NICO Chelsea Girl SCARCE N/M Polydor LP. BARELY PLAYED.

	£		23
	$		31

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Artist or Band: NICO

Album Title: Chelsea Girl.

Producer(s): Tom Wilson.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: The fairest of the Seasons (Copel/Browne); These Days (Jackson Browne); Little Sister (Cale/Reed); Winter Song (John Cale); It Was a Pleasure Then (Nico/Cale/Reed).

Side 2: Chelsea Girls (Reed/Morrison); I’ll Keep It With Mine (Bob Dylan); Somewhere There’s a Feather (Jackson Tim Hardin); Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams (John Cale); Eulogy to Lenny Bruce (Tim Hardin).

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

Label Conditions: Both look brand new, I truly think this record was unplayed.

Cat Number: 2353025.

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: 115 grams. [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: Not issued in the UK until 1971 on MGM, it sold poorly. It was later pressed on Polydor and even these are not so easy find either, limited repressings that only a small few purchased, possibly to replace worn-out originals. This classic has always proved difficult to find no matter when it was pressed and this one is connoisseur standard and will prove the bench-mark to judge others.

Original Year of Release: 1967 in the US. Delayed until 1971 in the UK. This superb Polydor pressing in 1984.

Matrix Nos: 2353025 A // 3 E420 1 15 / 2353025 B // 2 E420 1 2

Musicians: Nico – vocals; Jackson Browne – acoustic guitar; Lou Reed – electric guitar; John Cale – viola, organ, guitar; Sterling Morrison – electric guitar.

Brief Artist & Album Info: The second Velvet Underground album in all but name and issued in the same year as the seminal groundbreaking debut. The German beauty queen that came to music fame via her contributions with The Velvet Underground. The Velvet Underground and Nico remains for me one of the greatest albums ever issued and its importance to music history cannot be overstated. Requesting to do all the lead vocals, but turned down, and she left the band soon after. This album, her first, for me is an absolute classic as well, it simply carries on the sound of the famous VU debut - a couple of the songs were actually to feature on the VU album, but length restrictions did not allow. It even features compositions and backing by Velvet members. (I have included the writing credits on the track listing above). Also featured is a young Jackson Browne with memorable songs by him also. The album’s title is from the famous Chelsea Hotel in New York which was used by many cerebrities of various types in those heady days of over-indulgence and experimentation. Dylan Thomas, Arthur Miller, Jackson Pollock, Allen Ginsberg, Edith Piaf, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen (he made a famous song about his experiences there) and Janis Joplin have all stayed there. This is an album of stunning beauty and I never tire of listening to it. Nico was unique, a one-off, no-one sounds quite like her and this album for those who have not heard it, simply carries on where the first Velvet Underground album ends. It can be argued, this is the Velvet Underground that never was – all bar Mo Tucker feature and the dark mood is the same. Slightly more subtle and subdued in texture - reference to the her songs on that masterpiece debut. This sparse, mellow and stark, but beautiful record gaves no clues to the following dark gothic album that was to follow - The Marble Index. Superbly produced by Tom Wilson, at this time producing Zappa’s Mothers of Invention Verve classics. I have often found the MGM pressings crackly with substantial amounts of unwanted pressing sounds. This Polydor copy, which I consider superior, has practically none and is one of the very best pressed copies I have yet heard - a total joy from start to finish - anything unwanted barely even registered. The music is so captivating and engrossing, I adore this record, for me, almost as important as the legendary banana classic. The famous sleeve is in super condition, never easy to find so unworn whenever or where it was made. For me this is one of those definitive covers that again bring those incredible days of the 60s underground scene back again. If you love, like me, ‘All Tomorrow’s Parties’, ‘I’ll Be our Mirror’ and ‘Femme Fatale’ you will adore this dark, haunting record. I simply cannot recommend this stunning album and highly enough and it will be hard to experience much cleaner than this.

This Cover’s Potential for Wear: High.

Cover Grade and Format: EX++, a single unlaminated format with a matt finish. Printed and made in England by Akenmay Ltd.

Cover Front: One of the great covers of the 1960s, what a beauty this lady was. This definitive front has little to fault, any surface marks or rubbing is ultra faint and mild, any traces only show under light and this front has no noteworthy creases or grubbiness. Although a reissue, please remember this 26 years old.

Cover Back: Apart from a mild and faint rub against the inner flipback near the top edge, this has little else to fault and looks lovely.

Top & Bottom Edges: Both unworn.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, sharp with no wear or feathering, guaranteed untrimmed. Record enters on this edge.

Spine and Text: Quite solid, mainly straight with just a trace of compression near the centre. The text is unworn.

Corners: All look practically as made with superb pointed shape retained.

Cover Summary: A wonderful all round example of this still fragile cover. This looks little different to the early 70s MGM version. This beautiful item should please most collectors - worthy of a second look.

The Inner: The unlined inner, dated coded 1/84 has some patchy light toning but barely any real wear.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: Mint(-) looking exactly as when first purchased. Now that said, there are some fine hairline marks on the first song on side two, but I am as certain as I ever could be these were incurred in manufacture. They all follow the same direction into the record and are merely faint and totally non-sounding blemishes that only show under angled light. Minus these, the record would be Mint.

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: I could hardly wait to get this on to the turntable – I adore this album and even today it’s still a somewhat guarded secret of excellence. It matters to me not one iota it’s a later pressing. Being made on Polydor, I felt confident the pressing standard would be high, and it even surpassed my expectations, playing consistently quiet and it will beat most of the variable MGMs by a distance. Particularly those subjected to insensitive equipment and handling all those years ago. If Reed had agreed to Nico’s request to be lead singer on her own, this would have been the second Velvet Underground album - it’s has all the characteristics of the famous ‘Banana’ album (but with better sound). This wonderful record plays up, and even exceeds to its high visual grading with nothing to fault. Strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is high with a solid dynamic range and detailed sound. Any surface sounds barely even register and this equals the very best-pressed originals I have ever heard. As stated, I have heard this album several times on MGM and most have some inherent surface sound – nothing to do with static or groovewear – simply in the pressing and this will prove near impossible to find better. Excellent material and sung as only Nico could, this really is The Velvet Underground under Nico’s name – the missing album they could have made and been credited too. Those fine surface marks on the title song have no sound. Few copies will match or outperform this limited Polydor repressing I feel sure. Both channels are clean and sharp, I am certain this record has barely been played and has been clearly well stored and carefully handled. Nothing spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record, maximum pleasure from start to finish. This copy will prove nearly impossible to find better and can be strongly recommended, a keeper copy to play and enjoy.

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’.