QUICKSILVER MESSENGER SERVICE Happy Trails RARE ORIG

	£		53
	$		70

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Postage: UK £4.25. Europe £11.75. Rest of World £15.75. ALL signed for. – NOTE: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment. I try to keep my P&P as low as possible after the very significant Royal Mail price increases.

Artist or Band: QUICKSILVER MESSENGER SERVICE

Album Title: Happy Trails.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Who Do You Love - Part 1; When You Love; Where You Love; How You Love; Which Do You Love; Who Do You Love - Part 2.

Side 2: Mona; Maiden of the Cancer Moon; Calvary; Happy Trails.

Label/Format: Capitol – original black format (Please see my label scan).

Label Conditions: Both clean, still fresh and attractive with only very few, faint and faint spindle marks. Any handling evidence on very revealing matt black labels is very modest indeed.

Cat Number: E-ST 120.

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: 139 grams. Above average.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: Much harder to find as a first issue on the black label, pressed in relatively small numbers before the change. Most seen are on the second press yellow Capitol label.

Original Year of Release: 1969.

Matrix Nos: EST1 120-H11 / EST2 120-H11

Mother & Stamper Codes: 1 A / 1 A

Musicians: John Cipollina - Guitar and vocals; Gary Duncan - Guitar and vocals; Greg Elmore - Drums; David Freiberg - Bass, vocals, violin.

Brief Info: Regarded by many as a genuine classic: an album of two distinct sides – the first is dedicated entirely to Bo Diddley’s well-known ‘Who Do You Love’ that incorporates studio and live cuts merged together to form a magnificent collage. It works beautifully. Side two has a very distinct Western theme as a continuous suite and again has some wonderful moments – none better than the stunning ‘Calvary’ – the long psych-driven guitar fest. This album is rarely seen as an original as it was quickly repressed on the more familiar yellow label. The record looks little played and sounds wonderfully clean with just a very small few sporadic clicks. With some very quiet passages on this album, this will always prove immensely difficult to find with no fairly polite reminders it is a 44-year-old vinyl record you are listening too. In fact I have heard several of these (mostly second issues) that have considerable surface noise, crackle and many pops and clicks that I will not offer. Overall, this first issue is superbly pressed with just the odd couple of three tiny marks which I do not consider at all bad for a vintage record like this. The flipbacked G&L cover also has little wear and aged little. Always a highly-rated album but not probably no quite as appreciated outside the United States as it deserves to be. I can be argued it needs to be played a few times before it really sinks in, and I myself, found this to be so – I now treasure this magnificent piece.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(+): a single format with front lamination. This wraps around the closed edges onto three rear external flipbacks. Printed and made in England by Garrod & Lofthouse.

Lamination & Front: One of the classic front covers of it’s era and this does if excellent justice. The laminate is fully adhered with a very nice shine and clarity and minimal traces of any friction rubs or dulling. Hardly any creasing, any present are a tiny few, very fine and faint edge hairlines that hardly even show. Rich coloured artwork that is a mini work-of-art and seldom will it be seen a great deal better.

Cover Back: The unprotected back has a little mild grubbiness on the left edge with just a mere hint of rim impression. The flipbacks are solid with neat edges with just a couple of very mild end burrs. The laminate ends are clean with minimal traces of any grime line formation. Overall, just enough to lightly remind this is a cover around 44 years old and no shame in that, this is a lovely classic sleeve.

Top Edge: Practically unworn and straight.

Bottom Edge: Practically the same again.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, reasonably sharp with little wear. Viewed end-on, a little thickening, but this appears not crisply trimmed in manufacture. Record enters on this edge.

Spine and Text: Solid, straight with minimal compresson – the ends very slightly tapered in manufacture. All text is perfect and unworn under the solid and unpeeled or cracked laminate. Just a small rub on the bottom corner.

Corners: Small tip rubs and very fine shape retained.

Cover Summary: A very strong all-round example of this famous late 60’s cover, one that will prove very difficult to find much better. This very attractive item should please many, if not most collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT(+): being only mildly aged with modest discolouration but little else. An unlined EMI-Capitol promotional inner in super condition. Virtually crease-free and all edges unsplit with no repairs.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(++) a very impressive visual copy that is very clean, shiny, intense black and quite heavily pressed. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence. The odd small surface mark or tiny ‘needle’ mark that does cause a small few clicks, but these are VERY few and far between. A little very brief, light crackle is heard at the very beginning due to fine pressing traces seen with utmost scrutiny – this has nothing to do with wear or mistreatment. In fact this record looks fantastic and it will take an extraordinary one to better it. Visually a super record that should please 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 miniscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: By a distance, the most impressive looking (and possibly sounding) original I have yet seen. And overall, this challenging record plays up to and even above it’s high visual grading with little to fault. Strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Few surface sounds – very brief indeed, gentle traces at the very beginning as mentioned above – and a small few clicks just to remind it is a rcord that is being played, so not for the absolute perfectionist I suppose. The reason I state a ‘challenging’ record is due to the fact it does have some very quiet passages and few records of this vintage will not have the odd blemish or two. With the vast majority playing superbly, I have no qualms on offering this classic with just a tiny few sporadic clicks or minor blemish. Few copies will outperform this very early pressing significantly I feel sure and little spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record. Both cover, inner and record will prove very difficult to find significantly better and can be strongly recommended.

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 Terrarium Black 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 8,000+ items sold in over 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 2 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). All postage costs are below and at the top of the listing.

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] = £4.25

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £8. (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 [£50 maximum]) = £11.75 (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]) = £15.75 Add £3 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’.