HOKUS POKE - Earth Harmony (UK Vertigo Swirl '72) RARE

	£		105
	$		139

HOKUS POKE - Earth Harmony
1972 UK Vertigo # 6360 064

Matrix # 6360064 1Y//2V42011 1/6360064 2Y//1V420 11 1

DESCRIPTION:
Here we have a copy of one of the rarest Lp's ever released on the UK Vertigo Spiral or Swirl label, Hokus Poke with their sole 1972 release "Earth Harmony". Every swirl collector out there knows how rare this piece of vinyl is, but I think it very often get overshadowed by the more "classic" rarities on the label such as Ben, Tudor Lodge, Catapilla's "Changes", Patto's "Hold your fire", Lind Hoyle and Gordon. I'd definately say that the Hokus Poke album is as rare as those records judging from how many times it appears on the net or anywhere else for that matter. It has yet to fetch the same astronomic sums as the forementioned ones, but we should start appreciating this one as a true lost super-rarity which is also quite decent on a musical level. We're talking dual guitar based rock that ranges from somngs based on harmony played guitarleads in the vein of the 2 first Wishbone ash records, to slight boogie tinted Status Quo pastiches and even some heavier hard rock sounds. There's also some calmer moments that remind me of Budgie for some reason. Overall a very pleasurable listen for this jaded rocker.

CONDITION:
I have taken a bunch of pictures so you can decide for yourself if it's good enough for your demands. I'd say you'd better grab ANY copy you'd find as they are so hard to find and more than often quite trashed. Especially the cover is extremely fragile and bound to be ripped, torn and damaged by heavy ringwear. Overall this copy is a very nice one. I'll break this into sleeve and record gradings.

SLEEVE: Well, this is a die-cut unlaminated FOC cover that's in pretty nice nick. It has ringwear on both sides although only very light on the inner gatefold. There are a few creases although none of them are particulary heavy. A shop sticker (NK) is still there. No one has tried to remove it and I wouldn't recommend it either. Finally (for the front sleeve) there's a micro-dot tear near the edge on the right hand side.
There's edge and corner wear throughout. The spine is intact and fully readable although part of the "E" in the band name has been rubbed out by wear. The heaviest edge wear is located on the left hand side where the front sleeve meets the spine. For natural reasons. I can't see this record being handled many times, but just placing it between a bunch of other Lp's will most likely have this effect on a fragile cover like this. The diecut in itself it in close to perfect condition. No rips or tears or feathering to the edges. Nice! Inside the gatefold I can only see some some very light wear and light ringwear. On the upper right side of the diecut page I see something that looks like a repaired rip (not a tear). Very well done and I'd be surprised if it'd bother anyone. There's also a tiny 5 mm rip on the top of the spine "inside"...does that make sense? Overall it's intact with only ring and corner wear being the "problems". I'd grade this stricktly at VG as in VERY GOOD.

RECORD: Wow! This is as good as it gets! I can't see this having been played more than once or twice! It still has the "just pressed" look, still has the pitch black mirror shine that you expect from a new record, not one 35 years old. No scratches, dings, marks or anything like that. The only thing I can see with the naked eye is a few extremely light hairlines. THAT'S IT! Unbelievable! Playing the record was incredibly enjoyable! No pops, jumps, hissing or anything like that. I test played the whole album on a Project player with a new Ortofon needle and listened to it through a pair of decent Sony headphones on a fairly loud volume. It plays like a new record and nothing less than that! You can hear some very, very faint static sound in between the songs and those should be expected when playing brand new records as well. I will grade this as M- or NEAR MINT both visually and sonically. You will NOT be dissapointed!

INNER: Of course this copy comes with the original spiral innersleeve and this one is in EX condition. It's the second style "black square" spiral bag and it has a few smaller rips and dings + a little yellowing. Other than that, it's pretty much as good as it gets.

PAYMENT: Preferrably through Paypal within 10 days of closed auction. I will invoice the winner the day after the auction's closed.

POSTAGE: I live in Sweden and it's fairly expensive to send out parcels the size of Lp's, but it will be no more than £10. If it's more than that I'll cover the extra myself. No worries!

RETURNS: Full return service if not happy with my grading. I cannot accept returns based on music taste, sorry!