EARL GAINES - Best of Luck to You Rare 1966 LP NM

$

35

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Record Grade: Near Mint

Cover Grade: VG++

Labels: Light and medium blue, white logo

Tracks:

• The Best of Luck to You
• It's Worth Anything
• Trust i Me
• Too Many Times
• The Door is Still Open
• Pore Man Gotta Make It
• Don't Take My Kindness for a Weakness
• You Belong to Me
• I Have Love and I Have Lived
• 24 Hours a Day
• Mercy on My Soul

  About the Artist: by Jason Ankeny & Bruce Eder

  Earl Gaines is a kind of hard-luck case as a recording artist. His biggest hit, far and away, was "It's Love Baby (24 Hours a Day)." But that record wasn't credited to him, as it was the work of Louis Brooks & His Hi-Toppers, the group with which he was singing lead, and he was never able to duplicate its impact. Gaines was born August 19, 1935, in Decatur, AL, and early in life was singing in church. He left home at age 16 and headed for Nashville, hoping for a career as a blues singer. In order to survive, he also cultivated further musical skills as a drummer. His first professional work was cutting demos for songwriter and impresario Ted Jarrett, who got him work in the city's clubs. With Jarrett's help, he met Louis Brooks, who was then leading the group the Hi-Toppers as an instrumental outfit, recording for the Excello label. Gaines joined them as a singer and sometimes a percussionist, and their first recording was the Jarrett-authored "It's Love Baby (24 Hours a Day)," which rose to number two on the R&B charts nationally in 1955. It not only became the group's claim to fame, but was the record that gave Excello a national profile for the first time. Both Gaines and the label were tempted to try and spin him off into a career of his own, and he was more than willing. The Hi-Toppers were content to remain a local act rather than concertize nationally and build on what that record had done. Gaines became part of the package tour called the 1955 R&B Caravan of Stars after its Nashville engagements, a gig that eventually took him to New York's Carnegie Hall for their final show. Gaines and Excello tried without avail three times over the next two years to repeat the success of "It's Love Baby (24 Hours a Day)" without reaching the charts. In 1957, he rejoined Jarrett, recording for the labels Champion and Poncello over the next four years, without success. In the meantime, he'd joined Bill Doggett's band as lead vocalist an worked as a session musician on the drums, appearing on numerous recordings. By 1963, he'd joined Bill "Hoss" Allen's stable of artists, through which he worked on the album Best of Luck to You, the title track of which yielded a hit single on the HBR label that put Gaines back in the spotlight again. It was also through his work for Allen that Gaines got onto syndicated television (in color, no less) on the soul showcase The !!!! Beat. He subsequently recorded record for Deluxe/King and Sound Stage 7, including "Hymn Number 5" — originally by the Mighty Hannibal — for the latter label. After recording for the Ace label in 1975, however, he wasn't heard on record for another 14 years, and reportedly left the music business for at least part of this period, working as a truck driver instead. He began reviving his career in 1989 with the album House Party on Meltone Records, and by the 1990s was once again singing full-time, thanks to the efforts of Fred James, a Nashville-based producer whose affection for the classic Excello sound also resulted in the resurrection of onetime label staples including Clifford Curry and Roscoe Shelton; for Appaloosa, Gaines issued his 1995 comeback effort, I Believe in Your Love, and in 1997 he also joined Curry and Shelton for a joint live recording. Gaines continue to record and perform, and a collection of lost soul recordings was released in 2006.

  MY GRADING SYSTEMS: I’ve been told that I grade conservatively. My NM (near mint) is my highest grade for opened records (which would also include unplayed records). It’s a 9 or 10 on a 1-10 scale. M- would be equivalent to an 8; VG++ to a 7; VG+ to a 6; VG to a 5; VG- to a 4; G to a 3; F to a 2 and P to a 1. The same scale applies when I grade covers (jackets). Significant defects are specifically noted and taken into consideration in the grade.

  GRADING DESCRIPTIONS

  
  RECORDS:
  • GRADING Grading is based on the following criteria
  • Sealed = store stock new
  • Near Mint = like new or near new with only one or wo small insignificant defects, a 9 or better on a 1-10 scale
  • Mint- = extremely nice. Would be Near Mint, except for a couple of light hairlines or scuffs, which do not affect play
  • VG++ = still a very nice record with all or nearly all of its original gloss but may have a few more light, surface marks, hairlines, needle tracks or the like which should not materially effect play
  • VG+ = a nice, but used record that may have a series of light scuffs or scratches. It probably plays with a few pops, but has no serious problems.
  • VG = a well-used record that still should sound OK when played, but may have moderate surface noise, pops, etc.
  • VG- = a very well-worn record that plays through without skipping, but will do until a better copy comes along.
  • Good = not actually good at all but probably will play through but with much in the way of surface noise, pops, crackles, etc. Still, will have no cracks, chips or the like
  • Fair = you’re getting this record just to own but not to play
  • Poor = the sky’s the limit, generally I will discard a record this bad (and sell the cover, jacket or sleeve alone) unless the label holds some particular interest

    VISUAL GRADING: All records are visually graded only unless I state that they are play-graded. Some major labels such as the one that uses the Nipper logo - for example, were pressed on better quality vinyl and will sound better than a record which visually appears the same on budget labels. Recording techniques also varied. The sound on live albums may be far inferior to studio recordings. There may also be defects in the pressing which are invisible. The point is that an album on a major label graded VG+ may sound noticeably better than an album on a budget label that is visually graded Near Mint. I have no problem issuing a refund if you are dissatisfied with the sound on a record as long as it’s requested as per my stated return policy below. But please don’t be shocked if a record visually graded Near Mint doesn’t sound state of the art. If I base my grade on a PLAY GRADE, I will state this specifically in my grading section.

    COVERS: There are really too many possible defects regarding covers to be as specific in my definitions as I had been with my record grades. But please keep in mind these general grading guidelines:

    • I will give greater weight to the condition of the front cover than back cover when assigning an overall grade
    • No cover with a cut out hole or saw mark will be graded Near Mint even if it is still in factory shrink and there is no other wear
    • I will not reduce the grade of a cover for stickers which are glued to the jacket by the record company (eg. Contains the hit song Expressway to Your Heart); but will reduce the grade for stickers glued on the cover by stores, previous owners, etc.
    • If I write that a cover has a bb hole, I’m talking about a small cut out hole
    • A saw mark is a narrow cut in the perimeter of the cover, could be anywhere and vary in length from 1/2” to 2” at the most.
    • The overall grade takes into consideration any stated defects. For example, if I grade a cover VG+ and then state it has 6” top and bottom seam splits - I’ve already reduced the grade because of the seam splits. If the seams weren’t split, the cover would be graded higher such as VG++ or Mint-.

      Shipping Costs:

      The buyer pays for shipping. For one or two albums, the cost for priority mail in the United States is $6.50 (if you live west of the Mississippi, the cost is $7.50). For media rate postage within the U.S. the cost will be $4.00 for one or two albums.

      The cost for shipping a 7” record via 1st class is $2.75 and the cost for shipping a compact disc via 1st class is $3.50.

      Save money when I mail 2 or more records in the same package.

      Insurance is optional but highly recommended for “high ticket” purchases. Insurance is available only on purchases of over $10.00. The cost for insurance is $1.30 for up to $50; $2.20 for up to $100; $3.20 for up to $200 and $1.00 additional for each additional $100 of insurance. Rates are quoted in my winning bid notices. The shipping charges for box sets, multi-record sets and other items of non-standard size and weight will be quoted.

      International Shipments: Overseas customers are welcome to bid. Postage to the U.K., western Europe and Latin America is $12.00 for airmail and $6.50 for surface for one album. Canada is $6.00 airmail (no surface option). To all other countries, postage is $14.00 airmail and $7.00 surface. 7“ records are $5.50 airmail anywhere in the world. Save on shipping cost per record when I mail two or more records in one package.

      Please check out my other eBay auctions

      . I’ve been listing all types of records - mostly LP’s - including 50’s and 60’s rock ‘n’ roll, country, folk jazz, blues, personalities, new wave and punk, surf, psych, spoken word, comedy, etc., etc....... I try to list unusual, unique or obscure records, not the ones that you see all the time. While a majority of my listings are albums, you’ll often find a nice selection of 45’s, EP’s or picture sleeves...and an occasional 78 or two.

      My return policy: I don’t get many returns but customers are important to me so I like to offer a relatively hassle-free return policy. However, in order to return the record or other item, you must notify me by e-mail of your intent shortly after your receipt of the record or other item and within a reasonable time after the auction’s close. Also, the item must be returned in its original condition , i.e. the way it was shipped when it left my hands. While a very high percentage of my records arrive safe and sound (I use professional mailers and a filler or two, more for 78’s), they occasionally are damaged in transit. If that happens, I won’t accept the return of the record or other item - that’s why you have the option of obtaining insurance.

      My Feedback Policy: Because I've been burnt on a few occasions, I've decided I'm only going to respond to feedback once it is left for me (and I'll try to do so on a weekly basis if not more often).

      Any other questions? About anything? Please e-mail me at ibuyvinyl@nc.rr.com .