Worktime for Jazz Vinyl
Here’s another one of those cool original UK Esquire issues of a U.S. Prestige: Sonny Rollins Quartet, Worktime, Esquire 32-038. This is an original pressing that looks to be in VG++ condition for the cover and VG+ condition for the record. The bidding starts at $400 and so far there are no bidders with more than four days left on the auction. I kind of love this cover, but in looking at it closely, does it make sense? Doesn’t look like work time for Sonny, more like nap time. Or maybe it’s time to wake up and get to work. In any case, trying to look too deeply into covers is often a fruitless exercise, beauty being in the eye of the beholder and, to these eyes at least, this one is a beauty.
Here’s another Sonny from the same seller: Sonny Rollins A Night at the Village Vanguard, Blue Note 1581. This looks to be an original deep groove West 63rd Street pressing. The record and cover are both graded in VG+ condition. This one also has a start price of $400 with no bidders and four days left on the auction.
J.R. Monterose, The Message, Jaro 5004. This is an original mono pressing. It looks to be in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. Bidding for this starts at about $500 and so far there is no action, also with four days left. And one more closing in four days with no bids: Warne Marsh, Jazz of two Cities, Imperial 9027. This looks to be a first pressing. There’s wording on the cover that says “recorded in stereophonic sound.” This would be early even for using the word stereo, since it is a 1957 record and that was the year of the first stereo issues. But maybe Imperial was ahead of the game. I don’t have an original copy of the record to compare. The start price on this one is $275.
The $39 shipping on the Sonnys will surely deter some U.S. bidders. Not me, though. I’m deterred because I’ve never paid $400 for a record in my life! The Marsh seller is the perfect example of one who prices records too high relative to the information he provides. You can’t just make a selection in the “condition” box in the eBay listing and leave it at that. For $275 (which may well be a fair price) you gotta make the effort to describe things in detail if I’m going to consider a bid.
I have a copy of the Rollins Esquire pressing of Worktime in my collection and it’s a beauty, as many of the Esquires were. Laminated cover both front and back and a lovely heavy vinyl pressing made using original RVG metalwork. I consider it to be just as desirable as (if not more so than) either the pink or green covered Prestige pressings.
Yeah, the Esquire is a lot more attractive (to me) than the Prestige.