Audiophile Russ Garcia "Fantastica" STEREO Space-Age Exotica Lounge Jazz. NIFTY

$

50

Audiophile Russ Garcia “Fantastica” STEREO Space-Age Exotica Lounge Jazz. NIFTY!

Genre-defining 1958 “Space-Music” album, by Ella Fitzgerald’s arranger!

Original, early stereo pressing (believed to be from the first stampers); NOT a reissue.

Vinyl NM-; Jacket VG.

Item description:

Fantastica remains the gold standard by which all outer-space exotica records are judged… the album is a marvel of sound and structure, brilliantly evoking the music of the cosmos via revolutionary studio techniques, cinematic arrangements, and innovative electronic elements! (interstellarmedium.me)

FANTASTICA: Music from Outer Space

RUSS GARCIA and His Orchestra (1958)

Liberty Records Inc. STEREO LST 7006

Composed and Conducted by Russ (Russell) Garcia.

Produced by Si Waronker.

Engineered by Ted Keep.

Side One:

Into Space

Nova (Exploding Star)

Lost Souls Of Saturn

Monsters Of Jupiter

Water Creatures Of Astra

Venus

Side Two:

Red Sands Of Mars

Goofy Peepl Of Phobos

Volcanoes Of Mercury

Birth Of A Planet

Frozen Neptune

Moon Rise

Based on various sources:

Russell Garcia, QSM (12 April, 1916 – 19 November, 2011) attended San Francisco State University and then studied composition (with Castelnuovo-Tedesco) before going to work as a professional arranger and composer. […]

Garcia freelanced, working with singers such as Anita O’Day and Frances Faye as well as several mainstream jazz artists. He also wrote scores for films such as The Time Machine and Atlantis and contributed music to the television series Rawhide and The Virginian. In the mid-60’s, he wrote several original works for Stan Kenton’s ‘Neophonic’ orchestra. Garcia also published a book on arranging and orchestration that is still considered a primary text.

In addition to his genre-defining space-age exotica LP Fantastica, Garcia remains famous for having arranged and conducted Porgy & Bess for Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong.

A veteran of WWII, Garcia fought in the Battle of the Bulge. He swore that if he got out of it alive, he would dedicate himself to World Peace. He did get out alive, and later he and his wife became members of the Bahá’í faith.

When Garcia had attained financial security, he gave up his career and bought a trimaran; he and his wife sailed around the globe teaching non-violence, ending up on New Zealand. Russell and Gina Garcia both received the 2009 Queen’s Service Medal for New Zealand for their services to music.

THIS IS NOT AN EX-LIBRARY COPY!!!!!

This LP was among 1,199 other recently donated LPs; a sharp-eyed library volunteer selected some of the most collectable items for our Internet Commerce initiative.

Condition Notes:

THIS IS NOT AN EX-LIBRARY COPY!!!!!

This appears to be an early pressing, believed to be from the first stampers, though that part of the dead-wax area scribing is very faint. By visual inspection, the vinyl here is Near Mint Minus (NM-) and still shiny with no spindle marks and no spindle wear in the label area. The labels are in awesome condition. The jacket is VG. There is some slight wear and discoloration on the jacket overall. On the uppermost part of the back cover, there is some kind of scuffy stain or some pen marks, as shown in that particular close-up photo. There is also what appears to be a partial rubber-stamp mark (perhaps of an “S” for Stereo) in the upper-right rear corner, also shown in the full photo of the rear of the jacket. Overall, this LP makes a most positive impression for being 57 years old.

Of the more than 3,000 LPs the Friends of Knight Memorial Library have evaluated for possible auction on eBay, this excellent example certainly is one of the half-dozen most significant; truly, a “keeper,” and a rare find!

The Fine Print:

We are selling this LP to benefit the Knight Memorial Library in the North Elmwood neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island. The Friends of Knight Memorial Library have an inventory of approximately 4,000 used books, etc. for sale. These photos are of the actual LP for sale. Please examine the images carefully.

This is a no-reserve auction. If there is only one bidder, the marketplace really is saying that it’s your lucky day. If there are two bidders: Please have at it for a good cause.

Please pay within 3 days. PayPal only. We never go around behind eBay.

US shipping will be $4.00 in a Bags Unlimited re-usable mailing box with bubble wrap filler. (That alone costs us about $3.50.) If you want point-to-point tracking and insurance, please let us know and we will invoice you for the difference.

Foreign shipping will be at cost plus small charges for the box and for handling. We strongly prefer not to ship outside the US without insurance, door-to-door tracking, and delivery confirmation. We realize that this may mean that shipping to foreign countries may therefore be prohibitively expensive.

If you insist on international parcel service without insurance, that is completely at your own risk once we have handed the package over to the United States Post Office. Foreign buyers, please communicate clearly, and then wait for our invoice.

After deducting eBay and Paypal charges and shipping costs, 100% of the net proceeds of this sale will support the programs of the Knight Memorial Library. That’s because the Friends group is run entirely by unpaid (but relentlessly cheerful) volunteers.

Therefore, when deciding how much to bid, please keep in mind that your purchase helps make important community-library programs possible!

Please look at our other auctions!

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