A Trip to a Well-Stocked Record Store

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I’m out in San Francisco for a couple of days and I had a couple of hours to kill so I checked out a record store in Redwood City, The Record Man. It was an interesting experience and probably a shop you want to check out if you’re here, although I wound up not purchasing anything. I’d say the jazz inventory at this store is the largest I’ve seen anywhere, shelves and shelves of records and you get the feeling there’s even more where that came from. You need a ladder, which they provide, and some stamina to go through the records. There’s a lot of stuff, which means a lot of stuff to wade through, but there are also collectibles buried within, although I didn’t unearth any rare Blue Notes or Prestiges. I did find a few nice Verves I was interested in and a couple of vocal records. One of the challenges is that none of the records is priced, so whatever you pick out you don’t know how much it is going to cost you until you go to the counter. There the owner, Gary, who was quite warm and chatty, goes through a process of looking up recent prices from Popsike, supplemented with a Goldmine Price Guide. I suggested he also check out the Jazz Collector Price Guide for pricing information, and perhaps he will.  In any case, I brought a small batch of records

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Jazz Vinyl Update: Some Warhols, Blue Notes & Miles

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Here’s some jazz vinyl we’ve been watching on eBay:

This one was described in “like new” condition and, based on the picture and description, it looked like an original pressing: Sonny Clark, Sonny’s Crib, Blue Note 1576. The seller said he turned down a “buy now” request and let the bidding continue, which it did, topping off at $1,713.

This one wasn’t in nearly the same condition as Sonny’s Crib: Lee Morgan, Candy, Blue Note 1590. This looked to be an original pressing and it was listed in VG+ condition for the record and VG MINUS for the cover. It sold for $1,115.

This is the highest price we’ve ever seen for this record: Miles Davis, Cookin’ Prestige 7094. This was an original pressing that was listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $665.

How about a few records with Andy Warhol covers:

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A Potpourri Of Collectible (And Not) Jazz Vinyl

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Here are some odds and ends we’ve been watching:

Kenny Burrell, Blue Note 1543. This was an original pressing with the Lexington Avenue address, the last of the Lexington Blue Notes. It also has the cover by Andy Warhol. The seller has his own grading system and he labeled the record and cover in the VG++ range, but based on the description of the record and his system, it sounded to me like the record was more like VG and the cover was somewhere between VG and VG+.  It sold for $510.

I’d have thought this would see more action, but it didn’t: Stan Getz, Interpretations, Norgran 1000. This was an original pressing with the deep grooves and yellow label and it was listed in M- condition for the vinyl. The cover looked to be about VG+. The start price for this was $50 and there was only one bid and it sold for $50. Someone got a great record for a nice price.

Here’s another great record often available at a nice price: Sonny Stitt, 37 Minutes and 48 Seconds, Roost 2219. The early Stitt Roost LPS like this and Sonny Stitt and the New Yorkers feature

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Still More Tales of the Hunt

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Nick from Brooklyn is back with another from his ongoing Tales of the Hunt series. I don’t have a title for this one, but I will apologize in advance if it offends any little people, drag queens, call girls or anyone else. Nick from Brooklyn, as previously noted, has become an irresistible force and I hate to stifle his creativity with too much editing. This one is pretty much as he wrote it with some minor modifications.

This is going to be three stories that happen in the same building, months apart in the late 1970’s. The building that these three stories happen is around two blocks from the old Madison Square Garden on 49th St and 8th Avenue. I believe the address was 888 8th Avenue. The first story is about a call I get from a record producer his name I have forgotten, telling me he got my postcard and that he has produced hundreds of records and for me to drop by his apartment. We set up an appointment. It was a Saturday, I remember this as if it was yesterday, getting off of the elevator I’m all excited I knock on the door it opens and I am staring straight ahead at nothing but a wall, oh as I look down, it’s a dwarf. He sort of looked like the actor from the old Phillip-Morris cigarette ads. Nick come in, I’ve been waiting for you, tea, coffee, can I get you anything, I thanked him and told him tea. He is talking a mile a minute about this recording artist, this record, that artist, and how he has been in the music and circus business for over 50 years. After finishing the tea and listening to him for close to an hour, I told him excuse me, do you have any records I can look at, he gets up goes in the hall opens the closet

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Rare Jazz Vinyl: Here Today, Gone Tomorrow

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Here are some items we’ve been watching on eBay, and then not watching on eBay.

What are we thinking with two recent auctions that were ended early? One was by the seller  yollie97, who doesn’t have a long history on eBay. He had a couple of nice records we were watching, including: Horace Parlan, Us Three, Blue Note 4037. When we were tracking this last week it was already at $1,000, but then the auction was ended with the explanation that the item is no longer available. The same thing happened with other records we were watching from this seller, including Hank Mobley Quintet, Blue Note 1550 and Hank Mobley Soul Station, Blue Note 4031. Sometimes a seller will end auctions early if he gets a high price from a potential buyer. Perhaps that’s what happened here, perhaps there was another reason. Perhaps yollie97 sees Jazz Collector and would like to offer an explanation. The other one that ended early was from the seller Amatti 1000 from Italy, a seller with only 19 feedbacks in the past year. He also had a few beauties for sale, including Hank Mobley and Lee Morgan, Peckin’Time, Blue Note 1574. This one was at $850

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Jazz Vinyl To Watch: Parlan, Dex, Mobley, Burrell

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Lots of interesting jazz vinyl to watch on eBay.

Here’s one that will soon enter the $1,000 bin: Horace Parlan, Us Three, Blue Note 4037. This is listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover and it is described as an original pressing, although a close-up of the labels always helps. There are a couple of days left on the bidding for this one and the price is already at $1,000. The same seller his this one: Hank Mobley and Lee Morgan, Peckin’ Time, Blue Note 1574. This one is also listed as an original pressing. The record is in M- condition and the cover looks to be about VG+. The price is currently at $850.

Dexter Gordon, Daddy Plays the Horn, Bethlehem 36. This is an original deep groove mono pressing with the red label.  The record and the cover are both listed in VG++ condition. The price is already more than $300. The same seller has this one: Hank Mobley Quintet, Blue Note 1550. This is an original pressing. It’s only in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover, but it is already bid up to more than $500.

Here’s another Andy Warhol cover:

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Sonny Rollins Awarded National Medal of Arts

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Thanks to Don-Lucky for the heads-up that Sonny Rollins is being awarded today with  the National Medal of Arts — the highest award given to artists and arts patrons by the United States Government. I am doubly pleased to see that Sonny is being honored along with James Taylor, one of my all time-favorite artists outside of the jazz sphere. On Sonny’s official Web site, this is what he had to say: “I’m very happy that jazz, the greatest American music, is being recognized through this honor, and I’m grateful to accept this award on behalf of the gods of our music.”

This is the citation read at the ceremony:

“Sonny Rollins for his contributions to American jazz music. Widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians of the post-bebop era, Mr. Rollins’ melodic sensibilities, playing style, and solos have delighted audiences and influenced generations of musicians for over 50 years.”

Here are some details about the honor, as well as past jazz winners: Read more

Undercurrent: DG or Not DG, That Is The Question

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A couple of weeks ago Fred Cohen of the Jazz Record Center shared some new information about a much-discussed record on Jazz Collector: Kenny Drew, Undercurrent, Blue Note 4059. He sent me a note the other day stating that it raised some interesting issues about Blue Note original pressings and suggested that perhaps I give it a little more play rather than simply having it buried among a variety of comments. So, without further ado, here’s Fred:

For the benefit of Blue Note collectors and/or readers of the pressing guide, I would like to bring to their attention to the recent eBay sale of Kenny Drew “Undercurrent” on Blue Note 4059. The vinyl was in virtually new condition; the jacket showed minor wear (you can find the complete description as eBay #300517372359). What made this copy interesting is the lack of the deep groove on Side 2 and the “Review Copy” stamp on both the Side 2 label and the back slick. This is the first time I have seen a label-stamped review copy of Undercurrent and it raises the issue once again as to the definition of an “original” pressing: is it a record, regardless of any other consideration, that includes all the details – such as a deep groove – that collectors look for, or is it the first issue of that record? It is my impression that the presence of the “Review Copy” stamp on the label is a very strong indication that the “original” Undercurrent pressing had no deep groove.

Blue Note frequently stamped “Review Copy or “Audition Copy” on the jacket only, making it possible to substitute another copy of the same record. But the presence of the “Review Copy” stamp on the label would suggest

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More Tales Of The Hunt: Beware A Woman Scorned

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I get the feeling Nick from Brooklyn is becoming an irresistible force. Here he is, back again with a new Tales of the Hunt guest column. I’m calling this one “Beware a Woman Scored.”

Still More Tales of The Hunt by Nick From Brooklyn

This is going to be a quick story. I wanted to get it to Al before I forgot it. I used to advertise all over New York City, I had cards made up, I used to stick flyers all over, did a lot of newspaper ads, etc. Because you never know who is going to call you and with what. One day, I think it is around 1995 or so, I am in my house doing some research. The phone rings. I answer it. On the other end is a woman and she is screaming YOU WANT JAZZ RECORDS WELL COME AND GET THEM and hangs up. I laugh to myself because over the years not every call or deal is a winner and a lot of people like to play games and in reality many people really do not know what jazz is. Around an hour later the phone rings again, it’s the same woman and she is still screaming and yelling (some voice) WELL WHERE ARE YOU. I try to talk to her, but she hangs up again. I go out for around two hours, when I get home my wife tells me a woman called and she gave me the number. I ask her was she screaming and yelling, she says no, she was pretty nice. I call the woman, she answers and she is very calm, and tells me she was sorry about the last two calls. I tell her don’t worry about it. And then I ask her what do you have?

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