HOLLIES Butterfly UK 1967 Rare Orig Mono. THEIR BEST

	£		68
	$		90

Hi, I am Mike, I am 46 and have been a music collector and enthusiast for over 33 years now. We all wish we could turn back the clock and buy those wonderful brand new records from the 60s and 70s, but alas, this is not possible; so I always try to offer the finest and most accurately described and graded records I can find. No vinyl/music lover really would choose to buy second-hand, but this is only way now to own these valuable, prized and ellusive items now. 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, hence the name - time rarely allows for more as I Play-Grade virtually every record I offer in their entirity, not just bits to guess a grade (on a Rega 3 deck with Ortofon cartridge) - 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 reader – 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. The only thing I cannot guarantee one hundred percent is exact colour matching - this depends on the lighting at the time and that is out of my control, but I feel sure most items will be very close to the actual real item. Variation can sometimes occur too in colour of the label scans and labels taken next to the sleeve with a digital camera, the scanned full label pictures should be the most accurate. If any picture I take looks more flattering than the actual item for any reason, I will clearly state the fact in the advert. 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 or sticks or writing on covers or labels unless clearly stated to the contrary. Thanks for your interest and Good luck – MIKE.

Please read all the information carefully - these adverts take an age to compile properly - so it’s well worth a few minutes of your time to read the details thoroughly. I really cannot take any responsibility if any bidder fails to read any facts that are clearly stated in the advert - Thankyou.

Artist or Band: THE HOLLIES

Album Title: Butterfly

Track Listing: Dear Eloise; Away Away Away; Maker; Pegasus; Would You Believe; Wish You Believe; Wishyouawish; Postcard; Charlie and Fred; Try It; Elevated Observations?; Step Inside; Butterfly.

Cat Number: PMC 7039 Stereo. (This was also pressed in stereo which is very slightly rarer.)

Label and Condition: Parlophone yellow and black original format. Stunning examples of this classic 60s label. Made in Gt Britain; The Gramophone Co Ltd etc and Sold in UK subject to resale price conditions etc. Side one has the embossed KT tax codes which are very clean and sharp, unflattened and retaining virtually their original ink, also a good indicator to how many time an album has been played. Even modest plays and removals from non-lined inners removes the ink from the very fine and delicate letters. The ‘T’ is perfect and the ‘K’ has a pin-prick mark near the very bottom - these fine letters rarely come much better than this. Spindle marks are as light as they get for a classic 60s album with few to be seen and virtually zero wear around the hole area. All the evidence points to a record that has been played very few times. This is confirmed still further by generally clean, fine quality mono sound. (Please see label scans for all information needed).

Country of Manufacture: Gt Britain

Rarity: Relatively scarce, this is probably (along with Evolution) the band’s most popular and sort-after album.

Original Year of Release: 1967

Matrix Nos: XEX 659-1 and XEX 660-1. The tiny stamper codes are 1M and 1O.

Brief Artist & Album Info: Along with Evolution, Butterfly is The Hollies other psych masterpiece, issued in the greatest year in rock history, the summer of love, 1967. Never an easy album to find and when this record showed in mono looking so clean and lightly played I thought this was an exceptional to normal. The mono is mix is tremendous with massive power and dynamics, taking nothing away from the stereo mix either – both are essential for this album. Most of the big popular bands around this time made a psych album, and Butterfly has to be regarded as one of the very best. It still has the classic Hollies harmonies and the band rarely sounded better. With the definite psych feel and mix added this is something really special. The cover too is pure 1967, brilliantly psych and surreal with fabulous artwork. This classic should be included in any serious 60s collection and even non-Hollies fans should still love this one. Every track’s a gem but ‘Pegasus’ is worthy of special mention – its magnificent.

Cover Grade and Format: EX, single format, laminated front, three huge flipbacks with File under POPULAR: Pop Groups on the top right. Printed and made by Garrod & Lofthouse Ltd. and includes the very early Patents Pending text.

Lamination: Attractive with deep shine with little to no dulling. No peeling, dry areas, indentations and only few light creases of which few really show very much. A lightish pressmark from the heavy LP can be seen but most will have this anyway and this is probably lighter than most.

Cover Front: Little major wear, clean and still looking very nice indeed. A little rub wear to the right corners is the most wear on the entire cover.

Cover Back: Some signs of handling and a little discolouring with mild and mainly light grubbiness (hate that word, its a little harsh for this really but its the best I can think of). Being white and unprotected most cover this great age will have some signs of this. No rubbing to the artwork and importantly, no ringwear. The flipbacks are very strong and neat with no lifting, creasing or splits – all remain very solidly stuck down with little fraying to the ends. The important imprint line with its ‘Patents pending’ is perfect.

Top Edge: Virtually unworn up to the very right corner.

Bottom Edge: Virtually unworn up to the very right corner.

Right Edge(s), and Type: A little minor wear to the very edges with minor, light feathering in places all on the unprotected back. Record entered on right outside edge.

Spine and Text: Solid and square with little wear, text is perfect and unworn under the solid, uncracked laminate.

Corners: All four show a little wear, a fraction more on the right hand pair. Shape is fine on the left couple, very mild erosion on the right pair.

Cover Summary: Still a very fine cover and way above average, any wear or general ageing is light and I feel sure this will still please many collectors.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EX A lovely visual copy. Super clean, shiny, jet black and very solidly pressed. A few light surface marks or light fine hairlines, nothing remotely more or anything serious in the slightest, anything totally superficial and not affecting play. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence. Visually a very fine vintage record that should please many collectors again.

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This super record plays up to and mostly well above its still high visual grading with little to major to fault. I have found Hollies albums in mono especially, very susceptable to high frequency clipping and mild, even moderate distortion. The loud, dynamic sound with the intense vocal harmonies are most prone to this type of sound wear, and the track ‘Would You Believe’ I have rarely heard unaffected by this. Beatles albums (yes on the same label) more often than not suffer the same and I have stated this many times on my Beatles adverts. This copy plays very well indeed and has little of the aforementioned, even that very difficult song plays well and is maybe the best I have heard in mono yet, clipping is very minimal indeed reiterating my confidence this record has been played only very modestly. There are odd traces but unless a virtually unplayed mono copy can be found this may be one of the best copies you are likely to hear now. Little, if anything spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this classic, it remains a period classic and on album The Hollies rarely sounded better than this. This copy could prove difficult to find significantly better.

Mono vs Stereo, an overview: Always a matter of opinion which is better or more important. For any serious collector where there is a choice e.g. Beatles, Stones, Hendrix etc. both are essential. True Stereo albums give great imagery and presence whereas mono albums usually are more dynamic, louder and present the detail more clearly. Mono albums are far harder to find in genuinely top playing condition. Most were heavily played, particularly the truly great bands and artists, often covered in mark and scratches, many severe and labels that were a mass of spindle marks. The majority were played on vintage and unsubtle decks with heavy tonearms and thick styli (often sapphire, not diamond, that chipped more easily) that rendered heavy wear in a very short time to many a fine classic record. Wear to the delicate groove walls, particularly the innermost tracks to the labels were most vulnerable where the tracking angle became more severe and the backdrag actually stripped the delicate groove walls. This resulted in surface noise and mild/moderate distortion or worse. These old decks tracked by sheer weight and little of any refined engineering. Next time you see such a deck at a local record fayre, feel the weight of the arm, it almost makes you wonder how any records survived at all. The point of this paragraph is emphasise that when a truly clean, lightly played and great sounding 60s mono album (or stereo come to that) is offered, treasure it, because for sure they are truly getting vary rare and precious - beware - demand only play-graded records. As a general guide to rarity, mono was the far more common format from 61–65; Around 66–67 the balance was roughly equal, then from 68-69 the balance swung more to stereo, making monos from these dates far scarcer, even rare - this guide is important and effects values greatly.

Album Played For Grading: Yes.

Final Summary: A truly beautiful album that deserves a ‘Classic’ tag. An album not laben with hit singles but every song is a pure class and memorable – this was The Hollies at their peak. A genuine EX copy throughout and the record probably could be argued better. Never an easy one to find now, I recommend this one strongly but it may just fall a little short for the perfectionist or connoisseur collector (but only just for the actual record certainly) – Mike.

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. 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. Item wants are always welcome - email me with anything needed, you never know - I may just have a copy in stock. I by quality single items and collections also (Email me please if you have quality items for sale).

Debutant Bidders: Many sellers refuse first time buyers: I do not follow this practice (everybody has to start somewhere), but I would appreciate any first timer letting me know their intentions of their intended payment method and very prompt communication, preferably before any bid or soon after the auctions ends. This gives confidence that their intentions are honourable, and I in return guarantee extra special good feedbacks to get zero rated Ebayers off to a flying start to help them with future transactions. NOTE: I WILL NOT ACCEPT BIDS FROM UNREGISTERED USERS, I will cancel them immediately, and sorry, I cannot give valuations on people’s personal items just for their own curiosity, no item can be accurately valued blindly.

Having the Powerseller Logo: This is recognition from Ebay for the highest possible customer services, satisfaction and quality, it should reassure any potential bidder that all items are described, graded and shipped to the highest standards possible. Customer care of the highest order is a standard feature here and I am proud to have achieved this recognised standard of excellence from Ebay with help from collectors and buyers from all over the World - I thank you all.

Payment Details please read carefully - I know its boring but essential:

UK First Class: = £3.00; Recorded Delivery (Recommended) = £5.50 Special Delivery (Next day, insured up to £250), the best service available = £7.00

Europe Air Mail: = £4 Insured: £8.00

Overseas, non-Europe e.g. USA, Japan, Australia etc. Airmail:= £7; Insured with recorded delivery (where available) = £11.00

Singles: (Packed to the high standards of the LPs)

UK First class: = £2.00 Insured: £4

Europe Air Mail = £3.00 Insured: £5.50

Overseas, non-Europe (as above) Airmail £3.50 Insured: £6.00

Doubles add extra £1, triples add extra £2. Box sets add extra £3 (£4 overseas and Europe)

Any item that sells for over £85 will be sent Special Delivery in the UK at no extra cost. Items over £125 get the same service Overseas. This is gives peace of mind for the winning bidder and myself for valuable items. Reduced postage of course for multiple items.

The winner bidder chooses his/her posting method and if uninsured is chosen, its their decision and they have to stick with it, I can accept no responsibility if an item is lost in the post. I can only try to claim at standard levels if no enhancement is chosen (£28). PLEASE NOTE: I will NOT use surface mail, its too slow, with a higher risk of loss and damage.

Mailing Details: Please note I do NOT profit on postage (my packing standards are high and the package weighs a little more and I often actually lose money on this part of service - I simply refuse to compromise with poor packing. All records are sent in plastic covers with the record taken OUT of the sleeve and sent in professional mailers with FOUR professional stiffners for extra protection (if space allows), I do NOT use old cardboard boxes or cereal packets for protection. More expensive items are also inserted into a de-luxe heavy duty padded bag AS WELL to give that extra protection. I truly want ALL my items to arrive to their destination in the same condition they leave me. I will also include in most cases a brand new lined inner, but will include the original inner if available and in a condition to be worthwhile.

I can accept cash for payments worldwide in UK Pounds Sterling, Euros or US Dollars - but this at the senders OWN risk. Please send registered and insured if this method is chosen. I cannot accept responsibility if any cash payments do not turn up. This system is very reliable and rarely goes astray. The same goes for any shipped uninsured item, I can only try to claim for any undelivered or damaged article at basic insurance levels if no enhanced insurance is requested and paid for (unless the value threshold is high enough for me insure as standard, see above)

Overseas bidders please note conversion rates for Pounds to Dollars and Pounds to Euros will be charged at 1.7 to cover PayPal or cash conversion costs.

PLEASE NOTE: Any PayPal user can now pay me with UK Sterling if they wish with no need to convert to US dollars (although they still can if they wish to). Any instant PayPal transaction from anywhere in the world will mean the item will be sent immediately - it makes deals fast and very efficient.

Potential Bidders: Please do not bid if you have negative feedback unless checking first, I will cancel any bids I feel are timewasters. I now only accept PayPal, International money orders or cash from overseas bidders (UK Sterling, US dollars or Euros). Cash, cheques, postal orders and PayPal are fine from the UK. I allow maximum 3 days for communication and 7 days for payment to arrive - if this does not happen I will relist the item and may send negative feedback unless an explanation is given. Fast deals get great feedback from me. Any questions - please ask. Please keep watch on my Ebays, I have other interesting items coming very soon. Thanks for looking.

My Guarantee: As listening to every single record I offer all the way through is difficult timewise, can I make it clear if any winning bidder is not satisfied with their purchase I will offer a complete refund minus the Posting and All Ebay costs as long as the item detail has been read and understood. I will not refund if any defect detail is clearly stated on the advert and missed by the buyer. I still endeavour to play all the items in their entirity for grading if at all possible and is usually the case.