ESP 1002 Albert Ayler / Spiritual Unity

Lp (brown silkscreened on orange, pre-release edition numbering 200 copies, signed by the artist). This item sold on ebay for $1284 in May of 2000. Here are the details of the auction..."This is a vintage recording, on the ESP Disk records label, entitled The Albert Ayler Trio ~ Spiritual Unity. The seemingly hand-painted or silk-screened jacket is in EXCELLENT condition. The vinyl is in EXCELLENT -- clean, shiny & pristine UNPLAYED-looking condition, like a majority of albums from this collection. There is an "ear" in the dead wax. Let me read you a little from the back of the jacket... Recorded in New York City, July 10, 1964, Produced and printed for ESP Disk by FRAP Studio. This pressing is a special pre-release edition numbering 200 copies. This signed by the artist and bears serial number ___. The number is not filled out on this album. This is a mega-rare pre-released album...WOW! This album is but one of a massive lifetime personal collection of former NYC professional deejay Jonathan Byrne, who hosted a jazz radio program on WFUV, Fordham University for nearly two decades."
（上記写真ともESP DISK LP ART IMAGE GALLERYより引用）

Albert Ayler のサイン

This is a very rare prerelease edition of this masterpiece. As stated on the back cover, this is limited to 200 copies. Some are numbered and autographed, although they are rarer than the non autographed and numbered copies.

The cover is (at least partially) hand painted. The cover will show evidence such as the textured letters on front cover. Seen in the last two photos is a second example of a prerelease cover, shown with different coloring on cover and text. A larger splotch of paint is seen on this cover, further evidence of hand painting.

This should come with a booklet, as shown in photos. Disc has original red labels and same matrix as silk screen first pressing, as well as having the Plastylite “P”. No deep groove on labels.

Recorded in New York City, July 10th, 1964.

© 1965 by ESP-DISK'

SPIRITUAL UNITY / ALBERT AYLER

ESPのアイラー「SPIRITUAL UNITY」ほどジャケット・デザインが同じで色違いのジャケットがたくさんあるレコードも珍しいのではないのだろうか？ヤフオクでも3rdや4thプレスまたは6、7thあたりのプレスを激レア！オリジナルと書いてある見だしには笑うしかないが、本物がそれほど多く日本に存在するとは考えられない。
オリジナル盤は白ジャケットに薄茶色の塗料を塗って、その上に赤のシルクスクリーン印刷がしてある手作りジャケット。裏もシルクスクリーン印刷。本作品は正規発売前の通販のみの販売らしく裏ジャケットの右下に「This pressing is a special pre-release edition numbrering 200 copies. ～serial number 116」と書いてある。本来だったらアイラーの自筆サインが入ったコピーが１枚入っているはずであるが所有のレコードは残念ながら欠落している。さてこのレコードはアイラーの自筆サインだけでは終わらない話題がある。このレコード1stプレスのみB面の「SPIRITS」に全く違う曲が入っている。。最近のCDで「SPIRITUAL UNITY＋１」となっているのは（確認していないが）この最初入っていた曲だと思う。すぐに間違ったスタンパーが差し替えられ、おそらく2ndプレス（黒地のジャケットのシルク印刷？）では本来の「SPIRITS」に戻ったと思われる。以後のレコードにはB面のみ「Bellsound」のマークが入るが片面にしか「Bellsound」の文字がないのにはこういう理由がある
「SPIRITUAL UNITY」は今となっては古典フリーというよりもモダンに近く初心者にも聞きやすいジャズで赤ラベル以外の溝あり文字ラベル（6、7thプレス？）やオレンジラベル（10th以降？）のあたりまでは音質が非常によく一度聴いてみても面白いと思う。今聴くと、きっとフリーとはあまり感じられないだろう。アイラーの最高傑作で、このレコードで完璧なアイラーの世界を体験出来る　（引用）

180 Riverside Drive, NY NY 10024
白地のジャケットにシルクスクリーン印刷
MONO Only

180 Riverside Drive, NY NY 10024

180 Riverside Drive, NY NY 10024

This is the first regular pressing. Early copies came with a booklet.

Recorded in New York City, July 10th, 1964.

© 1965 by ESP-DISK'

No cat. no. or address on cover.
180 Riverside Dr., New York 10024 address on label.

180 Riverside Drive, NY NY 10024

180 Riverside Drive, NY NY 10024
白地のジャケットに2種類のインクでシルクスクリーン印刷

白地のジャケットにシルクスクリーン印刷

180 Riverside Drive, NY NY 10024
通常の印刷

180 Riverside Drive, NY NY 10024

同梱のBooklet

156 Fifth Avenue, NY NY 10010

Recorded in New York City, July 10th, 1964.

Cover: Black print on white
Labels: Black print on white

Both labels have similar layout (compare images to this version, for example).

Cover and labels both have the 156 5th Avenue address.
Released between 1966 and 1969 due to this address (original issue has earlier 180 Riverside Dr., New York 10024 address).

Printed in U.S.A.

156 Fifth Avenue, NY NY 10010

ecorded in New York City on July 10, 1964.

© 1965 United International (ASCAP)

156 5th Avenue, New York 10010 address on sleeve/label.
Released between 1966 and 1969.

156 Fifth Avenue, NY NY 10010
MONO

156 Fifth Avenue, NY NY 10010
STEREO ? 誤記？

156 Fifth Avenue, NY NY 10010

BLACK COVER / MONO press / 156 5th Avenue address on the label
all compositions © 1965 United International

Recorded in New York City on July 10, 1964

156 Fifth Avenue, NY NY 10010

Recorded in New York City on July 10, 1964.

© 1965 United International (ASCAP)
Different label from Albert Ayler Trio - Spiritual Unity
156 5th Avenue, New York 10010 address on sleeve.
Released between 1966 and 1969.

Recorded in New York City on July 10, 1964.

© 1965 United International (ASCAP)

No address on sleeve/label.

156 Fifth Avenue, NY NY 10010

Cover: Black print on white
Labels: Black print on yellow

Cover and labels both have the 156 5th Avenue address. (The "Published by United International" has been removed from the left of the A-side label; no copyright info on the B-side label; compare to this version, for example: Spiritual Unity)

Recorded in New York City, July 10th, 1964.

156 Fifth Avenue, NY NY 10010

Recorded in New York City, July 10th, 1964.

© ESP-DISK' 1965

Black print on white sleeve and disk labels

Handwritten disk labels with 'All music composed by Albert Ayler and published by UNITED INTERNATIONAL' on Side A and 'esperanto-Mendu tiun diskon ce via loka disvendejo au rekte de ESP. Prezo: $4.98, pagu por internacia postmandato' on Side B (see photos)

156 Fifth Avenue, NY NY 10010

290 West End Ave, NY NY 10023

New LP

Recorded in New York City on July 10, 1964.

All compositions © 1965 Syndicore Music (BMI)

© & ℗2009 ESP-Disk' Ltd.

Hand-numbered edition of 1000.

New LP

Hand numbered out of 100

New LP

ESP's first recording session was on July 10, 1964, in the tiny Variety Arts Recording Studio, just off Times Square. Just before 1 PM, SUNNY MURRAY arrived, a large, genial walrus, moving and speaking with an easy agility that belied his appearance. GARY PEACOCK was next, tall, thin, ascetic looking, and soft spoken, with an introspective and kindly demeanor. ALBERT AYLER was last, small, wary and laconic. The walls of the reception area were covered with Latin album jackets. The engineer quickly set up the mikes and began the session. B sat outside in the reception area with Annette Peacock, Gary's wife. As the music was heard through the open outer door of the control room, felt a sense of jubilation. At one point, the engineer fled the control room for a few minutes, but returned in time to change the tape for the next selection. When the session was over, B learned that it had been recorded in monaural, although he remembered requesting a stereo recording. Happily, the engineer Joe had properly miked and mixed the session, and the recording stands today as a classic of the genre. After the session, the participants sat in a coffee shop next door, while they were paid and signed recording agreements. A few days later, B saw them off on their flight to Europe from Idlewild International Airport for a European tour. DON CHERRY was with them.

Personnel

Albert Ayler (ts)
Gary Peacock (b)
Sunny Murray (d)

Track Listing

1.	Ghosts (1st variation)
2.	The Wizard
3.	Prophecy (Spirits)
4.	Ghosts (2nd variation)

Press Quotes

"Spiritual Unity was the album that pushed Albert Ayler to the forefront of jazz's avant-garde, and the first jazz album ever released by Bernard Stollman's seminal ESP label. It was really the first available document of Ayler's music that matched him with a group of truly sympathetic musicians, and the results are a magnificently pure distillation of his aesthetic. Bassist Gary Peacock's full-toned, free-flowing ideas and drummer Sunny Murray's shifting, stream-of-consciousness rhythms (which rely heavily on shimmering cymbal work) are crucial in throwing the constraints off of Ayler's playing. Yet as liberated and ferociously primitive as Ayler sounds, the group isn't an unhinged mess -- all the members listen to the subtler nuances in one another's playing, pushing and responding where appropriate. Their collective improvisation is remarkably unified -- and as for the other half of the album's title, Ayler conjures otherworldly visions of the spiritual realm with a gospel-derived fervor." - Steve Huey

History

Lp (white on black)

Lp/CD (black on white)

Lp (red on white)

Lp (brown silkscreened on orange, pre-release edition numbering 200 copies, signed by the artist). This item sold on ebay for $1284 in May of 2000. Here are the details of the auction..."This is a vintage recording, on the ESP Disk records label, entitled The Albert Ayler Trio ~ Spiritual Unity. The seemingly hand-painted or silk-screened jacket is in EXCELLENT condition. The vinyl is in EXCELLENT -- clean, shiny & pristine UNPLAYED-looking condition, like a majority of albums from this collection. There is an "ear" in the dead wax. Let me read you a little from the back of the jacket... Recorded in New York City, July 10, 1964, Produced and printed for ESP Disk by FRAP Studio. This pressing is a special pre-release edition numbering 200 copies. This signed by the artist and bears serial number ___. The number is not filled out on this album. This is a mega-rare pre-released album...WOW! This album is but one of a massive lifetime personal collection of former NYC professional deejay Jonathan Byrne, who hosted a jazz radio program on WFUV, Fordham University for nearly two decades."

CD Via reissue

(ESP-Disk')