Item Description
CARAVAN - S/T Pillar sleeve A beautiful and extremely rare copy of this 1968 UK 1st press prog rock classic on the coveted VERVE FORECAST label, STEREO SVLP 6011 Matrix Numbers :Side 1 SVLP 6011 A-1 with mother stampers 1 and G at 9 o clock and 2 o clock respectively Side 2 SVLP 6011 B-1 with mother stampers 1 and R at 9 o clock and 3 o clock respectively The appearance of the heavy duty vinyl is excellent .
Beautifully jet black lacquered sheen, completely flat and with a wonderful gleaming appearance.
Hard to believe that any piece of vinyl can possibly be in as good a condition as this 49 years after it s release, but for such a classic prog rock album as this - well...it is I have looked hard at both sides of the vinyl under a bright halogen light and can just make out a few very faint surface paper scuffs and wispy hairlines but wispy is too strong a word and to even say that these are superficial is an overstatement.
Remarkable.The labels are pristine - straining my eyes I could just make out a single very faint spindle trail adjacent to the centre hole on side 2, but that s all.The front side laminated Garrod Lofthouse outer sleeve is excellent.
There is no scuffing on any of the edges and the spine is rigid and near perfect with all writing perfectly legible.
The colouring of this iconic sleeve, on both sides but especially the front, remains totally clear, well defined, and vibrant.
Each corner remains a well defined right angle with minimal rubbing just noticeable on the bottom right hand corner.
There is some very minor laminate surface creasing on the front side adjacent and perpendicular to the front edges and on the reverse side the flip backs remain are in overall excellent condition and fully functional but there is some minor scuffing on the bottom side flip back see photo .
There is no unwanted writing, no doodles, no tears, no splits, no fraying on the opening edges...just wonderful Finally, the quality of the audio is an overall EXCELLENT.
Great tone and clarity throughout with no clicks, skips or pops .
I m tempted to grade the audio quality as excellent plus but there is just the hint of some background static at the beginning of each side and during some of the quieter moments - there is no obvious reason for this except to assume that this is down to some dust in the grooves from 40 years of storage.
But even this is not intrusive to the tracks themselves, each of which makes for a great listen.
Even with brand new vinyl there is often some slight crackle/static and and any static on this record falls into this category.I am sure that some sellers would grade this copy as near mint ...
a strong excellent is my honest assessment but I would add that I am certain you would need to search high and low and fork out a lot of money for a better condition copy.The tracks are :Side 1 :1.
Place Of My Own2.
Ride3.
Policeman4.
Love Song With Flute5.
Cecil RonsSide 2 :1.
Magic Man2.
Grandma s Lawn3.
Where but for Caravan would IComes with original plain white inner sleeve - no splits or tears and minimal creasing with PATENT APPLIED FOR text and still fully functional.
I always supply a new plain white inner as a matter of course.In summary an EXCELLENT copy of this very rare and highly sought after 1968 UK prog rock 1st press classic, which would grace any serious vinyl collection.
If you require any further information, including photos, then let me know and I ll do my best to oblige.
If this record interests you then take a look at my other 60 s 70 s classic vinyl listings.A bit about myself : I have been collecting vinyl for more than 48 years and have amassed a huge collection covering a varied genre, but mostly of 1960 s and 70 s origin.
Most of my records were originally bought by myself for my own collection, but over the years I have embellished my collection by buying records from a variety of sources : friends/acquaintances, car boots, auctions, and even through putting up a vinyl wanted notice in my wife s shop I never intended selling any of my records but now I am retired and a combination of space requirements caused partly by duplication and a need to help fund my retirement has prompted me to rationalise my record collection and sell many of my much loved gems.
My ebay feedback speaks for itself so rest assured that you are buying from a trusted seller and in the very unlikely event that you are unhappy with your purchase just e-mail me and I ll sort out the problem.
I offer a no quibble refund policy.
On the subject of postage, I take great care in the packaging of all items, using a proper vinyl cardboard mailer along with at least two cardboard stiffeners.
I take great care in removing the record from the outer sleeve in order to prevent sleeve damage in transit and I always insert the vinyl, outer sleeve and inner into a clear plastic sleeve, thus adding further protection.
For this item postage packaging will be Royal Mail 1st class, tacked and signed for : UK 5.00, continental Europe 10, and Rest of the World 15.
I do discount post packaging costs for multiple purchases.
I do NOT profit from postage.Good luck with your bidding Richard Descriptions of any records I sell comply with the Rare Record Price Guide grading guidelines :MintDescription: The record itself is in brand new condition with no surface marks or deterioration in sound quality.
The cover and any extra items such as the lyric sheet, booklet or poster are in perfect condition.
Records advertised as Sealed or Unplayed should be Mint.ExcellentDescription: The record shows some signs of having been played, but there is very little lessening in sound quality.
The cover and packag ing might have slight wear and/or creasing.
Very GoodDescription: The record has obviously been played many times, but displays no major deterioration in sound quality, despite noticeable sur face marks and the occasional light scratch.
Normal wear and tear on the cover or extra items, without any major defects, is acceptable.
GoodDescription: The record has been played so much that the sound quality has noticeably deteriorated, perhaps with some distortion and mild scratches.
The cover and contents suffer from folding, scuffing of edges, spine splits, discoloration, etc.
Fair Description: The record is still just playable but has not been cared for prop erly and displays considerable surface noise it may even jump.
The cover and contents will be torn, stained and/or defaced.Poor Description: The record will not play properly due to scratches, bad surface noise, etc.
The cover and contents will be badly damaged or partly missing.
BadDescription: The record is unplayable or might even be broken, and is only of use as a collection-filler.
