Are We Seeing Market Shifts?
If you’re on eBay now, it’s hard not to watch all of those auctions closing today from the seller zero.street. There are all of the later Blue Notes I mentioned yesterday. The prices on these have gone even higher, some in the $300-plus range. How about this one: Dave Brubeck, Time Out, Columbia 1397. This is an original pressing that looks to be in quite nice condition, probably M- or VG++ at the worst. The price has been bid up to $137.50. This is not that rare a record, even as an original pressing. Is it because Brubeck just died? Or will this record achieve some new cachet as a collectible, sort of like Kind of Blue, because it is so iconic. Weird to see this one fetching collectible prices after all of these years.
This one is also of interest from the same seller: Art Farmer Quintet Featuring Gigi Gryce, Prestige 7017. This is an original New York yellow label pressing. The cover is in nice VG++ condition and the record is VG or VG+, with a hairline mark that is said to cause some surface noise. I imagine the condition is a killer on this one, because under normal circumstances I wouldn’t expect it to sell for a price so far below those later Blue Notes, which apparently it will. The bidding now is in the $110 range. Unless the market is starting to shift more to the ’60s from the ’50s? Is that possible?
$305 for Time Out is brain-frying.
And 41 bids for that copy of Time Out!? Craziness.
I think that the price for Time Out only goes through the roof because A. buyers think you better get them now while they’re still “cheap” and B. sellers think you better get them now while they’re still “cheap”. Since Dave Brubeck has passed, I guess everyone now suddenly expects that the value of his output will only go up from now on? Hence ‘better get them now’…
Two words: feeding. Frenzy.
Mattyman, I think you’re right, and it shows what happens (and always has happened) when speculation replaces value.
Quote “speculation replaces value”. Yes and no… in that case, the commercial value is not big because this is a best seller album. But in artistic terms the value is great. Un doubtledly this record should be in every serious collection. It is no surprise that sooner or later prices will climb. Same as Coltrane on Impulse or Miles in Columbia; Speculation follows artistic value, as always.
I’m in agreement with Michel on this one. A quick look will show prices going up on original Impulse mono’s(orange/black),New Jazz(purple),Miles 60’s mono issues and-yes-even select Blue Note/Liberty mono lps. As to whether it’s better to buy now-or pay more later-is anybodys guess. A first-press Time-Out is kinda cool,though. But then I’d be tempted to do a “Art Deco” overhaul of my listening room to match the hip graphics! “Anyone for martini’s?”
I received my album from “zerostreet” (a mono copy of Giuffre’s Western Suite on Atlantic), very well packed and exactly as described. I suppose other buyers are not disappointed either.