RENAISSANCE 1st Album on 1969 UK PINK ISLAND, HARDLY PLAYED, IMPRESSIVE SOUND.

	£		42
	$		56

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Postage: UK £4.75 (£1 per extra record). Europe (including Russia) £12.50 (£2 per extra record). Rest of World (including ALL parts of the USA) £16.50 (£3 per extra record). All boxes signed for in quality, safe packaging – I NEVER use mailing envelopes that offer virtually no protection at all – in fact I think these things should be banned as records WILL arrive damaged in them at some time. Here, you get what you pay for – SAFE PACKING in BOXES using 7mm DOUBLE-WALL STIFFENERS. Full details nearer the end of the listing.

Posting to Russia: Yes, I do post to Russia. But delivery can take up to 4 to 6 weeks from the UK. So please be patient. I will submit a tracking number to the winning bidder, and when the packet arrives there it can be followed online using the Russian post website.

ALSO: I now apply the Ebay ‘2-day’ rule for non-payment to keep things moving – cash-flow is important for any small business. I will always keep my P&P prices as low as possible, and even after yet another Royal Mail price hike from April this year, I have NOT raised my prices and will never compromise on solid, safe packing that is invariably heavier than most you will get. My P&P offers probably the best value-for-money for vinyl records available, and I even will pay for full insurance on any record that sells for over £100 at NO extra cost – that is UK and abroad. Also I aim to post the very same day after payment is received. You WILL see the difference when my packet arrives.

FINALLY: Late payers, non-payers and ‘0’ bidders will now be blocked or cancelled at my discretion. As will any bidder who cancels a bid. I do not like this practice as it is most often used to phish out the price to beat. Ebay does not approve and neither do I – so only bid on my items if you want them.

Artist or Band: RENAISSANCE

Album Title: Renaissance

Producer(s): Paul Samwell-Smith

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Kings and Queens; Innocence.

Side 2: Island; Wanderer; Bullet.

Label/Format: Island – Original full pink i format, matt, smooth finish. These have that lovely real pink colour, most copies of this album I have seen have the salmon pink colour.

Label Conditions: Both in superb clean and fresh condition. Any of the tiny few spindle traces are ultra fine and faint. This is the cleanest and best-sounding copy of this difficult album I have heard to date.

Cat Number: ILPS 9114

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: 135 grams. A very good weight for this album.

Country of Manufacture: England

Rarity: Scarce, with a record this lightly played and very well pressed, quite rare. Massively intolerant of heavy tracking turntables from the past, this album rarely ever plays well. The piano pieces often break up with crackle, loss of clarity and distortion. The quiet passages, of which there are several, crackle with plenty of unwanted noises. Well this superb, very little played example bucks-the-trend and plays beautifully with hardly anything of note unwanted. And then there is there is the cover to consider. It is as difficult as the record and is rarely seen in anything like attractive condition. Most badly rubbed, worn with horrendous ring wear and aged. I am not saying this one is perfect my any means, but it shows far less wear than most I have seen with most rubbing confined to the edges. Quite a rare and difficult set, and not putting too fine a point on the fact, also, and arguably under-appreciated album that I personally rate very highly.

Original Year of Release: 1969

Matrix Nos: ILPS 9114 A // 1 1 1 9 & ILPS 91114 B 1 1 1 4 (the first ‘matrix’ ‘4’ is error-corrected).

Etching Details: ‘RL SS’ [on both sides]

Musicians: Jane Relf – vocals, percussion; Keith Relf – vocals, guitar, harmonica; Jim McCarty – percussion, vocals; John Hawken – piano, harpsichord; Louis Cennamo – bass.

Brief Info: The original Renaissance were the other band formed from split of The Yardbirds. Wanting to be different musically than before, this band played a more classical orientated progressive rock, they did not stay together for long. The name continued, but with an entirely different line-up that went on to be fairly successful in their own right with Annie Haslam being the lead vocalist. This original line-up did reappear later as ‘Illusion’. This early Island set is a lovely album and I still feel under-appreciated, it was still quite unique in it’s day and deserves far more acclaim. It scraped into the UK charts at No. 60, one of only three ‘Renaissance’ albums to do so. A notoriously difficult record to find in top playing conditions with groove-wear rife on many copies resulting in distortion and breakup, particularly to the vulnerable piano parts. This has several quiet moments, and I have seldom ever heard a really decent copy and yet to ever hear a ‘perfect’ playing example. Well this is as close as it most likely gets, this one plays superbly well. Many experienced dealers and collectors have the same opinions and like me, regard it one of the most difficult albums ever on this well-known label. The cover fares even worse and must rank as one of the most intolerant ever made, that quite unusual for an E. J. Day cover that are usually top quality and resilient – it proves in both cases there can be exceptions to the rule. This has fared better than many I have seen in terms of rubbing with most present on the top and bottom edges and corners. The records itself is lovely and actually plays supremely well, devoid of all of the usual problems, I hardly thought a copy could play quite this well on such a revealing system. It is very clean and looks very little used, my play-grade proved highly enjoyable. Pressing noises, groove wear and distortion cannot be seen, only heard, but delighted to say, this copy has no such issues at all. Even that impossibly challenging final phase of ‘Bullet’ plays quietly and distortion-free. The piano and quiet segments all focused and sharp and largely noise-free. In fact this record could prove a significant upgrade for the serious collector and this difficult Island one-off album will never be easy to find better.

Cover Grade and Format: VERY GOOD(+): and although not an exceptional grading, it can be deemed more so for this impossibly wear-prone cover. An unlaminated gatefold format with matt smooth surfaces. Printed and made in England the E. J. Day Group and includes the Polydor style November 1969 inner sleeve.

Cover Front: Put into context, this is a very attractive front. It lacks the usual unsightly wear that affects most, especially the early-made ones with the heavier, thicker pink label albums inside. The main graphic itself that occupies most of the front has barely any rubbing at all. Any wear on the very edges and some mild rubbing on the deep purple border box. It retains a Hudson’s record shop pre-decimal price sticker, personally, I have no qualms with those, it simply adds to the history of a cover. Avoiding ring wear and creasing, this challenging front sets quite a high standard as seen.

Cover Back: The back is largely the same with rubbing to the edge folds and mostly light rubbing to the dark box edge areas, mostly near the bottom. With the important graphic area in excellent condition, this a near perfect match for the impressive front.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Little to fault inside, any blemishes few, light and mild.

Top Edges: Moderate rubbing, some patchy. No splits and the edges flush and straight.

Bottom Edges: Moderate+, less patchy rubbing, these storage have scant chance of avoid it unless cover-protected from new, and few ever were.

Right Edge(s), and Type: The front closed edge is sharp and crisp. The back entrance edges have quite light and patchy thickening, mostly seen viewed end-on. All are guaranteed untrimmed or enhanced in any way.

Spine and Text: The spine has fared well overall. Solid and thick, straight with hardly any compression. Folded square, so the edges meet up quite closely together and parallel. I have seen a few of these folded badly off-square and this only adds to the unattractiveness, but this E. J. Day version has avoided that. The surface shows a few small patchy chip rubs, the ends with moderate general rubbing. However, the text has all survived intact and remains strong and very easy to read as seen. Even the folds have avoided major rubbing or scuffs. With many of these seen threadbare with most ink and text eroded or lost, this puts this one into true perspective.

Corners: Moderate to moderate plus tip rubbing with around fine shape retained. These have avoided bashes, all totally natural as well with no colouring in or enhancements.

Cover Summary: I consider this the most difficult and challenging cover in the entire Island catalogue, and one of most elusive to find in top conditions. This has edge rubbing to remind of age, but overall this has fared quite well with the main areas still quite impressive. Not for the purists, but it will always prove hard to find a great deal better.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT(++): but it does have ‘Volume 5’ written on the back. A Polydor-style lined inner that has aged little, and lacking the usual heavy discolouration or seam edge browning. Both window circles are pristine and the polylining clear and fresh. Barely any creasing and all edges unsplit with no repairs. This date-coded 119 (November 1969).

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT(+): a superb looking Island record. Fresh with lovely shine and very solidly pressed. A copy played very little on all the evidence. Any surface trace marks are very fine and faint as seen with scrutiny under bright light, this looks exceptional, and with some fine grooves, this album is easily marked. This has no penetrating stylus scratches. Hence it’s intolerance of any vintage stylus abuse or overplaying on such – without doubt, this has been played very little. Visually attractive and impressive, a very difficult issue that will 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: One of the most challenging Island albums. Most of the examples I have heard have included some form of groove-wear distortion and often with plenty of surface noise and crackle, even pressing issues are far from uncommon. This copy plays up to and most all above it’s unusually fine visual grading. It offers strong totally distortion-free sound with sharp and clear reproduction. The piano pieces are very difficult indeed and here they do sound sharp and devoid of clipping that often ruins this album’s beauty. The opening of side one is a solo piano and I have rarely, if ever heard it sound better, sharper or clearer than this. The lack of groove wear and penetrating marks made for an enjoyable play-grade, there are no tracking issues*. Basically, this record is intolerant of any heavy stylus abuse or overplaying on heavy weighted equipment. This copy looks hardly used and has survived any damaging groove-wear. Absolute silence on this record is nigh-on impossible, but this one gives it a real good go. This has an ultra quiet bass solo outro part just before the fragile vocal returns near the end, I have seldom heard this part play so well. A beautiful recording, but fragile to say the very least. Any surface sounds are minimal indeed and no irritating pops or clicks were noted and this is a very clean Polydor pressing for Island. I enjoyed this immensely and I feel most other listeners will too. Few early pink copies will outperform this significantly I feel sure. Nothing of any note spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this wonderful record. I feel pressing standards on this title were not always the very best, let’s say variable, and I could say the same on other Island classics. Free’s ‘Fire and Water’ and King Crimson’s ‘Lizard’ spring to mind immediately (amongst others) both are incredibly hard to find also that will play well. This copy will prove immensely difficult to find better and on that alone, merits strong recommendation. One day a near mint cover will show to put a quality copy of the record like this inside, but after selling on Ebay since April 2001, the wait continues – in the meantime, this very nice example will do nicely.

* As played-graded on a high-end Linn LP12 Sondek turntable with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Quintet Black moving coil cartridge tracking at 2.2 grams.

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 as I Play-Grade every record I offer in their entirety – also on higher-end equipment – 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 it’s 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 programs. Room light factors can make things vary sometimes, that is hard to control, especially in winter. 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 Quintet Black moving coil cartridge (tracks at 2.2 grams). Amps: Naim Supernait 2 with Project USB phono stage and Tellerium Black interconnects. Speakers: B&W 704 Floorstanding 3-way Monitors (bi-wired with Tellurium 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, better quality packaging costs, I offer probably the best-value and safest shipping possible for ultimate confidence. The boxes and ultra thick double-wall stiffeners 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 minuscule in over 14­ 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. Oneadayrecords is a MAILER-FREE ZONE – they offer next-to-no-protection, and should be banned, no ‘professional’ should consider using them in my opinion. 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 ask me first.

PLEASE NOTE: I now exercise my right to open a dispute after the Ebay rule of TWO days if no payment is received. I will then cancel the dispute to end the bid, 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 as will any suspicious bids or bid withdrawals. 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] = £4.75

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £7.50. (this includes insurance of £500). Add £1 per extra LP.

Posting & Packing: EUROPE & SCANDINAVIA. (Airmail Only):

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£50 maximum]) = £12.50 (enhanced Royal Mail insurance is an optional extra £3). Add £2 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 [£50 maximum]) = £16.50 (£17.50 for double sets). Add £3 per extra LP. (enhanced 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’.