The Resurgence of the Resurgence
Mar 30, 2009 For Sale
A few weeks ago we decided to try something new on the site: We put up a record for sale at what we thought was a fairly low price. The record was The Resurgence of Dexter Gordon, Jazzland 929S. This was (and still is) an original stereo pressing. The record and the cover are both in VG++ condition. We put a $25 tag on it, figuring someone would jump on it quickly. But no one did, and still no one has. Part of the reason we were doing this to see if our new e-commerce plug-in was working. We still don’t know. So here’s what we’re doing. We’re lowering the price of the record to $15. If you’re interested, click here and follow the link. We have just the one copy. Once it’s gone, that’s it. Hopefully someone will be interested in a bargain, and hopefully the system will work.
Tags: Dexter Gordon, Jazzland Records
Prices Fluctuate, As Always
Mar 30, 2009 Jazz Vinyl, Jazz Vinyl on eBay
In light of all the discussion about things slowing down on eBay, I’m looking for an explanation for this one: Barney Kessel, The Poll Winners, Contemporary 3535. This was an original pressing. The record was M- and the cover VG+. It sold for $79, quite a bit more than you would normally expect. Just wondering, am I missing something?
Ebay Watch: Prices are Down, Another Cycle?
Mar 27, 2009 Jazz Vinyl, Jazz Vinyl on eBay
If you’ve been sitting on the sidelines on eBay waiting for prices to come down, now may be the time to jump in. I don’t have any hard data, but I’ve been watching eBay almost every day for a while and it’s clear that prices for jazz records are down quite a bit from where they were 12 months ago, six months ago, even three months ago. I see it less in the highest-end collectibles, and more in the second-tier records, which either are not selling at all or are selling at lower prices with fewer bidders. I’ve seen these cycles come and go many times before and just when you think, uh-oh, the bottom’s going to drop out of the market, there’s a resurgence. And, given the state of the worldwide economy, it should be no surprise that prices of collectibles would go down. Still, there’s always the concern: Will the market come back again this time, or is there something more fundamental going on? What do you think?
Ebay Auction From Jazz Record Center
Mar 26, 2009 Jazz Vinyl on eBay
I’m on an email list for the Jazz Record Center in New York and they ping me every time they have a new auction on eBay. I got such a ping the other day. They have some interesting records and autographs on eBay now, closing next week. You can click here for a peak. This is not necessarily something we would do all the time, but if you’re posting some interesting items on eBay, feel free to let us know, either by commenting on the Jazz Collector site or by sending an email to al(at)jazzcollector.com.
Tags: Jazz Record Center
Today on Ebay: Fuller, Parlan and McCoy (For Sale)
Mar 25, 2009 Autographs, Blue Note, For Sale, Impulse, Jazz Vinyl, Jazz Vinyl on eBay
SHHHHHHHHHH. It’s so quiet on eBay today we wouldn’t want to disturb any of the sleeping buyers and sellers. I have a sense that the economy is starting to wreak a little havoc on the jazz collectibles market — not on the high-end collectibles — but in the mid-tier. We’ll see. These things tend to go in cycles. Perhaps it’s a good time to be buying. Anyway, it is quite quiet on eBay today, but there are a few things worth noting, including:
Curtis Fuller, Bone and Bari, Blue Note 1572. This is an original pressing in M- condition, both record and cover, and it features an autograph by Curtis Fuller. Not to mention the presence of Sonny Clark on piano. The opening bid price for this record is about $140 and, as of now, there are no bids. In the Jazz Collector Price Guide we’ve seen this record sell for nearly $700 in M- condition without an autograph. So maybe it is a time to be buying.
Tags: Curtis Fuller, Horace Parlan, McCoy Tyner, Round Again Records
Quiz Time
Mar 25, 2009 Blue Note, Questions
What was Dexter Gordon’s first LP for the Blue Note label? Who were the other musicians? Extra credit if you don’t look it up (as always, we rely on the honor system).
Tags: Dexter Gordon
Mrs. JC Sounds Off
Mar 24, 2009 Features
Mrs JC, Incognito
We turn the post over to Mrs. Jazz Collector:
“I really have just one question: Are you all as crazy as my husband?
When our kids were growing up, every family vacation we would drive around looking for record stores. In Boston, LA, San Francisco, Toronto, London – wherever – we’d search for record stores, Al would run in and leave us sitting in the car, no matter what the neighborhood. He’d go away on business trips and come back loaded with records. One time he went to Chicago and bought 300 78s and had to buy an extra piece of luggage just to lug them home.
Where we live is always a function of whether there is room for Al’s records. We bought one house because it had a huge living room with high ceilings. Al had floor-to-ceiling cabinets built, with a rolling
Hank Mobley, Dippin’: And The Winner Is . . .
Mar 24, 2009 Blue Note, Free Collectibles
OK, no new comments since yesterday, so it’s time to take the eligible names and place them in a hat (actually, we’ll just strew them across our desk) and ask Mrs. Jazz Collector to come in and pick a winner for the free LP, Hank Mobley, Dippin’, Blue Note 4209. So there are 15 entries — all of whom have commented on the Jazz Collector Web site in the past two weeks — and the winner of the record is . . . .
Tags: Hank Mobley
Win a Free Record: Last Chance Today!
Mar 23, 2009 Blue Note, Free Collectibles
We’ve been so busy with life, we almost forgot that there’s a contest going on at Jazz Collector to give away a free record. The record is Hank Mobley, Dippin’, Blue Note 4209. It is not an original pressing, but a nice reissue with the West 63rd Street address on the label and the original linter notes and packaging. The record and cover are both in M- condition, and are being offered free to one lucky reader of Jazz Collector. As with all of our contests, all you have to do to be eligible is post a comment anywhere on the site. So far, we have 15 readers eligible for the contest: Mike Young, Jason, Mike Moore, Dan Hodina, Bland Alexandre, Bethellodge, Michel, Rudolf, Mike P, Jon Weintraub, Tom Konar, Ann, Erich Schultz, Davel Sockel and Brian. If you would like to add your name to this illustrious list, please post a comment on the site — anywhere — by the end of the day today. Then, tomorrow morning, we’ll have the infamous Mrs. Jazz Collector pull the winning name out of the hat. Again, it’s all free, we pay shipping, everything. The idea is to promote discussion on the site, and it seems to be working a bit: The 15 entries is the largest number we’ve had so far.
Catching up With a Few More Warhol Covers
Mar 19, 2009 Album Covers, Blue Note, Jazz Vinyl, Jazz Vinyl on eBay, Prestige, Price Guide
We’ve been watching prices for albums with covers by Andy Warhol. Here are a few more that sold recently on eBay:
Johnny Griffin, The Congregation, Blue Note 1580. This was an interesting one in that the record was listed as in only G+ or VG- condition, which means it is probably something most of us wouldn’t put on our turntables. The cover was listed in VG+ condition. It sold for $311.
J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding and Bennie Green, Trombone by Three, Prestige 16-4. This was an original pressing and a very rare 16-RPM LP. It was in VG++ condition, both the record and the cover. The price was $290.
Tags: 16-RPM LPs, Andy Warhol, Bennie Green, David Stone Martin, JJ Johnson, Johnny Griffin, Kai Winding, Kenny Burrell
Another Quiz
Mar 19, 2009 Questions
While we’re on the topic of Bird: Who wrote the Charlie Parker biography “Bird Lives” and what was his relationship to Bird?
Tags: Charlie Parker
Quickie Quiz
Mar 17, 2009 Questions
Many people assume that the Charlie Parker tune “Billie’s Bounce” was named in honor of Billie Holliday. That is not the case. Who, in fact, was the Billie in “Billie’s Bounce?”
Tags: Billie's Bounce, Charlie Parker
Today on Ebay: Trane and Mr. PC
Mar 17, 2009 Blue Note, Jazz Vinyl, Jazz Vinyl on eBay, Prestige
We’re back watching eBay after taking some time off. It’s actually good to take a break every once in a while. Gives you a perspective that there are things more important than collectible jazz records. But not at Jazz Collector, so here are some items to watch:
This one’s from our friends at Euclid Records: John Coltane, Lush Life, Prestige 7188. This is an original yellow label pressing in M- condition. The current price is about $120. One of the things I’ve always liked about this record is the opportunity to hear Trane in a trio setting. This was around the time Sonny Rollins was playing with a trio and it seemed that Trane was emulating his friend and peer. Not the case, however, if you review the liner notes by Joe Goldberg, who asked Trane about why he was playing in a trio setting. Trane’s response?
Tags: Euclid Records, John Coltrane, Paul Chambers
Free Advice For eBay Sellers
Mar 16, 2009 Features, Jazz Vinyl on eBay
From the archives:
Here’s advice I gave recently to someone looking to sell jazz records on eBay:
1. Buy a professional record cleaner and clean every record before you grade it and sell it.
2. Grade your records accurately/conservatively. You want to develop a good reputation and leave your customers satisfied so they’ll feel confident buying more from you.
3. Have a no-questions-asked return policy. If someone is not happy, pay to have the record shipped back and refund his money. If a buyer is consistently unhappy, politely stop doing business with him.
4. When you ship records, package them professionally and carefully and don’t scrimp on using high-end boxes and packing material.
5. Be accurate in your descriptions and include as much information as possible. Learn about the details that are important to buyers, such as the address on labels, colors of labels, distinguishing characteristics such as the deep groove and anything else that will make your listings clear and informative. Include the label and number. Try not to be too wordy: English may not be the first language of many buyers, so keep your listings concise and uncomplicated.
6. Get a good camera and take clear pictures, showing as much detail as possible.
What do you think? Do you have any other advice for sellers of jazz records on eBay?
Quickie Quiz
Mar 14, 2009 Prestige, Questions
Back from Key West. It was very nice, but it’s nice to be back home among my vinyl friends. Here’s a question from the archives, which I’m continuing to wade through: On John Coltrane Soultrane, Prestige 7142, there is a beautiful ballad called “Theme For Ernie.” Who was the Ernie that inspired the tune? Bonus: Who wrote it? Of course, it’s easy to look up. But let’s see who knows the answer without doing so. As always, we will rely on the Honor System.
Tags: John Coltrane
Another From the Archives: A JATP Jazz Bash
Mar 13, 2009 Features
Here’s another item we found of interest from our Downbeat collection. It’s a review by D. Leon Wolf in the Nov. 18, 1946 issue of Downbeat. The headline: Granz Bash a Caricature on Jazz: Everything Bad in Jazz Found Here.” Here’s how the article starts off: “Of all the wretched music ever inflicted upon this earnest devotee of le jazz hot, nothing, I regret to say, has yet to equal Norman Granz’s Jazz at the Philharmonic concert the night of Oct. 24. Everything that is rotten in contemporary hazz was to be found in this musical catastrophe.”
Wolf’s view of some of the musicians: Illinois Jacquet: “The lousiest tenor in the country making over $50 a week, barring none.” Rex Stewart: “Granz, if he had the guts, should have yanked him off the stage during his second number, the most sickening and
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Coleman Hawkins, Downbeat Magazine, Illinois Jacquet, Jazz At the Philharmonic, Norman Granz, Rex Stewart
Bird And Diz And Downbeat, 1946, 1947
Mar 13, 2009 Features
In addition to vinyl, I collect jazz books, magazines and other ephemera. Once in a while I go through my old copies of Downbeat. Here’s something I pulled a few years ago:
The Dec. 16, 1946 Downbeat offers a prime example of the divergent fortunes of the two leaders of the be-bop movement. On the front page there is a picture of Dizzy Gillespie having fun and joking around. On page six, at the top of the page, there’s a small article with the headline: “Parker Fund Does Fine at L.A. Benefit.” It was a four-paragraph item, noting that a benefit for Charlie Parker in Los Angeles raised a total of $500.86. The purpose of the money: “To assist Parker, upon his release from a sanitarium, to secure instruments, clothes and what
Read the rest of this entry »
Quickie Quiz
Mar 12, 2009 Blue Note, Questions
As a follow-up to my last post, here’s an easy one:
Sheila Jordan’s Portrait of Sheila, was one of two LPs issued by Blue Note in its 9000 vocal series. What was the other vocal LP?
Tags: Sheila Jordan
An Appreciation of Sheila Jordan
Mar 12, 2009 Blue Note, Jazz Memoirs
From the Jazz Collector archives:
Like all collectors, I’ve let prized records slip through my fingers through the years. I would go to Dayton’s on 12th Street in Manhattan in the early 1980s and balk at their astronomical prices. Looking back, these “astronomical” prices were in the $50 and $60 range for original pressings of Blue Notes, Prestiges and other rarities. I remember passing on a mint copy of Hank Mobley’s Second Message, Prestige 7082, because I thought $45 was exorbitant. If you look at the Jazz Collector Price Guide on Jazzcollector.com, you’ll see that a copy recently sold for $661. Ah, to go back in time. Even more irksome are the lost treasures of my collection that I either sold or traded. I’ve gotten rid of some prized records this way, always figuring it would be no problem replacing them. Sure. Many of those that slipped away are gone forever, never to return.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Sheila Jordan
Quickie Quiz
Mar 11, 2009 10-Inch LPs, Blue Note, Questions
How many 10-inch LPs did Blue Note issue in its 5000 Series? Bonus: What was the first LP issued in this series?
Tags: Blue Note
Catching Up (In Key West): Lee Morgan, Kenny Drew
Mar 10, 2009 Blue Note, Jazz Vinyl, Jazz Vinyl on eBay
I’m posting this on a porch overlooking the beautiful, turquoise Atlantic Ocean in Key West, Fla., where I am vacationing for a couple of days. Actually, it’s a much-needed vacation for Mrs Jazz Collector and I get to go along for the ride. Anyway, despite my adventure in paradise, I’m still keep tracking of eBay for my dear devoted followers on Jazz Collector. Here are updates on some of the items we’ve been watching, from Kenny Drew and Lee Morgan.
Kenny Drew, Undercurrent, Blue Note 4059. This was an original West 63rd Street pressing with one side DG, which I think is how this record was first produced. The record was in M- condition and the cover was VG+. The price was $631. Also from Kenny Drew was:
Tags: Jazz Collector Price Guide, Jazz West Records, Kenny Drew, Lee Morgan
Heroes: Musicians and Their Influences
Mar 10, 2009 Features
From our our archives, here’s an interesting item from June 18, 2004.
If you’re looking for a good read, pick up the July issue of Downbeat. It’s being promoted as the “70th Anniversary Collector’s Edition” and the focus is a feature called “Our Heroes” in which more than 70 musicians talk about their primary influences. Here are a few highlights:
Sonny Rollins on Coleman Hawkins: “I first saw him play on 52nd Street. I used to put eyebrow pencil on my lip to make a fake mustache so I could get in. We’d stand in the back, and it was like looking at a god playing.”
Joe Zawinul on Art Tatum: “He always sounded like two piano players. The story goes like this:
Tags: Antonio Hart, Art Tatum, Cannonball Adderley, Coleman Hawkins, Downbeat, Joe Zawinul, Sonny Rollins
Quickie Quiz
Mar 9, 2009 Questions
The pianist Argonne Thornton played on classic recordings such as Charlie Parker’s “Now’s the Time” and Dexter Gordon’s “Dexter’s Deck.” He later changed his name. What new name did he take?
Catching Up on Some More Blue Note LPs
Mar 8, 2009 Blue Note, Jazz Vinyl, Jazz Vinyl on eBay
Here’s an update on some Blue Notes we were watching last week. All of these have already been entered into the Jazz Collector Price Guide.
Donald Byrd, Byrd in Hand, Blue Note 4019. This was an original pressing with the West 63rd Street address in M- condition, both record and cover. It sold for $364.99.
At Blakey, A Night at Birdland Volume 2, Blue Note 1522. This was an original pressing with the original cover and the Lexington Avenue address. It was in VG+ condition, both record and cover, and sold for $332.
The Amazing Bud Powell, Blue Note 5003. This was an original 10-inch pressing. The record was VG+ and the cover was M-. The price was $199.
George Wallington Showcase, Blue Note 5045. This was also a 10-inch LP.
Tags: Art Blakey, Bud Powell, Donald Byrd, George Wallington, Jazz Collector Price Guide, Sabu, Sonny Rollins
