Random Musings on Random Collectible Jazz Vinyl

We will look at some highly coveted jazz collectibles today, starting with John Coltrane, A Love Supreme, Impulse A-77. This is an original mono pressing listed in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover. The bidding is more than $1,000 and the auction closes later today. Of course, this record is iconic and wonderful (not always the same), and it has continued to go up in value over the years, to the point where the $1,000 bin is no surprise, even in VG+ condition, and especially with a widely respected seller such as Euclid Records. From the same seller is Workin’ With the Miles Davis Quintet. This is an original yellow-label New Jersey pressing listed in VG++ condition for both the record and the cover. The album still has the original shrink wrap and, based on my anecdotal observations over the years, this seems to add value to the record. I guess there’s a feeling that the cover has been protected, so it is more likely to be clean, which I understand. Of course, when I get a record like this, the first thing I do is take off the shrink wrap and put in a sleeve, usually the 12-5/8 sleeve, but sometimes the 12-3/4, depending on the fit. I do obsess a little about these sleeves, as I do about so many little things to do with my record collection. Read more

A Visit to A Record Store, Upstate NY Edition

Sometimes you are lucky enough to  find a decent jazz vinyl score where you would least expect it. Here’s one for you. The other day I was scheduled to pick up The Lovely Mrs. JC at the Amtrak station in Hudson, NY, for a weekend in The Berkshires. I’ve already checked out the record store in Hudson more times than I can count, so not much interest there. But I happened to do a search of record stores in the region and, voila, there was a complete guide to them all, courtesy of an online publication called Chronogram. I have wanted to check out the one in Beacon, NY, called Hudson Valley Vinyl, because our friend and sometime-contributor Clifford has recommended it to me in the past. Not to mention that it is on the way when I drive up from Manhattan to The Berkshires. But, alas, timing hasn’t worked out, yet. In the meantime, I noted one of the stores was a new one, just opened in April of this year. It is called Spike’s Record Rack and it is in Catskill, NY, just 10 minutes or so from the Hudson Amtrak station. The listing in the article was quite sparse because the store was quite new when it was written, but I had some time to kill before The Lovely Mrs. JC’s train was due to arrive, so, I figured, what the hell. At the very least I would get a lovely drive over the Rip Van Winkle Bridge and the Hudson River during the peak of fall foliage up here in the mountains. Read more

Jazz Vinyl Listings That Raise Questions

jaspar maybe copyHere’s one I’ve never seen before: Bobby Jaspar All Stars Band, Modern Jazz at Club Saint Germain, Barclay 84023. This looks to be an original French pressing that was apparently owned by Bobby Jaspar who, unfortunately seemed not to take such great care of it. The cover looks pretty beat up, I’d say VG-, but the seller lists the cover as VG+ and also lists the record as VG+, so you’d have to be a little skeptical, I guess. The start price is $300 and so far there are no bidders. I imagine the record is quite rare, in that I’ve never seen in in 40-plus years of scouring record shelves all over the U.S. and other parts of the world.

Someone please explain this one to me: Clifford Brown Memorial Album, Blue Note 1526. This is a New York USA pressing, with a West 61st Street address on the cover. In other words, nothing about this record is close to an original first pressing and, at best, the vinyl was issued, when, in the early 1960s? Not to mention the vinyl is in VG condition. The cover is VG+. Somehow, there have been four bids on this record and the price is close to $200. Explanations please?

Our friends at Euclid Records seem to have made a nice discovery/score:

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Jazz Vinyl: Two for the $1,000 Bin, Plus A Couple More

Been away from my posting for a few days. Trying to get back into the swing of things, but there were a couple of days of hurricane delays, plus the lovely Mrs. JC is on vacation. Anyway, I vow once again to be posting more regularly, starting today with some jazz vinyl we’ve been watching on eBay.

Sonny Rollins, Saxophone Colossus, Prestige 7079. This was an original New York pressing. The record was described as M- condition and the cover looked to be at least VG++, perhaps M- depending upon your grading system. This one sold for $1,536. We’ve seen this one sell for more than $2,000 several times in the Jazz Collector Price Guide, and once approach $3,000. So perhaps this is a bargain, or perhaps it’s just where the market was on this particular day. The item did have more than 400 page views, which is a significant amount.

Here’s a Riverside that did quite well for the seller, which was Euclid Records: Wynton Kelly Piano. Riverside 254. This was an original Blue label pressing with the deep grooves. It was in M- condition for both the record and the cover. The price was $710. Nice cover on this record, right? Straight from the ’50s.

So this next one made the $1,000 bin after all:

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Jazz Vinyl Update: Blue Notes, The $1,000 Bin (& More)

Okay, back in the saddle. Let’s look at some of the interesting jazz vinyl we’ve missed on eBay, starting with the $1,000 bin and a few others that came close:

This one has been mentioned several times in the comments, so here it is with picture for the record: Hank Mobley, Blue Note 1568. This was in VG+ condition for the vinyl and VG++ for the cover and it was sold by Euclid Records. The price was $1,944. This one also came from Euclid Records: Lawrence Marable, Tenorman, Jazz West 8. This was an original pressing. The record was M- and the cover was VG+. The price was $1,711.11.

Lee Morgan Volume 3, Blue Note 1557. This was an original pressing. The record looked to be VG++ and the cover looked to be somewhere between VG and VG+. The price was $1,075.

These next few seemed to reach new heights while we were absent:

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Tracking Prices For Later Blue Note Pressings

People have been asking about prices and values of later-pressing Blue Notes, so I’ve been watching a few just to keep tabs on the market. There was a seller last week that was selling a bunch of United Artists pressings, including: The Magnificent Thad Jones, Volume 3, Blue Note 1546. This one was in VG+ condition for both the record and the vinyl. The start price was $40 and there were no bids. So that price was definitely too high. However, if you look at his other completed listings, there were a bunch more United Artists pressings in better condition and they sold in the range of $15 to $25 each, for the most part. There was a Hank Mobley Quintet, Blue Note 1550, that sold for $25.49 and a Lee Morgan Indeed, Blue Note 1538, that sold for $15. There were others as well, including a couple of blue-and-white label Liberty pressings that sold for between $30 and $40. I also watched this blue

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A Veritable Cornucopia of 10-Inch Jazz Vinyl

As is our usual custom, we were perusing the jazz vinyl listings on eBay this evening and we happened to notice an unusually large number of interesting 10-inch LPs for sale, some of which we shall share with you henceforth, including:

Kenny Dorham, Afro-Cuban, Blue Note 5065. A beauty, no? This one is in M- condition for the record and what looks to be VG+ for the cover. The current price is around $225 and there are three days to go.

Here’s the next one up in the 10-inch Blue Note catalogue: Hank Mobley Quartet, Blue Note 5066. This is an original pressing, of course,and the vinyl looks to be M- and the cover somewhat close to M-. The current price is $338 and there are also three days to go.

Another 10-inch Blue Note? Why not. Here’s The Amazing Bud Powell, Blue Note 5003. This is an original pressing in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It is being offered by Euclid Records and is currently at about $115.

Here’s the one on the list that will probably sell for the highest price:

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Jazz Vinyl on eBay: Lee, Jutta, Dex, Rouse

It is the Memorial Day weekend here in the States and I am off to the city of Providence this morning for my son’s graduation from grad school at Brown University. Perhaps I will sneak in a chance to visit Steve at Round Again Records, where there are always a few gems stashed away on the shelves. In the meantime, I have taken a few moments to peruse eBay and find some interesting items for us all to watch this weekend.

If you’ve been watching eBay the past few days, you’ve probably seen the extremely nice group of records by the seller roverd-90, including: Lee Morgan, Candy, Blue Note 1590. This is an original pressing and it looks to be in quite pristine, near mint condition. The current price is nearly $800 and we would expect this to sell for more than $2,000 and perhaps even more than $3,000. From the same seller is this:

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Catching Up: Sahib, Serge, Newk, Woods

This one almost made the $2,000 bin: Sahib Shihab and the Danish Radio Jazz Group, Oktav 111. This was an original Danish pressing. What was most amazing about this listing was the number of views it received — more than 1,600. It was listed so that it came up on the first page when you would do a search of jazz vinyl, but still, 1,600 views is quite a lot for any record. Also, I have to plead my ignorance about this LP: I’ve never seen it before and know nothing about it, so if anyone has insight to share, please feel free to do so. The record seemed to be in VG++ condition, close to M-, and the cover was also about VG++, based on the description. The price was $1,952.60.

This one seemed to get top dollar: Serge Chaloff, Blue Serge, Capitol 742. It was an original pressing in M- condition for both the record and the cover and it was sold by Euclid Records. The price was $364.88. Finding these records in such

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Watching eBay: Jackie, Farmer & Moody

Here are some items worth watching on eBay:

Jackie McLean, The New Tradition, Ad Lib 6601. This is the original, quite rare. The seller lists it in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover. The price is a little over $200 but there are a few more days to go before it closes.

This one is already more than $100 with several days to go. Perhaps it will set a new high for this LP: Art Farmer Quintet, Prestige 7017. This one appears to be in M- condition, although the seller does make it complicated in his listing. We’ve watched this record several times in the Jazz Collector Price Guide and the previous high price was $204. We’ll see if that changes.

My experience with James Moody LPs is that they sometimes don’t get the prices of other original Blue Notes and Prestiges by other artists. Anyway, this one may buck that trend:

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