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Jazz Vinyl Catchup And Confusion Over Grading

Al — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 12:57:09 +0000

Let’s catch up on some more rare jazz vinyl that sold recently on eBay.

John Coltrane, Giant Steps, Atlantic 1311. This looked to be an original black label pressing. There were some questions about the deep grooves, since the picture wasn’t clear, but the seller confirmed that there were, indeed, deep grooves on both sides. This one was listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $622.70. In the Jazz Collector Price Guide we’ve seen Giant Steps sell for more than $1,000 several times, so perhaps it’s a bargain, perhaps it’s just market changes, perhaps it’s unfamiliarity with the seller.

Jutta Hipp, New Faces, New Sounds from Germany, Blue Note 5056. This was the original 10-inch pressing. It’s one of those listings that confuses me a little on labeling of conditioning. The seller says it looks VG+, but it plays more like Ex and therefore it was graded as Ex. In my thinking I’ve always correlated VG+ with Ex, but it sounds like Ex is more like VG, based on this listing, which I assumed to be a downgrade, but perhaps I’m wrong and it’s an upgrade based on the next item below. The cover was listed in just G condition, which is never very good. The price was $247.50.

Another one for the $1,000 bin: George Wallington At the Bohemia, Progressive 1001. This was an original pressing listed in “Near Mint/Ex” condition for the vinyl. So here it appears that Ex means more like VG++ or M-. Perhaps my brain is just waterlogged from three days of constant rain, but it’s not quite making sense to me. I’m sure the readers will set me straight, so thank you in advance. The cover is VG++. It sold for $1,025.

Price Guide Update: Wallington, Drew, DeFranco, Tal

Al — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:51:02 +0000

We’ve missed a couple of days posting. Sorry. Up in the country. The weather is beautiful and the Internet connection is inconsistent. We will attempt to be more regular. To get back into posting shape, this morning we will list some of the new items we’ll be entering into the Jazz Collector Price Guide. Nothing in the $1,000 bin — we’ll save those for later — but some nice, interesting collectibles. Here are several:

George Wallington Quintet at the Bohemia, Progressive 1001. This is an original pressing and the seller listed it as near-mint condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $810.

Kenny Drew, Undercurrent, Blue Note 4059. This was an original pressing, also in near-mint condition and was one of the items sold by the seller herschel78. This one also sold for $810.

Here’s a record I actually bid on (and lost, by $1):

Buddy DeFranco, Cookin’ The Blues, Verve 8221. This was an original trumpeter pressing and the vinyl was in M- condition, the cover VG+. I have a few copies of this record, but none that I am happy with. The one in my collection is an original, but not in great listening condition. I have one here in the country that sounds great, but it’s a Japanese pressing. I also have an MGM copy that sounds fine, but is not an original. So, I figured I’d take a shot at this one. I bid $40.40 and it sold for $41.40. It’ll be back. It happens to be a favorite record of mine and it has some personal meaning as well: My father had a copy and it was also the first record on which I heard Tal Farlow, who became both my favorite guitarist and a teacher/mentor to my good friend Dan. By the way, Tal and Dan showed up at my sister’s wedding 30 years ago and did a session, spontaneously. It was quite incredible. I’ll save the story for another day, or for Dan to tell it.

Price Updates: Blue Train, Bud, Miles and More

Al — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 11:30:24 +0000

Here are some items we’ll be adding to the Jazz Collector Price Guide over the weekend. If you haven’t checked out the Price Guide lately, it’s time to come back. We’ve added a new feature, where you can browse all of the records on one screen and sort it either by artist, label or price. It’s a lot of fun just to go through the lists and compare and contrast. It’s also very helpful when buying or selling items on eBay. Anyway, speaking of eBay, here are some recent sales:

John Coltrane, Blue Train, Blue Note 1577. This was an original pressing in M- condition. The price was $710.

The Amazing Bud Powell, Blue Note 5003. This was an original 10-inch LP in M- condition, both record and cover. The price was $380.

Miles Davis, Miles, Prestige 7014. This was an original New York pressing. The record

was M- and the cover was VG+. Price: $355.

George Wallington at The Bohemia, Progressive 1001. This looked to be in VG condition, but it came directly from Wallington’s personal collection. The price was $406.16.

Eric Dolphy, Far Cry, New Jazz 8270. This was an original purple label pressing. The record was VG++ and the cover was VG+. The price was $182.50.

Hal McKusick, East Coast Jazz, Bethlehem 16. This was an original red label pressing. The record was M- and the cover was VG++. The price was $166.

Sonny Rollins, Rollins Plays for Bird, Prestige 7095. This was an original New York pressing sold by Euclid Records. The record and cover were M- and the price was $224.50.

Johnny Hodges, Ellingtonia ’56, Norgran 1055. This was an original yellow label pressing. The record was VG++ and the cover was VG+. Price: $72.

The Fats Navarro Memorial Album, Blue Note 5004. This was an original 10-inch pressing. The record was VG++ and the cover was VG+. The price was $128.16.

The Charlie Mariano Sextet, Fantasy 3-10. This was also a 10-inch LP, in M- condition, both record and cover. The price was $130.50.