FALLEN ANGELS A LONG WAY DOWN INSANELY RARE ORIG'68 ROULETTE PSYCH PROMO LP MINT

$

711

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·       FALLEN ANGELS – IT'S A LONG WAY DOWN  (THE GROUP'S MONSTROUSLY RARE SECOND ALBUM AND A WIDELY RECOGNIZED MAJOR PSYCHEDELIC MASTERPIECE) -  ORIGINAL 1968 ROULETTE RECORDS STEREO LP SR-42011

·       ORIGINAL U.S. PRESSING

·       *** PROMOTIONAL COPY; THE RECORD HAS STOCK LABELS; HOWEVER, THE PROMOTIONAL STAMP ON THE COVER CLEARLY IDENTIFIES THE ITEM AS PROMOTIONAL ***

·       ORIGINAL ORANGE AND YELLOW “CHECKERED” ROULETTE LABEL, EARLY-TO-MID-60’s STYLE ,

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

·       ORIGINAL UNIPAK-STYLE COVER (ONE SIDE OF THE GATEFOLD OPENS, THE OTHER ONE IS A SINGLE-PLY CARDBOARD)

·       THICK, HEAVY VINYL PRESSING

·       CLEAN, WEAR-FREE LABELS

·       MACHINE-STAMPED MATRIX NUMBER IN TRAIL-OFF VINYL (DEAD WAX) OF THE RECORD

·       THE RECORD HAS A DATE STAMP OF 5/68 (MAY 1968) HAND-ETCHED IN THE TRAIL-OFF VINYL (DEAD WAX)

·       THE RECORD HAS A 'BELL SOUND' STAMP IN THE TRAIL-OFF VINYL (DEAD WAX) AREA, WHICH IS GENERALLY CONSIDERED A PROOF OF AUTHENTICITY OF THE FIRST PRESSING.

·       As far as we know, this album has NEVER been available on legitimate Compact Disc or in any other way, manner or 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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Over the years there have been a few different groups who have recorded under the name The Fallen Angels, ex-Byrd/Burrito Gram Parsons dubbed his solo backing group The Fallen Angels, then there was a unit fronted by ex-Pretty Things lead singer Phil May, finally there was an 80's group which had ex-members of Hanoi Rocks & The Vibrators. The group I will be talking about here were probably the first to use the name Fallen Angels and they were arguably the best.

These Fallen Angels were a great psychedelic group who were based in the Baltimore, Maryland-Washington D.C. area and recorded two full length albums for Roulette Records. I'm not certain if this group is in any way related to the superb garage punk outfit responsible for the legendary "Bad Woman" 45 for the Eceip label in 1966 (I don't think the groups were related because both the vocalists and the group's musical styles vary dramatically.) Does anyone know for certain?

Anyway, I first heard this group via a second hand copy of their debut album that I found in the early 80's for next to nothing. This album "The Fallen Angels" (Roulette 1968) had some interesting moments, especially the cool leadoff track (also 45) "Room At The Top", but I wouldn't call the album a classic. To my ears anyway, it seemed the group were playing into the hands of their record company a bit. Yet at the same time Roulette Records had a pretty good roster of underground groups such as Third Bardo, First Crow To The Moon, Stillroven, Arzachel and also great pop groups like The Choir and mega-stars Tommy James & The Shondells.

For whatever reason The Fallen Angels debut album failed to cause much attention at the record shops and was quickly deleted. Usually this would have meant certain death to a group like The Fallen Angels. However the good folks at Roulette decided to give the group a second shot and they were even afforded the luxury of complete artistic control. This all resulted in the group's stunning second album "It's A Long Way Down" (which sadly suffered the same fate as the group's debut sales-wise despite it's obvious quality and inventiveness.)

The opener "Poor Old Man" is an inspired leadoff track that features a strong west coast influence, both Love & The Doors immediately come to mind, it sports a killer bass riff along with loose, John Densmore style percussion and a myriad of psychedelic effects, about midway in, the whole piece breaks down and singer Jack Bryant does this totally off the wall jazz type scat vocal that completely derails the song, luckily it doesn't last long as the group leap back into the opening riff and it's back to the races. "A Horn Playing On My Thin Wall" is next and it is a dead ringer for "Da Capo" era Love (both "Orange Skies" & "Que Vida"), this track becomes better as it rolls along, it ends with a rush of great harmony vocals. "Something You Can Hide In" is full tilt psychedelia that features every psychedelic trick in the book with fabulous results, this number reminds me a great deal of Love's underrated "Four Sail" album.

"Tell You A Story" is a brief interlude that features an out of tune acoustic guitar with a nursery rhyme type vocal, and it works like a charm. Coming next is "Silent Garden" which displays a British influence along the lines of late period Zombies and the UK Kaleidoscope. "Look To The Sun" is largely a solo acoustic outing by singer Jack Bryant, this one reminds me a great deal of the archive releases by Love guitarist Bryan MacLean "Ifyoubelievein" & "Candy's Waltz." The next number "One Of The Few Ones Left" is a beautiful melodic ballad with strings that brings to mind the Left Banke's second album "Left Banke Too."

"I Really Love My Mother" is a short, jokey novelty type number that blends the style of The Kinks with USA groups The Sopwith Camel & Lovin' Spoonful. "Look At The Wind" is once again in the Love "Four Sail" bag, this is one of the record's real highlights, everything comes together in beautiful fashion, the guitar work and drumming are fantastic, the keyboards are also exceptional. "Didn't I" is a sad, acoustic ballad that recalls a superb west coast group The Common People, it even reminds me of contemporary singer/songwriter Grant Lee Phillips.

By it's very title one would expect the title track "It's A Long Way Down" to be a doomy death-trip number in the mold on The Doors, actually it's just the opposite, this song is a light and breezy winner that once again recalls The Left Banke with a touch of The Nazz and "Basic Blues Magoos" era Blues Magoos. The Fallen Angels actually save the creepiest number on the album for last "I'll Drive You From My Mind" ends the album in dark shadows, whispered vocals, and splashes of sitar, it reminds me a great deal of The Rain Parade's "No Easy Way Down."

"It's A Long Way Down" is an exceptional album that really doesn't have a bummer track to be found. This is one rare psychedelic album that actually lives up to the hype.

(EXCERPT FROM AN ONLINE REVIEW BY DAVE FURGESS)

TRACK LISTING:

1. Poor Old Man (3:41)
2. A Horn Playing On My Thin Wall (4:25)
3. Something New You Can Hide In (3:59)
4. Tell You A Story (:22)
5. Silent Garden (1:54)
6. Look To The Sun (3:46)
7. One Of The Few Ones Left (2:50)
8. I Really Love My Mother (1:07)
9. Look At The Wind (4:04)
10. Didn't I? (2:55)
11. It's A Long Way Down (2:45)
12. I'll Drive You From My Mind (4:19

The PROMOTIONAL, RADIO STATION-, AUDITION OR DEMONSTRATION COPIES AND RELEASES (such as the one we have here) were often distributed among 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", which is to say the VERY FIRST generation and the VERY FIRST pressings of the particular title; a PROTOTYPE and the earliest known official pressing of the record.

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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  NEAR MINT. Some VERY LIGHT AND SUPERFICIAL abrasions – mostly sleeve scuffs -  are (barely) visible, but are probably inaudible,  and do not affect visual integrity or beauty of the vinyl. The original luster is very much 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)           Of course, this is a full-bodied ANALOG recording, and not an inferior, digital recording!!!

·       COVER

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

The following flaws or imperfections are noted on the cover:

-        Cover has some light 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  (front side) and 3 (back side)

-        Cover has a few tiny wrinkles along the seams

-         Visible shelf wear noted on the seams

-         Cover has two corners slightly worn / dinged  / bent.

-         Cover shows some light yellowing on both sides, apparently from aging.  Yellowing is also noted on the INSIDE gatefold

NO OTHER IMPERFECTIONS ON THE COVER:

-        No split seams

-        No cut-out (drill) holes.

-        No cut-out corners

-        No saw-marks or indents

-        No dirt/dust rubbing stains (friction marks caused by rubbing against other covers)

-        No writing

-        No stamps  (EXCEPT for the promo stamp)

-        No peel-off marks

-        No stains

-        No mold or mildew spots

-        No stickers or labels

-        No water damage

-        No razor marks, scratches, pressure marks, lines, streaks, or  cuts.

-        No warping

-        No wax, glue, paint or liquid drops on the cover

-        No glue traces or wax residue.

-        No bar codes

-        No RIAA stamps or stickers. 

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POSTAGE & SHIPPING:

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