Neil Young - "Tonight's the Night" in stereo on Reprise 2221. Immacuate 1970's pressing of album consistently ranked among the best of all-time. I've been told that the first pressing was on custom black labels.

Record Grade: Near Mint

Cover Grade: Mint-, gatefold cover

Labels: Brown, "steamboat" logo

About the Album: by William Ruhlmann

Written and recorded in 1973 shortly after the death of roadie Bruce Berry, Neil Young's second close associate to die of a heroin overdose in six months (the first was Crazy Horse guitarist Danny Whitten), Tonight's the Night was Young's musical expression of grief, combined with his rejection of the stardom he had achieved in the late '60s and early '70s. The title track, performed twice, was a direct narrative about Berry: "Bruce Berry was a working man/He used to load that Econoline van." Whitten was heard singing "Come On Baby Let's Go Downtown," a live track recorded years earlier. Elsewhere, Young frequently referred to drug use and used phrases that might have described his friends, such as the chorus of "Tired Eyes," "He tried to do his best, but he could not." Performing with the remains of Crazy Horse, bassist Billy Talbot and drummer Ralph Molina, along with Nils Lofgren (guitar and piano) and Ben Keith (steel guitar), Young performed in the ragged manner familiar from Time Fades Away — his voice was often hoarse and he strained to reach high notes, while the playing was loose, with mistakes and shifting tempos. But the style worked perfectly for the material, emphasizing the emotional tone of Young's mourning and contrasting with the polished sound of CSNY and Harvest that Young also disparaged. He remained unimpressed with his commercial success, noting in "World on a String," "The world on a string/Doesn't mean anything." In "Roll Another Number," he said he was "a million miles away/From that helicopter day" when he and CSN had played Woodstock. And in "Albuquerque," he said he had been "starvin' to be alone/Independent from the scene that I've known" and spoke of his desire to "find somewhere where they don't care who I am." Songs like "Speakin' Out" and "New Mama" seemed to find some hope in family life, but Tonight's the Night did not offer solutions to the personal and professional problems it posed. It was the work of a man trying to turn his torment into art and doing so unflinchingly. Depending on which story you believe, Reprise Records rejected it or Young withdrew it from its scheduled release at the start of 1974 after touring with the material in the U.S. and Europe. In 1975, after a massive CSNY tour, Young at the last minute dumped a newly recorded album and finally put Tonight's the Night out instead. Though it did not become one of his bigger commercial successes, the album immediately was recognized as a unique masterpiece by critics, and it has continued to be ranked as one of the greatest rock & roll albums ever made.

All of my records are shipped in sturdy cardboard LP or 45 rpm mailers with appropriate padding (heavy cardboard fillers or bubble wrap or "peanuts" or some combination thereof". With the exception of sealed LP's, all LP's are removed from their outer sleeves to prevent seam splitting. Upon request, I will give your sealed LP's the same treatment. (once an LP is shipped sealed, it cannot be returned once opened).

All records are carefully graded. In an attempt to give customers an accurate impression of condition rather than adhere to somewhat arbitrary criteria, I give an "overall presentation" grade, supplemented when necessary with additional remarks. Please refer to my grading system below for a more detailed explanation.

MY GRADING SYSTEMS: I’ve been told that I grade conservatively. My NM (near mint) is my highest grade for opened records (which would also include unplayed records). It’s a 9 or 10 on a 1-10 scale. M- would be equivalent to an 8; VG++ to a 7; VG+ to a 6; VG to a 5; VG- to a 4; G to a 3; F to a 2 and P to a 1. The same scale applies when I grade covers (jackets). Significant defects are specifically noted and taken into consideration in the grade.

GRADING DESCRIPTIONS

• GRADING Grading is based on the following criteria
• Sealed = store stock new
• Near Mint = like new or near new with only one or two small insignificant defects, a 9 or better on a 1-10 scale
• Mint- = extremely nice. Would be Near Mint, except for a couple of light hairlines or scuffs, which do not affect play
• VG++ = still a very nice record with all or nearly all of its original gloss but may have a few more light, surface marks, hairlines, needle tracks or the like which should not materially effect play
• VG+ = a nice, but used record that may have a series of light scuffs or scratches. It probably plays with a few pops, but has no serious problems.
• VG = a well-used record that still should sound OK when played, but may have moderate surface noise, pops, etc.
• VG- = a very well-worn record that plays through without skipping, but will do until a better copy comes along.
• Good = not actually good at all but probably will play through but with much in the way of surface noise, pops, crackles, etc. Still, will have no cracks, chips or the like
• Fair = you’re getting this record just to own but not to play
• Poor = the sky’s the limit, generally I will discard a record this bad (and sell the cover, jacket or sleeve alone) unless the label holds some particular interest

  VISUAL GRADING: All records are visually graded only unless I state that they are play-graded. Some major labels were pressed on better quality vinyl and will sound better than a record which visually appears the same on "budget" labels which were pressed on lower quality vinyl. Recording techniques also varied. The sound on live albums may be far inferior to studio recordings. There may also be defects in the pressing which are invisible. The point is that an album on a high quality label that was visually graded VG+ may sound better than an album on a budget label that was visually graded Mint- or even Near Mint. Please refer to my return policy, below. But please don’t be shocked if a record visually graded Near Mint doesn’t sound state of the art. If I base my grade on a PLAY GRADE, I will state this specifically in my grading section.

  COVERS: There are really too many possible defects regarding covers to be as specific in my definitions as I had been with my record grades. But please keep in mind these general grading guidelines:

  • I will give greater weight to the condition of the front cover than back cover when assigning an overall grade
  • No cover with a cut out hole or saw mark will be graded Near Mint even if it is still in factory shrink and there is no other wear
  • I will not reduce the grade of a cover for stickers which are glued to the jacket by the record company (eg. Contains the hit song Expressway to Your Heart); but will reduce the grade for stickers glued on the cover by stores, previous owners, etc.
  • If I write that a cover has a bb hole, I’m talking about a small cut out hole
  • A saw mark is a narrow cut in the perimeter of the cover, could be anywhere and vary in length from 1/2” to 2” at the most.
  • The overall grade takes into consideration any stated defects. For example, if I grade a cover VG+ and then state it has 6” top and bottom seam splits - I’ve already reduced the grade because of the seam splits. If the seams weren’t split, the cover would be graded higher such as VG++ or Mint-.

    Shipping Costs: NEW SHIPPING RATES AS OF JANUARY 1, 2008.

    The buyer pays for shipping. For one or two (one disc) albums, the cost for priority mail in the United States is $7.50 ($9.00 if you live in zip codes beginning with '8' or '9'). For media rate postage within the U.S. the cost will be $4.50 for one or two albums. Double albums count as two.

    The cost for shipping a 7” record via 1st class is $3.50 and the cost for shipping a compact disc via 1st class is $4.00.

    Save money when I mail 2 or more records in the same package.

    Insurance is optional for purchases of $10.00 or more shipped within the U.S.but it is highly recommended for “high ticket” purchases. Insurance is available only on purchases of over $50.00. The cost for insurance is $1.30 for up to $50; $2.30 for up to $100; $3.30 for up to $200 and $1.10 additional for each additional $100 of insurance. Rates are quoted in my winning bid notices.

    The shipping charges for box sets, multi-record sets and other items of non-standard size and weight will be quoted.

    International Shipments: Overseas customers are welcome to bid. Postage WORLDWIDE (except Canada) for First-Class International is $14.00 for a one-record album. 7“ records (45's) are $6.50 for First-Class International anywhere in the world. CANADA- Postage for First-Class International for a one-record album is $7.50 and for a 45 r.p.m. record is $4.50. Surface mail is no longer available for overseas. Express Mail International and Priority Mail International is available - rates are substantially higher and will be quoted for each purchase if buyer requests this service. Express mail international is recommended for high end purchases because this service assigns a tracking number to the shipment. Save on shipping cost per record when I mail two or more records in one package.

    SHIPPING - "HIGH END PURCHASES" - PLEASE READ CAREFULLY -

    As I'll be listing and shipping many highly collectible and valuable albums in the coming months, standard shipping rates do not apply to expensive purchases. This is both for your benefit and mine. Here are the changes and additions:
    1. All shipments within the U.S. over $500 must be insured (under $500, insurance is still optional).
    2. All shipments of records totalling over $1,000 sent overseas will be mailed EXPRESS MAIL INTERNATIONAL (which provides a tracking number); while the postage costs will be substantially higher, this should ensure safe delivery of these valuable items
    3. All packages where the purchase exceeds $1,000 will be double boxed. This applies to both domestic and foreign shipments. Shipments within the U.S. may be sent either via priority mail or media rate - the choice is up to the buyer. All overseas shipments must be sent via airmail.
    4. The postage charges for these "high end" shipments will be the actual cost plus an approximate 15% mark-up to cover the cost of packing supplies and handling.

       Sorry, but I do not give refunds for items damaged or lost in the mail - U.S. buyers have the option of obtaining insurance for purchases over $10.

       Please check out my other eBay auctions and stores listings.

       . I’ve been listing all types of records - mostly LP’s - including 50’s and 60’s rock ‘n’ roll, country, folk jazz, blues, personalities, new wave and punk, surf, psych, spoken word, comedy, etc., etc....... I try to list unusual, unique or obscure records, not the ones that you see all the time. While a majority of my listings are albums, you’ll often find a nice selection of 45’s, EP’s or picture sleeves...and an occasional 78 or two.

       My return policy: . You may return an item if it's not in the conditon described. You may not return items if you decide you don't like the music. I will return the base price of the item unless I make an error in shipment such as sending you the wrong record or cd. In that case, you will be reimbursed for the cost of the item and shipping both ways. In addition, the item must be returned in its original condition , i.e. the way it was shipped when it left my hands. While a very high percentage of my records arrive safe and sound (I use professional mailers and a filler or two, more for 78’s), they occasionally are damaged in transit. If that happens, I won’t accept the return of the record or other item - that’s why you have the option of obtaining insurance for purchases $10 or more.

       Sealed Records: After a sealed record is paid for, I will gladly open it before mailing to make sure that the record is new & unplayed. If the record is not, I will give a full refund. Even though it is easy to spot most resealed records from the 50's and 60's [I will mention that in the desription if it looks like a possibility], not all records from the 70's & 80's are quite as obvious. Please ask for any details about the seal of a particular record & I will be happy to answer.

       My Feedback Policy: I'll be glad to return positive feedback if you would be so kind to leave me same.

       Any other questions? About anything? Please e-mail me at ibuyvinyl@nc.rr.com .