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M’Boom, John Gordon and Other Rarities from Jazz Record Center

October 25, 2015 Clifford Allen 11 comments

Greetings all – Al should be back posting soon as I think he’s nearly back from holiday, but it’s been fun writing up various eBay shenanigans while he’s been out. The Jazz Record Center had a number of interesting items up last week, mostly 70s jazz on the Strata-East label, and I actually completely let these records slip notice until they were done for. A few titles in the list I might’ve gone toe-to-toe on but likely would’ve been taken to the cleaners anyway, starting with this one:

M’Boom – their self-titled debut, issued on Strata-East in 1973, went for a whopping $1,592. It’s probably the rarest Strata-East album by a long shot and certainly one of the scarcest in Roach’s discography. My memory is foggy on the details, but I believe that Roach decided he wanted the record pulled right after Strata-East released it and most copies were destroyed. Maybe he had a falling out with Tolliver and Cowell? A few leaked out, though, and it was bootlegged on CD in Japan several years ago (that’s what I’ve got). It’s probably their strongest album, and percussion ensembles are (for me) usually a pretty engaging listen. This one was M- for both record and cover.

Trombonist John Gordon’s Erotica Suite is another rare Strata-East title, though I don’t think I’ve ever seen it go for quite this much. Sealed and presumed Mint, this copy went for just shy of $1,000. It’s a nice, funky post-bop record with reedist James Spaulding, drummer Frank Derrick and trumpeter Waymon Reed. Gordon has another nice record on Strata-East that doesn’t usually go for nearly as much – in fact, it attracted no bids at the opening price of $75 and was also sealed.

Here’s a rare one – pianist Enrique Villegas’ trio featuring Paul Gonsalves and Willie Cook, titled Encuentro, on the Argentine label Trova (which also issued a nice record by pianist Alberto Favero called Suite Trane). Fred showed it to me in the shop at one point though I wasn’t feeling like spending $250 that day. Someone got lucky and was able to get it for $91 at auction. The record was listed as M- and the cover was probably a strong VG++. I like those later Gonsalves LPs and wouldn’t mind having this one in the collection at some point.

Until next time, happy bidding and happier listening…

Updating the $1,000 Bin, Near–$1,000 Bin, and Obscure Bins

October 21, 2015 Clifford Allen 14 comments

LSP10040 Another week in the world of collecting jazz records, and the march of Blue Notes cresting or nearing the $1,000-bin continues. It never ceases to amaze me what people will pay for original pressings of modern jazz LPs, though as the ceiling gets (and stays) high, it’s easy to catch oneself saying something like ‘oh, that title only went for $800 – good deal!’

It was pointed out in another thread how much Herbie Hancock’s Maiden Voyage tends to go for these days. The Jazz Record Mart out in Colorado was able to get a whopping $1,500 recently for a mono first pressing in nice condition, which seemed like a fluke. Maybe it was, but the guys over at Atomic Records in Burbank got a cool $815 for a similar copy, which was graded at EX+ for the vinyl and VG++ for the cover. Given my experience with their – and others’ – grading I’d translate that to a strong VG++ all around. It’s a wonderful record, but those mid-60s Blue Note sessions weren’t nearly as collectible a decade ago and it’s interesting to see them fetching so much coin. The smattering of original Blue Notes in my collection are all from the 1960s (or later), mostly purchased when that section of the catalog was more affordable, rather than the always-hot 1500 and early-4000 series.

Speaking of Atomic Records, this copy of Lee Morgan’s Candy cracked the $3,000 bin. It’s not the first time for such a feat, but certainly eye-popping when it happens. It’s a nice, swinging session with Art Taylor’s squeaky hi-hat keeping time, and certainly one of the more desirable early Blue Notes. Atomic grades this as an all around ‘EX’ with light marks; having asked them before about whether an ‘EX’ grade would have marks that click and being politely told I’d be better off staying away, I can’t imagine this record is much better than a VG+. At $3,000+ I hope the winning bidder is happy.

Atomic also has a copy of Tina Brooks’ True Blue – once seen as a Blue Note grail, it seems to pop up every now and then and still does hefty wallet damage. It’s a beautiful record and one I actually wouldn’t mind having in my collection in its original form (only have the Japanese King pressing). That said, it would be hard to get me to plunk down $2,000 for it and with a bit over one day to go, it’s already at $1,300 – although the reserve hasn’t been met. The record is graded EX (or VG+/VG++) and the cover is a nice-looking VG++.

And in the realm of my main interest, bullsite2000 had another interesting round of European jazz albums for sale, although none of them went particularly stratospheric. I was intrigued by this early Finnish LP from saxophonist Esa Pethman; it predates slightly the excellent Christian Schwindt LP, also on Finnish RCA, and is probably a bit more mainstream. Both albums feature early appearances by pianist Heikki Sarmanto, whom astute observers may recognize from a string of excellent semi-electric jazz LPs he recorded in the 1970s for Odeon, and this one also includes reedist Juhani Aaltonen, whose work took a much freer direction some years later. The Pethman LP was graded EX- for the record and VG++ for the very thin cover, which probably translates to an all-around strong VG+. I’d never seen it before and it is presumably quite rare. Perhaps getting it for just shy of $200 is a steal.

Happy Bidding and Happier Listening!

Top Dollar (or Euro) For European Pressings

October 1, 2015 Al 10 comments

Catching up on some loose ends, Terry sent me a link to the following record: Duke Jordan Trio, Vogue Swing M33 323. This was the original French pressing of this 10-inch LP, which was listed in M- condition for the record and Ex for the cover. It sold for $2,939.99. As Terry said in his email to me, the prices of the French Swing records are getting top dollar and this would certainly support that, unless anyone thinks nearly $3,000 is a bargain for a Duke Jordan record.

While we’re in Europe: Hank Mobley, Mobley’s Message, Esquire 32-029. This is the original British pressing of the Prestige record. It was listed in Ex condition for the record and only VG for the cover. It sold for $337.44. I’ve been watching a lot of these U.K. pressings and they seem to be going up in value, particularly the early Prestiges. I can see why: The covers are cool and the pressings sound great. If I didn’t have an original Prestige — and in some case, even if I do — I’d be very happy to have one of these original Esquires.

Here’s another one:

What an Auction! (One More Time)

September 16, 2015 Al 5 comments

Please allow me to dwell one more day on that Jazz Record Revival auction because there are a few more things to point out, as many readers have already done, particularly with that copy of Herbie Hancock, Maiden Voyage, Blue Note 4195 selling for a quite amazing $1,580.

How about this one, with the second cover: Art Blakey, A Night at Birdland Volume 2,Blue Note 1522. This was an odd one in that it had a Lexington Avenue address on one side and a West 63rd Street address on the other. It was clearly not a first pressing, particularly with that cover. But it sold for $236.50.

Someone on the previous post also mentioned this one:

What an Auction!

September 15, 2015 Al 19 comments

A lot of us were watching that major auction from Jazz Record Revival and, suffice to say, they had quite an amazing week. Here are some of their higher priced and more interesting items:

The Magnificent Thad Jones Volume 3, Blue Note 1546. This was an original New York 23 pressing listed in M- condition for the record and Ex for the cover. It sold for $1,775. Granted, we’ve been lax in keeping the Jazz Collector Price Guide up to date, but that would be the highest price we’ve ever recorded for a Thad Jones record.

Lee Morgan, Candy, Blue Note 1590. This was an original pressing listed in M- condition for the record and Ex+ for the cover. It sold for $2,938.

Back in the Vinyl Saddle Again

September 10, 2015 Al 26 comments

TWO WEEKS!!!! The longest I’ve ever gone without posting. Weren’t any of you, aside from Mac, worried about me? I didn’t go anywhere, just took an unexpected and unscheduled break. Now I’m back, but only for a few weeks. I have a two-week vacation coming up in October. Anyone interested in doing some guest hosting for a couple of weeks? Send me an email and we’ll see what we can do.

In the meantime, let’s get back to eBay and see what’s going on. This was on my watch list the last time I looked and now it has sold: Sonny Clark, Cool Struttin’, Blue Note 1588. This was an original pressing with the west 63rd Street address, deep grooves, etc. The record was in VG+ condition and the cover was only VG, but it still sold for $2,081. There was also this one for the $1,000 bin:

Jazz Hot, Cool and Expensive

July 14, 2015 Al 5 comments

Here are the results of a few other jazz vinyl auctions we’ve been watching on eBay, starting with Kenny Dorham, Afro-Cuban, Blue Note 5065. This was an original 10-inch pressing with the Lexington Avenue label. The record was listed in VG+ or VG++ condition (I’d vote for VG+, based on the description) and the cover was listed in VG condition with a big stain on the front that spread to the back. The stained cover would certainly negatively impact my interest in the record, but not for the winning bidder, who is spending $902 for this record.

This was another one that was in not-so-great condition but still wound up selling for a fairly hefty price:

The $1,000 Bin (And Beyond)

July 5, 2015 Al 2 comments

Let’s catch up on some of the jazz vinyl auctions we’ve been watching on eBay, starting with Paul Chambers, Whims of Chambers, Blue Note 1534. This was an original Lexington Avenue Pressing that was listed in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. It wound up selling for $1,136. It’s amazing how the prices for these original Blue Notes have gone up in the years we’ve been doing Jazz Collector. A few months ago we saw a copy of this record sell for more than $2,700. Back in 2004, I gave myself a hard time for spending $300 on a M- copy of the same record.

This one did not sell because it did not meet the seller’s reserve price: Red Rodney, Signal 1206. This was an original pressing in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. The top bid was $1,501. It’s hard to imagine that any of us, collectors or sellers, would have ever thought that $1,500 was too low a price for a single jazz record, but that day has certainly arrived.

This one made it into the $1,000 bin and actually did sell, despite the condition:

Updating the $1,000 Jazz Vinyl Bin

June 28, 2015 Al 9 comments

Looks like we’ll be updating the $1,000 bin this morning, starting with John Coltrane, Blue Train, Blue Note 1577. This was an original pressing with the New York 23 on one side. The record was listed in VG++ condition and the cover was just VG. No matter, it seems, because these New York 23 Blue Trains are quite hard to find. This one sold for $1,666.

No surprise seeing Blue Train in the $1,000 bin. This one, which I mentioned yesterday, was a surprise, not that it sold for more than $1,000, but that it sold for more than $1,500: Hank Mobley Quartet, Blue Note 5066. This was only in VG+ condition for the record and the cover, and when we looked at it yesterday the price was around $460. The final price was $1,525.

Here’s one that may have a chance at making the $1,000 bin:

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