CURVED AIR - Air conditioning original 1970 Picture disc LP A1 / B1 + bonus

Back to listing after an enforced delay for a house move. These records are all from my personal collection built up over almost 50 years. Some were bought new, others pre-owned so condition will vary. Please do read and understand the detailed description which is my honest personal assessment - you can always check how good or bad that is by checking my feedback. My attempt at grading is based on the commonly used Record Collector grading system. Questions are welcome if anything is unclear. Happy bidding.

This listing is for an original copy of Curved Air's debut album from 1970 - now with bonus item

Curved Air
Air conditioning
UK WB label
1970
Cat Number: WSX 3012 dead wax matrix A1 / B1
Mode: Stereo

The Album:
Debut album from Curved Air. I believe that this was the first ever vinyl picture disc and as such is more a museum piece than a work of hi fi beauty. I have seen people describe copies of this album as 'excellent' - audibly excellent they are definitely not and never will be. Picture disc technology was very much in its infancy here and it is accepted that the sound quality on the early discs was murky, fuzzy and generally of poor quality. This copy is as good or bad as any you are likely to find - just please do not expect it to play with clarity, it will not. I ended up buying a copy of the subsequent traditional vinyl release to play and kept this one to look at. Caveat emptor. That said, it's a cracking album, very enjoyable
Bonus item - whilst listing this, it occurred to me that I might also include a spare copy of the traditional vinyl first release which I have. It is not a great copy as it has a number of visible surface scratches and plays with some background crackling in places. BUT even if you don't want it for playing, you might like to keep the picture disc in the sleeve, as of course the picture disc never came in a standard record sleeve. I'll add a couple of pictures - it's also a first press A1/B1

Condition:
Picture disc: As mentioned above, it's a good example of a groundbreaking event but no audio triumph. Visually, as a work of art, the vinyl is a stunning first. there is a slight creamy section on the rim of side 2, maybe there since pressing, I can't remember. The dead wax matrix numbers can be found - I included pictures to show where they appear.
the bonus traditional vinyl disc is probably in the G+ to VG- area

Overall:
A nice copy of this landmark album - I will not attempt to grade it for reasons explained above ... compared to traditional vinyl it falls well short, but as an example of its kind, it is probably as good as any other.

Terms:
Please note that I try to test-play at least part of each record before listing. I played much of this one, but if you do discover a problem which I might have missed, please do not hesitate to contact me and I will do all I can to rectify the situation.

Postage: Current UK internal weight ranges allow two or three LPs to be posted first class for the same cost as one. Second class charges can currently cover 5 or 6 albums but for 4-6 I'll use a second mailer. Approximate prices for normal postage with new custom packaging -

UK £3-69 first class for up to 1kg (1,2 or 3 average weight LPs), £3-19 second class for 1 - 3 or £3-58 for 4 - 6 LP's. Double LP's count as two

Europe £5.89 + £1.45 each additional,

Rest of world £8.09 + £2.70 each additional item

These amounts include estimated actual Royal Mail cost for first class or air mail, plus 39p for cost of packaging material (a brand new custom mailer with stiffener).

I'm happy to hold records for a short while if you wish to bid on more and combine shipment, but it helps if you can let me know particularly when bidding on items separated by a few days.

Apologies, but owing to unreliability of some postal services, I will not ship to Italy, Russian Federation, & other former Soviet countries unless a signed for service is selected and paid for.

 Losses: Royal Mail maximum compensation is £20 unless items are signed-for. Compensation on signed-for shipments is up to £50. Overseas purchasers - if your purchase is well over £20, a signed for service must be selected when paying or shipping will be at your own risk, not mine, and normal airmail will only be covered for up to £20.

Payment by Sterling cheque / money order, or via Paypal

The time has come to sell my whole vinyl collection as I know it won't be appreciated by my daughter or grandchildren, so I'm shifting it myself and hope I find good homes for it. Listed items are selected at random so there should be a decent if not particularly logical mix coming up over the next few months if you keep an eye on my other items now and in the future.

Thank you to all who have already given new homes to my beloved vinyl, and may you continue to enjoy these records for years to come.

Sorry about the recent several months' down-time but house moves are pretty chaotic as far as I'm concerned. At least all the vinyl arrived here safely!