THE MANDRAKE MEMORIAL - PUZZLE (original Poppy label)

Description: The Mandrake Memorial Puzzle VG++/VG++ US 1970 Poppy Records - PYS-40006 Michael Kak was part of the folk scene playing guitar and banjo at clubs in Philadelphia and was a regular at The Second Fret. He was approached by a singer, Walter Rosenberg, and formed a band called The Candymen. They were regulars at The Second Fret but then Walter left the band and they became Cat's Cradle. The Second Fret had closed down and the owner, Manny Rubin, opened another club called The Trauma back in Philly, complete with light shows and strobe lights basing the venue on clubs he visited in San Francisco during the buildup of the psych scene in Haight Ashbury. Cat's Cradle had changed their name to The Mandrake Memorial. The players included Michael Kak (Rock-Si-Chord), Craig Anderton (Guitars) who was an electronics wizard who had written articles for Popular Mechanics and was making his own strange devices and fuzz pedals, Kevin Lally (drums) and Randy Monaco (bass, vocals) who were both with a popular Greenwich Village band called The Novea Police. They started playing as a band with drums, bass and two guitars but a company got a hold of the band and wanted them to feature an instrument that they had developed called a Rock-Si-Chord, which was an electrified harpsichord. Michael, by default because he knew how to play keyboards, took the instrument and it identified the band as having a baroque style. Very different at the time this became their signature sound. They opened for several bigger bands playing the college circuit and large venues on the east coast, The Boston Tea Party, The Electric Circus and The Electric Factory to name a few. Their first LP was recorded with the full band, but Michael left them in the middle of their second album and they were a three-piece band when they recorded their final LP. Musically strange and dreamy psych with rock moments. They were one of the few bands that were able to record their own music without record label restrictions. Critics loved Mandrake Memorial and set them apart from most of the psych bands of that era. This was their third LP. An original Poppy label issue. Gatefold cover is very clean with only some very slight edge wear and one corner ding. There is a very light date and radio station stamp on the back. Hardly noticeable, you really have to look for it. Record has one visible slight scratch on side two that ticks maybe four times, otherwise the record plays like new with NO other noises or ticks anywhere. Proper orange inner sleeve. Includes the rounded insert with the trippy psych drawing and picture of the band posing at five AM in the morning at the beach at Coney Island in the freezing cold. Quite rare in this condition. A must for every psych collection if you don't have it. I was Ina-Gadda-Da-Records.Long time buyer from E-bay and other record websites since the 90's.Please bear with me. I'm selling off my entire record collection (about 40,000 LPs) listing them one at a time.A long and arduous task. Lots of gems and rare stuff.Check out The Psychedelic Digest. GRADING DETAILS - SHIPPING DETAILS - RETURNS - FEEDBACK - ETC.Auctions are listed for 7 days. All records are Graded to the best of my ability and are rated VINYL FIRST / THEN COVER. For Double LPs Vinyl / Vinyl / Cover. GRADING DETAILS – Everything I list will be at least VG+ or better, both visually and audibly, unless I state otherwise. 95% of what is offered and up for bid is very clean with maybe 1 or 2 minor flaws. If it’s very rare, it may be offered with obvious visual marks, scratches, warps and might make some low-level noise. But this would be a rare instance. I’ll describe any flaws as best I can. I ASK THAT YOU READ THE FULL DETAILS AS DESCRIBED BY ME ABOUT THE LOOKS AND SOUND OF THE RECORD. Don’t base everything on a simple grading rate M, EX, VG++, etc. I’m not that good at it.AUDIBLE GRADING – All vinyl records are played before they are listed. Some records look bad and play good. Others look perfect but play badly. Any visual flaws that I see will be described and I will let you know if they make an audible noise. 95% of the records up for bid are very clean sounding. You may hear a minor tick or click as its spinning but typically light hairline scratches and sleeve marks Do Not Affect Play (DNAP) and should not detract from your overall listening pleasure.VISUAL GRADING - PLEASE READ THIS!!!COVERS - I'm a 72-year-old guy with Strabismus (an eye disorder). I try to visually describe every flaw that I can see, but sometimes I miss a small tear or a tiny seam split.SHELF WEAR generally means that the cellophane was removed when the LP was new and it sat on a shelf or in a box without a plastic sleeve, before they were available, for several years, so there can be some rub blemishes, sticker residue if it was purchased used, tiny tears, slight seam splits and other defects.EDGE WEAR usually means the picture wrap around the edge has been worn, sometimes into the cardboard itself. This usually happens on the top or bottom edge.CORNER WEAR is the same as edge wear but sometimes there will be a dent or ding at the corner. All 4 sides are suspect for this occurrence.RING WEAR occurs when a record was not stored in a protective sleeve for a very long time. Back in the day, plastic sleeves were not easily available. Most of us as teenagers, ripped off the cellophane and didn’t consider how the record cover was being stored. Most of the record covers laid on the floor or were stored in the closet or on a shelf for easy access. If they sat for a long time, earth movement, that nobody feels, causes vibration and the record sleeves would rub together and wear on the cover picture or illustration causing the ring wear and other flaws.THE VINYL RECORD ITSELF - I will try to visually grade both sides of the vinyl record. There might be some sleeve rubs or marks on some of these. All of my records were played more than once, unless they are sealed. If I mention ticks and or clicks in the description, that means that you can visually see and sometimes hear the imperfection. Most of these Do Not Affect the Play (DNAP). I try my best to see any flaws but understand I don’t Inspect these LPs with a High Lumens Tactical Light and a Magnifying Glass. If the visual flaws are obvious or severe, I try and describe these as best as I can. If there are a lot of visual scratches, it won’t be listed. The exception is if the LP is very rare. I will list a rare record that looks bad but plays pretty good.INNER SLEEVES - Most of the inner sleeves are simple paper sleeves and have slight splits, bends and tears on older LPs. If they’re really bad or split in half, I replace them with a newer paper or plastic sleeve. GENERIC means a blank paper sleeve.WARPED RECORDS - Warped records normally occur when they are stored near high heat. I will never send a warped record unless it is very slight and doesn't affect play. If you live somewhere in the world that has high temperatures that could affect package delivery. Insurance is a must to guarantee no loss on the item you bought. You are responsible for this request and there is an additional charge for insurance. Let me know. There is NO REFUND for a record that was sent not warped when packed but was delivered and warped and unplayable. I cannot put records on ice for delivery to high heat areas of the world. Buy package insurance so there won't be any $$$$$ loss in case this happens.HIGH END RECORDS - There will be a few more pictures for any records that are high end items. I will give a more critical inspection and description of both cover and vinyl. Ask for more pictures if you need them and I can send them to you.PACKAGING - LPs will be packaged in the proper corrugated cardboard box, we all know about, with extra cardboard pads. Each LP will have a clear plastic sleeve. The record itself will be removed and shipped within the sleeve separate from the cover to prevent any seam splits. All of the boxes I package records in are new and there are typically no problems. I can also ship in a Whiplash Box. But I will only do this if you request it. SEALED RECORDS - The vinyl record will NOT be removed from a sealed LP purchase for shipping. I would advise you to add additional insurance for all sealed LPs that are being shipped to high heat areas due to possible heat warping. No obligation, but it safeguards against some potential problems.PAYMENT - Payment is only through PayPal and due within 7 days unless you let me know. If payment has NOT been received within the 7-day payment period and you have NOT contacted me, the record will be relisted.I WILL SHIP WORLDWIDE, BUT INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING IS DETERMINED BY THE WEIGHT OF THE PACKAGE. DO NOT MAKE A PAYMENT UNTIL I SEND YOU AN INVOICE.PAYMENT EXTENTION - If you have won an auction and see another item that ends beyond the 7-day maximum payment period, let me know and I will hold your item until that bid period ends. This would be a special circumstance that would not extend beyond 10 days. I will invoice you for the full amount and expect payment at that point.POSTAGE COST - Typically, the minimum cost for USPS Media mail would be 1-2 LPs $5.50 USD. Canada 1-2 LPs around $24.00 USD. Europe, Japan and other countries around $33.00 USD for 1-2 LPs. Additional LPs as per total weight. I will send an invoice with the total postage cost. Everything is shipped via USPS. I don't use the E-Bay International shipping, because you and I have no control over the tariff costs, etc. Tracking for International shipping only covers destinations within the USA and only gives a Date of Arrival for all countries outside of the US. Your record may have arrived, but it is probably sitting at your customs depot. (Sometimes for weeks) It would be up to you to call them for details about your package.POSTAGE DISCOUNT - I combine the shipping for multiple record purchases but will only send a maximum of 10-12 records per package. Additional postage will be determined by the total weight of the package. An invoice will be sent to you.ADDITIONAL COSTS - Priority Mail, Insurance, etc. is available at additional costs. Let me know and I will send an invoice.REFUNDS - I will Refund for any item purchased and received that was not fully as described. Grading is difficult and is the usual cause of concern. We're talking used and 30-50 years old. THERE ARE NO PERFECT RECORDS. Even sealed records can have visual and audible flaws, ticks, clicks, skips and heat warps. IF YOU OPEN A SEALED RECORD AND IT IS WARPED SO BADLY THAT IT DOESN'T PLAY THROUGH, that usually means it was stored near or shipped in high heat. I have no way of knowing. All sealed records should be insured, just in case that happens. But with regard to a warped record that was sealed and is unplayable, contact me anyway, I will try and make it right. Any other flaws found on a sealed record that was opened by you, deems the LP non-refundable. If there is a concern, please contact me. We can always work things out.ANY RETURNS WILL BE POSTED AT BUYERS COST. If necessary, I will only refund the original purchase price.Please message me through E-Bay to discuss any problems or concerns.Positive Feedback is happily accepted and reciprocated.

Price: 40 USD

Location: Everett, Washington

End Time: 2024-12-30T21:57:09.000Z

Shipping Cost: 5.5 USD