I never thought I’d ever see one of these . . .

. . . much less own a copy.

I was over at Half Price Books looking for something else, and as I usually do when I’m in there anyhow, I had a look through their “Texas Artists” bin, to see if they had put out something that the buyer hadn’t recognized for what it was (they don’t do that so much with books any more, but sometimes still do it with vinyl and CDs).  And I found this, marked at $14.98.  It’s a first pressing, first state of Blame It on the Bossa Nova (1974), the very first album from the late Uncle Walt’s Band.  (The album was retitled eponymously and re-released in 1975 with a different track order; it’s the better-known version.)

I haven’t yet put it on the turntable, but I’m not expecting great sound reproduction.  On visual inspection I can see lots of bubbles in the vinyl, which suggests the plant used cheap stock that won’t hold up to much playing.  Well, that’s OK; I have a second pressing as well, and I’ve already ripped that to CD, so I’m not worried about quality.

Worth?  Crap, I don’t know; second and third pressings go for as much as $100, so I could nearly name my figure for a true first.  (No, I didn’t pay anything like $100 for my second pressing.)  But that isn’t the point.   The point is the having of Walter’s very first record, and in its earliest state.