GENTLE GIANT - AQUIRING THE TASTE. 12" vinyl LP. RARE U.K.1st press swirl label

	£		22
	$		29

Hello there.

A short preamble before we get down to the nitty gritty, so you know something about who/what you are dealing with!

About me

I am an English PRIVATE COLLECTOR now living in Denmark, who has been a lifelong music fan collecting, buying, selling and swapping albums well, all my life.

I have also been heavily involved in creating music as a performer and sound engineer sometimes professionally, for over 30 years. Along with this I’m actively involved in presenting music on the radio, firstly in the 90’s on 'wunnerful' Radio Caroline, remember them? Latterly around the world via the internet and satellite on a station called The Album Zone based in London - www.albumzone.co.uk - if you’re interested. In Denmark, on university station K.U.R. 95.5fm/95.2 hybrid/streamed if you’re…..you know.

I never really got beyond the idea that the vinyl format is the best medium on which to hear good music and I think the same way in the studio. Digital technology is without doubt a flexible, convenient, sometimes quick and unlimited way of storing and managing a musical product, but does it sound good? Well OK yes it does, but not as good as analogue. In my opinion digital lacks warmth, depth, width and lots of other words ending in th! Of course this puts entirely into question my involvement with an internet radio station but it is here to stay, like it or not.

So it follows that a well recorded, well mastered piece of analogue music sounds best on well pressed, quality vinyl. There are also the benefits of great artwork and the feeling that you actually have something special in your possession. I’ve yet to hear a remastered, digital version of frankly anything that really cuts the mustard and as for downloading well, it just sounds poor & will no doubt kill the music industry if you don't pay something for it!

About you

The above should of informed you that I am pretty fussy about the quality of vinyl and music generally. This can only be a good thing for you,as the stuff I’m auctioning will be*graded aurally on a good system, whatever format it happens to be on. My aim is to provide the best quality that I can, graded fairly, so please bid with confidence.

*NOTE!!

I DO listen to rare items all the way through.

However as I'm auctioning some fairly large collections, I simply do not have the time to listen to all items individually all the way through. I will play the openings of tracks to get an idea plus I’ll carefully grade them visually under strong light. Should I see anything suspect, I’ll play that part of the record and report to you on it.

These collections came from friends. Most items have been looked after extremely well and played on good equipment. So I don’t expect many problems at all, plus I offer refunds anyway.

Finally for the erm, record - I hold no candle to U.K. pressings being superior to any other pressings. In certain cases it's true, but it's not a golden 'rule-of-thumb' in my opinion. I have American, German, Dutch, Scandinavian and Greek pressings that sound totally awesome. In grading (fully explained at the end) I won't be adding a million + + + or - - - or !!!!! Totally unnecessary. It is what it is right?  

So enough already, up for auction about now…………

U.K. BIDDERS: I CANNOT SHIP FOR £4.50 FROM DENMARK! PLEASE NOTE MY SHIPPING PRICES & TERMS AFTER ITEM DETAILS. THANKS.

GENTLE GIANT – AQUIRING THE TASTE. 12" stereo LP on the Vertigo Records label cat. no. 6360 041. NO PRICE CODE

RARE U.K. early 1st pressing released in 1971. On the swirl label with original swirl inner. Corrected, earliest matrices on both sides.

Gentle Giant must surely be the finest progressive rock band that ever existed. The one that all others bowed down to, with their musicianship & vocal harmonies the envy of all, but no...some called them 'pretentious'. What utter b*llox! How can playing the music they clearly loved & enjoyed be labelled that? They made a joke of it by having a neon sign flashing the word above them at concerts & by so doing showing how unpretentious they really were of course. Their shows were dazzling events of total musicianship & power. They all played each others instruments & then some.

I alas discovered them just too late to of seen them 'live' other than on TV, however - I did 'hang' with Kerry Minnear in the early 80's. He was in a band that unbelievably supported my first band on several occasions at that time, along with guys from Brand X and The Moody Blues.

An astonishing musician & great bloke, as were they all. We were privileged & it's a time I'll never forget.

This is their wonderful second album & though not strictly a concept piece, it's subject matter deals a lot in twilight, dark streets & black cats occupying them. Not the classic GG line-up just yet but a big favourite amongst fans, myself included. Ray Shulman has also cited it as his favourite GG album & it's produced by a Mr. Tony Visconti no less. As the infamous sleeve notes mention among other things: unique, adventurous & fascinating.

A completely original & eloquent sound the like of which I'm pretty sure we'll never hear again.

Matrix no's/stampers:

Side One; 6360041 1Y#2   X X             1 1 6 (machine stamped)

Side Two; 6360041 2Y#2   X X  2         1 1 8 (machine)

Track Listing:

Side One:

See picture of label.

Side Two:

See picture of label.

GRADING:

VINYL:

Side One: GOOD. Visually clean with hairlines & some heavier scuffing. Pressed on medium weight vinyl.

Plays through with medium surface noise throughout. There's also light distortion present on the title track, though very occasionally in other places too.

The good news is there are no 'hard' scratches, so while the surface noise is always present it doesn't overly interfere with the music.

Side Two: GOOD. Visually & aurally identical to above.

So OK, but obviously not for those seeking 100% aural perfection.

SLEEVE & SPINE:

Gatefold non laminated.

FRONT outside: VERY GOOD. Clean with any creasing & rubbing mostly confined to the edges. Small tear where price sticker was removed & light ringwear also.

BACK outside: VERY GOOD. As above but without tear or ringwear.

FRONT inside: VERY GOOD. Clean again with any creasing & rubbing mostly confined to the edges.

BACK inside: VERY GOOD. As above.

SPINE: VERY GOOD. Some creasing & rubbing a little heavier top & bottom. Tiny split at the top.

ORIGINAL VERTIGO 'SWIRL' INNER poly lined: GOOD. Both sides have started to split plus it's quite discoloured with age. Old price written in biro too.

LABELS:

Vertigo 'swirl' labels.

Side One: EXCELLENT. Light spindle marks only.

Side Two: EXCELLENT. As above.

Gentle Giants second then in a worthy condition. Not perfect but I know how sought after these 1st pressings are in any condition.

More GG coming here soon, so keep looking.

Check my feedback. I will sell as I buy and I will buy as I sell!

If for any reason (within reason!) you don't agree with my grading on this album then I will provide a refund on it's return, excluding return shipping.

* PLEASE NOTE THESE POINTS BELOW

*Shipping prices: £3.80 in Denmark. £6.00 to the UK and Europe. £8.50 to the U.S.A., Canada and the rest of the world. If in doubt, please contact me for a price. If you require shipping insurance then please let me know BEFORE paying for the item as it's extra. I can include a shipping discount for multiple purchases.

Danish postage is pretty high & I'm sorry, but it's not my fault!

*Payment: I will send an invoice with the total amount, so please wait for that before you pay. Please pay within 7 days of the auction ending, thank you.

Non-payers & time-wasters will be dealt with swiftly & effectively by whatever means necessary!

 Packing: All items will be carefully packed using stiff card, strong mailers etc. Wherever possible I'll recycle packaging. It's cheaper for you & better for the planet.

Feedback & problems: *I'd appreciate feedback being left once you have received and heard/seen your item. It's the only way I know you have got it and are happy with it. I will then leave feedback for you. I used to leave feedback upon payment, but I've been stitched up too many times by people not leaving me any.

If there are any problems at all then I want to hear from you & get it sorted.

Please don't just leave negative feedback.

That's it.

Check my other listings there's plenty coming up. Good luck, thanks for your interest and above all enjoy!

Gilster.

About my Grading

I use the U.K. Record Collector Grading System which is: 

Mint: The record itself is in brand new condition with no surface marks or deterioration in sound quality. The cover and any items such as the lyric sheet are in perfect condition. Sealed or unplayed records should be mint.

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

Very Good: The record has obviously been played many times but displays no major deterioration in sound quality, despite noticeable surface marks and the occasional light scratch. Normal wear and tear on the cover or extra items, without any major defects, is acceptable.

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

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Beyond here lies madness! I won’t be auctioning anything graded below unless they are really rare or sought after:

Fair: The record is just still playable but has not been cared for properly and displays considerable surface noise, etc. The cover and contents will be torn, stained and/or defaced.

Poor: The record will not play properly due to scratches, bad surface noise etc. The cover and contents will be badly damaged or partly missing.

Bad: The record is unplayable or might even be broken, and is only of use as a collection filler.

CD/DVD Grading:

As a general rule, CD’s and DVD’s either play perfectly - Mint - or they don’t, in which case their value is minimal. They are difficult to grade visually, as they can look perfect but be faulty and visa versa.

CD/DVD inlays and booklets should be graded in the same way as vinyl covers and sleeves, as should the cover if made from card.