GENTLE GIANT In a Glass House SCARCE Orig UK N/M LP

	£		44
	$		58

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Please see my Detailed Packing Description Further Down & All Shipping Costs and Options – NOTE: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment.

Artist or Band: GENTLE GIANT

Album Title: In a Glass House.

Producer(s): Gentle Giant.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: The Runaway; An Inmates Lullaby; Way of Life.

Side 2: Experience; A Reunion; In a Glass House.

Label/Format: WWA (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and attractive with just a tiny few ultra fine and faint spindle traces that hardly even show. This one from the collection of barely played records I purchased several weeks ago.

Cat Number: WWA (Super De Luxe) 002.

Mode / Speed: Stereo / 33.3 rpm.

Weight of this Record: 125 grams. A typical weight for this album.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Moderately scarce: and try to find this actual record better. The cover is very impressive too but there is no inner sleeve.

Original Year of Release: 1973

Matrix Nos: WWA 002 1Y // 1 14 2 5 / WWA 002 2Y // 4 14 2 3

Run-Out Groove Etchings: ‘RAYS’ [on side one]

Musicians: Derek Shulman – Vocals, alto and soprano saxophones, recorder; Gary Green – 6 & 12 string guitars, mandolin, percussion, alto recorder; Kerry Minnear - keyboards, tune percussion, recorder, vocals; Ray Shulman - bass guitar, violin, acoustic guitar, percussion, backing vocals; John Weathers - drums, percussion.

Brief Artist & Album Info: After four albums on the Vertigo Spiral label, this was their fifth, and appeared on the brand new WWA label, one the earliest titles issued on it. The label may be been new, but still a typical Gentle Giant album and for me anyway, one of their very best. Certainly one of the more challenging progressive bands with complex music patterns with many time and structure changes. Arguably, a little pretentious maybe - you either love or loathe them, but for sure they were original and had their own unique sound and had musicianship of the highest quality. This very early WWA copy is in super condition, the record offers nigh-on pristine sound that is the best I have heard for years, if not ever. The silk screen cover with a lovely clean clear window shows little wear – many are seen with burred edges and tears – this is has none. The perspex silk screen window front looks immaculate with barely any surface marks, scratches or scuffs and the inner near Mint. This has a lined white inner, the inner sleeve is not included with this one. The record appears hardly even played and sounds stunning with nothing to fault at all. All considered, this is an amazing copy of a very difficult title.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: Very High, an impossibly difficult sleeve to find in top conditions with every conceivable aspect within it’s format against longevity – it’s rarely seen even a fine excellent.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(++): an impossibly fragile cover this is a single matt format and unlaminated it has moderate texturing front and back and constructed with fairly soft card too. Being so black, it shows all blemishes freely, even fingermarks will adhere and show – this looks hardly handled which is great news. If all was not fragile enough already, this has a large die-cut front window that has a perspex ‘glass pane’ that has been silk screen artworked. The insert is illustrated too and when inserted into place, gives quite a strange 3D type of effect. This very specialised cover was printed and made in England.

Cover Front: An exceptional front for one of the most difficult and challenging within the prog genre. Firstly, the window: All edges are pristine immaculate and look as new, that simple, no burring or splits, all neat and ultra sharp. The silk-screen printed perspex window is also practically as new with barely any marks and no scuffs, noteworthy scratches, dulling, friction rubs or creasing. I have never seen a more perfect window frame or ‘glass’ on this one ever, any surface traces seen critically under light are mega-fine hairlines and this being very critical. The spine ends are deeply pinched so appear as ‘flats’ viewed from the front, the top one has a very light crease, the bottom one nigh-on perfect. The black border to the large window is superb with merely a couple of utlra fine hairline surface creases on the spine, but that’s about it. Few will even get close to this, the lack of rubbing to the black textured surface has to be seen. No speckle of scuffs, any surface traces are minuscule. This is close to connoisseur territory, the minor corner faint crease the only issue worthy (just) of mention.

Cover Back: Again in stunning condition – the lack of rubbing and ringwear is little short of remarkable and this really does come close to reminding of new. One very fine surface crease near the centre hardly even shows and this remains an incredible freshness and barely a hint of any handling marks. I can hardly imagine finding both front and back better than this.

Top Edge: Very mild faint rubbing towards the left corner, but little else. Remaining very straight too .

Bottom Edge: Appears practically free of wear and again, very straight.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, very sharp with no wear and guaranteed untrimmed. Record enters on this delicate right outside edge.

Spine and Text: A super spine too, quite delicate but it even has tapered ends on what is a quite a thinnly made spine already. This is solid, straight with minimal traces of compression. All text is perfect and unworn which will be rarely seen on this one and this appears to show barely any traces of surface wear at all. I cannot rule-out the odd tiny tip-in on the edges, but if so, it’s very few and tiny and indeed any barely even register (if indeed there at all).

Corners: I think a tiny tip-in on the very lightly creased top left corner - a possible very low impact minor dink from the past (?). These pinched ends are still very neat overall and retain excellent shape, as do the actual corner tips.

Cover Summary: I have rarely seen another example that even gets close to this – okay, a few tiny and minor blemishes but please put this one into context. Most seen are tired and tatty with rubbing, scuffing, tears to edges and the delicate window frame. The silk-screen ‘glass’ scratched and fogged, sometimes even hanging on by a thread – I have actually seen one with it missing altogether! The back rife with ringwear, fingermarks, white speckling to the delicate textured surfaces and pure white, woolly edges. This shows barely any traces of such wear or abuse and this sets a very high standard. I have graded (I feel conservately), finding this better overall will prove massively difficult. One of the most delicate covers of it’s decade, this beautiful item should please most-all collectors.

The Insert Card: MINT(-): and little short of as made. Printed one side only and this shows barely any traces of ageing with any marks barely even showing. Crisp and totally uncreased, the graphic fills the window to give a psydo 3D type effect.

The Inner: MINT(-): this one had a polylined inner, I know some of these had a lyric inner sleeve, but not the case for this one. This plain inner is immaculate and has a double British patent.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: MINT(-): a superb visual copy that is super clean, shiny, jet black and solidly pressed. A copy hardly even played on all the evidence and the best example of this difficult title I have ever seen (I never ever did buy this album myself). Visually a stunning record with any surface traces minuscule and ultra few and faint, one that should please most-all collectors again.

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 fantastic album plays above even it’s high visual grading with nothing to fault – a bold statement I know for this complex progressive rollercoaster ride with varying degrees of volume and quietness – some ultra quiet passages included too. Easily in the King Crimson and Van der Graaf Generator league of difficulty, this record plays with stunning rich, clean and clear sound. Strong, distortion-free playback, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is astonishing with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Any surface sounds barely register and no pops or clicks were noted and this is an exceptional clean pressing for a difficult album. Challenging and intricate music played with high skill and flawless performance, Gentle Giant were thinking man’s prog, original, skillful and daring. Only top quality, well looked after and little played (on vintage kit anyway) does them justice and this WWA album is just as hard to find in top conditions as the Spiral four. Few copies will match or outperform this early pressing significantly I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I feel very sure this record has been played very lightly and has been clearly well stored and carefully handled within a non-smoking environment. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record, this is truly as clean and noiseless as any vinyl copy of this record ever will be and offers practically reference sound. This copy will prove near impossible to find significantly better for top sound and with an excepetional cover as well, this merits my highest possible 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 VPI-17 vacuum machine before play-grading for the cleanest and best possible sound and will include a brand new lined inner and protective cover too. Pictures taken with a Nikon D5000 SLR Digital Camera.

PACKING - THIS IS WHAT YOU GET.

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 new VPI-17 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 boxes (NOT Mailers, these do not offer any real protection). The record(s) are 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 at least TWO, 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. When larger boxes are used, 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. 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. The boxes and ultra thick double-wall stiffeners 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 stiffeners 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 FIVE 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: Please as me first.

PLEASE NOTE: I now exercise my right to open a dispute after the Ebay rule of FOUR days if no payment is received. I will then cancel the dispute to end the, again after the mandatory FOUR days and then offer the item to the runner-up or relist. The non-payer will also be blocked from my Ebay site and they take the Ebay consequences (a strike or removal from the system). Small businesses need prompt payment to trade and these strict rules WILL be applied.

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 [£46 maximum]) = £10. (Royal Mail insurance is an optional extra £3). Add £3 per extra LP.

Posting & Packing: ALL OVERSEAS (non-European) e.g. USA (ANY PART OF); South America; New Zealand; 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 [£46 maximum]) = £14. Add £4 per extra LP. (Royal Mail insurance is an 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: I will cancel any bids I feel are time-wasters. 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 necessarily 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’.