WES MONTGOMERY w/HERBIE HANCOCK RARE ORIG '68 WHITE LBL PROMO-ONLY MONO LP RVG

$

91

WE CURRENTLY HAVE  MORE THAN 200  LISTED ITEMS

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·       WES MONTGOMERY – DOWN HERE ON THE GROUND – RARE ORIGINAL 1968 A&M/CTI RECORDS STEREO LP 2006  (3006 ON THE COVER)

·       WES MONTGOMERY, with:

Ray Barretto  -  Percussion

Ron Carter  -  Bass

Herbie Hancock  -  Piano

Hubert Laws  -  Flute, Oboe

Grady Tate  -  Drums

Rudy Van Gelder  -  Engineer…and others…

·       ORIGINAL U.S. PRESSING

·       *** ULTRA-RARE PROMOTIONAL-ONLY MONO COPY; MONO VERSION OF THIS ALBUM WAS NEVER COMMERCIALLY RELEASED IN ANY WAY OR FORM ***

·       *** WHITE LABEL PROMO ***

·       *** IN ADDITION,  THE PROMOTIONAL STICKER ON THE COVER CLEARLY IDENTIFIES THE ITEM AS PROMOTIONAL ***

·       ORIGINAL (TAN) A&M LABEL (60’s and early 70’s style), WHITE PROMOTIONAL VERSION

·       VERY RARE WEST COAST PRESSING (MONARCH PRESSING PLANT, LOS ANGELES)

·       The record has a ►Rudy Van Gelder’s name or  his initials (RVG) clearly stamped or hand-etched in the trail-off vinyl (dead wax)

·       ULTRA-RARE PROMO-ONLY MONO PRESSING, MANY TIMES RARER THAN STEREO

·       THIS IS THE ORIGINAL, AUTHENTIC, FIRST U.S. PRESSING; THIS IS NOT A REISSUE, AN IMPORT, OR A COUNTERFEIT PRESSING.

·       ORIGINAL GATEFOLD COVER, MADE OF THICK CARDBOARD (AMERICAN STYLE)  [STEREO COVER WITH SMALL MONO STICKER AFFIXED; NO "PROPER" MONO COVERS WERE EVER PRODUCED FOR THIS TITLE]; THE COVER IS A LITTLE CONFUSING; IT ACTUALLY APPEARS THAT IT IS A PROPER MONO COVER (SEE THE SPINE), BUT WITH THE STEREO CATALOG NUMBER (SP-3006) NOT MONO (2006). WE DO NOT BELIEVE THAT MONO COVERS WITH MONO CATALOG NUMBER EXIST. THE ALBUM WAS RECORDED IN JANUARY 1968 AND RELEASED PROBABLY IN MARCH 1968, WHEN PRACTICALLY NO ONE WAS DOING THE MONO PRESSINGS ANYMORE.

·       CLEAN, WEAR-FREE LABELS

·       THICK, HEAVY VINYL PRESSING

·       MONO version of this album has NEVER been available on legitimate Compact Disc or in any other digital format.

(►PLEASE SEE THE IMAGE OF THE COVER, LABEL OR BOTH, SHOWN BELOW)

(Note: this is a REAL image of the ACTUAL item you are bidding on. This is NOT a "recycled" image from our previous auction. What you see is what you’ll get.  GUARANTEED!)

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Wes Montgomery acceded to the whims of producer Creed Taylor for this, one of the very first CTI productions that would, over the next decade, popularize jazz with string backdrops or rhythm & blues beats. Much to either the delight or chagrin of urban or traditional jazz fans, the music changed, and Montgomery was in the middle, though his delightful playing was essentially unchanged. On the plus side, the legendary guitarist was allowed to collaborate with great musicians like bassist Ron Carter, pianist Herbie Hancock, flutist Hubert Laws, and percussionist Ray Barretto. While the small orchestral trappings never dominate this session, the seeds for a more grandiose style of music had been planted with the release of this date in 1968. The arrangements of Don Sebesky are for the most part pretty, unobtrusive, and pleasant but lack groove and soul in the main. "Wind Song" is exactly as its title suggests, a light funk loaded up with chords and woodwinds. The melody of "Georgia on My Mind" is barely stated although the strings are subtle; "I Say a Little Prayer" is a sappy tune made into Muzak; oboe and cello bring "When I Look Into Your Eyes" into an ultimately maudlin arena; and Lalo Schifrin's theme from "The Fox" has the same instrumental complement, more film noir, and parallel to Rahsaan Roland Kirk's "Theme to the Eulipions" if you compare them side by side. The best material is the light funk of Montgomery's original "Up & at It" in a small ensemble, nice enough, and the roots of so-called "smooth" jazz. The bright samba "Know It All" best showcases the guitarist and Hancock's luminous piano, reflecting the classic "No More Blues," while "Goin' on to Detroit" is a typical Montgomery-styled, cool road song featuring Laws. In may real and important ways, this is the beginning of the end for Montgomery as a jazz artist, and the inception of bachelor pad lounge/mood music that only lasted for a brief time.

 (EXCERPT FROM AN ONLINE REVIEW BY MICHAEL G. NASTOS, ALL MUSIC GUIDE  /ALLMUSIC.COM/)

THE WHITE LABEL PROMO, RADIO STATION-, AUDITION OR DEMONSTRATION COPIES AND RELEASES (such as the one we have here) were often distributed to the radio stations before the record was released to the public, sometimes as much as four months ahead. These records are generally considered to be the "first among equals": the VERY FIRST generation and the VERY FIRST pressings of the particular title; a PROTOTYPE and the earliest known official pressing of the record.  In this case, though, this is a rather moot point,  since this rare promo-only MONO version of the album was never commercially released to begin with.

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·       CONDITION:

·       RECORD

(IMPORTANT NOTE: unless otherwise noted, ALL records are graded visually, and NOT play-graded!; we  grade records under the strong, diffuse room light or discrete sunlight)

(a)          WE GRADE THE VINYL AS STRONG VG++, JUST A NOTCH BELOW NEAR MINT. A few light abrasions (probably just sleeve scuffs inflicted in storage over the years) ARE VISIBLE, but they appear fairly  insignificant relative to the overall condition of the vinyl, and are only moderately visually distracting. For most part, the vinyl looks impeccable, without any MAJOR visual flaws or imperfections. Much of the original luster is intact, and the vinyl shines and sparkles almost like new.

(b)          The record is pressed on a beautiful, thick, inflexible vinyl, which was usually used for the first or very early pressings. Usually, the sound on such thick vinyl pressings is full-bodied, vivid, and even dramatic. Do not expect to obtain such a majestic analog sound from a digital recording!

(c)           White Promo Label-only MONO version of this title is much rarer that a regular, commercially released, version of this title. We estimate that stock copies of this album outnumber promo copies by a ratio of at least 100:1.

(d)          The record has a ►Rudy Van Gelder name, or  his initials (RVG) stamped or hand-etched in the trail-off vinyl (dead wax). On SOME  Jazz labels (Blue Note, Savoy, Regent, Prestige, Impulse, Verve…) this stamp signifies highly professional masterings either done by - or  personally authorized by - the legendary engineer himself.

(e)           The record comes in the original stock inner sleeve.

(f)            Of course, this is a full-bodied ANALOG recording, and not an inferior, digital recording!!!

·       THE COVER

THE COVER IS NICE --- ABOUT VERY GOOD++ (VG++).

The following flaws or imperfections are noted on the cover:

-        The  cover has a few yellowish dust speckles scattered here and there (these tiny spots are not overly obtrusive or distracting)

-        Cover shows some light yellowing on both sides, apparently from aging.

-        Cover has JUST A HINT of ring wear (nothing significant); On the scale from 1 to 10 (1 being the least, and  10 being the most severe), we assess the severity of ring wear as 2.

-        The matte-laminated cover has a slight loss (flaking) of lamination along the opening edge (this is a common problem with most laminated 50’s and 60’s covers; lamination is just beginning to peel-off along the opening edge)  (VISIBLE ON BACK SIDE ONLY)

-        The laminated cover has a few air 'bubbles' and wrinkles in lamination (this is a common problem with most laminated 50’s and 60’s covers

-        Back cover has circular tarnish (grayish, dust-covered sections, which closely follow the contour of the record),  probably caused by friction or by rubbing against other covers during the storage. The tarnish is similar in appearance to a common ring wear, but, UNLIKE ring wear, these grayish areas may be possible to clean up with a minor effort and with a right cleansing solution.

NO OTHER VISIBLE FLAWS OR IMPERFECTIONS ON THE  COVER

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POSTAGE & SHIPPING:

We offer THREE postage rates for both Domestic and International Mail: Media Mail, Priority Mail and Express Mail for domestic, and First Class, Priority International Mail, and Express International Mail for international orders. INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMERS PLEASE NOTE: WE RECOMMEND that you pay for USPS International Priority Mail OR International Express mail when making a payment in order to obtain tracking information, which is NOT available for First Class International shipments.

INTERNATIONAL POSTAGE rates vary from country to country. For SPECIFIC international and domestic postage rates ►click here. While you can be rest assured that ►our packaging is careful, sturdy and impact-proof, please note that damage, loss or theft in transit is always possible, and in the case of some countries even PROBABLE. To discuss this potential problem and ensure flawless delivery, please contact us thru eBay BEFORE placing a bid.

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