SHOCKING BLUE - AT HOME PINK ELEPHANT 1st Press 1969 EX TOP SITAR/FREAKBEAT
£
31
$
41
Favourite Auctions
To save auctions to your favourites, please login
If you don't have an account, please register
Description
SHOCKING BLUE -
"AT HOME"
PINK ELEPHANT 888.001
1969
Heavy vinyl early vinyl copy.
Formed in 1967, Shocking Blue were an influential Dutch rock band from The Hague. Center stage to the groups popularity was lead singer Mariska Veres, whose powerful, exotic vocals transcended the group from a merely superb psychedelic rock group to something incredibly special. 1969's At Home is the groups best known release, often confused for a debut but in fact their second album.
Though it is an incredible call to make it is no far stretch to say At Home is one of the greatest rock albums of the era. Shocking Blue is rarely spoken of in the same breath as say, The Beatles or The Rolling Stones (the bands output just wasn't as longlasting and all encompassing as these groups managed to be) but they ended up scoring a gigantic hit with Venus (everybody has heard at least one cover of it), also Mighty Joe and Send Me a Postcard and writing at least two strongly underrated albums along the way.
At Home brings across a sense of the exuberant energy of the 60's, the band sounding completely fresh despite an archaic production quality. Musically, it feels quite varied though the bulk of tracks consist of the same instruments being used (guitar, bass, piano). With clever, satisfying arrangements that range from fun, mid-paced rockers (Boll Weevil, Love Machine, California Here I Come, Harley Davidson), to slower, downtempo affairs (I'll Write Your Name Through The Fire, I'm Your Woman) to offbeat, psychedelic experiments (Acka Raga, Love Buzz, which incidentally was covered by NIRVANA!!) the group always keeps an infectious rhythm happening. Throwing enough curveballs to the listener through guitarist Robbie van Leeuwen's electrifying leads and fills, the band never fails to be entertaining though the entire duration of At Home. Then there is Mariska Veres to deal with.
Quite simply, she is a sensational vocalist. Throughout much of the album she has a playful presence, her powerful voice full of a unique passion which perfectly compliments the energetic sounds of the band. However, it is her vocal delivery on tracks such as I'll Write Your Name Through The Fire,Long And Lonesome Road and California Here I Come which creates something so achingly just right, expressing it into words could do it no justice. A perfect marriage is made between the music and vocals, Veres providing an unmatched heart and soul to Shocking Blue that would be sorely lacking otherwise.
Gatefold Sleeve: EX. Front and back laminated. A great looking sleeve with just minimal thumb creases on the opening and one tiny 3mm nick to the back top. No writing, great edges with hardly any wear at all. The inside gatefold is also EX to NM. The spine is 100% legible.
Vinyls: EX. Both surfaces retain their original deep, glossy sheen. GREAT VINYL COPY WHICH WILL PROVE HARD TO BETTER!!! It is indeed rare to find this LP at all, leave alone in such supreme condition. The whole LP sounds great and plays to a high standard with great clarity, no groove-wear and no distortion and is very strictly graded a strong EX - solid play copy!! Just a couple of very wispy hairlines/paper retraction traces on each side . The labels only have one or two wispy spindle traces. I have played this on my very revealing setup with a Linn Sondek cartridge. Very light static on the beginning of each side, just for half a minute or so. The side 2 label has a tiny initial written to the top, not intrusive at all. Of course, NO skips, NO jumps, NO sticks. A superb keeper copy!!
Gradings are strictly in accordance with the Rare Record Collector Guide.
.
Important : International postage will be registered and insured if over GBP 20.00. These fees in England have gone up significantly last May. Please wait for my invoice before paying. Postage will be according to Royal Mail rates. Postage is NOT a money spinning exercise for me.
***This is a unique prime investment opportunity!!! Finding this classic album in any condition at all is nearly impossible!!! This is a great and seriously collectable super album!! You will buy into a piece of superb prog history.***
This is a unique investment opportunity!!! The next prog album to go completely through the roof. Finding this album in any condition at all is nearly impossible so late in the day. Get this while you still can. This value of the album is only going to go one way ... up and up ... until it will be totally unavailable at all for a reasonable price.
Important : International postage will be registered and insured if over GBP 20.00. Please wait for my invoice before paying. Postage will be according to Royal Mail rates. Postage is NOT a money spinning exercise for me.
Though there are rarely ever any problems with my items, I always try my very best to describe everything exactly! PLEASE REMEMBER to contact me FIRST, if you have any problems at all, before you leave feedback and star ratings, so I get a chance to turn any negative experience into a positive one! I can always happily sort anything out for you, if you let me know you have a problem! This way no one has to leave Negative/Neutral feedback - and we both walk away happy! Similarly with the amount of stars, anything less than a full 5 * rating is effectively detrimental to a seller's rating as lower ratings will incur higher Final Value Fees and lower priority in the bidlists eventually making it unattractive to list items on Ebay at all. I know of at least one major previous Ebay seller who has decided not to list via Ebay again. Please do NOT bid if you cannot give me at least 1 chance to sort everything out to your FULL satisfaction in the unlikely event of a problem. Thanks again!!
This an excellent investment opportunity!!! Any questions please ask me and I will try to answer soon.
price rating
