Category: Blue Note

Hype, Hyperbole and High Prices; Just Another Day on eBay

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Back on eBay again for the first time in weeks and was greeted to this: John Coltrane, Coltrane, Prestige 7105. What caught my eye about this listing was this line: “Awesome red cover of one of the rarest jazz albums.” Then I saw that the bidding had already reached more than $510 for this second pressing with the New Jersey label. The combination of high hyperbole and high price, could only mean one seller and, of course, I was right. You can click the link and guess yourself, but for regular readers here it won’t be much of stumper. The record and cover are graded as VG++. I kind of like the red cover, but prefer the original green. Does anyone know why Prestige did this, not just with this record, but with others? Did they think people would want to buy the same record twice? Rudolf?

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Back in Action: Rare Newk, Redd, Jackie

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I’m back. Haven’t looked at eBay in a couple of weeks, so that’s where I’m going to start: Sonny Rollins Quintet, Esquire 20-080. This is a 10-inch British version of the 10-inch U.S. LP Sonny Rollins Quintet Featuring Kenny Dorham, Prestige 186. I’ve never owned either the U.S. or U.K. pressing, so this copy looks extraordinarily cool to me. It is listed in VG++ condition for both the record and the cover. The start price is in the $200 range and so far there are no bidders, with five days left on the auction. Tempting, I must say.

And then there is my old nemesis:

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Tales from the Inbox and From the Turntable

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Clearing out some old emails and watch list and found this link and note from our friend Clifford: Hank Mobley, Blue Note 1568. The note reads as follows: “Watching this one because it is apparently quite unplayable.” And that it was. The vinyl was listed in G condition, with the caution that it would not play without skipping. The cover was VG- with edge wear and seam splits. I think Clifford sent me the listing when the price was about $150. It would up selling for $810 with 16 bidders. Quite a lot, IMHO, for a record that I wouldn’t put on my turntable, but perhaps the new owner will like to frame it, or have it for investment purposes, figuring that these things are only going up in value, no matter what the condition. Trying not to pass judgment, because collecting is very personal and we all have our passions and idiosyncrasies.

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On the Menu: Classic Blue Notes and Prestiges

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We’ll start today with a few from the Prestige label, opening with Zoot Sims Quartets, Prestige 7026. This is an original New York pressing that looks to be in about VG+ condition for the record and similar for the cover. It’s not a record that we’ve written about much. We don’t see it on eBay that often and it doesn’t typically command high collectible prices, compared to other original pressings from the era. This one has a start price of $200 and so far there are no bids, with the auction closing in two days. I happen to own a copy of this record, but haven’t listened to it in like 30 years. Maybe I’ll try it later. Zoot is always worth a listen, IMHO. Read more

Back to Business, Back to Blue Note

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I’ve been off eBay for a while, tending to other business, so to get reacclimated and grab a quick look at what’s going on, I did a search of some of the highest priced jazz records now up for auction. Naturally, all of the top listings came up Blue Note. Here are a few, starting with Freddie Hubbard, Open Sesame, Blue Note 4040. This is an original pressing with the West 63rd Street address. The record is listed in VG+ condition and the cover is VG++. It looks like a nice solid copy. The bidding is now in the $475 with more than two days left on the auction. Given today’s market, I would expect this one to break into the $1,000 bin.

This one is already headed for the $1,000 bin, and might wind up all the way into the $3,000 bin, if, indeed, such a bin actually exists: Kenny Dorham, Round Midnight at the Cafe Bohemia, Blue Note 1524. This is an original Lexington Avenue pressing that looks absolutely pristine from the photos, as if it had been preserved in laminate from 1956. The seller lists it as M- for both the record and the cover. The bidding has already exceeded $1,500 and there are more than five days left on the auction.

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M&M&M: Monterose, Mobley, Miles

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Here’s a cool one from our friends at funkyousounds: JR Monterose, the Message, Jaro Jas-8004. This is an original pressing in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover. What makes it cool is the personalized autograph from JR on the back, which looks legitimate to these eyes, although I am certainly no expert. If its a fake, someone went to a lot of trouble. Anyway, this one closes in two days and is now in the $405 price range.

For a record that is considered the rarest of the rare, Hank Mobley, Blue Note 1568, seems to come up quite often on eBay. Now we have a copy from the seller bobjdukic, so we can only imagine what this will sell for, since he seems to have a strong following of devoted buyers willing to pay top dollar. This one is probably VG+ or even VG++ for the record and the cover. It has the West 63rd Street address on the labels, not the New York 23 on one side, which is the version coveted by the most serious of Blue Note collectors, even though it has been argued often here at Jazz Collector that they are likely of the same vintage and provenance. This one is now at $2,000 with eight days to go on the auction, so we will expect it to sell for a much higher price, all things considered.

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Great Jazz on Video and Vinyl

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Rather than listening to records last night, I did some random searches through YouTube and found a few really cool clips to share. It’s a fun thing to do, plug in an artist’s name and see what comes up, but before you know it three or four hours could pass by. Anyway, there’s this clip of the Horace Silver Quintet doing Song for My Father. This is nearly 19 minutes, with great long solos by Horace, Bill Hardman and Bennie Maupin. Horace was one creative, brilliant musician and Hardman is a revelation. Interesting how “outside” the playing gets during Maupin’s solo, and how comfortable Horace and the rest of the band are in that style. Here are two more to enjoy. No need to comment from me, they speak for themselves: Read more

Blue Notes and Beyond

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I’m back, finally. I see in my absence, Mr. Lee did a good job of keeping the interest alive. I’ve actually removed a couple of posts that had to do with cases filed on eBay. Sorry, Mr. Lee, that’s not something we do here at Jazz Collector.

Let’s start with the tease on the Blue Note documentary. It is called Blue Note Records: Beyond the Blue Notes. I saw it at a special screening at the Tribeca Film Festival. Watching the movie and knowing that I would have to write about it here reminded me why, early in my journalism career, I decided that I didn’t want to be a critic. To be fair, there were some great things about the movie. Nice clips of Monk, the Lion and Wolff story, the artwork (of course) and some great commentary and stories from 91-year-old Lou Donaldson, who lights up the screen every time he appears. Would I recommend the documentary to you, loyal Jazz Collector readers? I don’t need to, do I? You’ll see it no matter what I say, as you should. Within the movie is the story of the music we love as it was recorded and packaged on one of the labels we treasure and collect. Read more

Shades of Tommy Flanagan Overseas

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When I began collecting jazz vinyl as a serious (obsessive?) endeavor, sometime in the late 1970s or early 1980s, the record that was identified as the “rarest” or “most collectible” was Tommy Flanagan Overseas. There was no internet in those days and I had never even seen a copy of this record for years, and didn’t hold a copy in my hand until maybe 20 years later, when it was part of a collection that I did not buy. I never owned an original until the Bruce W. West collection back in 2013, so it was a long wait of more than 30 years for me. I’ve always kept an eye on this record on eBay because of its early mythological aura, at least as I experienced it. Over the years I’ve seen as this record has moved into the $3,000 price range on occasion, which is certainly quite a high price, but the aura of this record as the height of jazz collectibility has been eclipsed by other records, particularly Blue Notes, and most specifically Hank Mobley, Blue Note 1568. Yet Tommy Flanagan Overseas is still high up on the list of valuable and highly sought-after jazz collectibles. I mention all this as a prelude to this listing on eBay now: Tommy Flanagan Overseas, Prestige 7134. This auction for this copy

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Blasts From the Past

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Sorry I’ve been inconsistent again with my posting frequency. In my real work I’m helping to ghost write a book on cybersecurity and the first volume is closing, so it’s been very busy. Before getting down to the business at hand of looking at records on eBay, I have a question to pose from our good friend Clifford, as follows: “Do you know which came first in terms of Contemporary Records mono pressings of Art Pepper Meets The Rhythm Section, blue title on the back slick or red title text? I always assumed blue was first, but have seen some with red text referred to as original.” I know that I have an original pressing of this record because when I bought the Bruce M. West Collection (oh, happy memories), there was a copy of Art Pepper Meets the Rhythm Section with the purchase date, the original loose plastic outer sleeve and a promotional card from Contemporary. It was quite a nice package to have. In fact, I ran a picture with the original post, repeated here. This copy, and my other original pressing, both have the blue title on the back and the red text. Was there a contemporaneous (pun intended) release with red text in the title. That’s the question Clifford is posing. And the answer is?

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