FREE Fire & Water RARER Orig UK 70 Pink Island EX++ LP

	£		84
	$		111

ONEADAYRECORDS – Delivering Quality Music to the World

Please see my Detailed Packing Description Further Down & All Shipping Costs and Options.

Artist or Band: FREE

Album Title: Fire and Water.

Producer(s): Free and John Kelly.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Fire and Water; Oh I Wept; Remember; Heavy Load.

Side 2: Mr. Big; Don’t Say You Love Me; All Right Now.

Label/Format: Island – Full pink format with large white i. The surfaces are heavily textured with a deep and wide inner ring ridge with an outer rim bevel. Both have a lovely pastel pink colour. These yet more variant Island labels and they look very impressive as hopefully my scans will show.

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and highly attractive examples showing only light and fine spindle marks. No wear around the hole area and this vintage pair look terrific.

Cat Number: ILPS 9120

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: 135 grams. About average for it’s era.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Scarce on this textured pink label. Difficult to find in near top conditions with the cover massively prone to all forms of wear. And I found over the years this to be a highly variable record for pressing quality with often very clean looking copies suffering from persistent and sometimes significant crackle. Not only that, I have several copies with unpleasant distortion on ‘All Right Now’. Copies that play anything like quiet all the way through are scarce and elusive and I am quite regularly asked if I have this in top playing conditions simply because of these factors. Well this copy plays very well indeed with any surface sounds minimal, few and faint and the cover is simply stunning. A lovely, early all-round copy and never under-estimate how difficult these are like this.

Original Year of Release: 1970

Matrix Nos: ILPS 9120 A // 1 1 1 ? C / ILPS 9120 B //1 1 [? = 1 or 7 on side one]

Musicians: Paul Rodgers - Vocals; Paul Kossoff - Guitars; Andy Fraser - Bass; Simon Kirke - Drums.

Brief Artist & Album Info: Arguably Free’s best and most popular album, but now very difficult to find in anything like top conditions on the pink label. Featuring their best-known line up of: Fraser, Rodgers, Kossoff and Kirke this band had a wonderfully unique sound. Beautifully produced by themselves and John Kelly, the driving basslines are especially noteworthy. On ‘Mr Big’ and the supreme long version of ‘All Right Now’ the bass strings growl and resonate with huge impact and detail, you can actually see the speaker cloth moving. Brilliant blues-tinged rock, Free really deserve more acclaim than they ultimately get. Kossoff is a legendary guitar hero and Rogers vocals are sublime and expressive, together with that wonderful bass-rich sound they made stunning music. This vintage Pink Island record on offer does it near full justice, the cover is in quite stunning condition, and at the risk of repeating myself, it’s another very wear prone non-laminate that suffers rubbing and ringwear so easily. The actual record is very clean and plays very well and is better pressed than many I have heard previously. Indeed, this is my first pink copy of this for ages – I reject more than I buy for this title simply because so few please me enough to offer. Any surface sound on this copy is very light, gentle and infrequent and most-all of the music plays with impressive sound, it should please most collectors.

Cover Grade and Format: MINT(-): and one of the very best you will ever see. A single unlaminated format with a matt finish. Printed and made in England by MacNeill Press.

Cover Front: Put simply: MAGNIFICENT. I have not seen a better example of this for years. A truly stunning front made even more so because this always wears so badly. Most faded, rubbed and often deeply inground with penetrating ringwear. Just take another look at this one. The richness of the famous band artwork will rarely (if ever) be seen better with no grubbiness, ageing, creasing or ring marks. Any surface trace blemishes are tiny, few and faint and it sets a standard to ever be beaten.

Cover Back: Practically the same again, just the faintest of faint rim rub traces near the left edge (but look ultra hard to see it). Ultra fine and skinny, so-much-so, it’s barely worthy of mention and this minuscule rub trace is the only wear on this astonishingly clean and vibrant back.

Top Edge: Very thin and fragile but little short of as made being straight and any rubbing tiny and super-faint.

Bottom Edge: Very light patchy rubbing only, being a thin resting edge, few will ever have less. This being the only real reason for not considering a full Mint grading on a near impossible cover to find as such.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, very sharp with barely any traces of wear and guaranteed untrimmed. Record enters on this edge.

Spine and Text: Again, almost as made: solid, very clean, quite straight with minimal compression. Slightly angled in construction and not crushed. The ends are gently tapered in manufacture and all text is pristine and totally unblemished or worn.

Corners: Odd tiny tip rub, this being critical too. Will this cover ever not have at least that? All retain even better than excellent shape, again virtually as made.

Cover Summary: A near ultimate example of one of Island’s most challenging covers. The magnificent Free artwork will rarely, if ever be seen better on the front or the back showing less rim marks (with a pink Island original inside). Holding this famous, but fragile cover gives immediate satisfaction and a high percentage of these will fail to do so these days. This wonderful cover should please most-all collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: The Polydor-style lined inner has aged a little with some not untypical browning of the glue on the seams that all remain intact with no splits. The window very neat, the lining clear and firmly attached. A little mild crinkle but no hard creases and this is date coded 1270.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(++), this being critical. A very fine visual copy. Super clean, shiny, jet black and quite heavily pressed, this is an early copy and pink versions were not around that long. Any surface marks are ultra fine and very few of and without doubt, this record has been played very little. With extreme scrutiny under bright light, tiny pressing ‘glints’ can be seen on side two, but on this one, they are largely ignored and sound for most all is superb.

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.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This classic record plays mostly up to its high visual grading, even exceeding it for the vast majority with little to fault. Strong, mainly blemish-free sound with any surface sounds gentle, light and very infrequent. The most noticed right near the end of ‘All Right Now’ but I emphasise, compared to the vast majority I have heard previously, this was minimal and minor, and indeed is. I have been very disappointed with some very clean looking copies of this album before, and when discussing with collectors and customers, they have experienced just the same problems. Island records pressings were known to be variable: some superb at best, some noisy – King Crimson’s ‘Lizard’ a real case in point with some shocking ones experienced on occasions and the same for Roxy Music’s debut. This album is often little better and finding a pink copy with minimal surface or pressings sounds is a real achievement. Overall the sound quality is very impressive with a wide dynamic range and very warm sound – the basslines, as stated earlier, are high in the mix and very powerful giving the band their very distinctive sound. No significant pops or clicks were noted and few pink copies will play much better than this especially when most buyers who bought the early copies played them heavily. I have found this album that does not tolerate heavy use or abuse too well and I have heard several copies with high frequency clipping with the treble shattered by heavy pick-ups from the distant past. Very little, if anything really spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this sublime album. This copy will prove challenging difficult to find significantly better and the cover is unlikely to be. A copy that merits high recommendation.

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 7,000+ items sold in nearly 10 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’.