DONOVAN Sunshine Superman RARER Orig UK 67 Pye Mono LP

	£		22
	$		29

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Artist or Band: DONOVAN

Album Title: Sunshine Superman.

Producer(s): Mickie Most.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Sunshine Superman; Legend of a Girl Child Linda; Three King Fishers; Ferris Wheel; Bert’s Blues.

Side 2: Season of the Witch; The Trip; Guinevere; The Fat Angel; Celeste.

Label/Format: Pye - original magenta mono format (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Some smudge around the rim of side two, this apart they are attractive and clean. Clearly this was a popular album for the original owner, has it has been played a number of times with spindle marks numberous. I suppose on the heavier side of moderate but fine as no ink has been removed or even chipped. Remember, spindle marks can be deceiving as it was not considered an issue by many in the early days as the spindle was often located using the label as a guide. This is highly possible on this copy as the playing surfaces are so clean and any noteworthy marks few. Fine surface marks yes, but only one small noticeable mark evident on ‘Hampstead Incident’ that has a tiny few brief clicks.

Cat Number: NPL 18181.

Mode / Speed: Mono / 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: A massive 168 gram pressing. [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 135 to 145 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, many 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 50 records from these eras.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Quite scarce as an original.

Original Year of Release: 1967

Matrix Nos: NPL 18181 A-1 / NPL 18181 B-1

Mother & Stamper Codes: P 1 / Y 1

Musicians: Donovan - vocals and acoustic guitar; Bobby Ray - bass; Eddy Hoh - drums; Shawn Phillips - sitar. Guests on title song: Jimmy Page and Eric Ford - electric guitars, John Cameron - keyboards, Spike Healey - bass, Bobby Orr - drums, Tony Carr - percussion.

Brief Info: This was Donovan Leith’s third album and regarded by many as his very best. Issued in the ‘Summer of Love’, this is one of his most sort-after titles and seldom seen as an original. A wonderful set with two of his classics included in the title song and the evergreen ‘Season of the Witch’. This copy is down a little on my usual standards but is more than worthy of offering. The original owner clearly has played this one a number of times, but I would suggest, very carefully. The equipment of the day left it’s mark so freely on records and labels. This has more spindle ‘usage’ that I normally would offer but the actual playing surfaces are so clean. This tells me well played but careful. There is a little light surface sound and minor sound degrading. That said, it’s mainly pretty light and gentle and remember this old mono record was play-graded on a highly revealing turntable for which is was not really designed to for. It simply depends on what future equipment this is intended for and how critical the listener is. I am very fussy indeed and still found this an enjoyable one. A little minor sound degrading on old mono records is almost expected by many collectors who understand the issues they faced. This one simply reminds a little what it is, a 43-year-old mono record. So a very reasonable example but certainly no pristine. So any doubts, do not bid this time.

Cover Grade and Format: Very Good: a single format with laminated front. This wraps around the closed edges on to three external rear flipbacks. Printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse Ltd and including the ‘Patents pending’ text. This is a dedicated mono cover with the NPL prefix.

Lamination & Front: The front looks very nice and has aged little. With shiny laminate that is fully adhered and very clear this has retained fine attractiveness. Marks are few and any dulling modest, only seen under light. There are some creases, most fine and largely confined to the edges. One small, light stain near the top edge. The artwork looks lovely. The most wear is seen on the bottom right corner that has moderate rubbing.

Cover Back: The main back panel is lovely and shows little wear at all. Still clean with few marks and any rubbing ultra faint, the lack of ringwear always good news on such dark colour. A few creases on the flipbacks, one on the top shows more with a moderate one with a small stain. The ends clean and quite neat with barely any burring.

Top Edge: A tiny few hairline crease-cracks but little actual wear.

Bottom Edge: Similar again, slightly more but lesser surface creases.

Right Edge(s), and Type: This has thickened a little as any opening edge will when the record has been played a number of times. Fairly neat and untrimmed, this has not feathered or ‘separated’ but has slightly softened on the very edge.

Spine and Text: The spine is very nice indeed and shows barely any wear at all. Solid, straight, uncompressed and square, all text is perfect and unworn under the solid and uncracked laminate that shows few marks.

Corners: The spine pair show only small tip rubs, more light+ on the top right. The bottom right has moderate+ wear and some tip erosion.

Cover Summary: A very respectable all round example of this classic psych 60’s cover, one that could prove quite difficult to find much better. So many offered are reissues with originals more difficult to locate. This still attractive item should please many collectors but of course, not the more discerning.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: Very Good with only one small mark as mentioned above with minimal effect on sound. Both sides show fine whispy surface marks/fine hairlines under light but these have no effect on sound. A fine visual copy that is clean, and retaining fine shine, intense black and very heavily pressed. Certainly played a number of times but visually still an attractive record with no arm drops – these often prove ‘fatal’ often causing skips or sticks – this has not happened on this copy. It’s simply been loved and enjoyed but played what appears carefully. Visually a very decent record that should please many collectors again, but not the audiophile or visual purist. Again, any doubts, do not bid.

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 very good record plays up to and much above its visual grading with generally pleasing sound. Strong, mainly clean sound, but with mild sound degrading and very slight clipping to the inner-most tracks where the tracking angle becomes more critical on older equipment. Any surface sound mostly very gentle and light and only a tiny few mild clicks noted from the one noticeable mark on side two. This has the gentle traits of a used mono record but I still found this an enjoyable old record that has no tracking issues and the quality of the music still shines through. Quite honestly, little spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful album. Realistically, how many early-pressed mono copies of this title will ever play ‘perfectly’?, let’s be honest. If this title is needed, it’s worthy of consideration but not audiophile standard. If played on a more budget system or even what it was intended for - a 1960s mono record player, this will prove a very fine copy. Only revealing it’s usage more on highly revealing equipment. So you decide, any doubts, again I say do not bid but more than a respectable example and or course original. This copy could prove more difficult to find significantly better than you may think, all considered, this is worthy of cautious recommendation to the right collector.

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’.