Category: Promo Copies

A Classic, But Is It A Collectible?

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Ellington copyFollowing up on the latest auction from the Jazz Record Center, starting with Duke Ellington at Newport, Columbia 934. This was an original mono six-eye pressing. The record itself was sealed — in those days Columbia had a sealable inner sleeve. So the record was unplayed and the cover was M-. The price was $227.50. This is quite an important record in the history of jazz, capturing the concert that helped to revitalize Ellington’s career, but I’ve never known it to be particularly collectible. I’ve had original pressings at record shows and haven’t been able to sell them, even for $20. I’m not sure how much the market has changed for this record, although in certain circumstances, such as this one, clearly it can now sell for collectible prices. There was a previous copy that once sold for about $127, but the seller was bobdjukic so I’ve always assumed that was an aberration.

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Double Dexter, Sonny Clark, Mal Waldron

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Dexter Gordon copyHere’s some of the jazz vinyl we’re watching as we brave the cold of Manhattan, starting with a few Blue Notes: Dexter Gordon, Our Man in Paris, Blue Note 4146. This is an original mono pressing listed in M- condition for the record and what looks to be VG++ for the cover. The bidding is in the $150 range with more than a day left. Thus far, however, it has not reached the seller’s reserve price. If you want to guess at the reserve price, you may use this as a guide, from the same seller: Dexter Gordon, Doin’ Allright, Blue Note 4077. The picture shows this with the West 63rd address, which is pretty rare. I think this record was right on the border. It also has a “Review Copy” stamp on it, which perhaps adds to the credibility of this as a first pressing. This one is in the $250 range with more than two days to go and it has reached the seller’s reserve price.

Okay Blue Note experts, what do you make of this one:

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Odds & Ends From The Jazz Collector World

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Barbara Lea copyLet’s catch up on a few odds and ends, starting with some of the promo records we’ve been watching on eBay:

John Coltrane, Coltrane, Impulse 21. This was a mono pressing with the white label promo label. It was listed in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. It wound up selling for $493.88. Wow. From the same seller was this: John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman, Impulse 40. This was also a white label promo copy, also in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. This one sold for $282. Then there were the two on Prestige: George Wallington, Jazz For the Carriage Trade, Prestige 7032. This was an original New York yellow-label pressing with the “Not for Sale” stamps on the label and cover. It was listed in M- condition for the record and probably VG++ for the cover. The start price was $499 and it did not sell. Somewhat surprising, right? Then there was:

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A Promo By Any Other Name

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Carriage Trade copySo now that I’ve been writing about promo copies for the past few days, it seems that every other item I’m watching on eBay is a promo copy.  Just works out that way sometimes.

Barbara Lea with the Johnny Windhurst Quartet, Prestige 7065. This is an original New York yellow label pressing with a “Not for Sale” stamp on the back. I’ve never actually owned or even heard this record and I have no idea who Johnny Windhurst was, but it is, of course, a record I would love to have, it being an original Prestige and all. This copy is in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover and it looks quite nice overall. The start price is in the $300 range and that is already too steep for me.

George Wallington, Jazz For the Carriage Trade, Prestige 7032. This is also an original New York yellow label pressing with a “Not for Sale” stamp on the back as well as on the labels. The record is in M- condition and the cover seems to be VG++. The start price is in the $500 and there are no bidders with four days left in the auction. Perhaps I am wrong

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Two for The $1,000 Bin; More Promos

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Eric Dolphy copyToday we have a couple of updates for the $1,000 jazz vinyl bin and a bit more on promos, including the WLPs (white label promos) that are apparently a common term that is new to me after 45 years of collecting. First, for the $1,000 bin there is Eric Dolphy In Europe, Debut 136. This is the original Danish pressing and the record and cover both looked to be in M- condition. The record sold for $1,026.

This one is left over from New Year’s, but CeeDee had sent it to me and I had forgotten to post it: Hank Mobley, Soul Station, Blue Note 4031. This was an original West 63rd Street pressing listed in Ex condition, which sounds like VG++ based on the grading system we use here at Jazz Collector. It sold for $1,605. I happened to be perusing my collection late last night and came upon this record and almost forgotten that I had it: Almost, but not quite. I’ve only had it for a little more than a year, since the Baltimore score of a lifetime. I think I will listen to it later today.

Back on the promo front there was this:

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Are We Seeing a Shift in Value of Jazz Promo LPs?

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Donald Byrd copyWhat’s going on with promo jazz records? I was just perusing eBay and came upon this number closing later today: Donald Byrd and Gigi Gryce, Modern Jazz Perspective, Columbia 1058. This is a mono pressing with the six-eye white promo label. It is listed in M- condition for the record and the cover and it certainly looks nice. But the condition doesn’t explain the bidding, which is now more than $200. I’ve seen this record so often for $20-$30 even in nice condition, it’s hard to rationalize such a high price for a promo copy, but perhaps things are changing and, for whatever reason, these white promo Columbias are suddenly in greater demand. We’ve certainly seen a big price increase over the years for promo copies of Kind of Blue and Dave Brubeck’s Time Out. Maybe this is just an extension of the interest? The seller must have run into a collection owned by a former Columbia employee, at least that’s what he suggests, because he has many of these white label Columbia pressings on eBay this week. There are Read more

Closing the Loop on Rare Jazz Vinyl

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monk copyLet’s close the loop on some of the rare jazz vinyl we’ve been watching here at Jazz Collector, starting with Miles Davis, Someday My Prince Will Come, Columbia, 1656. You may recall this was the record with the inner seal and signed by Miles, Hank Mobley, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb and JJ. Johnson. When we first looked at this record there was one day left in the auction and the bidding was in the $300 range. The record wound up selling for a whopping $2,091.75.

Here are a few from the recent Jazz Record Center auction, starting with Red Rodney, 1957, Signal 1206. This was an original pressing listed in M- for the cover and probably VG++ for the record. We were commenting that there was no action in the auction but, of course, there was quite a bit at the end. The record wound up selling for $1,324.50. Thelonious Monk, Monk, Columbia 2291. This would not normally appear on a list of collectible records, but this was a promo copy with the white labels. The record was in M- condition and the cover was VG++. It sold for $114.37. From the same auction there were also . . .

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A Mingus, A Rouse & Some Blue Note Questions

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Mingus jazz vinylHere are a few more from the pre-updated Jazz Collector watch list from the past week, starting with Charles Mingus, Mingus Ah Um, Columbia 1370. This is an original mono pressing with the white promo label. The record and cover both looked to be in M- condition. We’ve been seeing promo Columbia pressings selling for a decent amount of money, particularly Miles Davis Kind of Blue. The seller was apparently hoping for more of the same and may have been disappointed. This one garnered a top bid of $110.50 but it did not meet the seller’s reserve. Very credible, reputable and experienced seller, I might add.

Charlie Rouse, Bossa Nova Bacchanal, Blue Note 4119. This looked to be an original pressing with the New York USA label and the Van Gelder and ears. It looked to be in about VG+ condition for the record, and maybe VG++ condition for the cover, although the pictures looked more like VG+ to me. The record sold for $194.41. The listing also triggered a couple of questions, for which I don’t have the answers at my immediate disposal. To my  Read more

A New Trio For the JAzz Collector Price Guide

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teddyHere are a few more records we were watching on eBay:

Teddy Charles, Coolin’, New Jazz 8216. This was an original promo copy with the purple label and the deep grooves. I thought I was familiar with every record in the New Jazz catalog, but apparently not. Never seen this one in real life. This was in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover and it sold for $361.56.

This one wound up selling the second time around: Art Farmer, Art, Argo 678. This was an original pressing listed in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. There was one bid and it sold for $109.99.

Gil Melle, Quadrama, Prestige 7097. This was an original New York yellow label pressing. The record was in VG++ condition and the cover was VG+. The price was $114.50. Would this record be worth anything if it weren’t on the Prestige label? I’ve owned it for nearly 30 years and I don’t think I’ve ever listened to it. Perhaps next time I’m in New York I’ll put it on the turntable. Is it worth the time and effort?

 

 

 

 

 

A Few for the $1,000 Bin

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I must update the $1,000 bin this morning because it swelled up somewhat unexpectedly over the weekend.

Bill Evans, Waltz for Debby, Riverside 399. This was an original promo pressing with the white label. The record was probably VG++ or maybe M- and the cover looked to be about VG+. It sold for $1,151. Wow.

Donald Byrd, Byrd’s Eye View, Transition 4. This was an original pressing in M- condition for both the record and the cover. What’s more, it not only had the original booklet, the labels were actually still attached, which is almost unheard-of for an original Transition. This one sold for $1,044. This seller had a couple of others in the $1,000 bin, including: Kenny Dorham, Round ‘Bout Midnight at the Cafe Bohemia, Blue Note 1524. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing that looked to be in M- condition for the record and probably VG++ for the cover. It sold for $1,335.  And . . .  Read more

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