MARY MARGARET O'HARA Miss America SCARCE ORIG UK 1988 EX LP, GREAT SOUND +INNER.

Sold Date: February 24, 2019
Start Date: February 19, 2019
Final Price: £20.00 (GBP)
Bid Count: 3
Seller Feedback: 8620
Buyer Feedback: 268


ONEADAYRECORDS – Simply Delivering Quality Music to the World in Quality, Safe Packing.

Postage: UK £4.75 (£1 per extra record). Europe (including Russia) £12.50 (£2 per extra record). Rest of World (including ALL parts of the USA) £16.50 (£3 per extra record). All boxes signed for in quality, safe packaging – I NEVER use mailing envelopes that offer virtually no protection at all, and records WILL arrive damaged in them at some time as most record buyers will already know. Here, you get what you pay for – SAFE PACKING in BOXES using 7mm DOUBLE-WALL STIFFENERS including full side protection and bubble wrap, the records removed from the covers of course. All this very safe packing means I lose money on every box I post, but safe delivery is, and will always be paramount. You WILL see the difference when my packet arrives. Also, I will pay for insurance on any record that sells for over £100 at NO extra cost – that is UK and abroad. Also I aim to post the very same day after payment is received if possible. PLEASE NOTE: I will NOT send any item, no matter what its value without a Royal Mail or courier tracking number. ALL my items must be signed and trackable to comply with Ebay delivery rules. Please do NOT ask me to make any exceptions to this rule as no country offers 100% reliable service without it.

Posting to Russia: Yes, I do post to Russia. But delivery can take longer from the UK. So please be patient. I will submit a tracking number to the winning bidder, and when the packet arrives there it can be followed online using the Russian post website.

ALSO: I now apply the Ebay ‘2-day’ rule for non-payment to keep things moving – cash-flow is important for any small business.

ANY ITEM or ITEMS TO BE PAID WITHIN A MAXIMUM OF 6 DAYS or they will be cancelled – NO EXCEPTIONS.

FINALLY: Late payers, non-payers and ‘0’ bidders will now be blocked or cancelled at my discretion, as will any bidder who cancels a bid. Please only bid on my items if you want them.

Artist or Band: Mary Margaret O’Hara

Album Title: Miss America

Producer(s): Michael Brook & Mary Margaret O’Hara

TRACK LIST:

Side 1: To Cry About; Year in Song; Body’s in Trouble; Dear Darling; Anew Day; When You Know Why You're Happy.

Side 2: My Friends Have; Help Me Lift You Up; Keeping You in Mind; Not Be Alright; You Will Be Loved Again.

Label/Format: Virgin with matt, quite smooth surfaces.

Label Conditions: Both very clean, fresh and attractive with only one or two light, fine and faint spindle marks and no wear around the hole area.

Catalogue Number: V 2559

Mode / Speed: Stereo / 33.3 rpm.

Warps: Few vintage records are ever perfectly ‘flat’, so some slight or very gentle arm movement is normal. If any record I offer has more than that, I will mention it, and it can be assumed all I offer should track without issues, even on budget turntables.

Weight of this Record: 118 grams.

Country of Manufacture: England

Rarity: Scarce. An original cult classic that sold poorly and seldom seen on vinyl.

Original Year of Release: 1988

Matrix Nos: V 2559 A-1U-1-1 / V 2559 B-1U-1-1

Run-Out Groove Etchings: ‘DB TAPEONE’ [both sides]

Musicians: Mary Margaret O’Hara – vocals; Michael Brook – guitar, infinite guitar; Rusty McCarthy – guitar, acoustic guitar; Hugh Marsh – violin, DX-7 log rhythm; Bruce Moffet – drums; David Piltch – Elias 5-string bass, string bass; Hendrik Riik – bass; Don Rooke – lap steel guitar, rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar; John Sheard – piano; Michael Sloski – drums; Bill Whelan – piano.

Brief Info: Mary Margaret O’Hara is a Canadian vocalist, to date, this is her only full-length studio album and issued way back in 1988. Issued to critical acclaim – so-much-so, I bought a copy on release – and immediately I realised this was a very special album. An intense and powerful set, which is not the easiest of listens, but ultimately compelling and original. It failed to sell at all well, hence elusive. Even today I regard this very highly, my play-grade prove a joy, but the full-on nature of the songs seldom lets-up. Dark and uncompromising, it can be compared to other such singers as Leonard Cohen, Nick Cave, Tom Waits, and even Morrissey. It remains a mystery to me why this singer has not made more albums. Just one other as a soundtrack for the film ‘Apartment Hunting’ and a couple of EPs. A cult classic that deserved a much wider audience, something of a ‘lost’ classic in my opinion, this record seldom surfaces. This being the first I have seen in years and a very fine copy that appears hardly played. If you have never heard ‘Miss America’, I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Cover Grade and Format: NEAR EXCELLENT: (or thereabouts). A single unlaminated format with coated quite shiny surfaces. Printed and made in England, includes the lyric inner sleeve.

Cover Front: A small scuff on the bottom right corner tip and gentle rub traces near the bottom edge. Little else to fault on this fine looking front that overall remains fresh, clean and attractive. There is hardly any creasing on this front at all.

Cover Back: A small few light press marks apart, this back has little else to fault again. Any dulling gentle and light near the top and bottom.

Top Edge: Straight and barely worn.

Bottom Edge: Again straight, there is a pressure crack near the central area seen viewed end-on, a possible, if likely split repair. Is so, quite neatly done .

Right Edge(s), and Type: Clean, mostly very sharp with any thickening tiny and light. Record enters on this edge that is guaranteed untrimmed or enhanced.

Spine and Text: Solid, straight with minimal compression. A little light rubbing near the top, one figure of the catalogue number eroded, most other text lettering present as-seen.

Corners: A small front rub on the bottom right, any other wear minimal and light. Very fine shape retained with no heavy knocks.

Cover Summary: A strong example of this scarce 1980’s cover, one that coiuld prove difficult to find much better. Still an attractive example, mostly marked down for the small tip rub and crack/split on the bottom edge. So not for purists, but it should please many collectors.

The Inner Sleeve: NEAR EXCELLENT: no wear as such, but it has some quite light, patchy toning. No creasing or edge splits, the lyrics are printed on both sides.

Vinyl Condition/Visual Grading: EXCELLENT: arguably better. A very fine visual copy that is very clean with equally fine shine and solidly pressed. A copy with minimal plays on all the evidence with any surface traces very light, wispy and faint as seen critically under bright light. No penetrating stylus scratches, viewed in average room light, barely anything even registers. Visually a super record that should please many 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 equipment, all listed further down.]

Sound Quality and Audio Grading: This brilliant, but largely overlooked album plays even above it’s high visual grading with hardly anything to fault. Offering strong, distortion-free sound, all frequencies are sharp and clear – sound quality is very high with a wide dynamic range and very detailed sound. Any surface sounds are minimal indeed and this is an exceptional clean pressing with no tracking issues*. The odd sporadic tick only, this has a few quiet songs, but few will better this very first issue I feel sure. This was only available briefly as a genuine UK pressing, then probably deleted quickly. For those few here who bought this, most would have been on the now established digital formats. Both channels are clean and sharp, I am certain this record has been played very lightly and has been reasonably well stored, the record itself carefully and lightly handled. Little of any note spoilt my pleasure when play-grading this magnificant album. It could prove difficult to find significantly better and can be strongly recommended. I still regard this as one of the best albums many have probably never heard.

* As played-graded on a high-end Linn LP12 Sondek turntable with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Quintet Black moving coil cartridge tracking at 2 grams. Records are a ‘contact’ format, and few will avoid the odd minor sound blemish.

I am one of the most established sellers on Ebay, trading since 2001 and offering the finest 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 all elements of the items I offer for sale. You may notice I only submit records quite sparingly on Ebay as I Play-Grade every record I offer in their entirety – also on higher-end equipment – not just bits to guess a grade – visuals alone do not always tell a true story. I will try to 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 it’s good. I get just as much pleasure offering a relatively common record in near mint condition as the real rare items. All the pictures I use for your guidance are the item being offered with no digital enhancements. Room light factors can make things vary sometimes, that is hard to control, especially in winter. I hope the item below is to your liking – any questions can be emailed and I will do my best to answer you. I am enthusiastic, and have a fair degree of knowledge about many genres and I promise quality items. Please assume all records I offer have NO jumps, sticks, major warps or writing on covers or labels unless clearly stated to the contrary. Thanks for your interest and Good luck – MIKE.

Equipment Used for Play-Grading: I now play-grade ALL the records I offer (unless clearly stated to the contrary) on the following equipment:

Deck: Linn LP12/Hercules/Cirkus with Ittok Mk II arm and Ortofon Quintet Black moving coil cartridge (tracks at 2 grams). Amps: Naim Supernait 2 with Project USB phono stage and Tellerium Black interconnects. Speakers: B&W 805 Nautilus (bi-wired with Tellurium Black terminated cable) with REL subwoofer. All records I offer on Ebay are cleaned on a professional Nessie 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 D7500 DSLR 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.

PLEASE NOTE: I now exercise my right to open a dispute after the Ebay rule of TWO days if no payment is received. I will then cancel the dispute to end the bid, 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 as will any suspicious bids or bid bid retractions. 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] = £4.75

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

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

1 LP (Small Packet ‘Signed For’ with Standard Royal Mail Insurance [£50 maximum]) = £12.50 (enhanced Royal Mail insurance is an optional extra £3). Add £2 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 [£50 maximum]) = £16.50 (£17.50 for double sets). Add £3 per extra LP. (enhanced Royal Mail insurance is an optional extra £3)

Payment Conditions:

I prefer PayPal or cheque from UK winning bidders. I only 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 2 days for communication and 7 days for payment to arrive – if not I will relist the item or offer to the runner-up.

My Guarantee: If any winning bidder is not satisfied with their purchase I will offer a complete refund if the item is returned in the same condition is was sent e.g. as per the listing pictures.

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, 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.