ISLAND i LOGO (only present on the first pressings)
FIRST ISSUE MATRICES: ILPS 9213 A-1U (with the U printed sideways) / ILPS 9213 B-1U (etched "G. KONG" on both run off grooves)
THE RECORD HOUSED IN THE ORIGINAL MATT, ROGER DEAN DESIGNED, GATEFOLD SLEEVE "Printed in England by Robor Ltd" WITH FACTORY SEALED (and folded under) LEFT SIDE EDGE
COMPLETE WITH THE ORIGINAL DELICATE LYRIC INNER SLEEVE PRINTED ON THIN WHITE PAPER WITH THE 'ILPS 9213' CATALOGUE NUMBER AND "? BRONZE RECORDS 1972" TEXT
After reaching an international level of success with Demons and Wizards, Uriah Heep continued to build their fan base by knocking out another album of prog-like metal before the year's end.
The end result, The Magician's Birthday, is not as consistent or cohesive as Demons and Wizards but still offers plenty of highlights.
It starts dramatically with "Sunrise," a spooky power ballad that alternates quiet organ-led verses with an emotional chorus and guitar-fuelled instrumental breaks topped off by David Byron's operatic wail. The remainder of the album divides its time between punchy rockers and spacey balladry before climaxing with another prog-inflected epic.
Highlights in the rock arena include "Blind Eye," an acoustic -flavoured rocker whose galloping pace is firmly anchored by Gary Thain's melodic bass-line, and "Sweet Lorraine," a stomping good-time rocker that adds extra texture to its guitar-driven sound with some spacey synthesizer lines.
As for the quieter moments, "Rain" is a lovely piano ballad that makes surprising and impressive use of a xylophone in its sound and "Echoes in the Dark" is an eerie mid-tempo song that alternates stark piano-led verses with an emotional chorus cemented by Mick Box's searing guitar leads.
Track Listing:
Side 1: Sunrise / Spiderwoman / Blind Eye / Echoes In The Dark / Rain
Side 2: Sweet Lorraine / Tales / The Magician's Birthday
LABELS: The labels are clean, bright, fresh and unmarked with no spindle traces on Side One and only one, possibly two on Side Two - looks like Side One has been played once or twice at most and Side Two maybe not at all - MINT-
VINYL Visual: The vinyl surfaces retains their original deep, like-new glossy sheen and have no marks at all that I can seen - both sides shine like new - NEAR MINT
VINYL Audio: Crystal clear, tremendously rich and vibrant sound. Unbeatable depth and clarity on these first presses simply not found on later issues and on playback at a loud volume there are no audio issues of note - no scratches, no loud clicks or pops and no prominent surface noise (the run-ins, track divisions and quieter sections, including the often problematic "Rain", all play as quietly as you could wish for). This is a really beautiful playing copy and the whole LP sounds stunning from start to finish with no hint of groove-wear or distortion (it's hardly been played). Critically and conservatively graded NEAR MINT for audio, and in my opinion, pretty unbeatable
SLEEVE: The original gatefold cover is clean and unmarked and retains it's strong vibrant colour with just a touch of record impression to the back (no ring wear). The edges and spine are crisp with no storage rubbing to speak of and the whole sleeve is crisp and fresh - NEAR MINT
LYRIC INNER: The original thin paper lyric inner sleeve has no splits to any of the edges (which is pretty rare for this delicate inner) and is clean, white and unmarked. There is some creasing to one corner (which probably happened when the inner was inserted into the sleeve at the factory) but otherwise this is a superb example - EXCELLENT+
PLEASE HAVE A LOOK AT MY PICTURES - I USUALLY TAKE QUITE A FEW SO YOU CAN GET A CLEAR INDICATION OF EVERY DETAIL OF THE ITEM
I HAVE UPLOADED AS MANY AS I CAN BUT I WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SUPPLY ANY ADDITIONAL PHOTOS ON REQUEST
PLEASE CHECK OUT MY OTHER AUCTIONS FOR MORE RARE AND COLLECTABLE VINYL
AND PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT ME WITH ANY QUERIES YOU MAY HAVE
THANKS FOR LOOKING, CHEERS
PLEASE REFER TO MY 'ABOUT ME' PAGE FOR MORE DETAILED INFO ON MY PLAY-GRADING, EQUIPMENT USED, P&P etc
ALL RECORDS ARE PROFESSIONALLY CLEANED BEFORE DISPATCH AND PACKAGED WITH THE VINYL OUTSIDE OF THE SLEEVE TO PREVENT ANY 'KNIFING' DURING TRANSIT.
A PROTECTIVE POLY SLEEVE, NEW INNER WITH NAGAOKA ANTI-STATIC LINER, QUALITY BOX (NOT ENVELOPE) MAILER AND STIFFENERS ARE ALWAYS USED TO ENSURE THAT YOUR RECORD ARRIVES SAFELY
POST & PACKING
UK: 1st Class: £4.00 (recorded delivery)
EUROPE: Airmail: £11.00 (International Signed For delivery)
INTERNATIONAL: Airmail: £15.00 (International Signed For delivery)
UK bidders: PayPal or Cheque
INTERNATIONAL bidders: PayPal ONLY
I will combine postage for items purchased within any 10 day period. However, at the end of each 10 day period, all outstanding items will need to be paid for in full and will be posted to you. Any items purchased after payment will be included in the next 10 period. I am continually adding new items which may be of interest to you and it is impractical for me to allow payment to be postponed indefinitely in the expectation that you might wish to bid on future items. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation
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436 (GS 6.1.1 (436))
