MARIANNE FAITHFULL North Country Maid Unboxed N/M LP

	£		95
	$		126

Hi, I am Mike, I am 46 and have been a music collector and enthusiast for over 33 years now. We all wish we could turn back the clock and buy those wonderful brand new records from the 60s and 70s, but alas, this is not possible; so I always try to offer the finest and most accurately described and graded records I can find. No vinyl/music lover really would choose to buy second-hand, but this is only way now to own these valuable, prized and ellusive items now. I pride myself on offering a variety of genres to keep my site as interesting as possible. I will rarely offer any record that falls below a true Excellent grading, unless its of a certain rarity which will justify offering a lesser grade. I try, to the best of my ability to describe as accurately and as honesty as I can all items I offer for sale with all the relevant information I can think of to help any potential bidder and collector. You may notice I only submit records sparingly on Ebay - on average ONEADAY, hence the name - time rarely allows for more as I Play-Grade virtually every record I offer in their entirity, not just bits to guess a grade (on a Rega 3 deck with Ortofon cartridge) - visuals alone do not always tell a true or full story - I will mention any defects or flaws no matter how small that I notice to be fair as possible to any interested reader – I am very fussy and my buyers have the right to be too. Every record I offer, whether it be a common or rare item deserves the same respect as far as I am concerned and will be treated the same - just because an item is rare does not always mean its good. I get just as much pleasure offering a relatively common record in stunning near mint condition as the real rare items. All the pictures I use for your guidance are taken with a digital camera or scanned - they are NOT improved, cleaned-up or made better looking than they are with camera trickery or enhancing with digital programmes. What you see is what you get. The only thing I cannot guarantee one hundred percent is exact colour matching - this depends on the lighting at the time and that is out of my control, but I feel sure most items will be very close to the actual real item. Variation can sometimes occur too in colour of the label scans and labels taken next to the sleeve with a digital camera, the scanned full label pictures should be the most accurate. If any picture I take looks more flattering than the actual item for any reason, I will clearly state the fact in the advert. I hope the item below is to your liking - any questions can be emailed and I will do my very best to answer you. I am enthusiastic , and have a fair degree of knowledge about many genres and I promise quality items - bid with confidence - excellence comes as standard and so does Near Mint regularly. Please assume all records I offer have NO jumps or sticks or writing on covers or labels unless clearly stated to the contrary. Thanks for your interest and Good luck – MIKE.

Please read all the information carefully - these adverts take an age to compile properly - so it’s well worth a few minutes of your time to read the details thoroughly. I really cannot take any responsibility if any bidder fails to read any facts that are clearly stated in the advert - Thankyou.

Artist or Band: MARIANNE FAITHFULL

Album Title: North Country Maid.

Track Listing: Green Are Your Eyes; Scarborough Fair; Cockleshells; The Last Thing on My Mind; The First Time Ever I Saw your Face; Sally Free and Easy; Sunny goodge Street; How Should I Your True Love Know; She moved thru’ The Fair; North Country Maid; Lullaby; Wild Mountain Thyme.

Label/Format: Decca – Unboxed red mono format with ffrr ear logo (Full Frequency Range Recording). This copy has a ridge about 0.5 inch from the outer circumference.

Label Condition: A stunning pair, try finding this vintage title with better labels. Hardly a spindle mark or trace to be found, only very rarely have I seen a mono Decca this great age looking like this. A copy that appears hardly played for sure. (Please see label scans for all information needed).

Cat Number: LK 4778.

Mono or Stereo: Mono, the guides dont list a stereo copy so I guess mono is the only choice.

Country of Manufacture: England, UK

Rarity: Quite rare, and possibly the rarest album in her early catalogue, for sure this title seldonly shows up and when it does the condition is often attocious.

Original Year of Release: 1966

Matrix Nos: ARL-7169-2A and ARL-7170-1A

Stamper Codes: 3 0 C / 1 11 Also K7 is on both sides at the 12 o’clock position.

Brief Artist & Album Info: Marianne’s fourth album and what a beauty it is too. Featuring some classic folky songs written by highly respected artists like Bert Jansch, Mick Taylor, Tom Paxton, Jon Mark and Donovan – ‘Sunny Goodge Street was written specially for her by Donovan. Classic traditional songs are included too. Marianne’s early Decca albums are delightful and nothing like her later works, which again are fine records but just very different. None of her 60s albums are easy to find let alone in top conditions and this particular album is one of the most ellusive. The record is a stunner and if indeed anyone has a better copy they are indeed very lucky. The cover, featuring a lovely picture of the young Marianne, is strong, the front especially. The back shows its age a little more but is still very respectable indeed. Anyone wanting this fine and pretty rare album should be very pleased with the fine all round copy.

Cover Grade and Format: EX, its a single format, the front is laminated with Clarifoil and was printed in England by Robert Stace. A very delicate and fragile cover made with quite thin card no too dissimilar to the Rolling Stones No 2 album. Very wear and crease-prone this has stood the test of time (and potential abuse) better than many).

Front and Lamination: Fine laminate that appears to be the more semi-gloss type, it does not have any dull patches or areas. No peeling or dry areas caused by tightening either. There are a few light marks but nothing that spoils this fine front to any great degree. Importantly this has only a few lightish creases which is good news on this very unforgiving cover.The creases present are mostly confined the edges and none attract the eyes too much as most attention will be around the lovely portrait of Miss Faithfull which remains totally uncreased. The very thin card shows the almost mandatory pressmark (not ringwear) from the very heavy record inside, but not heavy at all. Unless a cover can be found that has had the LP removed for nearly forty years this will always be the case and I emphasise here its only light and only shows to any great degree under angled lighting. A fine clean front with deep rich colour and a high attractiveness factor.

Cover Back: This does show its great age a little more with some handling signs, light edge toning and a few marks, mild traces of grubbiness (a slightly harsh word) and a light stain on the bottom edge towards the right. No rubbing or ringwear and generally still fine, these cover types are always a challange to find anything like pristine and this back is more like a little above average really whereas the front is way better. Any pressmark on the back is very slight and hardly shows and there is just one tiny indentation near the top right – a very tiny blemish indeed. Overall this back, age considered, is still in very respectable condition and many collectors will still appreciate it.

Top Edge: Virtually unworn.

Bottom Edge: Virtually unworn.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Minor handling traces, odd tiny nick mark but no real feathering, please remember the thinness of the card and the potential for serious wear, nothing like that here. Record entered on right outside edge.

Spine and Text: Solid and square with little wear at all, a thin spine anyway, maybe the centre is fractionally compressed but all text is perfect and unworn under the uncracked laminate.

Corners: All four remarkably show little wear and are still nicely shaped.

Cover Summary: Still a fine all round example of this very delicate mid-60’s cover, one that may prove hard to find significantly better, the front especially is lovely and it should still please many collectors if not the perfectionists – but its a tough find in any condition.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: Mint(-) A superb visual copy. Super clean, shiny, jet black and very heavily pressed. Remarkably for a record this age hardly a mark to be seen, this looks really amazing. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence. Visually a super record that should please all collectors.

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This exceptional record generally plays up to its high visual grading with little to fault. Strong, undistorted sound, never take this for granted with any early mono record, all frequencies are sharp and clear - sound quality is detailed and powerful and the harmonica that opens side two is as dynamic and sharp as any on The Beatles debut, you can almost feel the reeds vibrating with no distress or clipping at all. Any surface sounds are light, minimal and very infrequent and no pops or clicks were noted, any copy of this record that plays dead silent throughout will be a major rarity and probably almost unrealistic given its age, mono and type but few copies will play much better than this (please refer to my paragraphy below to put a record like this in true perspective). Both channels are clean and sharp, I feel very sure this record has been played very lightly and has been generally well stored and looked after, almost certainly in a non-smoking environment. Little, if anything spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this rare folkesque record. This copy could prove near very difficult indeed to find significantly better. The record comes in its original polylined inner which is in fine shape but has toned quite deeply. One corner has folded and the difference is quite apparent from this. But I am always reluctant to change any inner as its part of the complete article and it still looks fine anyway.

Mono vs Stereo, an overview: Always a matter of opinion which is better or more important. For any serious collector where there is a choice e.g. Beatles, Stones, Hendrix etc. both are essential. True Stereo albums give great imagery and presence whereas mono albums usually are more dynamic, louder and present the detail more clearly. Mono albums are far harder to find in genuinely top playing condition. Most were heavily played, particularly the truly great bands and artists, often covered in mark and scratches, many severe and labels that were a mass of spindle marks. The majority were played on vintage and unsubtle decks with heavy tonearms and thick styli (often sapphire, not diamond, that chipped more easily) that rendered heavy wear in a very short time to many a fine classic record. Wear to the delicate groove walls, particularly the innermost tracks to the labels were most vulnerable where the tracking angle became more severe and the backdrag actually stripped the delicate groove walls. This resulted in surface noise and mild/moderate distortion or worse. These old decks tracked by sheer weight and little of any refined engineering. Next time you see such a deck at a local record fayre, feel the weight of the arm, it almost makes you wonder how any records survived at all. The point of this paragraph is emphasise that when a truly clean, lightly played and great sounding 60s mono album (or stereo come to that) is offered, treasure it, because for sure they are truly getting vary rare and precious - beware - demand only play-graded records. As a general guide to rarity, mono was the far more common format from 61–65; Around 66–67 the balance was roughly equal, then from 68-69 the balance swung more to stereo, making monos from these dates far scarcer, even rare - this guide is important and effects values greatly.

Album Played For Grading: Yes.

Final Summary: A beautiful and graceful recording by the young Marianne with some equisite songs. Definitely harder to find than most of her other records which is shame really as its one of her very best albums. Although the back cover shows it age a little more the actual record is exceptional and if this title is wanted you may have to wait some time to find a better all round copy – I still strongly recommend this fine copy – Mike.

Please Note: I will now offer any item to the runner-up after the mandatory Ebay 3 days if no contact is made by the winning bidder. The same applies if no payment is received within the mandatory 7 days so any bidder who has just lost out can still email me to reserve the item as priority second chance. Item wants are always welcome - email me with anything needed, you never know - I may just have a copy in stock. I by quality single items and collections also (Email me please if you have quality items for sale).

Debutant Bidders: Many sellers refuse first time buyers: I do not follow this practice (everybody has to start somewhere), but I would appreciate any first timer letting me know their intentions of their intended payment method and very prompt communication, preferably before any bid or soon after the auctions ends. This gives confidence that their intentions are honourable, and I in return guarantee extra special good feedbacks to get zero rated Ebayers off to a flying start to help them with future transactions. NOTE: I WILL NOT ACCEPT BIDS FROM UNREGISTERED USERS, I will cancel them immediately, and sorry, I cannot give valuations on people’s personal items just for their own curiosity, no item can be accurately valued blindly.

Having the Powerseller Logo: This is recognition from Ebay for the highest possible customer services, satisfaction and quality, it should reassure any potential bidder that all items are described, graded and shipped to the highest standards possible. Customer care of the highest order is a standard feature here and I am proud to have achieved this recognised standard of excellence from Ebay with help from collectors and buyers from all over the World - I thank you all.

Payment Details please read carefully - I know its boring but essential:

UK First Class: = £3.00; Recorded Delivery (Recommended) = £5.50 Special Delivery (Next day, insured up to £250), the best service available = £7.00

Europe Air Mail: = £4 Insured: £8.00

Overseas, non-Europe e.g. USA, Japan, Australia etc. Airmail:= £7; Insured with recorded delivery (where available) = £11.00

Singles: (Packed to the high standards of the LPs)

UK First class: = £2.00 Insured: £4

Europe Air Mail = £3.00 Insured: £5.50

Overseas, non-Europe (as above) Airmail £3.50 Insured: £6.00

Doubles add extra £1, triples add extra £2. Box sets add extra £3 (£4 overseas and Europe)

Any item that sells for over £85 will be sent Special Delivery in the UK at no extra cost. Items over £125 get the same service Overseas. This is gives peace of mind for the winning bidder and myself for valuable items. Reduced postage of course for multiple items.

The winner bidder chooses his/her posting method and if uninsured is chosen, its their decision and they have to stick with it, I can accept no responsibility if an item is lost in the post. I can only try to claim at standard levels if no enhancement is chosen (£28). PLEASE NOTE: I will NOT use surface mail, its too slow, with a higher risk of loss and damage.

Mailing Details: Please note I do NOT profit on postage (my packing standards are high and the package weighs a little more and I often actually lose money on this part of service - I simply refuse to compromise with poor packing. All records are sent in plastic covers with the record taken OUT of the sleeve and sent in professional mailers with FOUR professional stiffners for extra protection (if space allows), I do NOT use old cardboard boxes or cereal packets for protection. More expensive items are also inserted into a de-luxe heavy duty padded bag AS WELL to give that extra protection. I truly want ALL my items to arrive to their destination in the same condition they leave me. I will also include in most cases a brand new lined inner, but will include the original inner if available and in a condition to be worthwhile.

I can accept cash for payments worldwide in UK Pounds Sterling, Euros or US Dollars - but this at the senders OWN risk. Please send registered and insured if this method is chosen. I cannot accept responsibility if any cash payments do not turn up. This system is very reliable and rarely goes astray. The same goes for any shipped uninsured item, I can only try to claim for any undelivered or damaged article at basic insurance levels if no enhanced insurance is requested and paid for (unless the value threshold is high enough for me insure as standard, see above)

Overseas bidders please note conversion rates for Pounds to Dollars and Pounds to Euros will be charged at 1.7 to cover PayPal or cash conversion costs.

PLEASE NOTE: Any PayPal user can now pay me with UK Sterling if they wish with no need to convert to US dollars (although they still can if they wish to). Any instant PayPal transaction from anywhere in the world will mean the item will be sent immediately - it makes deals fast and very efficient.

Potential Bidders: Please do not bid if you have negative feedback unless checking first, I will cancel any bids I feel are timewasters. I now only accept PayPal, International money orders or cash from overseas bidders (UK Sterling, US dollars or Euros). Cash, cheques, postal orders and PayPal are fine from the UK. I allow maximum 3 days for communication and 7 days for payment to arrive - if this does not happen I will relist the item and may send negative feedback unless an explanation is given. Fast deals get great feedback from me. Any questions - please ask. Please keep watch on my Ebays, I have other interesting items coming very soon. Thanks for looking.

My Guarantee: As listening to every single record I offer all the way through is difficult timewise, can I make it clear if any winning bidder is not satisfied with their purchase I will offer a complete refund minus the Posting and All Ebay costs as long as the item detail has been read and understood. I will not refund if any defect detail is clearly stated on the advert and missed by the buyer. I still endeavour to play all the items in their entirity for grading if at all possible and is usually the case.