Another Adventure, Part 3

There were several things that struck me about the latest note from my new friend in Toronto, the one with the 25 Blue Notes he was looking to sell among a batch of other jazz records. One was that he had taken the time to do the research and come up with some potential values for the records. Two was that he had taken the time to catalogue them and even listen to a few. And three was that he was asking if I knew a Jazz Collector who might be interested in the collection. I liked that he capitalized Jazz Collector, because that would be me and not just any jazz collector, and he said that his dad would have loved for these records to go to a real collector who would appreciate them. I took all of this as an indication that, all things considered, he would like to sell the records to me.

There were still some problems with that scenario, however. Of course the records were in Toronto and I was not about to make an 8-hour drive each way on a speculative hunt for records, even though these were Blue Notes and, yes, one of them was Cool Struttin’. Perhaps if I were a dealer and made my living doing this I’d think nothing of it, but I am but a mere collector and, however obsessive I may be about my collection, I have learned through the years to rein in my most basic animal urges and exhibit some levels of restraint. Driving, flying, walking or bicycling to Toronto for 25 records fell within those limits, thank goodness, for perhaps they would not have in my younger years.

A trip to Toronto was off the table for the time being, so I had to explore other options. But first I had to determine what we were talking about. After reviewing the list, I sent back the following note:

That is a great collection of music. Whoever owned them certainly had great taste. If the bulk of the records are original pressings, it could be a nice collection for a collector as well. I’d possibly be interested in purchasing the collection myself, and I also have readers I could refer you to. You should take a look at a few of the Blue Notes, specifically the label on the record, say the Clifford Brown Memorial album and Lou Donaldson Lou Takes Off. Is there an address on the label itself—the label on the record around the hole—or does it say something like New York USA or A Division of Liberty Records. If there is an address, what is the address for each record? You could do this with any of the Blue Notes, if you want, and I can give you a sense of whether it may or may not be an original U.S. pressing. Also the Sonny Rollins Tenor Madness—what color is the label and is there an address on the label? – al

This was the response:

 Hi Al
Tenor Madness- prlp 7047-b, 203 South Washington Ave. Bergenfield,  N. J. Label – Black and Yellow
Most of the Blue notes including Cool Struttin, Cliff Brown Memorial album and Lou Donaldson Lou Takes off  have the address 47th west 63rd, New York on the label.

So Tenor Madness and Clifford Brown were not originals, and Cool Struttin’ and Lou Takes Off were probably originals. They were all early pressings, so it was starting to feel safe to assume that these were records that would be of interest to me. The question was: Would I be able to get them and, if so, would I be able to get them at a fair price?

What happened next? Stay tuned for Part 4.