Sold Date: May 31, 2023
Start Date: May 24, 2023
Final Price: $134.52 (USD)
Bid Count: 17
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NIRVANA "TO MARKOS III" Original 1969 U.S. stereo white label promo LP (Metromedia) MD-1018. VG/M-. Ultra RARE pressing of great 3rd LP by Patrick Campbell-Lyons & Alex Spyropoulos. 10 Pop Psychedelic tracks featuring Spooky Tooth, Lesley Duncan & Tony Visconti. Produced by Mike Hurst. 

The British psychedelic group Nirvana was actually the unlikely duo of Irishman Patrick Campbell-Lyons & Greek Alex Spyropoulos. They were the first rock act signed to Island Records, which had been releasing Jamaican Bluebeat & Ska records up until that time. Their first album “The Story Of Simon Simopath” was released in 1967 & is often cited as the first rock opera preceding “Tommy” by two years. It contained many good songs such as “Tiny Goddess” & “Pentecost Hotel” with their sound being somewhat akin to the post “Revolver” Paul McCartney- although John Lennon is also an influence on the more up-tempo material. The second album “All Of Us” appeared in 1968 & contained the U.K. Hit “Rainbow Chaser”. It is one of the first examples of “phasing” to be used on a pop recording. All was going well except for one thing- Nirvana was not a touring band. There had been a few showcase gigs utilizing outside musicians recruited just  for those shows but they never actually “went on the road”. Nevertheless, recording commenced on the third album “Black Flower” in 1969. Upon completion, Chris Blackwell rejected the LP & dropped the group but he did give the guys the tapes for the record & said they were free to release it elsewhere. They felt that a remix was necessary & a rich relative of Alex' put up the money with the stipulation that the album be dedicated to his ailing son Markos. That inscription “Dedicated To Markos” henceforth became the name relegating “Black Flower” to the name of one of the LP tracks. Mike Hurst produced,  Tony Visconti did some of the string arrangements while his wife Lesley Duncan sang vocal accompaniment. The backing band was none other than Spooky Tooth. New label Metromedia Records went belly-up just as it was coming out making it virtually impossible to find an original pressing- although some promo copies did leak out. This is one of those white label originals from 1969. In addition to “Black Flower”- “The World Is Cold Without You”, “Tres, Tres Bien” & the beautiful “Love Suite” are all strong pop-psychedelic songs that deserved a wider audience.