Comments on: Jazz Vinyl Price Decline? Some Theories

By: Rudolf

Rudolf — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 18:07:13 +0000

bethellodge: age IS a factor. You take Bob Brookmeyer as an example and it is a good example. I go a bit furter down the road: George Lewis or Bunk Johnson. The 1951 American Music albums of these New Orleans artists used to sell for min. $ 100. Now one can hardly sell them at all. Why? The generation who likes this music is extinct or has the records, which were most popular in the fifties.
The popularity of Blue Note is due to the marketing efforts of people like Cuscuna who created the cult.
Recently I treated myself on a $ 5000 evening by playing 2 mint copies of 1500-series Blue Notes, feat. 4 different tenors (1/2 alto) and 2 minor masters on trumpet, of whom one made it to fame and one not. No trombones. A beautiful evening, the music was great. I felt like somebody enjoying his Iranian caviar with a superb Russian vodka.
Anybody in for a guess which albums I am referring to????

By: bethellodge

bethellodge — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 02:31:09 +0000

Can I offer a variation of Michel’s comment? Can age be a factor? Are the younger collectors more selective… or maybe more interested in later stuff? There was some talk here about a year ago about big band falling off the market. I personally have never heard Bob Brookmeyer and barely heard *of* him. Now, I realize that I’m far less versed than the average JC reader, and none can dream of Rudolph’s apparent knowledge, but it could be that what is remaining hot is what has in some way maintained an influence on later or current music. Judging by the remix CDs available through the 90’s and beyond, Blue Note has enjoyed a resurgence in hip factor due to sampling and hip hop etc. Those kids have since grown up, their tastes are more refined and they have more money than they used to. Brookmeyer just isn’t on their radar.

By: Al

Al — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 11:34:30 +0000

I used to track this every once n a while. I sell from the States and the ratio was usually about 40 percent Asia (including Australia and New Zealand), 30 percent Europe and 30 percent U.S.

By: Ed Herbert

Ed Herbert — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 02:22:28 +0000

Regarding recent prices – might the drop in the Euro relative to the dollar be a major factor regarding recent price declines ? Do collectors here have any opinion about whether the majority of the rarer Jazz LP sales prior to the last few months were being sold from the US to non-US winning bidders?

By: Rudolf

Rudolf — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 21:14:17 +0000

I think it can best be written by each collector himself.
My essentials count up to less than 1K. With some squeezing, I could arrive at 500. I should have ditched the non-essentials some time ago, in stead of starting to sell off my double and triple original Blue Notes, which fetched then ard 500 US$.

By: Michel

Michel — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 12:06:04 +0000

The guide of REAL colletible records remain to be written…

By: Michel

Michel — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 12:05:09 +0000

My prophecy is that in the future the market will for Blue Note, Prestige, some Riversides and Savoys and a pack of collectible records from various labels in NM condition. You will no longer see a 15000 record collection ; Collector will downsize their collection to the essential ; or they will built only in that direction.

By: Michel

Michel — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 11:54:58 +0000

If Al is right, it may be time to get rid of my VG-/VG Lee Morgan’s “Candy”. Its been a long time since i plan to sell it…

By: Rudolf

Rudolf — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 06:49:01 +0000

I also noted this sudden jump in available vinyl. However, if you go for auctions only, you are back to the familiar 9-10.000 figure.
I, for one, almost never consult anything else than auction type sales. The chance of finding an early Blue Note or similar at a low fixed price is nil.
Btw: Ebay Germany have always had almost only set price sales, the percentage of auction type sales being extremely low.
The grading: is it EBay grading or sellers’ grading? I thought the latter. It is true that Goldmine is less strictly adhered to.