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Another Rare Bird, This Time For the $2,000 Bin

August 28, 2009 Al 7 comments

When we were updating the $1,000 bin yesterday, we came upon this quite rare collectible: Charlie Parker, The Bird Blows The Blues, Dial LP 1. The seller lists this as the “first 12-inch LP ever” and having been issued in 1948. We have heard before that this was the first 12-inch long-playing record, which we’ve never been able to confirm, but we think the original issue was in 1949. It was issued without a cover. The seller here claims there were only 50 copies originally issued, which, of course, sounds like one of those claims aimed at making the record seem rarer than it actually is, which is quite rare. This copy was listed in “VG to VG+” condition and sold for $2,250.

This also gives me another chance to remind you all that we are still running our contest to give away a free copy of

For the $1,000 Bin: Jordan/Gilmore On Blue Note, Saxophone Colossus

August 27, 2009 Al Leave a comment

It’s time to throw a few more items into the $1,000 bin. These are some of the rare jazz records that have recently crossed the $1,000 price threshold.

Cliff Jordan and John Gilmore, Blowin’ in From Chicago, Blue Note 1549. This was an an original pressing with the West 63rd Street address and deep groove. The record was listed in M- condition and the cover appeared to be at least VG+, perhaps better. The price was $1,199.99.

Sonny Rollins, Saxophone Colossus, Prestige 7079. This was an original pressing. The record was in VG++ condition and the cover was VG+. The price was $1,266.66. The item had more than 500 page views, compared to less than 200 for the Cliff Jordan/,John Gilmore LP. The seller, bobdjukik, seems to have a knack for getting people to view his records.

Price Guide Update: Wallington, Drew, DeFranco, Tal

August 27, 2009 Al 6 comments

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):

New Study Confirms The Truth: Jazz Fans Are Cool

August 24, 2009 Al One comment

There’s this new study from the University of Cambridge that concludes that people make assumptions about other people based on their musical tastes. Classical music fans, for example, are expected to be dumb and boring. Rock fans: emotionally unstable. Who fares best in this study? Jazz fans, of course. We are regarded as imaginative, peace-loving individuals with friendly and outgoing natures. In other words, people think we’re cool. Sounds about right to me. Of course, if they really knew about the obsessive side of us jazz collectors, perhaps they might alter their view.

Features

A Couple of Rare Birds, One For the $1,000 Bin

August 24, 2009 Al 4 comments

We’re still running the contest to give away a free copy of The Charlie Parker Memorial Album, Savoy 12000. Please comment on the site to be eligible to win. Meanwhile, here are a couple of nice bird collectibles that sold recently on eBay, including one for the $1,000 bin.

Charlie Parker, Alternate Masters Volume 2, Dial 905. This was an original 12-inch Dial, quite rare. It was in very nice VG++ condition and was sold by the seller Herschel78, who has been selling some beautiful items lately. This was fetched a price of $1,350.

Also from Bird is this: The Charlie Parker Story, Savoy 12079. This was an original pressing, with a great cover of a relaxed Bird sitting on a throne. This was from the same seller and was listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $150. You don’t often see the Bird Savoys selling for these prices.

Joining Bird in the $1,000 record bin is this:

A Couple More Surprises For the Price Guide

August 23, 2009 Al 3 comments

Here are some of the other interesting items we’ve been watching on eBay. Nothing for the $1,000 bin, but there are other collectibles, aren’t there?

This is one I’ve never thought about as a major collectible, but it seems to be getting more popular among collectors, as are some of the other records on the Impulse label: Roy Haynes, Out of the Afternoon, Impulse A-23. This features Roland Kirk as a sideman and is a nice record. Perhaps the value is going up because Roy is still alive and well and playing formidably, keeping the tradition alive. Anyway, this record was listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $136.49.

Would you feel comfortable bidding on this record: Dexter Gordon, Our Man in Paris, Blue Note 4146? The seller listed the item as

Today on Ebay: Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made On

August 23, 2009 Al 2 comments

The seller Herschel78 is back with some very nice items that are closing today. Here are a few:

Jackie McLean, Lights Out, Prestige 7035. This record is VG++ and the cover is near and it’s an original pressing with the New York address and yellow label. A real beauty, at least in the picture. The current price on this one is $620 and there are still a few hours to go. Tempting, but I’m trying to get rid of records, not acquire them.

Also, Here Comes Louis Smith, Blue Note 1584. This is an original pressing in near mint condition, “the finest copy you’ll ever see,” according to the listing. This is now at $800 and is a near certainty to crack the $1,000 barrier. In the Jazz Collector Price Guide we’ve seen it go for as much a $1,420.

This one is also in beautiful, near-mint condition:

All Things Considered, Some Surprising Prices

August 22, 2009 Al 4 comments

Time to catch up with some of the items we’ve been watching this past week. We will do this in a few posts throughout the weekend. We’ll start with some of those items sold by the seller bobdjukic, who’s clearly got something going on that enables him to get wacky prices as well as staggering numbers of page views.

We’ll start with Thelonious Monk, Monk’s Music, Riverside 1102. This was a later stereo pressing, with that gold stereo stamp that many of the Riverside’s carried. Clearly not an original, which was a white label mono. One time on eBay, an original copy sold for more than $3,000. We chronicled it on Jazz Collector and it created quite a stir. See here. In any case that price for a mono was an aberration, just as we feel the price here for a stereo is an aberration. This copy, in M- condition for the record and cover, sold for $413.55. The seller actually wrote this in his listing: “Monstrously rare stereo pressing, many times rarer than the mono.” Yikes. The other amazing thing about this record: It had more than 1,700 page views in eBay. Yikes again.

Speaking of second pressings, there was the copy of John Coltrane, Giant Steps, Atlantic 1311. This was the one with the bulls-eye label, that was characterized as being of the same provenance as the black label. This record

Win A Free Collectible: Original Bird on Savoy

August 19, 2009 Al 7 comments

Okay, we are going to celebrate the impending end of summer with our best give-away to date: This is a genuine collectible, an original pressing of an all-time great LP: Charlie Parker Memorial, Savoy 12000. Yes, this is an original pressing with the red Savoy label and the deep groove. The record is not in perfect condition, but it sounds real nice, with just enough surface noise to certify it’s authenticity as a release from the mid-1950s. This features Bird in a variety of settings, with Miles Davis, Bud Powell, Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach, Duke Jordan, Curley Russell and others. It’s a mix of Bird’s Savoy material, from his earliest dates with Tiny Grimes, to his tenor sessions with Miles, to classics such as Steeplechase and Barbados. In order to be eligible to win this record, all you have to do is

Quickie Quiz

August 19, 2009 Al 3 comments

The other day we pointed out the Phil Woods 10-inch LP on New Jazz. This is a tough one: Altogether, how many 10-inch LPs were issued on the New Jazz label? For extra credit, you can name as many as possible. If you get desperate, the answer can be found somewhere on the Jazz Collector site.

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