CREAM Disraeli Gears RARE ORIG UK 67 MONO FULL LAMINATE

	£		68
	$		90

ONEADAYRECORDS – Delivering the Psych-Rock Classics to the World

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Artist or Band: CREAM

Album Title: Disraeli Gears

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Strange Brew; Sunshine of Your Love; World of Pain; Dance the Night Away; Blue Condition.

Side 2: Tales of Brave Ulysses; SWLABR [She Was Like a Bearded Rainbow]; We’re Going Wrong; Outside Woman Blues; Take it Easy; Mother’s Lament.

Label/Format: Reaction – the earliest deep mauve and silver format with mono logo and deep inner ring ridge.

Label Conditions: Both very clean and deeply coloured and looking highly impressive. Spindle marks are less than moderate in number with very modest visibility. Given the age, mode and popularity of this classic record, both look gorgeous and it will take two amazing ones to better than substantially.

Cat Number: 593003.

Mode / Speed: Mono / 33.3 rpm.

Weight of this Record: 150 grams. A very impressive weight for this Reaction first issue, subsequent pressings became a fair degree thinner and lighter.

Country of Manufacture: England

Rarity: The actual title itself is moderate, but finding the genuine first press originals in either mono or stereo is much harder. Not only are the originals heavier, thicker and offer the ultimate in sound quality and detail, the earliest copies had the cover FULLY LAMINATED. Most offered are only laminated on the fronts and only available for a relatively short time with the fully protected cover. A mono first issue is the almost the crown jewels for Cream collectors, the single-channel sound was the sound of the era and the delivery of the music varies considerably with more punch, slam and clout. Arguably more detail and sonic delivery too, that said, the stereo copy has wonderful imagery, so I consider both formats essential for this stunning album. True 67 mono pressings are immensely hard to find in top playing conditions, I can hardly emphasise that enough. One arm drop or jolt on a vintage mono record player, and there’s another deep scratch or crator to ruin the beautiful music. Remember too, just one play with a blunt stylus was enough to destroy those delicate groove walls and render distortion and loss clarity. Groovewear is the invisible enemy of any record, the mono format always the more vulnerable to the high tracking weights of the equipment of the day. This lovely old record has only light surface marks and plays little short of perfect with breathtaking sound and no pops or clicks were noted. All focused, sharp with jaw-drop dynamics and detail, the definitive and best way to experience one of the greatest psych-rock albums ever made. The fully laminated cover is also gorgeous with little wear. The first one of these I have had for some considerable time, forget minor visual blemishes and enjoy the true mono experience, little comes close.

Original Year of Release: 1967.

Matrix Nos: 593003 A 1 1 1 3 / 593003 B 1 1 1 6. [no corrections].

Musicians: Eric Clapton - guitar, vocals; Jack Bruce - bass guitar, harmonica, vocals; Ginger Baker - drums, vocal.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: Less than reprintings with only front laminate.

Album Information: The world’s most famous blues-rock power trio’s greatest album - a massive issue which still sounds wonderfully fresh, even today. Clapton, Bruce and Baker’s most consistently perfect studio album. The Reaction copies are something to treasure, with it’s superb psychedelic cover artwork (by Martin Sharpe) and wonderful dynamic mix – the mono version even more so. When found in clean condition, they are a thing to behold. The mono mix is incredible and very different from the stereo version – both are essential. The record’s surfaces are very clean indeed retaining a lovely sheen and shine, several, mainly small and light surface marks have no sound. There are no penetrating marks at all, the early thicker Reaction vinyl was tough and fairly resolute (and it had to be). The double laminated covers are hard to find and this is a lovely example, without any doubt at all, between 42 and 43 years old now, few will better this significantly. ‘Disraeli Gears’ peaked at 5 and 4 respectively in the UK and US, very commendable in a year that saw the issue of so many truely wonderful records - still for me the greatest ever year in music. The stunning dayglo cover matched the feel for the times perfectly for a psychedelic London. The blues feel of the band was slowly slipping away and the brilliantly surreal lyrics by Pete Brown suited Jack Bruce’s finest vocals. The words ‘classic’ and ‘essential’ are definitely not over-used on this album. Early copies of this record, when found in either mono or stereo are so often trashed, simply played to destruction, with unlistenable distortion, groove wear and damaging scratches, what a joy to find and offer a copy that looks and plays beautifully and a cover in very eye-pleasing condition – the colour so bright, intense and vivid, you almost need ‘shades’. If a perfectly unmarked record is your only option, this is not for you, but believe me, for sound, this is mightly impressive. A totally unmarked copy would not better this significantly (and it could even hide dreaded groovewear, the invisible foe).

Cover Grade and Format: I cannot grade this mind-bending cover less than EX++, only marked down a little for bottom corner chipping and a very fine surface crease on the back that barely even shows. It’s a single format and DOUBLE laminated on the front AND back. Most only have front laminate as most will know. Not only does it make the back look as stunning as the front, it also offers full protection to the fragile spine, where so often it’s seen stripped of text, but here it’s pristine (please see my close-up picture). Printed and made in England by Ernest J. Day & Co Ltd. An highly impressive example of this very famous cover that shows it’s stunning artwork to near perfection.

Lamination: Front & Back: Supreme artwork and one of the landmark covers of its era. So famous and desirable, only strong, little worn examples will do for discerning collectors, the fully laminated first examples are the most prized and cherished, but are far rarer. The laminate gleams with a mirror-like shimmer and is super-fresh. The intensity of the cover’s artwork is seen to absolute maximum advantage and is so shiny and unmarked, it looks like glass. What a difference cover protection makes, I doubt if this has been handled many times. Even under light there are no traces of any friction rubs or dulling and any record impression is minuscule. Another crucial factor is the total lack of lifting or blistering, yes every single part is fully adhered even on the critical spine edge that so often pulls away (or was never fully adhered from day one), the difference this makes for maximum good looks is crucial. I emphasise both sides are the same, no blistering at all. Being made with thin card makes creasing another factor, but this has hardly any, those few traces being present (see only under light with scrutiny), are merely fine ones bar one longer one on the back near the opening edge, that too shows little, indeed that is the only one on the back of note, there is not even a half moon and merely a few faint hairlines on the edges. The front has only a couple of tiny and ultra faint half moons, how unusual is that? The only wear of note is light tip rubs, few will avoid a little of that and here, it’s only relatively small and minor, but present nonetheless. A classic cover of genuine beauty and it blows-away it’s years and will prove immensely difficult to find much better on the original format. It’s freshness and beauty has to be seen for real to be fully appreciated, the artwork is as intense and powerful as when it was printed by Day all those years ago. Clearly (being the operative word) one for the serious collector who appreciates near the best.

Top Edge: Practically unworn up to the right corner tip that has a small rub.

Bottom Edge: A few mostly tiny surface chips, the corners have rubbed more.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, mostly sharp with minimal traces of wear and no feathering or trimming. The odd tiny burr trace when viewed end-on. Record entered on this edge.

Spine and Text: This too in super condition: solid but made fairly thin, but thicker than the reprinting. Remaining straight with minimal compression. All text is perfect and unworn under the very solid laminate that has remained uncracked or peeled. The fingertip can feel a faint abrasion near the top but it barely shows being white (please see my close-up to show the text detail).

Corners: The spine top has barely any wear. The top opposite has only a small tip rub. The bottom pair have large rubs going into the cover for a few millimeters. Without this, I would have graded Mint(-). Clearly these resting edge corners are going to be vulnerable to wear, but generally, the laminate has protected the bottom edge itself with only a small number of surface chips as mentioned above. Fine to very fine shape is retained.

Cover Summary: Even with modest corner tip rubbing, still a truly wonderful and ultra attractive all round example of this beautiful, very early-made cover, one that will prove very difficult to match let alone find much better with the original double-sided laminate. This beautiful vintage item should please most collectors.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: Strictly because it does have a number of light surface marks, I cannot grade visuall above Very Good++, but this in way reflects to what a lovely mono record this is. Intensely black and very clean indeed with a refreshingly fine shine and lustre. Very heavily pressed, the weight will be immediately apparent to any winning bidder as well as the record’s thickness. All these fine surface marks or hairlines are purely superficial and there are no penetrating proper scratches at all, thus, no sound or audio significance. This record usually gets well played and why not?, it’s a classic, so a refreshing change to find a mono original that plays with such wonderful clean sound. Many collectors even expect 40+ year old mono records to look like this (or with far more visible wear and marks), and would consider this nothing more than ‘normal’. This highly respectable visual grading does not do this splendid record justice. Includes the Polydor-style lined inner, this has aged quite well and has a super neat, clear window and no edge splits. A marked over code in pen is seen on one corner, clearly by the retailer.

Record 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 miniscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This fantastic record plays with wonderful sound - play-grading was a pleasure. Mono or stereo best? - always one for debate. I could not be asked to choose for this album - both are truly essential, the mono mix has a very different sound which is solid and punchy. The stereo images better and some prefer the psych albums in the two channel mode. This has incredible detail, power and dynamics: listen to the real slam on ‘Tales of Brave Ulysses’ at the start of side two. Bruce’s bass really pounds out of the speakers as does Baker’s drums. Clapton’s guitar is clear and distortion-free as are all the vocals with no high frequency clipping whatsoever. Disraeli Gears is sublime blues-rock with a real psych edge. A copy I enjoyed immensely, that lack of any groove-wear distortion is always a massive bonus for any album this great age of course and essential for the classics. No worn-out mono stylus stubs have been let loose on the one, that will be immediately apparent as soon as your pick-up makes contact with these totally unworn grooves. Although there are some fine surface marks, a copy that has survived musically unscathed, and visually a pleasing record, this will play for countless years with the full dynamic range and clear sound given the full care and respect it deserves. Personally, I would never blindly buy any mono record, one that is not play-graded on decent equipment, the risks are far too high. Most of my stock items are only taken on approval or with a guarantee it plays to my satisifaction, or it goes back or rejected. If only unmarked records are wanted, this is not for you, but the sound and cover more than compensates, any doubts, do not bid. This is a very strong overall copy and with that gorgeous cover too, it more than merits high recommendation. Quite possibly the perfect copy for those not prepared to spend a king’s ransom on a near mint looker (and how would that play anyway, there are no guarantees as I have outlined above). Any questions, please ask.

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 QED Silver terminated cable). 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.

PACKING - THIS IS WHAT YOU GET - PLEASE SEE MY TYPICAL PACKING BOX PICTURE.

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 Moth 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 thick boxes (NOT Mailers or Cruciforms, these do not offer maximum protection). 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 THREE or EVEN FOUR 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. 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. Please see my picture of a typical finished box packet that will now be used on ALL transactions as from now. 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. These boxes and ultra thick double-wall stiffners 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 6,000+ items sold in over 8 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 stiffners cannot be bent by hand, so what chance 3 or 4 inside a box? Oneadayrecords is a MAILER-FREE ZONE. I discount of course for multiple purchases with a maximum of FOUR records per box (one double can sometimes be included subject to total weight). I will not respond to questions on shipping costs as all the details are included here and on ALL of my adverts. Details below:

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 (FIRST-CLASS Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = £4.

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £7.50. (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 [£40 maximum]) = £9. (insurance optional extra £3). Add £2.50 per extra LP.

Posting & Packing: ALL OVERSEAS (non-European) e.g. USA (ANY PART OF); 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]) = £13. Add £4 per extra LP. (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. 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 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’.