MARY HOPKIN Those Were the Days RARE APPLE PROMO LP

	£		69
	$		91

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Postage: UK £4. Europe £10. Rest of World £14. ALL signed for. – NOTE: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment.

Artist or Band: MARY HOPKIN

Album Title: Those Were The Days.

Producer(s): Paul McCartney, Mickie Most & Tony Visconti.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Those Were the Days; Que Sera Sera; The Fields of St Etienne; Kew Gardens; Temma Harbour; Think About Your Children.

Side 2: Knock Knock Who’s There; Heritage; Sparrow; Lontano Degli Occhi; Goodbye.

Label/Format: Apple – a very rare demo copy, actually printed on BOTH labels as can be seen my label scans. This an ultimate, very first pressing with the most prized 1 G / 1 G mothers and stampers.

Label Conditions: Side one is practically as made with barely a spindle trace to be seen. Side two has only a small few light ones that show little. Both clean, fresh and highly attractive and demo copies of this record will rarely be seen or offered on this prestigious Beatles’ label.

Cat Number: SAPCOR 23.

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: 130 grams. A very good average weight for this one.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Very scarce: and by some distance the most elusive of the three Apple albums Mary issued. Very difficult also to find with a little worn cover that is hugely prone to all forms of wear and damage. Obviously demonstration copies with the prized 1 G mothers and stampers are rarer still and are seldom seen or offered.

Original Year of Release: 1971

Matrix Nos: SAPCOR 23 A-1U / SAPCOR 23 B-1U

Stamper Codes: 1 G / 1 G [‘G’ being the first letter on the pressing run]

Brief Artist & Album Info: Only my second-ever copy of this highly elusive Apple album. Beautifully produced songs by McCartney, Most and Visconti, this prove to be her final album on Apple and last for many years which was sad. Mary has such a wonderful voice – pretty and never twee – no wonder McCartney was so thrilled by this lady and signed her to Apple. This includes her hit singles and scarcer songs, it is a surprise this did not sell in greater numbers but it’s scarcity within the Apple catalogue is well-known. Given it’s great age and delicate material, finding only the least-played and well looked after copies is mandatory. This has little to fault overall – a few light surface marks are ignored, and apart from a small few, odd sporadic ticks on side two, the sound is very impressive without irritating crackle such records often suffer. The cover as little wear and is very attractive indeed and it has to be one of Apple’s most wear-prone. SAPCOR 23 is elusive and prized and it’s long overdue this lady’s music was more fully appreciated – if it thrilled Paul McCartney surely that speaks volumes for her talent? I can hardly recommend this wonderful set highly enough – ah, those really were the days.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: Very High+.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(+): this being somewhat conservative for a very uncompromising cover. A single unlaminated format with matt, smooth surfaces. Printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse. Includess Apple inner.

Cover Front: A very fine surface crease along the spine edge that shows little. That apart, little else to fault with any marks or rub traces tiny, very few and faint. This, by some distance, is the best I have seen.

Cover Back: Very faint traces of discolour to the white, but merely hints to remind of it’s significant age, finding one pure snowy white will prove beyond difficult. Any grubbiness or rubbing, equally faint and minor and like this front, this will prove very difficult to find better.

Top Edge: Barely any traces or rubbing with the faintest of faint hints of burring on the front end panel viewed end-on – this being very critical.

Bottom Edge: Very neat indeed with barely any wear. A couple of tiny friction rub traces near the corner ends, little else.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, sharp with barely any hint of wear with no burring or thickening worthy of mention. Record enters on this edge.

Spine and Text: Solid, straight with minimal compression. All the text fully present and unworn, that again can never be taken for granted (please see my close-up picture).

Corners: Any tip rubs are tiny, and being white, barely anything even registers. Excellent shape is retained.

Cover Summary: Not seen this many times and the ones I have seen have more often been really poor with records to match. This cover is extremely unforgiving and only ones kept carefully with protection stood any real chance – and clearly this one has been. It should please most collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: NEAR EXCELLENT: a plain white unlined inner with the Apple Recordings text. Little real wear as such but it does have moderate discolouration. All edges intact witih minimal creasing.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: NEAR EXCELLENT: side one has two or three surface marks that have no sound at all. Any other marks are very fine and faint as seen under light. A strong visual copy that is very clean, shiny, intense black and very solidly pressed. This came from a very fine collection and friend, I know for a fact it has been played very little. In real terms, this could arguably be graded still higher and for a record over 40 years old, it’s impressive. Visually a fine record that should please many, if not most collectors.

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 beautiful record plays mostly above it’s visual grading with little to fault. A fairly delicate album so pressing quality will always be an issue. Well this ultimate first demonstration pressing offers very clean, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Side one – the side with the more seen surface marks – has little to fault at all and was a real delight. Side two has a small few sporadic light ticks on song two, and three. ‘Sparrow’ is very fragile indeed and silence on that is a huge ask, but the majority plays great with just a few ticks near the beginning. Few copies will match let alone outperform this earliest pressing significantly I feel certain. Both channels are clean and sharp, I am certain this record has been played very lightly and has been generally modestly handled and well looked after. So not CD quiet for the most discerning audiophile, but realistically, it will take a near unplayed example to better this. Just the odd light reminder what you actually listening to – a 40-year-old vinyl record. This copy will prove difficult to find significantly better and can be strongly recommended unless absolute perfection is mandatory.

End Piece: With a relatively short recording career, Mary’s music output after this final Apple album was mimimal after she married Tony Visconti and concentrated on a family life. A shame for both pop and folk fans alike, this lady I feel certain could have made many more gems like this. With Paul McCartney producing four of the songs on this album which includes the Lennon/McCartney title ‘Goodbye’, another of her hit singles, this clearly will interest Beatles fans as well. With just a couple of listens, this lady’s albums have an addictive quality. I still consider her second album ‘Earth Song/Ocean Song’ a mini masterpiece. For those still to discover the delightful music of Mary Hopkin, well all three are recommended, but finding this one again, as an original, will always prove difficult.

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’.