VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR H to HE - SUPREME UK N/M LP

	£		227
	$		301

ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World.

Postage: UK £4. Europe £10. Rest of World £14. ALL signed for. – NOTE: I now apply the Ebay ‘4-day’ rule for non-payment.

Artist or Band: VAN DER GRAAF GENERATOR

Album Title: H to He, Who am the Only One.

Producer(s): VDGG.

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: Killer; House With No Door; The Emperor in His War-Room: Part 1 - The Emperor; Part 2 - The Room.

Side 2: Lost: Part 1 - The Dance of the Sand and Sea; Part 2 - The Dance in Frost; The Pioneers Over C.

Label/Format: Charisma – pink scroll with smooth surfaces.

Label Conditions: Two STUNNING examples, ultra clean, fresh and highly attractive and I am struggling to find a single spindle trace at all. This beauty is reinforced by supreme sound quality as well and that, believe me, can never be guaranteed on this label.

Cat Number: CAS 1027.

Mode / Speed: Stereo / 33.3 rpm.

Weight of this Record: 125 grams. A good average weight.

Country of Manufacture: England.

Rarity: This is never an easy record to find in such conditions. A notoriously difficult cover and record, some early copies of this one had a pressing fault that affected play – this smooth label pressing does NOT have it and this one offers the most incredible sound quality throughout. This copy was pressed by EMI and to the highest of standards and this is little short of connoisseur standard.

Original Year of Release: 1970.

Matrix Nos: CAS 1027 A-1U / CAS 1027 B-1U

Mothers / Stampers: 2 GL / 1AD

Musicians: Peter Hammill – lead vocals, acoustic guitar, piano; Hugh Banton – Hammond & Farfisa organs, piano, oscillator, vocals, bass guitar; Guy Evans – drums, tympani, percussion; David Jackson – alto, tenor, baritone saxophones, flute, vocals; Nic Potter – bass guitar. Guest: Robert Fripp – guitar on ‘The Emperor In His War Room’.

Brief Artist & Album Info: ‘H to He’ was the third album and another progressive classic. Fronted by the fairly eccentric and intense vocalist Peter Hammill, VDGG made some of the most complex and inspired sounds of the early to mid-70s. David Jackson, the saxophonist often played two simultaneously creating a mesmerising sound and often an amazing racket. These electric reeds were heavily treated and made the dual saxes sound more like eight! Musically complex using constantly changing time structures and like fellow progsters, King Crimson their albums have great highs and lows in volume. This album preceded the legendary Pawn Hearts, that still for me ranks as one of the greatest true progressive rock albums ever. A marvellous original band that were under-appreciated at the time, but adored by the few (myself included) – Hammill remains one of rock’s great exponents of originality and mildish extreme. This copy on offer is a beauty – and something of a change – it plays superbly, as near as I dare suggest for one of the most difficult ‘vinyl’ bands. Always delighted (when possible) to be able to state this. The problems I have heard and encountered with early Charisma records, especially the textured label pressings, make them a lottery. Even mint, barely played examples can hide the most horrendous pressing noises and distortion – simply pressing flaws that cannot be seen but certainly can be heard. So it is always with a certain trepidation I play even the finest looking copies. Well this one failed to disappoint and offers the most powerful, detailed and cleanest sound I have heard for some considerable time. No pressing noises or crackle, simply top quality audio sound and powerful dynamics that all remain focused and precise. The highly challenging wear-prone sleeve is in amazingly clean and shows little ageing or blemishes. Clearly cover protected and well cared for, this is one too hold, view and enjoy, not hidden away awaiting a better one. Such examples come along all to infrequently, so any collector needing this legendary prog classic – do NOT lose it.

Cover’s Potential for Wear: Very high with a highly wear-prone ink and surface. These seldom seem to show up even EX with VG (or less if graded correctly) being almost the standard. Massively prone to rubbing, chipping and most of all – ringwear, few escape it.

Cover Grade and Format: EXCELLENT(++): and one of the very best I have ever seen. This really is superb with the deepest most unworn surfaces I have ever seen. An unlaminated gatefold format with matt smooth surfaces. Printed and made in England by the E. J. Day Group and with the first B&C credits.

Cover Front: Very dark, rich and unfaded artwork that shows barely even a hint of rubbing and any marks are beyond minuscule – the odd edge tiny chip being critical. One fine surface crease near the top edge but little else to fault. Clean, fresh and highly attractive, one to enjoy, not hide away. It does come close to reminding of new and only one in a hundred (or more) will still survive like this.

Cover Back: Very similar – the richness of the colour and lack of ringwear is a massive bonus. Any surface traces are tiny, fine and faint as seen (critically) under angled light. An ultra faint price sticker outline can just be seen near the top right corner – a faint dull only – there is NO pulling or damage to the surface whatsoever.

Cover Inner Gatefold: Both faces appear practically as new.

Top Edges: Both straight and unworn – beyond unusual to say the least – and there are NO tip-ins.

Bottom Edges: Practically the same again, any rub traces are minute.

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, sharp with no wear, burring or thickening and both guaranteed untrimmed. Record entered on the back edge.

Spine and Text: A supreme spine as well: very solid, straight, no compression and folded squarely with all edges meeting neatly together and parallel too. Again highly wear prone but this shows barely anything. All text ultra clean and neat and importantly, present, totally unworn as my close-up picture will verify.

Corners: Small tip rubs are almost the very least that can be expected. Excellent shape is retained.

Cover Summary: A marvellous example and incredibly difficult to find on a B&C, E. J. Day printing. I have seen some looking plain ugly with heavy creasing, fading, moderate, even severe rubbing and worse of all – heavy ringwear. This is one for the more discerning collector.

The Inner Sleeve: EXCELLENT(++): guaranteed original and with only a few light and faint tone spots, this also reitterates how little the record has been removed. A plain white solid unlined inner with no creasing and all edges unsplit with no repairs.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: MINT(-): and I am so tempted to grade full Mint – I am not even convinced this had been played before – only very rarely would I even dare grade any VDGG album this highly. This could be the copy collectors of this difficult band have been waiting for. This record is not even ‘rin-in’ in vinyl terms and it’s sounds magnificent. No pressing faults on this one, this plays practically perfectly and this is a VERY challenging album. These type of heavy prog albums are highly intolerant of heavy stylus abuse and careless handling. This is a sublime visual copy and few originals will match or better than – I cannot see a noteworthy mark or blemish on two ultra clean playing surfaces, and I reitterate again, both labels appear mark-free too. Super clean, shiny, jet black and very solidly pressed, they simply do not get better, and do remember, this is a record into it’s 42nd year. A copy without any doubt, hardly even played – possibly not at all until my mandatory sound check, this is a real beauty and at last a pressing to complement the wonderful music. Visually a copy that should please all collectors.

Album Played For Grading: Yes. [I play ALL records I offer before submitting to Ebay, also the record is played in its entirety unless clearly stated otherwise. I do NOT play snippets or joining grooves to check for sound quality and quietness – I play from the beginning to end via clinically revealing B&W speakers that include the legendary tweeter from their awesome Nautilus range that reveals every blemish or miniscule sound present on any record.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This magnificent progressive rock classic plays up to it’s high visual grading with practically nothing to fault - a bold statement I know, but true. The very best pink scroll copy yet for one of the most demanding records within it’s genre. Strong, totally distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear. Sound quality is astonishing with a massive dynamic range and very detailed sound. Complex sounds on a challenging album, these intricate grooves are so easily damaged by less than worthy pickups, few will play this focused and sharp throughout. Any surface sounds are very few, gentle and faint and I noted no pops or clicks – remember the highs and lows in VDGG’s music. Charisma records did vary in pressing quality and such is the vast range of quiet to loud, silence throughout is near impossible on vinyl but this gives of it’s very best. Both channels are clean and sharp with very clean grooves that clearly have avoided any of the aforementioned abuse. I feel certain this record has been hardly played and has been very well looked after - both cover and record exceptionally so. This one was a real thrill to hear this clean and the inbuilt power and dynamics within these vintage grooves was a joy from start to finish. This copy will still prove near impossible to find better. My highest possible recommendation is merited.

Now one of the most established sellers on Ebay and still offering the finest and most accurately described and graded records I can find. 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, a couple more at weekends if time permits, hence the name - time rarely allows for more as I Play-Grade virtually every record I offer in their entirety, not just bits to guess a grade - 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 collector – 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 and scanned labels will give a more accurate representation of the genuine colour than flash photography where light is variable. I cannot guarantee total accuracy for colours however but most will be very close. If any picture I take looks more flattering than the actual item for any reason, I will clearly state the fact in the advert and vice-versa. 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, sticks, warps or writing on covers or labels unless clearly stated to the contrary. Thanks for your interest and Good luck – MIKE.

Deck: Linn LP12/Hercules/Cirkus with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Rondo Red moving coil cartridge (tracks at 2 grams). Amps: Naim Nait 5i with Project USB phono stage and Chord interconnects. Speakers: B&W 704 Floorstanding 3-way Monitors (bi-wired with QED Silver terminated cable). All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional VPI-17 vacuum machine before play-grading for the cleanest and best possible sound and will include a brand new lined inner and protective cover too. Pictures taken with a Nikon D5000 SLR Digital Camera.

PACKING - THIS IS WHAT YOU GET.

What You Get: To confirm to the strict Ebay rules on shipping, I must now send ALL my packets ‘Signed-For’ with NO exceptions. Both buyers and sellers want their packets to have a safer journey and this is not a bad thing.

I now offer the fastest possible posting, often the very next day after payment is received or within two to three days maximum (unless on holiday). I only use FIRST-CLASS Mail. The record’s cover will be placed within a BRAND NEW soft protective sleeve and the actual record will be professionally cleaned on my new VPI-17 Pro vacuum system to give ultimate clean grooves and playing surfaces and the best possible looks and ultimate sound quality. You will NOT get tired, dull looking, dust infested records inside worn and foggy covers with tatty inners from this seller and that’s a promise and guarantee. All records are posted in professional boxes (NOT Mailers, these do not offer any real protection). The record(s) are REMOVED from their main cover to avoid edge splits and placed within a brand new polylined inner. The record’s original inner will be included if available. The boxes are then reinforced with at least TWO, ULTRA THICK stiffeners for maximum extra protection – these are FOUR TIMES thicker than commercial stiffeners and are custom-made for oneadayrecords. Really rare and expensive albums will even be Double Boxed if deemed necessary and possible. When larger boxes are used, the thick record and stiffener ‘sandwich’ is then thickly embedded into bubble-wrap to bulk out the record inside the box to centre the item inside to reduce the risk of damage still further. Printed address labels are used for clarity as well as a sender label. Customers requests or special needs for P&P will be respected if at all possible but ‘Signed-For’ posting is NOT an option anymore. I do not profit on posting and the cost of this lavish packing is NOT even charged for, I offer probably the best-value and safest shipping possible for ultimate confidence. The boxes and ultra thick double-wall stiffeners and bubble wrap make a near impregnable fortress for safe shipping and this is used inland and overseas for ALL my records, not just the rare and expensive. I will invoice any winning bidder as soon as possible after the auction ends. My ‘loss’ or ‘damage rate’ is less than one in two thousand based on over 7,000+ items sold in nearly 10 years of Ebay trading and I consider that pretty exceptional. The only damage rate acceptable for this seller is ZERO and I think my packets will offer just that. It would take a vicious postman or postal service to damage these for sure. Even one of these stiffeners cannot be bent by hand, so what chance 3 or 4 inside a box? Oneadayrecords is a MAILER-FREE ZONE. I discount of course for multiple purchases with a maximum of FIVE records per box (one double can sometimes be included subject to total weight). I will not respond to questions on shipping costs as all the details are included here and on ALL of my adverts. Details below:

NOTE: First Time Bidders: Please as me first.

PLEASE NOTE: I now exercise my right to open a dispute after the Ebay rule of FOUR days if no payment is received. I will then cancel the dispute to end the, again after the mandatory FOUR days and then offer the item to the runner-up or relist. The non-payer will also be blocked from my Ebay site and they take the Ebay consequences (a strike or removal from the system). Small businesses need prompt payment to trade and these strict rules WILL be applied.

SHIPPING COSTS & CONDITIONS – THESE comply with EBAY’S RULES - PLEASE READ CAREFULLY:

Posting & Packing: UK & CHANNEL ISLANDS all now sent via Recorded Delivery:

1 LP (FIRST-CLASS Recorded Delivery with Standard Royal Mail Insurance) [Signed For] = £4.

1 LP (Special Delivery with Standard £500 Maximum Insurance) [Signed For, Next Day] = £7.50. (this includes insurance of £500). Add £2 per extra LP.

Posting & Packing: EUROPE & SCANDINAVIA. (Airmail Only):

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£46 maximum]) = £10. (Royal Mail insurance is an optional extra £3). Add £3 per extra LP.

Posting & Packing: ALL OVERSEAS (non-European) e.g. USA (ANY PART OF); South America; New Zealand; Australia; Canada; Japan and other Far East; (Airmail Only: I NEVER use Surface Mail):

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£46 maximum]) = £14. Add £4 per extra LP. (Royal Mail insurance is an optional extra £3)

Payment Conditions:

I prefer PayPal or cheque from UK winning bidders. I can accept PayPal from overseas bidders or direct payment into my bank account.

Potential Bidders: I will cancel any bids I feel are time-wasters. A maximum 3 days for communication and 7 days for payment to arrive - if not I will relist the item or offer to the runner-up. Fast deals get great feedback from me. Any questions - please ask and thanks for looking.

My Guarantee: If any winning bidder is not satisfied with their purchase I will offer a complete refund. I will not refund if any defect detail is clearly stated on the advert and missed by the buyer, so read the item description carefully. If any overseas collector does not understand anything in my listing, please email and ask me to help. Thank You.

SOME GENERAL GUIDES TO WEAR AND CONDITIONS TO HELP YOU DECIDE

My Use of Description Terminology: Surface Marks = Superficial, usually light marks, hairlines or light scuffs that rarely sound. Scratch = a needle mark that goes below the record’s surface, some will sound, some will not, my play-grade will inform. Original = a record that has been pressed with the first label design which does NOT necessarily mean a very first pressed record. First Pressing = A record that I believe or know to be a genuine very first pressed record. I do not claim to always know for sure, and that’s why I state the stamper and matrix numbers if at all possible, for those who claim to know what they all mean, the information is there for the collector to decide. I prefer to use terms like ‘Early Copy’ rather than ‘First Pressing’ if I am not totally sure. Surface Sound = Mild, light sound, usually light crackle or similar. Distortion = Break up of the actual sound caused by groove wear or damage from a chipped stylus – the most undesirable form of unwanted sound, vintage mono records were the most prone to this happening but not exclusively so. The symptoms of distortion are high frequency clipping, moderate constant crackle or an echo type sound quality. Violin, piano and vocals are most prone to groove-wear distortion. Feathering = Fraying or softening of the entry edge of a cover. Covers with feathered entrance edges are more likely to have had the actual record inserted and removed more than a non-feathered, sharp-edged cover which are always far more attractive. Set Off, actually a printer’s term for dark ink leaving mild residue on pale or white ink when rested upon. e.g. when a gatefold cover has black ink closed against white, this can leave some black residue on the pale area – this is mostly unavoidable or course.

The Argument for Vinyl Original sound and mix (mono mixes are rarely available on CD), high quality sound on clean copies (played on a hi-end dedicated analogue system – breathtaking sound!), beautiful, large format covers, artwork, inserts and even full size posters etc; huge investment potential, and the pleasure of owning ‘the real thing’.