Fresh Maggots. Stupidly rare original UK acid/folk/psych. Vinyl in TOP condition

$

588

First pressing with the laminated front cover, the much rarer purple back cover (unlaminated) and the original paper inner sleeve stamped Made in Great Britain. This album should need no introduction to anyone who has been following my auctions. However, in case you don’t know it, this is a crowning achievement of UK pastoral acid folk/psych. Mostly acoutstic, it has some rather cutting electric guitar with feedback at moments, plus glockenspiel, light violin/orchestration and lovely tin whistles that sound almost like flutes. The front cover would be almost flawless except some genius saw fit to place to leave a glassful of a sugary drink right in the middle, which has left residue (see photo). Not very pronounced, but it is there, and it is still a bit sticky after 55 years. I have not tried to remove it for fear of what any solvents might cause to the lamination. Otherwise, only moderate ringwear on the unlaminated back cover, as seen in photos. The artist and label info on the spine are all perfectly clear, with no flaking at all, and there are only tiny bumps on all four corners (see photos). No hint of any seam splits and the spine itself is still its original bright purple and not faded at all (see photos). The labels are perfect, bright and shiny with zero spindle holes under bright light (see photos). Since I only played this once to record it to cassette some 40+ years ago, I listened to the whole LP all the way through just now after putting it through my Moth-MKII Pro Record Cleaning Machine. Here are my notes upon a thorough listening and viewing under a very bright light with a magnifying glass. Yes, as it is the very first pressing the vinyl has some of those tiny blisters that everyone mentions online. The light crackle here and there, such as on very quiet tracks like Everyone’s Gone to War, seems to me just typical for a 55-year old record. There are a few light pops at the end of Rosemary Hill and the beginning of Quickie on Side 1. I did not track the entire album as it played under bright light to see which pop or crackle might be linked to which particular blister. There is a visible mark at the very end of Track 4 and beginning of Track 5 on Side 1, though it does not affect the sound at all… at least any more than those phantom blisters! Suffice to say, it plays beautifully for such a historic gem. Despite the flaws of the original pressing, the album has full gloss and appears almost unplayed. Video/sound file is taken from my personal favourite, Rosemary Hill, which is Track 2 on Side 1. It has wonderful acid/folk/prog moves and lovely backing orchestration and demonstrates the quiet sound of the vinyl between and during tracks. 

I am planning to list some ultra-rarities from my personal trove of vinyl LPs and 45s over the coming months. These have been painstakingly collected since the late 1970’s. Included are the absolute crown jewels of psychedelia, garage, prog, acid folk and folk-rock, all ranked 3-6 stars in Hans Pokora’s books. Artists like Vashti Bunyan, The Haunted, Fresh Maggots, Kaleidoscope, Plastic Cloud, Loudest Whisper, Reign Ghost, Synanthesia, Blues Section, Jormas, Mighty Baby, Sunforest, Trees, The Folklords, Anne Briggs, Kak, Moving Sidewalks and countless others. Most are stupidly rare, especially in such jaw-dropping condition. All have been extremely well cared-for across 4+ decades, and some are nearly un-played. In many cases, I also have the accompanying 45s for sale, including insanely rare non-LP tracks for e.g. Vashti Bunyan, Reign Ghost, Kak, Kaleidoscope, etc. These are not “spare” copies, these are THE copies from my personal collection. I am selling these only reluctantly, and if the first few samples do not attract an appropriate level of interest, I will simply return the rest of them to storage. All records have been dust vacuumed on a Moth-MKII Pro Record Cleaning Machine. 

My vinyl rankings are only slightly modified from Goldmine Standard for grading Please read them (below) carefully. I will describe every LP and 45 in detail and include photos as well as sound files. If you pay close attention to the cover/vinyl condition descriptions, check the photos in high-resolution and listen to the sound files, then you should know exactly what you are aiming for before you start bidding. I try to carefully note any flaws with the disc and the cover so that there are no surprises when the box arrives. I have 100% positive feedback on eBay and want to keep it that way. If there is ANY issue after receiving a shipment, please let me know immediately so we can resolve it before sending any feedback. 

Please do not pay before confirming your preferred shipping method and total shipping costs!! The domestic shipping costs to US are NOT real since the item comes from Finland! The international shipping costs also depend on the buyer’s location and preference in terms of service used. NOTE for US and Canadian buyers: Apparently, I CANNOT ship to Europe as eBay US only recognizes the buyer’s official eBay address. Otherwise they hold my payment for 30 days and I cannot do that. 

Buyer pays packaging, which costs $5 USD. I use top quality packaging and need to cover those costs, which will be included in the invoice. Vinyl will be packed extremely securely and LPs are double-boxed with cardboard stiffeners added inside the inner Euromailer to increase stability to avoid any damage in transit. The discs are always removed from the jackets to prevent seam splits, and all albums and 45s come in plastic outer sleeves. Each LP itself comes in a VRP rice paper-style inner sleeve. UPS and DHL Global Express Shipping from Finland are both available with or without insurance. Finnish Posti service is available to everywhere except the US, albeit without insurance. Posti no longer sends packages of any kind to the US, only documents/letters. 

Be sure to check my other listings now and in the coming months as these items almost never turn up for sale, much less in this condition!

I do not use Mint (M) unless the album is sealed. Near Mint (NM) means I literally unsealed the record myself and played it once or twice to record it to cassette. Any surface noise is therefore a function of the pressing and not due to wear and tear. I do not use EX. 

Very Good Plus Plus (VG++) will show only very minor – if any – wear, has been extremely well taken care of and plays with top-notch sound. The cover is crisp with minimal defects, and the record label shows very few spindle marks or other signs of wear or damage. The vinyl retains full gloss and for 45s the picture sleeve is mostly intact. This is as close to NM as it going to get for 99% of rare vintage vinyl for sale anywhere. 

Very Good Plus (VG+) will show minor yet visible cover wear, has been well taken care of and still plays with generally excellent sound. Spindle marks on the label may be more pronounced, yet vinyl gloss and sonic clarity both remain solid and surface noise minimal. For 45s the picture sleeve is intact but has significant defects, such as seam splits, age-related discoloration, wrinkling or visible rubbing.

Very Good (VG) will show visible wear and tear on the cover, have significant spindle marks on the label and the vinyl will have lost some of its gloss and/or sonic clarity. Surface noise is evident. I will offer almost no LPs or 45s rated VG as I simply do not own them, except a very few that are exceptionally rare in any condition.