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Colosseum : Those Who Are About To Die Salute You 1Y1 / 2Y1 1st press 1969 Vertigo

This first pressing plays with stunning quality and it is no exaggeration to say there is no interference on either side.  The clarity, depth, warmth and power of the audio is sensational and it easily qualifies as a FINAL UPGRADE archive pressing in every way.  As you can see from my grading below three tracks grade as Mint- and all the others grade as Mint!  This is clearly an album that has not been overplayed.

The laminated cover is in excellent order with only a little shelf wear here and there, nothing major.  The original inner (dated 18/049) has only light wear also.

This first pressing was pressed on the Fontana label with a 1Y1/2Y1 matrix and the cover is only laminated on the outside.  'Backwater Blues' is published by Kensington Music as per the S2 label.

886765  1Y // 1  420 1 1  7

886765  2Y // 1  420  1 2  1 1  5

The audio on S1 is Mint(-)

The audio on S2 is Mint(-)

The gatefold is Ex-

The original Plastic Bags... inner sleeve is Ex-

The Fontana labels are Near Mint

Visual description

The vinyl is in excellent condition and still has a strong glossy look apart from one small 'haze' section on the first few grooves of the first track, a very small section only, and it has zero affect on the superb audio.  Aside from that it has only some light hairlines that you can only see under a strong bright light.  The Fontana labels are in superb shape with no marking and only minimal spindle wear.

Play grading

The intro on 'Walking In The Park' is 'as new' without any background at all and Litherland's opening vocal section is of the same standard.  The mid instrumental with Litherland's guitar at the forefront plays with stunning clarity and depth and the closing vocal / instrumental just could not play any better either.   Superb work from Hiseman on this track and a strong bass line from Reeves also.  It is easily a Mint start to the album.  What is very noticeable is the audio separation i.e. each note is so sharp and precise and when you find a clean vinyl like this it is further enhanced.

'Plenty Hard Luck' again plays to the highest standard possible without so much as a dust tick for company.  The clarity and definition of the audio is remarkable, you would not think this vinyl was pressed over 56 years ago!  The mid instrumental is pristine and the end vocal is equally as strong and clear.  The long fade out plays with perfect clarity also.  Mint

The opening instrumental on 'Mandarin' plays with genuine quality and Reeves' long bass section shows again just how well this vinyl has been looked after.  The clarity of sound is stunning and there are only a handful of insignificant light statics.  As Hiseman comes back the same standard is kept up and and to the final note it plays with genuine quality.  Mint-

The opening section on 'Debut' plays to perfection and as Hiseman comes in the playback is on the same level.  The brief quiet passage has no background and the following work from Heckstall-Smith is immaculate.  This instrumental continues to play with a sonic quality that is second to none - there is no distortion and the audio so clean and precise.  Once again Mint is 100% deserved.

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'Beware The Ides Of March', is of course 'inspired' by Bach and the opening section does indeed play with sublime quality.  Superb musicianship and the clarity, depth and warmth of the audio is equal to that of an unplayed record, every section is 'as new'.  It is very 'busy' in the final section and yet there is no loss in sound quality.  This is audio of the highest calibre and there is no distortion.  100% Mint

'The Road She Walked Before' keeps up this fine standard and plays with impeccable quality from start to finish.  Litherland may not have had the strongest vocal but at least it allows the superb musicianship to take centre stage!  There are no ticks, clicks, pops or static it just could not play any better.  Mint

The intro on 'Backwater Blues' has no intrusion and the opening vocal section is just as clean.  I heard just one very quiet tick just prior to the quiet bass / sax instrumental and this section then plays with incredible clarity.  Stunning as it is so quiet!  m!  The 'stand alone' sax piece plays perfectly and as Greenslade returns the audio is as strong as ever.  The final vocal section again impresses on so many levels and Mint- is very much deserved here.

The high powered intro on 'Those About To Die' is practically 'as new' with only one barely audible tick and Litherland's solo section goes one better and plays with sublime power and clarity.  From then onwards there is no let up - the very quiet interlude plays perfectly and the next 'busy' section is outstanding, no interference at all.  Another quiet section soon follows and again there is not even a single dust tick.  To the end it plays with exceptional quality and the closing section is very powerful indeed and yet... no distortion.  A dynamic Mint- version to finish with.

The Gatefold & Inner Sleeve

The cover is in excellent condition with only a little wear.  The edges are in great shape, the top edges especially, and the bottom edges have only minimal rubbing and minor wear by the the right hand corners.  The spine is very clean but is slightly compressed.  The corners have only minimal wear overall and the opening edge has only light handling wear also.  The laminated front cover is superb with only the lightest of rubbing by the bottom edge and each right hand corner is very slightly upturned.  The laminated back cover has only minimal rubbing on the two left corners and the inside of the gatefold is very clean indeed with only a small amount of wear near the bottom of the inner spine.

The original poly-lined Plastic Bags... inner (dated 18/049) is in excellent shape with very little marking and just a little creasing.  No side splits or tears.

Play tested on my Rega P2 with AT-VM95EN Cart / Denon PMA-520AE Amp / B&W 684 Speakers

This record has been cleaned on my Pro-Ject VC-S machine

886765  1Y // 1  420 1 1  7

886765  2Y // 1  420  1 2  1 1  5

I grade according to "Record Collector" guidelines.

Any questions please feel free to ask

Please pay within 4 days of auction end

Recent Feedback

Postage & Packaging

I will only send items items worldwide via tracked shipping.  This provides 'peace of mind' in case of loss or damage.  The shipping costs are shown below and combined shipping is always offered.  Any over-payment will always be refunded.

The Royal Mail only insure up to a value of £250 so if an item sells for more it may be wise to use a courier service (e.g. Parcelforce or DPD).  An extra insurance premium will be required but I will not know the exact amount until the final sale price is known.  Because of this I will sometimes have to estimate the cost and this will be shown in the listing.  Please wait for the invoice before making payment and if you have any questions please feel free to ask.  Many thanks.

All vinyls are packaged in strong over-sized custom made mailers with plenty of extra cardboard protection.  They are placed inside separate poly-lined inners outside the cover so as to avoid seam splits in transit and then placed inside a PVC sleeve to provide even more protection.  I pride myself on my high quality packaging as my feed confirms and if any customer has any specific requirements I am more than happy to help.

The mailers I use cost £1.00 each and I will use anything between 3-5 cardboard stiffeners which cost approx £0.18 each.  There is also the cost of the poly-lined inner and PVC sleeve to consider, it all adds up!  Not forgetting that eBay take 10% of the shipping fee also!!

UK Postage Rates (First Class Recorded - Max 2kg)

LPs/12" singles : £6.50 up to 1kg then £1.00 per extra item 

EUROPE (Tracked - Max 2kg)

LPs/12" singles : £13.95 then £2.00 per extra

USA (Tracked - Max 2kg)

LPs/12" singles : £22.95 then £2.50 per extra 

REST OF WORLD (Tracked - Max 2kg)  

LPs/12" singles : £21.95 then £2.50 per extra

If you are not entirely happy with your purchase please contact me before leaving feedback and I will always resolve any issue, 100% guaranteed.  If you would prefer to send the item back I will also pay the return shipping cost if I am at fault, I am only human after all!!