This album should need no introduction to anyone who has been following my auctions, yet here is the elevator speech. The band warmed up for Jimi Hendrix when he played Dallas and San Antonio in early 1968, when Billy Gibbons was just 18. Hendrix took a shine to Gibbons and showed him some tricks backstage. Post-Sidewalks ZZ Top soon developed their own voice. However, this album is both highly original yet for a few moments startlingly derivative of Hendrix in terms of its guitar sound and use of feedback. Gibbons even namechecks Are You Experienced amidst the feedback freakout during the title track, Flashback. Scoun Da De also sounds heavily Hendrix influenced. Comes with the original cheap paper inner sleeve. This is a copy for cover freaks. After nearly 60 years it seems like it came out of the shrink wrap just last week and has full gloss. The Unipack gatefold creases are still so crisp that the cover does not fully open when layed out flat but actually tries to close itself. The spine which never had any title/lable info printed on it has some very light fading because, well, red/pink are the colours most prone to fading see photos . On the inside of the spine, where the Unipack/Printed in USA info are given, my name is neatly written in India ink. Hardly noticeable, but still there see photo . Absolutely miniscule corner bumping, as seen in the photos. Only a slightest hint of the very beginnings of ringwear are barely visible ca. 4cm above the head of bassist Don Summers on both panels of the inside cover photos. The white cardboard on the reverse image of the inside cover photo might be just beginning to yellow a bit behind where Billy Gibbons stands, i.e. near the entry to the vinyl pocket. There are a couple of dozen spindle marks on each label, which I have shown clearly in the photos, yet the spindle hole itself remains solid. Since I only spun this LP once to record it to cassette some 45 years ago, I played the whole LP all the way through just now after putting it through my Moth-MKII Pro Record Cleaning Machine. After a thorough listening and viewing under a very bright light with a magnifying glass, the vinyl has full gloss and is remarkably quiet and free of crackle and pop. Way better fidelity than the reissues The usual spider traces are visible from the cheap paper inner sleeve. There is some light crackle during the 30 second lead-in to Flashback on Side 1, which is chosen here as the video/sound file. This is actually the most surface noise evident on the whole LP, and it is minimal. Seriously hard to part with and I hope this goes to a good home
I am planning to list some ultra-rarities from my personal trove of vinyl LPs and 45s over the coming months. These have been painstakingly collected since the late 1970 s. Included are the absolute crown jewels of psychedelia, garage, prog, acid folk and folk-rock, all ranked 3-6 stars in Hans Pokora s books. Artists like Vashti Bunyan, The Haunted, Fresh Maggots, Kaleidoscope, Plastic Cloud, Loudest Whisper, Reign Ghost, Synanthesia, Blues Section, Jormas, Mighty Baby, Sunforest, Trees, The Folklords, Anne Briggs, Kak, Moving Sidewalks and countless others. Most are stupidly rare, especially in such jaw-dropping condition. All have been extremely well cared-for across 4 decades, and some are nearly un-played. In many cases, I also have the accompanying 45s for sale, including insanely rare non-LP tracks for e.g. Vashti Bunyan, Reign Ghost, Kak, Kaleidoscope, etc. These are not spare copies, these are THE copies from my personal collection. I am selling these only reluctantly, and if the first few samples do not attract an appropriate level of interest, I will simply return the rest of them to storage. All records have been dust vacuumed on a Moth-MKII Pro Record Cleaning Machine.
My vinyl rankings are only slightly modified from Goldmine Standard for grading Please read them below carefully. I will describe every LP and 45 in detail and include photos as well as sound files. If you pay close attention to the cover/vinyl condition descriptions, check the photos in high-resolution and listen to the sound files, then you should know exactly what you are aiming for before you start bidding. I try to carefully note any flaws with the disc and the cover so that there are no surprises when the box arrives. I have 100 positive feedback on eBay and want to keep it that way. If there is ANY issue after receiving a shipment, please let me know immediately so we can resolve it before sending any feedback.
Please do not pay before confirming your preferred shipping method and total shipping costs The domestic shipping costs to US are NOT real since the item comes from Finland The international shipping costs also depend on the buyer s location and preference in terms of service used. NOTE for US and Canadian buyers: Apparently, I CANNOT ship to Europe as eBay US only recognizes the buyer s official eBay address. Otherwise they hold my payment for 30 days and I cannot do that.
Buyer pays packaging, which costs 5 USD. I use top quality packaging and need to cover those costs, which will be included in the invoice. Vinyl will be packed extremely securely and LPs are double-boxed with cardboard stiffeners added inside the inner Euromailer to increase stability to avoid any damage in transit. The discs are always removed from the jackets to prevent seam splits, and all albums and 45s come in plastic outer sleeves. Each LP itself comes in a VRP rice paper-style inner sleeve. UPS and DHL Global Express Shipping from Finland are both available with or without insurance. Finnish Posti service is available to everywhere except the US, albeit without insurance. Posti no longer sends packages of any kind to the US, only documents/letters.
Be sure to check my other listings now and in the coming months as these items almost never turn up for sale, much less in this condition
I do not use Mint M unless the album is sealed. Near Mint NM means I literally unsealed the record myself and played it once or twice to record it to cassette. Any surface noise is therefore a function of the pressing and not due to wear and tear. I do not use EX.
Very Good Plus Plus VG will show only very minor if any wear, has been extremely well taken care of and plays with top-notch sound. The cover is crisp with minimal defects, and the record label shows very few spindle marks or other signs of wear or damage. The vinyl retains full gloss and for 45s the picture sleeve is mostly intact. This is as close to NM as it going to get for 99 of rare vintage vinyl for sale anywhere.
Very Good Plus VG will show minor yet visible cover wear, has been well taken care of and still plays with generally excellent sound. Spindle marks on the label may be more pronounced, yet vinyl gloss and sonic clarity both remain solid and surface noise minimal. For 45s the picture sleeve is intact but has significant defects, such as seam splits, age-related discoloration, wrinkling or visible rubbing.
Very Good VG will show visible wear and tear on the cover, have significant spindle marks on the label and the vinyl will have lost some of its gloss and/or sonic clarity. Surface noise is evident. I will offer almost no LPs or 45s rated VG as I simply do not own them, except a very few that are exceptionally rare in any condition.
