Author: Al

Catching Up: A Little Trane, A Little JJ

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Sorry for taking such a long and totally unexpected hiatus. I got caught up in things and just never put aside time to post. I won’t do that again. Anyway, I have not forgotten Rudolf’s question about the status of my Great Jazz Vinyl Countdown and I will address that soon, but first let me catch up on other stuff. I had noted the small John Coltrane autograph from the Jazz Record Center when I last posted and I had expectations it would go for a fairly high price, which it did: $491.85. And no, I was not the bidder, although that is certainly something I wouldn’t mind having. I was also watching this one: Jay Jay Johnson Volume 2, Blue Note 1506. This looked to be an original Lexington Avenue flat edge pressing. It was only in VG+ condition for the vinyl and VG- for the cover. Many of the flat-edge Lexington Avenue  Blue Notes have been

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JRC Auction: John Coltrane Autograph

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We’ve written off and on here at Jazz Collector about autographs.  Our favorite was the letter from Bill Evans to John Coltrane that was auctioned for $38,000 five years ago. If you want to check that out, click here. We were reminded of this when we received an email announcing the latest auction from the Jazz Record Center and we saw that they are selling a John Coltrane autograph. This one is not so enticing as the Evans letter, but it is a Coltrane autograph and there can’t be too many of those, can there? Anyway, it has a start price of $100 and there is already one bidder. This is one that I think will entice jazz collectors everywhere: A nice, small Coltrane autograph, easy to frame, easy to hang up on a wall, a very nice item to show your friends and family. Hmmmm, perhaps I’m talking myself into something here.

Odds and Ends and Blue Notes

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Here are some jazz vinyl odds and ends we’ve been watching for various reasons. We’re not expecting that all of these will end up in the Jazz Collector Price Guide, but they all have something of interest.

We were watching this one because it was listed as an original pressing even though it wasn’t: Kenny Drew Trio, Riverside 224. This was a blue-label pressing when the original was really a white label. The seller was very clear in stating that this was a “first mono pressing.” Ah well. The record was only in VG- condition and the cover was VG. Not an original and not in great condition and it sold for $87. That seems to be the going rate these days perhaps and, perhaps, maybe someone needed a new cover. Not for me in that condition at that price.

We were watching this to get a sense of what the solid blue label Blue Notes are selling for these days: Dexter Gordon, Dexter Calling, Blue Note 84083. This  in M- condition for both the record and the cover and it sold for $29. This probably means that a Liberty pressing of this record would be in the $50 or $60 range, don’t you think?

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This Week — Live At The Monterey General Store

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I play a little bit of jazz guitar — very little bit — but I am fortunate to have grown up with a fantastic, world-class jazz guitarist and we have remained great friends and this weekend we are doing a gig here in the beautiful Berkshire Mountains of Western Massachusetts. There are many stories I can tell about the circumstances that have led to this gig, 30-plus years in the making, but I will be brief. My friend, Dan Axelrod, was a musical prodigy from early childhood and he lived down the street from me and somehow we both fell in love with jazz as teenagers – Dan because he could play it as well as anyone and I because it was music that was always around, in my pores, courtesy of my dad. Dan and I used to hang around a lot and at various points he would teach me chords and how to strum and eventually I was proficient enough to accompany him as a rhythm guitarist, as long as we kept the changes relatively simple and dispatched with the suspended flatted fifths, ninths and thirteenths. What I lacked in ability I made up for in chutzpah and eventually I found us a gig at a local place called the Rainy Nighthouse and I somehow convinced Dan that this would be a fun thing to do, two nights a week. We were still in our late teens. Dan, if I recall properly, was studying with Billy Bauer and perhaps a little with Jim Hall and had not yet met his guitar hero, Tal Farlow, who would eventually become his great friend and mentor. Read more

Jackie-ing On eBay

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As we were catching up on items from last week, we noticed some interesting Jackie McLean records we were watching, so here comes some Jackie-ing on a lovely Monday morning in The Berkshires.

This seller had a bunch of nice records, but they were not in near-mint condition, so the prices seemed pretty reasonable, if you were willing to gamble. Here’s an example: Jackie McLean, Jackie’s Pal, Prestige 7068. This looked like an original New York pressing with the deep grooves and the flat edge and it was listed in VG++ condition for the cover and VG+ for the record. I could see where bidders, such as myself, might be a bit wary. The description of the cover sounded a lot more like VG+ than VG++ and the description of the vinyl used this language: “Scratches can be seen.” The record sold for $260.15. Somebody took a risk. This one came from the same seller: Jackie McLean, Alto Madness, Prestige 7114. This was also  an original New York pressing and this one was listed in

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More Blue Notes, More Surprises

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Having done Jazz Collector for seven years and having seen all kinds of price fluctuations, I should be beyond surprise, right? But I do admit I haven’t expected the price jump in collectible jazz, and particularly Blue Note, that seems to have taken place in just the past few months. I guess it’s a bit like the stock market, up and down, and there is the temptation to jump in and sell when prices are high. Here’s a record I have at home in beautiful condition and I bought it for ten dollars and I could make quite an obscene profit, based on this sale price: The Jazz Messengers at the Cafe Bohemia Volume 2, Blue Note 1508. This one had the beautiful Lexington Avenue label but was

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Guest Column: Collecting Jazz 45s

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A couple of weeks ago friend of Jazz Collector Erich Schultz asked why we never wrote about  collecting jazz 45s here at Jazz Collector. We said that we didn’t collect them ourselves, we didn’t know of any collectors and no one had ever even asked. We also invited him to write a post on the joys of collecting jazz 45s and, voila, here it is. Erich, it’s all yours:

Collecting Jazz 45 RPM Records, by Erich Schultz

Although I have a large library of jazz 10” and 12” 33 RPM records, I also have over 1,000 jazz 45 RPM records as well. I starting collecting these 45’s about five years ago, and I have picked up most of them in the Los Angeles area when I visit my two children (I live in the San Francisco Bay Area.) I also get them sometimes through bulk sales on ebay. My reasons for collecting them include: Read more

More Jazz Vinyl For the $2,000 Bin

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Here’s some jazz vinyl for the $2,000 bin:

Hank Mobley Quintet, Blue Note 1550. This was an original pressing and it was listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. The price was $2,142. A few months ago, I catalogued all of my Blue Notes for insurance purposes. For each record, I put down the condition and assigned a value to it, based on current market conditions and historical trends from the Jazz Collector Price Guide. Well, based on price trends, I’m going to have to go back and reassess the values and make them higher in most cases. For example, I don’t have an original pressing of this record, but I have an original of Hank, Blue Note 1560. My copy is M- for the record and VG++ for the cover. When I did the spreadsheet earlier this year, the value I assigned to this record was just

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Favorite Jazz Ballad Vocal Performances?

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I was sitting on the porch at my lakehouse with the lovely Mrs. JC yesterday afternoon and we were listing to a playlist I had made for my iPod of various ballad performances. Yes, I do have an iPod and other various digital devices and I do not only listen to music playing on a turntable, although that is always the preferred method when available. Anyway, as we were listening, one of the tracks was “Jim” from the Sarah Vaughan album with Clifford Brown, Emarcy 36004. I mentioned quite randomly that many jazz fans and jazz collectors consider this track to be one of the greatest jazz vocal ballad performances of all time. I’m not sure where I came up with that information, but it was definitely lodged in my brain somewhere: Perhaps there was a vote somewhere, or perhaps it had just come up in late night discussion over a few beverages. Anyway, I thought it might be an interesting topic for a lazy weekday afternoon in August, so I’m throwing it out there for the Jazz Collector community. Favorite jazz ballad vocal performances. Okay, go!

Tracking 10-Inch Jazz Vinyl On Blue Note

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There seems to be a corresponding hike in prices for 10-inch Blue Notes as well as 12-inch Blue Notes. Here are a few we were watching this week, several from the same seller, including: Lou Donaldson, New Faces, New Sounds, Blue Note  5021. This was an original pressing with the vinyl in M- condition and the cover VG+. It sold for $577. One thing about the 10-inchers: Unless they are a Japanese or United Artists press, you know they are originals.

Lou Donaldson Sextet Volume 2, Blue Note 5055. This one looked to be in VG++ condition for the vinyl and M- for the cover. The price was $667. Another one from the same seller:

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