Velvett Fogg A1 / B1 1st Press 1969 Pye Records

This rare first pressing plays with excellent audio for the majority but does have some interference here and there.  This is mainly static which is good news in a way and there are only a small number of light clicks.  As always I have graded each track in full so as to give you a good idea of what to expect and as you can see many tracks still play with very impressive clarity and depth.  A lot of S1 plays with Ex+ audio and there are even two tracks on S2 that grade as Near Mint- but yes there is some background elsewhere.  The vinyl also has quite a bit of 'blushing' on S1 but this does not impact on the audio but there are no scratches to be seen.

The infamous cover is in excellent order for the main part but does have some wear on each side of the opening edge.  It is very clean otherwise with only minor wear and the back cover especially is in great condition.  It of course features a lot of text from John Peel.   The original inner has only light wear.

NSPL 18272A-1 *T STEREO / NSPL 18272A-2 *T STEREO

The audio on S2 is Ex+ (T1 VG one very brief section / T2 intro VG+ / T3 Ex / T4 intro VG)

The audio on S2 is Near Mint- (T1 VG / T2 intro Ex- then Ex+)

The cover is VG++ (opening edge VG-)

The labels are Ex+

The inner sleeve is Ex-

Visual description

The vinyl is in very good condition with not many hairlines and no actual scratches.  S1 does have a fair amount of 'bag rash' / surface fading but this is superficial as it doesn't have any affect on the audio.  S2 is a lot cleaner with only some hairlines and there is nothing that stands out.  The blue Pye labels are unmarked but do have some spindle wear.

Play grading

The intro on 'Yellow Cave Woman' is so close to perfect with only a couple of minor statics and the opening vocal section also plays very clearly with no clicks or pops and only the odd minor static sound.  The long instrumental section then plays with stunning quality and there are only a handful of very quiet statics.  The next vocal does have 3/4 light clicks but they are not that really that intrusive and the final instrumental is superb, there is no background here at all.  This is difficult to grade but I would say Ex+ with a brief VG section is fair.

'New York Mining Disaster 1941' has a little static on the intro and the opening vocal then plays with great clarity and only a couple of background ticks.  The first chorus is perfect and it continues to play with superb audio from then onwards.  The instrumental section has just one tick at the start and then plays with stunning audio for the remainder.  Here the intro is VG+ but the rest of the track has to grade as Ex+ at the very least.

'Wizard Of Gobsolod' has just one click on the first vocal but otherwise plays with very impressive clarity.  There are 3/4 minor ticks near the end so overall I will grade as Ex

The intro on 'Once Among The Trees' has some faint hiss right at the start and three light ticks and the opening vocal then plays with real clarity and warmth as does the first 'chorus'.  This standard is pretty much maintained throughout and I heard only a couple of light ticks during the next 4+ minutes.  The guitar / hammond organ instrumental is stunning and you can turn it up to loud with barely any distortion.  The intro is VG and the rest of this great track has to be Ex+

'Lady Caroline' ends the side with very clear audio and there are no ticks, clicks, pops or static.  The vocal of course has a kind of radiophonic quality and if there is any inner groove distortion it is kept to an absolute minimum.  I will say Ex+ but it could be higher :-)

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The first few seconds of 'Come Away Melinda' has a little static and then the rest of the intro plays very clearly with only minimal light static.  Just prior to the vocal there is some more static but again it isn't loud and then the vocal plays well with just some static here and there and the odd bit of crackle.  As the volume builds the playback is very strong and the remainder has very little intrusion.  I think VG is about right.

'Owed To The Dip' has only minimal static on the quiet intro and then plays with great clarity from then on.  There are no clicks or pops and only handful of minor statics.  The vast majority plays with stunning quality so I grade the intro as Ex- and the rest as Ex+ it is a high quality listen.

The intro on 'Within The Night' is perfect and the opening vocal section is equal to that.  it continues in much the same way with no intrusion as such.  I did hear a couple of minor ticks prior to the second vocal but the sonic quality here is superb.  That is very much in evidence during the mid instrumental and then the final vocal has no background either.  A stunning version that has to grade as Near Mint- at the very least.

The intro on 'Plastic Man' is faultless and the opening vocal section is comparable to that.  From then on it plays with great power and there is no intrusion on the audio.  Perhaps a minimal touch of inner distortion but maybe that is just me being overly critical!  The mid instrumental is stunning and the final vocal / instrumental is just as strong.  A great finish to this classic album and again Near Mint- is deserved.

In summary this rare first pressing does play with some interference here and there but it's fair to say the majority still plays with excellent quality if not better.  'Come Away Melinda' is probably the most affected with static during the quieter section but the rest of the side actually plays with great quality.  This is why I like to grade every track because it gives the potential bidder a full appreciation of the audio.  It might not have my usual near mint / mint- grading so I will just let it run its course - I never over-grade (as my feedback testifies) and I am sure the winning bidder will not be disappointed.  Just to repeat a lot of the album still plays very clearly but just don't expect perfection throughout!

The Cover & Inner Sleeve

The G & L cover is in very good condition and the only obvious wear is around the opening edge.  There is a small scuff area by the right edge on the front cover which has resulted in some surface wear but not a split and it also has some handling wear on the back.  Aside from that it is excellent shape - the top and bottom edges have no rubbing and the spine remains very clean and is 100% legible with only minimal wear on the corners.  The right hand corners have very little wear also.  Apart from the wear next to the opening edge the front cover has only a handful of laminate creases and some small creases next to the spine.  The unlaminated back cover is in great shape (just that wear by the opening edge) and the flipbacks are still still firmly attached with none of the marking / staining on the edges that you so often see.  There is just one small scuff top right.  The Johnn Peell (!) text 'area' is in superb condition with no marking at all.  Not a perfect cover but many aspects are certainly in excellent condition.

The plain white inner sleeve has no side splits or tears and is very clean apart from a small number of spots.  It has only very minimal creasing.

Play tested on my Rega P2 with AT-VM95EN Cart / Denon PMA-520AE Amp / B&W 684 Speakers

The record has been cleaned on a Pro-Ject VC-S machine

NSPL 18272A-1 *T STEREO / NSPL 18272A-2 *T STEREO

I grade according to "Record Collector" guidelines.

Any questions please feel free to ask

Please pay within 4 days of auction end

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