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BID WITH TOTAL CONFIDENCE . YOUR SATISFACTION IS GUARANTEED: COMPLETE MONEY BACK GUARANTEE IF NOT TOTALLY SATISFIED

SERVICE YOU CAN TRUST, QUALITY ASSURED. I HAVE A 100% POSITIVE FEEDBACK RATING AND A 100% TRACK RECORD OF OFFERING GREAT PRODUCTS, SERVICE, COMMUNICATION AND DELIVERY – GUARANTEED!! 

  DAVID BOWIE DIAMOND DOGS – STUNNING - ORIGINAL 1st Ever UK PRESSING

  Great Playing Record! Great Audio and Cover. Original UK PRESS with ultra rare A1 B1 Matrix numbers. 

Complete with Rare MATT cover and astounding TOP AUDIO throughout, all in superb Condition. 

CAT NO:....

Stereo APL 1 0576 A / B   1974 RCA Records 

LABEL PRESS DETAILS:

1st label Matrix Press - A 1 / B 1 . With 'Produced by Bowie' and 'MANUFACTURED BY RCA LIMITED'  text curving round the bottom of the rim. 

Finding a Complete 1st press in this wonderful condition is very rare indeed and makes this a very special chance to own a genuine rarity.

MATRIX NOs. ON RUN-OUT GROOVE

A 1 B 1  first ever matrix variant.

Side 1 -  A R L I - 0576 A - 1 oly

Side 2 -  A R L I - 0576 B - 1 oly

MOTHER STAMPERS:

Side 1. ''  A 5 A D   '' 

Side 2. ''  A / A G ''  (EARLY PRESS)

TRACK LISTING…

1 Future Legend  2 Diamond Dogs  3 Sweet Thing  4 Candidate  5 Sweet Thing (Reprise)   6 Rebel Rebel

7 Rock & Roll With Me  8 We Are The Dead  9 1984  10 Big Brother  11 Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family

Diamond Dogs is a concept album by David Bowie, originally released by RCA Records in 1974. Thematically it was a marriage of the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell and Bowie's own glam-tinged vision of a post-apocalyptic world. Bowie had wanted to make a theatrical production of Orwell's book and began writing material after completing sessions for his 1973 album Pin Ups, but the late author’s estate denied the rights. The songs wound up on the second half of Diamond Dogs instead where, as the titles indicated, the Nineteen Eighty-Four theme was prominent. A pivotal defining moment in Bowie's career, it made #1 in the UK charts and #5 in the US.

A Fantastic pressing of one of Bowie's most iconic albums, an ultra rare 1st ever pressing, and extremly rare in this fantastic all round condition!!!     

Though the album was recorded and released after the 'retirement' of Ziggy Stardust in mid-1973, and featured its own lead character in Halloween Jack ("a real cool cat" who lives in the decaying "Hunger City"), Ziggy was seen to be still very much alive in Diamond Dogs, as evident from Bowie's haircut on the cover and the glam-trash style of the first single "Rebel Rebel". Bowie had moved on from his earlier work with the epic song suite, "Sweet Thing"/"Candidate"/"Sweet Thing (Reprise)", whilst "Rock 'n' Roll With Me" and the Shaft-inspired wah-wah guitar style of "1984" provided a foretaste of Bowie's next, 'plastic soul', phase. The original vinyl album ended with the juddering refrain (actually, a tape loop) Bruh/bruh/bruh/bruh/bruh, the first syllable of "(Big) Brother", repeated incessantly.

Although Diamond Dogs was the first Bowie album since 1969 not to feature any of the "Spiders From Mars", the backing band made famous by Ziggy Stardust, many of the arrangements were already worked out and played on tour with Mick Ronson prior to the studio recordings, including "1984" and "Rebel Rebel". In the studio, however, Herbie Flowers played bass with drums being shared between Aynsley Dunbar and Tony Newman. In a move that surprised some commentators, Bowie himself took on the lead guitar role previously held by Mick Ronson, producing what NME critics Roy Carr and Charles Shaar Murray described as a "scratchy, raucous, semi-amateurish sound that gave the album much of its characteristic flavour".  Diamond Dogs was also a milestone in Bowie's career as it reunited him with Tony Visconti, who provided string arrangements and helped mix the album at his own Good Earth Studios in London, on a Trident TSM console, brand new from Trident at the time. Visconti would go on to co-produce much of Bowie's work for the rest of the decade.

The cover art features Bowie as a striking half-man, half-dog creature painted by Belgian artist Guy Peellaert. It was controversial as the full painting clearly showed the hybrid’s genitalia. The genitalia were quickly airbrushed out for the 1974 LP’s gatefold sleeve, although the original artwork (and another rejected cover featuring Bowie in a sombrero cordobés holding onto a ravenous dog, an image captured by Terry O'Neill) was included in subsequent Rykodisc/EMI re-issues.

ALBUM PLAYED FOR GRADING:

Yes – brilliant! - Great sound quality throughout

Diamond Dogs is a complex collection of music and is famously a very sensitive piece of vinyl. Worn copies can have a lot of surface sound even on musically complex and busy tracks like ‘on the run’. This ultra rare 1st pressing plays through with great, un disturbed sound, fantastic! Super warm clear audio.

This great record plays up to the high visual grading and beyond . Channels are clean and unstressed. It looks and sounds barely played. There is NO evidence of any groove-wear whatsoever. Fantastic sound even on the notorious introduction. There is some light occasional static at the very start of the record and occasionally after that, but it is very light. Its is very hard to find early pressings of Diamond Dogs that sound great as this one does, and plays through with NO loud pops, clicks and certainly no distortion.

'Big Brother' and 'Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family', so often heavily distorted and affected by clicks and hiss plays through with amazing clarity and perfect sound. As with 'Candidate', a real test with Diamond Dogs, plays wonderfully, sounds superb and clear.

The massive 'Rock N Roll with Me' plays with crystal clear sound, and the instrumental section layered again, sounds great. Superb clear bright sound, amazing, I could barely detect any background static at all, which maintains the very high standard of this entire vinyl. 'We Are Dead' , this incredible track just sounds amazing. Every track on this rare press sounds incredible, all the way up to 'Big Brother' and 'Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family.' Crystal clear sound, no pops or clicks, no interference. Amazing.    

The record plays with staggering power, Great audio with minimal interference to distract from the overly enjoyment of this great record and hardly any surface or static noise between the tracks. Even at the end of 'Big Brother'  it is clean, crisp and rich. Strong, undistorted sound free of any loud pops or clicks. 

The music jumps out, with definition and clarity, particularly on the percussion instruments, and vocals, which come through with tremendous power. As is the same with the bass and drums, whilst the guitars come through crisp and clear. Must rate at  NEAR MINT condition!

THE RECORD – Visual Grading 

A superb piece of glossy vinyl, and a really thick pressing. In daylight this vinyl looks unmarked. Deep clear grooves that can only be found on the original early pressings, this vinyl has been little played. Under a spot light It does have some faint sleeve removal marks, but the are light and have no effect on the sound. There are a few very faint handling marks, this vinyl has been played carefully and shows no groove wear. Unbelievable to think this vinyl is nearly 40 years old! Grades at NEAR MINT.

VINYL TESTED FOR ANY SIGNS OF WARPING:

Yes, NONE visible what so ever when tested be sight and on a moving turntable.    

THE COVER 

The Original Matt finish covers of  DIAMOND DOGS  have to be one of the most prone to wear, of all the classic vinyls from the sixties and early seventies. Being matt finish and not having the advantage of being laminated, these covers usually faired pretty badly, with serious ring wear and scuffed along the edges. The Spines are nearly always flattened, worn and scuffed. Not this one!

This 1st press comes with its original Cover, and has minimal scuffing to the corners, and only slight rubbing along the edges, and that is virtually un heard of for these rare covers. The opening edges are very square and totally un frayed, and there is NO detectable ring wear, just a faint impression of the record. The back cover is nice and clean, again with very little ring wear, which is VERY unusual for these delicate covers. The inside Gatefold is clean and virtually unmarked. The Spine shows minimal wear only, and is a nice square example.   All round, this is a really fantastic example!!!     

 A stunning example of the Diamond Dogs cover, so incredibly rare to find in this condition. Making this an very RARE and highly collectable original UK edition. Easilyy grades at EXCELLENT.

Diamond Dogs' raw guitar style and visions of urban chaos, scavenging children and nihilistic lovers ("We'll buy some drugs and watch a band / And jump in the river holding hands") have been credited with anticipating the punk revolution that would take place in the following years.  Bowie himself has described the Diamond Dogs, introduced in the title song, as: "all little Johnny Rottens and Sid Viciouses really. And, in my mind, there was no means of transport, so they were all rolling around on these roller-skates with huge wheels on them, and they squeaked because they hadn't been oiled properly. So there were these gangs of squeaking, roller-skating, vicious hoods, with Bowie knives and furs on, and they were all skinny because they hadn't eaten enough, and they all had funny-coloured hair. In a way it was a precursor to the punk thing."

Bowie played all of the album's songs except "We Are the Dead" on his 1974 US tour (recorded and released as David Live). "Rebel Rebel" has featured on almost every Bowie tour since, "Diamond Dogs" was performed for the 1976 Station to Station and 1995-96 Outside tours, and "Big Brother/Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family" was resurrected for the 1987 Glass Spider Tour.

The record was Bowie's glam swansong; according to author David Buckley, "In the sort of move which would come to define his career, Bowie jumped the glam-rock ship just in time, before it drifted into a blank parody of itself". At the time of its release Bowie described Diamond Dogs as "a very political album. My protest ... more me than anything I've done previously". Disc magazine compared the album to The Man Who Sold the World (1970), while Rock and Sounds both described it as his "most impressive work ... since Ziggy Stardust". It made #1 in the UK charts and #5 in the US (where the song "Rebel Rebel" proved popular), Bowie's highest stateside placing to that date. In Canada, it was able to repeat its British chart-topping success, hitting #1 on the RPM 100 national albums chart in July, 1974 and holding it for two weeks.

THE LABELS -  NEAR MINT  CONDITION

A lovely set of labels with barely any spindle detectable traces (one short light trace on one side). A near perfect set.

THE INNER

Original rare EMI inner, with double curve top opening. In EXCELLENT condition. NO seem splits and barely any creasing. A lovely example.  

RARITY

Finding an original UK 1st press of Diamond Dogs in great condition is extremely rare indeed.

The cover is almost impossible to find without serious wear. Even modestly worn examples are scarce, always having ring wear and serious edge and corner scuffing.  Not this one!  Finding a great cover like this, with a great piece of vinyl and original inner sleeve, fantastic!.

A 1st pressing in this type of condition is scarce. The vinyl is so often played so much, heavily marked, scratched, with noisy, poor and distorted sound. Any early examples with a record in this type of condition, that plays practically perfectly, is very rare. An ORIGINAL UK A1 B1 press, with ORIGINAL Matt Cover and ORIGINAL inner, all in great condition, makes this an extreme rarity!

  A FANTASTIC OPPORTUNITY TO OWN AN EXTREMELY RARE AND VALUABLE PIECE OF MUSICAL HISTORY.

GREAT COVERS WITH NO SEAM SPLITS, NO TEARS, NO WRITING, NO STICKERS.

GREAT VINYLS WITH NO LOUD CLICKS OR POPS, NO JUMPS OR REPEATS - GUARANTEED!

SCRUPULOUS EXAMINATION and TESTING; PLEASE NOTE:

This record has been play tested on highly sensitive equipment to ensure the sound quality and accuracy of description. I aim to give a precise and concise description of the sound quality, pointing out any defects so that you know what you are buying. I will not go into screeds of information about the nature of the songs, as I imagine that you already know them well. I aim to describe all items as accurately as possible, and offer a full refund on return if for any reason you are not completely happy with the item description.

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VINYL SOUND - PLEASE NOTE:

The highest quality vinyl with clear sound is rare, and is what I always aim for. I only sell records that play with TOP AUDIO performance, super clear sound uninterrupted by hiss or other interference. Even with the cleanest copies you will find occasional static sound or occasional light tics during playback, caused by a build of dust in the grooves. This is clearly different from the distortion, loud pops, repeating tics or clicks that are found on heavily played and worn pieces of vinyl. Any static build up will reduce when played, and I advise a light clean should be given between plays for optimal performance. 

VINYL

Large format art work covers with the original sound and mix unique to vinyl and of the highest quality audio. Vinyl record have always been loved and have become a great investment opportunity, with prices soaring over the last ten years, making classic pieces a great financial as well as a cultural investment.  

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IMAGES and INFORMATION

I only use my photographs taken with a high quality professional digital camera of the item for sale. The images are designed to be as clear as possible, giving an exact image of the item. I aim to give sufficient and accurate detail as possible, so that you know exactly what you are bidding on. Please let me know if you need any further information and I will be only to happy to oblige.

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ABOUT ME 

I am a visual artist, working internationally, a collector of art and rare objects including rare vinyl, which I have been collecting for over 25 years, and an art and music enthusiast. I specialise in the  highest quality rarest items, selling to collectors the world over. I want you to know what a great item you are bidding on. If there is anything that is unclear in the listing, or you have any questions about this or any other item, please feel free to get in touch. All the best to you.  

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SERVICE YOU CAN TRUST, QUALITY ASSURED. I HAVE A 100% POSITIVE FEEDBACK RATING.

SOME EXAMPLES OF FEEDBACK –

BRILLIANT LP MINT CONDITION,AWESOME SELLAR,1ST CLASS PACKAGING, NO PROBLEMS A+

ITEM RECEIVED.. AS DESCRIBED... PACKED GREAT...MANY THANKS..RECOMMENDED.. A*******

Great LP from a great seller. Thanks !! Very well packaged. AAA+++

received today! great record!! thank you!!!

Item arrived quickly, well packaged and in excellent condition. Very pleased.

fast delivery, superb communication, good item, great ebayer AAAAA+++++

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RETURN POLICY:

100% Satisfaction Guaranteed ; - returns accepted with out question. If you are not happy then it can be returned, I cant say fairer that that!

I ONLY SELL RARE GOODS THAT ARE IN GREAT CONDITION, IF THERE IS ANY SLIGHT DEFECT, IT WILL BE CLEARLY STATED.

If in the unlikely event that you may want to return an item, or that I have missed something in the listing, I offer a no quibble return policy. Items must be returned within 12 Days of receipt, and returned in the same condition that they were sent out in. Return postage must be paid by buyer, unless there is a particular fault with the item, and then I will pay the full postage costs!

MY RECORD GRADING SYSTEM IS AS FOLLOWS - (BASED ON RECORD COLLECTOR MAGAZINE U.K. )

MINT: Virtually unplayed. The record itself is in brand new condition with no surface marks or deterioration in sound quality. Cover is pristine.

EXCELLENT: The record shows some signs of having been played, but there is very little lessening in sound quality. The cover and packaging might have slight wear and/or creasing.

V.G PLUS: The record will still be nice and shiny, but may have a few light marks, and will play well. Slight wear and tear on the cover.

V.G: The record has obviously been played many times, but displays no major deterioration in sound quality, despite noticeable surface marks and occasional light scratch. Normal wear and tear on the cover or extra items.

GOOD: The record has been played so much that the sound quality has noticeably deteriorated, perhaps with some distortion and mild scratches. The cover and contents suffer from folding, scuffing of edges, spine splits, etc.

FAIR: Fair. It is noticeable that the record has been played so much that the sound quality has deteriorated very noticeably. The cover and contents are showing signs of folding, scuffing of edges etc.

POSTAGE AND PAYMENT DETAILS : -

Items will be extremely well sealed and securely wrapped using the best possible packaging for safe handling and delivery. I send items all round the globe with 100% success! I sell top quality rare records to discerning buyers. I do not make money from the postage costs and aim to keep the prices at a reasonable rate, but please don't expect a cheap second rate service. 

IT IS AN ABSOLUTE PRIORITY THAT THE ITEMS YOU BUY GETS TO YOU IN PERFECT CONDITION. All RECORDS ARE REMOVED FROM THEIR MAIN COVER AND PLACED IN A BRAND NEW REPLACEMENT INNER SLEEVE TO AVOID ANY CHANCE OF EDGE SPLITS OR KNIFING. THEY ARE HELD SAFELY IN EXTRA THICK PLASTIC SLEEVES, AND THEN THEY ARE SECURED WITH SEVERAL EXTRA LAYERS OF REINFORCED CARD BOARD AND PADDING AND MAILED IN EXTRA STRONG PROFESSIONAL RECORD CONTAINERS TO ENSURE THEIR SAFE ARRIVAL. AS I HAVE STATED I HAVE A 100% SUCCESS RATE AND AIM TO KEEP IT THAT WAY.

Example of packaging used

UK - First Class Signed For Recorded Delivery with Insurance : = £5.00

UK Special Signed For Next Day Delivery with Insurance : = £8.90

EUROPE - International Airmail Signed For Recorded Delivery with Insurance : = £11.95

INTERNATIONAL, Non-Europe e.g. USA, Japan, Russia, Australia etc. International Airmail Signed For Recorded Delivery with Insurance : = £18.95

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MULTIPLE PURCHASE REDUCTION

Reduced postage of course for multiple items up to 30% off extra items.

POSTAGE WILL BE FIRST CLASS OR THE FASTEST AND SAFEST POSSIBLE ALTERNATIVE, RECORDED WITH TRACKING AND INSURANCE. ALL ITEMS ARE FULLY INSURED AND COVERED FOR THE SAFEST DELIVERY POSSIBLE, AT NO EXTRA COST TO YOU. GUARANTEED!

POSTAGE RECEIPTS AND PROOF OF POSTAGE IS ALWAYS AVAILABLE. MANY THANKS.

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PAYMENTS 

Payments must be made within 3 days of purchasing unless an alternative arrangement has been agreed upon. Pay Pall ONLY for International buyers. We will accept Pay Pall, cheque or postal order within the UK, but no cash or bank transfers. Items sent out immediately on receipt of payment

Please Note: If no contact is made by the winning bidder following the mandatory Ebay 3 days, I will reserve the right to offer the item to the runner-up, unless prior notice of any delay is arranged beforehand.  Any bidder who has missed the chance to purchase an item from me can still email to make a priority second chance.