Comments on: Monday Morning Blue Notes

By: Gregory the Fish

Gregory the Fish — Thu, 25 May 2017 15:51:03 +0000

Ethan, no laminate on later sleeves, either. So sliding them around on shelves was rougher because there was more friction. Just a guess.

Caroline, yeah I hear you. I have done it a few times, but honestly I just do what I can when I can. I don’t have a huge budget for this. I do love a nice crisp cover, but I find that a shiny new outer sleeve usually makes them look nice, too. 🙂

By: Ethan

Ethan — Thu, 25 May 2017 13:05:22 +0000

Have you guys ever noticed how the older album sleeves from the early 60s and 50s hold up better from fading but suffer from splitting? I’ve always assumed better ink was used but the vinyl weight plus the style of crafting the sleeves led to those splits. The ringwear and fading on my albums from the 70s is incredible when compared with how fadeless many of my older album sleeves are.

By: Woody

Woody — Wed, 24 May 2017 16:52:06 +0000

It’s always been hard to find a clean inexpensive jacket with an off condition record. I bought around 75 M- records with no covers at a WBGO record fair in 97′ and thought finding jackets would be easy, Ha. The owner had worked at Abbey Press and must have taken them home without covers. One was a red wax test pressing of Benny Golson “Gone With Golson” that could explain why the green Art Blakey record exists. If you’re running the press it would be easy to use a colored vinyl biscuit to make your own. The biscuit probably cost less than 30 cents, so they thought it was no big deal.

By: MikeC

MikeC — Wed, 24 May 2017 14:27:45 +0000

Root Down is by far my favorite Jimmy Smith record.

By: Caroline

Caroline — Wed, 24 May 2017 02:56:55 +0000

Gregory: I hear you. The problem I’ve found is this – true first pressing 1500 series Blue Notes (as an example) are getting harder and harder to find at all (or perhaps some titles are less ubiquitous to find than others). Because of this, finding what you describe – the crappy LP in a terrific album cover – *still* winds up in some/many cases costing serious $’s – and by that point, the addition of the two purchases seems quite expensive(-ish) – plus the fact of just finding a second cover at all is hard enough sometimes. For example, just to find and buy a clean cover (crappy LP) of BLP 1575 Lee Morgan “City Lights” seems hard to achieve for a cheap(-ish) price… C

By: Ethan

Ethan — Wed, 24 May 2017 01:52:08 +0000

@ cliff and gst- collectible but not “Blue Note” collectible. Agree about the Beasties since I would not have known about it if it wasnt for them.

By: Gregory the Fish

Gregory the Fish — Tue, 23 May 2017 19:41:26 +0000

interesting, caroline. whether or not i buy is almost entirely based on the record. if the record is strong VG+ or better, i’m usually pleased if the price is right. covers can be replaced. i don’t mind having seam splits, since I can keep an eye out for a crappy LP with a nice cover, which come along more often. but admittedly i rarely find myself in this situation. covers and LPs usually have similar condition, i fear.

By: GST

GST — Tue, 23 May 2017 16:13:02 +0000

You beat me to it Clifford. Definitely collectable and the Beastie samples only increase the value.

By: Clifford Allen

Clifford Allen — Tue, 23 May 2017 15:21:09 +0000

Root Down in crisp shape is definitely collectible — people still get excited by the Beastie Boys’ homage to the album. Plus, it’s really good.

By: Ethan

Ethan — Tue, 23 May 2017 13:08:30 +0000

I know it isn’t collectible like a Blue Note but I just picked up Jimmy Smith’s 70s club date “Root Down” and holy cow does that album smoke. The old timer really cooks surrounded by some young players, and definitely makes up for his sleepier sets, too.