Lot 54DEEP PURPLE-WHO DO WE THINK WE ARE-1973-FIRST PRESS JAPAN-WARNER.-NMINT/NMINT

SMOKIE-MIDNIGHT CAFE-1976-THE FIRST PRESS (PROMO) JAPAN-RAK-ERS-80494.  A very rare Japanese promo original of a cult album. After a good start in 1975, on a wave of growing popularity, the band went to California and began work on their 3rd album at Whitney Recording Studios. Where he actually records all the material for the album, only "What Can I Do" was recorded at London's Audio International Studios. Did you make a record, where would you think? On the iconic Abbey Road! The recording featured the classic "golden" Smokie line-up: Chris Norman guitar, piano vocals, Alan Silson guitar vocals, Terry Uttley bass guitar backing vocals, and Pete Spencer drums backing vocals.The length of the album is 43 minutes, 4 of the ten songs belong to the pen of "Double CHE", the rest are written by the members of the group."What Can I Do" was written by Alan Silson, and he also sang it. Mike Chapman produced the album, and it's noticeable, as they say, "with an unarmed ear," his signature violins are unmistakable.The album turned out to be very solid, it listens in one breath, not a single passing thing, it was on it that the very "branded" sound was finally formed, for which we loved Smokie so much. The album was released on April 9, 1976, the producer is EMI records, the copyright to the recording belongs to RAK records, on apples The company's RAC sailboat is on display. To promote the album, 3 singles were released during 1976: "Something's Been Making Me Blue", "Wild Wild Angels" and "I'll Meet You At Midnight". All of them came from the pen of Double Che, all were successful, and "I'll Meet You At Midnight" generally became the number on duty of all pioneer discos of the Soviet Union. ...more

KANSAS-MONOLITH-1979-THE FIRST HOLLAND-KIRSHNER PRESS-KIR83644. A rare European original of a cult album.  Monolith is the sixth studio album by the American progressive rock band Kansas, released in 1979.  Monolith initially sold about 800,000 copies, giving it gold status, but it eventually went platinum in the early 1990s. Kerry Livgren donated his platinum plate to the Kansas Historical Society. The album reached number 10 on the Billboard Albums Chart, becoming their third consecutive (and last) studio album to reach the top ten. The album remained on the Billboard Albums chart for a total of 24 weeks and was one of the top 100 albums of the charts (#100) for the calendar year 1979. ...more

IAN CARR WITH NUCLEUS-SOLAR PLEXUS-1971-THE FIRST UK PRESS-VERTIGO SWIRL-6360039. A mega rare original of the iconic jazz-rock progressive British band. Solar plexus is the third album by legendary musicians. On the previous two Nucleus albums, Carl Jenkins was the main songwriter. Now bandleader Ian Carr, who single-handedly wrote all the material for this album, has finally decided to take the reins. As a result of his conceptual approach, more spontaneous, groove compositions (reminiscent of the band's second album) alternate with more static and "compositional" ones (in the spirit of the first disc). Thus, the material here turned out to be, although without bright themes (Jenkins could not be surpassed), but more balanced and high-quality than on the previous disc. Yes, it is quite possible to blame Carr that his playing is devoid of Miles's emotional depths, but both he and the rest of the uncles from Nucleus have both individuality and a serious level of skill, which does not kill the music. Despite the seriousness of the ambitions, this is a very lively, diverse and mobile jazz-rock with a good game. In terms of mobility, a separate respect should be expressed to drummer John Marshall - it is always interesting to listen to him. Guitarist Chris Spedding doesn't do much solo, but he expertly maintains rocking rhythms. The final 15-minute Snakehips Dream is especially good: a cool groove and a real expanse for all musicians and listeners. ...more

BYRDS- TURN! TURN! TURN!-1966-THE FIRST UK PRESS-CBS-SBPG62652 Rare original of the cult album.  TURN! TURN! TURN! is the second studio album by the American rock band the Byrds, released on December 6, 1965 on Columbia Records. Like its predecessor, Mr. Tambourine Man, the album continued the band's successful combination of vocal harmony and rattling twelve-string guitar. The album reached number 17 on the Billboard Top LPs chart and climbed to number 11 in the United Kingdom. "Turn! Turn around! Turn Around!" the single beat the album by two months and topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Another single from the album, "Set You Free This Time", was less successful and did not reach the top 50 in the United States. In Turn! Turn! Turn! McGinn's songwriting contributions increased, and rhythm guitarist David Crosby first gained recognition as a songwriter on The Byrds album, but most of the original material was still written by prolific songwriter Gene Clark. The album included two Bob Dylan cover versions.: "Times are Changing" and the unreleased song "Lay down your Tired Melody" at that time.  This was the last Byrds album to feature Gene Clark in its entirety, before the release of the reunited original 1973 Byrds quintet album. ...more

PRINCE -SING "O" THE TIMES (2LP'S)-1987-FIRST PRESS UK/EU-GERMANY-WARNER-WX88/925577-1. A very rare original of the cult album. Sign "☮" The Times (pronounced Sign of the Times) is the 9th album by American singer and musician Prince. Released on March 31, 1987. The Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004) called the album "Prince's best album, the most holistic example of the breadth of his artistry, and perhaps the best album of the 1980s." The reviewer of Afisha Daily in a retrospective review gave the album a similar assessment. In 2017, the album Sign "☮" the Times was inducted into the Grammy Award Hall of Fame. The album reached number six on the Billboard 200 and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) four months after its release. It also entered the top 10 in Austria, France, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden and the UK and took first place in Switzerland. "Sign o' the Times", "U Got the Look" and "I Can never Take Your Man's Place" all made the top 10 hits of the Billboard Hot 100. After Prince's death in 2016, the album re-entered the Billboard 200 at number 20. ...more