If It’s Blue Note, It Must Be Collectible
Admittedly my headline is a bit of an exaggeration. As we’ve seen, the early traditional jazz Blue Notes such as the Sidney Bechet and James P. Johnson records, don’t seem to fetch collectible prices these days. But anything and everything Blue Note from the post-bop era of the mid-1950s to the early 1960s, seems to be in demand these days. Take this record: The Three Sounds, Bottoms Up!, Blue Note 4014. In seven or so years of doing the Jazz Collector Price Guide we’ve only listed three records from The Three Sounds and the highest price was around $200. Not anymore. This one, in M- condition for the record and the cover, sold for $305. I’ve never been a big fan of these records and I’ve had them pass through my hands on several occasions, but perhaps I should give them another listen? What’s the consensus (as if we could actually find a consensus here at Jazz Collector).
From the same seller came this Blue Note, well worth any price IMHO: Dexter Gordon, Our Man in Paris, Blue Note 4146. This was also an original pressing and it was also in M- condition. The price was $549. I have a special place in my heart for this one: It was the first Dexter record I ever purchased and to this day it remains a favorite. It was a rare treat to hear Bud Powell in such fine form from this era and there’s an edge and an energy on this record that makes it special. It feels as if Dexter and Bud were highly inspired by one another and elevated their playing (if possible) in order to please and prod the other. Perhaps that wasn’t the case, but it’s fun to speculate and believe and aspire for the best, right?
How many Three Sounds records do you need? Bottoms Up is the only one I have, and I confess it does not get as much airtime as my other Blue Notes. The same could be said of Jimmy Smith and Stanley Turrentine – two artists whose records regularly sit forlorn in record store bins for months on end. Unlike Bill Evans Trio on Riverside, which fly off the shelf in seconds.Its all about the music at the end of the day.
I like the 3 Sounds records. Maybe not the most groundbreaking stuff, but the music feels great, everybody plays great, and it sounds great. It’s soulful music and I enjoy it.
it is yet another piano trio, but the special thing is that it is on Blue Note. That makes all the difference. People are buying Blue Notes as an investment.
My wife hates it when I play The 3 Sounds; she calls it cocktail bar music… But then again, she says the same when I play, for instance, Bud Powell’s The Scene Changes or the seminal Sonny Clark Trio album and their vinyls always fetch much more than The 3 Sounds. Personally I enjoy Gene Harris’ playing just as much as Clark’s or Powell’s. Or Monk’s for that matter. 😉
And one more thing about Our Man In Paris: the CD counterpart contains the two bonus cuts Our Love Is Here To Stay and Like Someone In Love. Especially the (according to Cuscuna’s liner notes) impromptu Like Someone In Love -without Gordon by the way- is absolutely brilliant. Those tracks are not part of the original LP; if anyone of you is interested in listening to these two bonus cuts (that is, if Al doesn’t mind me offering it here) then shoot me an email: manmatty[at]gmail[dot]com so I can pass them on to you in flac format 😉
That’s a blast.
I quite enjoy the Three Sounds sometimes and one has to see that Harris/Simpkins/Dowdy were one of the tightest rhythm-groups with a very unique style. Harris sure plays very lightweighty (but he probably is a heavyweight) and with lots of arpeggios and crescendi which sometimes get’s annoying. But I really do appreciate their very own approach to the music and their sort of blues-roots. I always prefer “Black Orchid” hence it’s the ‘darkest’ of their records and the ‘Blue Hour’-Sessions.
Hi Folks,
Turned 62 yesterday (Nov. 28). I’m jazz fan since the early sixties and have a jazz vinyl collection
that, unfortunately, will be slowly converted to
cash to fund my ‘semi-retirement’. I was never
a ‘collector’ per se…..just followed my love of
the music to satisfy my thirst for hearing the work
of the Masters. To say I’m astounded by the ebay
prices would be understatement. I’m looking for
info/advice on how to begin selling. My LPs are
in fine condition. I am not greedy but I don’t want to give them away either. Any direction/help would be
much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Tom Tintle
I bought the same copy of 4014 not that long ago for US $24,99. Pretty sure that $305 is a bit too high for this record in my humble opinion.
Mmmm does Three Sounds records are ok but once you have two albums you have the rest…no obvious differences /evolutions between their albums and all quite the similar no matter which of their albums you happen to play. Cover above kind of sums it up for me…cocktail music…
piano players, in trio sessions: my heart aches when Mattyman puts Gene, Sonny, Bud and Monk on the same level of enjoyment.
I don’t know why but I have most of Sonny, Bud and Monk.
No Gene records.
Am I wrong?
the Blue Hour LP i would really like to have because of the coverphoto of Rudy v G. ‘s studio.
I have some original Three sounds, but indeed, airplay is minimum.
Here in holland you pay max 60 Euros for the Three Sounds
spent a couple of evenings at the Paris Blue Note ’59/early sixties. Bud’s trio (Pierre Michelot, Klook) was a well-knit group and Dexter had good luck in finding them available for his Paris session.
There is another Paris session for Blue Note which is extraordinary: the 1958 session of Dizzy Reece with A.T. and Tubby Hayes. They say RVG is the engineer. The sound (esp. A.T.’s) is different from the NY sound. It is not better, nor worse, but just different and refreshing. Very rewarding session, also for Tubby Hayes and pianist Terry Shannon, another Briton.
Hey, what the… Someone else called Matty here now, too? To prevent any confusion folks: I’ll always sign off as Mattyman 😉 Oh, and anyone still interested in my ‘Our Man In Paris offer’, a few comments up?
Mattyman — I know how you feel about your identity confusion. Perhaps Matty can try a new moniker? As for those bonus cuts, they were also issued on viny — if I recall, it was Landslide — so I imagine many in the Jazz Collector audience have the music in that format.
The Reece was recorded in London and billed as being made in Paris to circumvent British musicians’ union laws. Great record.
Blue Hour is the only Three Sounds record I have and it’s quite good. Never felt much need to add more of their albums to my collection, though.
To truly appreciate the high quality of The Three Sounds, one must listen to their debut album: BLUE NOTE 1600 presents THE 3 SOUNDS. Gene Harris utilizes the distinction of alternating between the piano and the CELESTE on the tune “Goin’ Home”…Harris really captivates the listener by alternating between the two in a very disguised way…I listened to this track twice back when I heard it 15 years ago for the first time…memories…take a listen and see for yourself…
Tom. There is more to it then can be easily conveyed in a short post, but… The more you know and the more you show the better.
Take good pictures. Show the label. Use the Goldmine standard to rate the condition (do not say it’s in good condition). Covers are important too. Clean the records and play them if possible to help with the grading. Check popsike.com to get comparable values, but remember every variation means a different value. There are probably many more things I’ve left out but above all be honest. If you’d like to contact me, I’d be happy to help. bill@recordfinder-sf.com
i love Gene Harris…..in the *70s*! but yea the older 3 sounds 45 i have with the celeste is awesome. and i dont know what the dude is talking about blue notes as-investment. when i die my 1500 series will be sold for pennies on the dollar, and probably just thrown away.
clifford: thanks for interesting info. Jepsen says the album was recorded in Paris (plausible since A.T. and Don Byrd were there with Bobby Jaspar); Bruyninckx claims London. So he is right.
OK, Al, yes I could have known that the bonus cuts aren’t as rare as I thought they would be 😉 And, Dottore, you’re not wrong -after all it’s all a matter of taste. The style of Gene Harris is unique and maybe it’s just that we have to say ‘you either like it or you don’t’. But I will admit, Dottore, if at gunpoint I had to make a choice, then I’d probably choose Monk. Thank heavens I don’t have to make that choice, though 😀
That’s funny, ’cause now we are at the point were the Three Sounds are almost being reduced to just Gene Harris and this is what always happens with them and it’s wrong. Harris was dominating the record, yes, but it is very rewarding to just concentrate on Dowdy and Simpkins. There’s a lot of chemistry going on here and in their own rights and within their boundaries they were burning.
I’m not listening to their records very often but their approach and their relatedness is excellent.
And I would say that it’s nice to see Powell, Monk and Harris being mentioned together, because they all had a very special reading of jazz and a very unique personal style. So – don’t blame it on the Sounds! 😉
Ah, btw. since we’re only talking about “Blue Hour”. Does anyone know Lou Donaldson’s record “LD+3” or Johnny Griffin & Nat Adderley’s “Branching out”? I even recall James Clay’s “Double dose of Soul” as very rewarding with Gene Harris at the piano.
Speaking of collectible Blue Notes, what do you suppose is happening with this one?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/JOE-HENDERSON-PAGE-ONE-ORIG-BLUE-NOTE-LP-NM-/290635640068?pt=Music_on_Vinyl&hash=item43ab3bed04#ht_1643wt_1374
…My personal favorite among the “Three Sounds” catalogue is by far ‘Blue Hour’ with Stanley Turrentine. The tracks are solid with that trademark soulful-bluesy groove, which transcends the listener back to the studio during those wee small hours of the morning; probably after just after a club date somewhere.
“The blue hour comes from the French expression l’heure bleue, which refers to the period of twilight each morning and evening where there is neither full daylight nor complete darkness. The time is considered special because of the quality of the light at this time of day.” – (Thank you Wikipedia)
For anyone who has ever pulled an all-nighter to meet a deadline or have wandered home from a late night jam session, you are all too familiar with this time of the morning… The cover photo, which was taken from inside RVG’s newly built Englewood Cliffs studio with a blue filter is devoid of natural light, and really completes the package. The Bottoms Up cover photo was also taken from inside the RVG studio, but these days the studio interior is over-run with a ramshackle of smaller recording enclosures and equipment all along the parameter, which makes these early images that much more relevant to the session’s concept, and the golden era of Blue Note Records.
Trusted seller, beautifully looking record & cover and marvelous music. Should stop halfway between 2k and 3k. Awesome!
Well, Andy, since we’re already looking at 2,000 bucks, I can only say: “I’m out”… 😉
what’s happening?
nothing different than snow storm in Honolulu today, or temperature in the high 90’s in Alaska, today.
someone is turning mad!
just now.
@Andy
I do not understand the bids on Henderson… Have anyone ever seen “New York” label in 2000$ bin?
holycannoli… ???! the 4100 series going in the $ 2K??
Re the Henderson: to think the bidding started at $19.95!!!
Methinks the market is going mad. Perhaps it is a flight to financial safety what with the pressures on various economies these days.
Shall the future provide a commodity market in Blue Note vinyl as it does for bonds and corn and soybeans?
Andy: Henderson Page One $2,000? –
Winning bidder u***k makes an average of twenty bids a day every day. He made five bids on this one record. My only theories in order of plausibility are:
1.Money laundering
2.Treasury-funded Fiscal Stimulus
3.Undiagnosed OCD
4.Is Joe’s mums till with us?
5.Bernie Maddoff likes Jazz