Why Do We Collect?
Ye ask, and ye shall receive. Bethellodge asks on another post that we start a conversation on the topic: “Why do we collect?”
Here’s my story: I started out, probably like most of us, loving the music for the music’s sake. I remember the sound of jazz in my living room, from my father’s collection, and listening to John Coltrane in between classes at Queens College, and going back and discovering Bird and Dexter and Sonny and Clifford and Ella and so many of my heroes. The albums I found early in my searches are so often among my favorites and the albums I put on the turntable most often. Last night I had a half hour to kill and put on Oscar Peterson, West Side Story. It was like getting together with an old friend. In the beginning it was just about the music: Who cared if a pressing was original, as long as I could listen to the music? At some point, however, it became about more than the music, about finding the original pressing and building a collection. In my case, I know part of it is– and always has been — the thrill
of the hunt, the pursuit. I loved going to record stores, searching for that rare item for five bucks or ten bucks or twenty bucks or anything that in my head I perceived to be a bargain. I still love doing that, if only there were more places to go (other than eBay). By collecting, and focusing on the original pressings, it gave a purpose to my missions, to my explorations, and I had tremendous fun doing it. At some point it also became fun to “be” a collector, to show off my collection to friends and colleagues, to pull a record off the shelf and amaze somebody with a sound they had never heard before. I remember playing Freddie Redd, Shades of Redd, for people and seeing them knocked out by the complexity and beauty. Or Sonny Rollins playing “There’s No Business Like Show Business” from Worktime; or Dexter Gordon playing “The Chistmas Song” from The Panther. And, honestly, it’s just so much cooler to have the original pressing, the one that was sitting there on the shelf in 1955, than it is to have any other version of the music. Holding the cover, watching the vinyl spin on the turntable. Does it get any better than that?
Anyway, being a collector has absolutely enhanced my love and appreciation for the music. Which, I guess, is why I do Jazz Collector: To share my love and passion for the music and the joy I’ve gotten out of collecting it. At least, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it. What’s your story?
I saw Cal Tjader for the first time when I was in the 5th grade. From there, being in high school in the 1960’s, we fell in love as a group with Miles Davis, Don Ellis, Bill Evans and Buddy Rich. I had the priviedge of see all of these folks at one time or another. When I was a senior, I volunteered for a job as an usher at the Concord Blvd. Festival, the precursor of the Concord Jazz Festival and Concord Jazz Records. I was an usher for the first five years of the festival, and I still have all of the original programs. I knew Carl Jefferson the founder of both. Just tonight I was listening to Cal Tjader’s “Tanya” from his “Soul Sauce” album. It takes be back to my high school days, which is why I love jazz so much.
Erich, we share the same high school experience: the excitement before a much waited for concert of the Jazz Messengers with Benny Golson and Lee Morgan, Miles and Coltrane, Gerry Mulligan and Art Farmer, the Thel. Monk qrt, Horace Silver etc. Obviously, I wanted to have the records of these guys, I had the courage to approach in broken english. Unfortunately, I never heard my first idol, Sonny Rollins, live, but I saw him during 30 minutes on TV with his 1959 trio. Still, I had all his records on Prestige, Contemporary and Blue Note.
Later I got to know many other forms of music, Bach, Beethoven, Shostakovich, Mahler, my favourite being Shostakovich, but this music is not collectible in the sense of vintage jazz albums. There is something to these, which is irreplaceable, the excitement of the music, the art covers, the memories. When I think of Beethoven it is the national classic music radio channel, when I think of Shostakovich it is a memorable concert in the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow. But you don’t catch this on a record (I just have impersonal CD’s). When it comes to jazz, say Miles, it is Edmond Edwards’ design of “Relaxin”, Miles disappearing behind the curtains when Trane plays his 20 minutes long solos, the discovery of Bill Evans on “Kind of Blue”. Also there is excitement of acquiring an album of unknown musicians for a nominal price: it has become a companion for life. I am referring to “OLIO” of Teddy Charles on Prestige 7084, with Thad, Mal, Doug and Elvin ano 1956/7. Great stuff, beautiful Reid Miles cover. Any way, I could go on and on, but won’t bore you anymore.
It seems we all began as genuine fans of the music. I personally came to Jazz in the early 90’s as a teenager (I think most of you have a few years on me). I walked into a jazz record store in Victoria BC and asked the guy where I should start – he gave me a cassette of the Massey Hall concert (Bird, Diz, Mingus etc.), and a reissue of Davis’ ESP. This led to an obsession with the MD 60’s quintet and it all took off from there. I had a chance to see Max Roach (with his double quartet or quintet ?) at the Blue Note when I was 19… that was when it really gelled for me. The LP collecting really took off later – mostly as I started to get more serious jobs.
The reason I suggested the thread was, that my wife laughs occasionally when I pull out a record and say, “hey, I’ve never actually listened to this.” If this can happen with my modest 1000 or so records, I can imagine it happens with these major archives some of y’all keep.
On the other hand, I do feel like a mediocre record, with a bad cover, and little historical significance is dead weight in my pile, and it eats at me, and i need to get rid of it -sell it, give it way to a friend or thrift store. I have a nagging fear of getting sucked into a vortex of blind compulsive accumulation without any real purpose.
Al, I agree that sharing is one of the most satisfying aspects of the whole thing… it’s fun to have folks over to dig through my shelves and put stuff on. But I like to think it has more to do with an interpersonal connection, than simply showing off my hunting skills…but then maybe I’m kidding myself.
Yes, yes, I totally agree about the interpersonal connection. It’s what you choose to play for someone, out of the thousands of options, that defines your passion, not the fact that you were able to find a rare Blue Note that never leaves your shelves. That’s why I thought about the Oscar Peterson West Side Story. It’s definitely not a collectible record, but I love listening to that LP and playing it for aspiring pianists, who are always (and with good reason) in awe of both the ideas and the technique. I wouldn’t worry too much about getting sucked into the vortex, unless you are a gazillionaire, and then it wouldn’t matter. With the prices of jazz collectibles, even during the current lull, it is wise to pick and choose carefully.