Jazz Vinyl Countdown: Lee Morgan, The Cooker

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Like the compulsive nut that I am, I spent yesterday going through the records I purchased the other night. Not just going through the records, but doing a major record reorganization so I could welcome these records to their new home. however transient it may be. Anyway, I was hoping to get some upgrades out of this collection and here’s one: Lee Morgan, The Cooker, Blue Note 1578. Sad to say, I do not own an original copy of this record. Sad because original copies are selling for nearly $500 on eBay these days. It also shows how difficult it was to find original pressings prior to eBay. I’ve been seeking jazz records for close to 40 years and, if I had ever seen one of these at a decent price in a record store, I would certainly have purchased it. Which means, it never happened. Scary. In this case Read more

Billie Holiday At Carnegie Hall: The Winner Is . . . .

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Time to give away the Billie Holiday record: The Essential Billie Holiday Carnegie Hall Concert, Verve 8410. This is an original pressing with the MGM label and the gatefold cover. It’s an interesting piece in that it intersects Billie’s singing with a narrative from her autobiography Lady Sings The Blues. The goal with this give-away, as with all of our give-aways, has been to encourage people to comment on the Jazz Collector site. The good news is that the tactic seems to be working: Since we began this particular contest we’ve had 22 separate people posting comments on the site, which is our high mark for a two-week period. So thank you to everyone for contributing. OK, rather than list everyone’s name — you know who you are — we will just delve into

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Jazz Vinyl Countdown? HAH!

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So much for whittling down my collection. Last night, I bought another batch of albums, about 300 altogether. So, let’s see: Since I started this Great Jazz Vinyl Countdown two weeks ago, I’ve decided to sell 12 records. In that same period, I’ve managed to purchase 300 records, for a net gain of 288 records. At the rate I’m going, in three years I’ll have a half a million records and I’ll be living in a straitjacket. In any case, there is a story behind the purchase of these records, which I will tell. A couple of weeks ago I accompanied the lovely Mrs. Jazz Collector to a party of her colleagues. She told me there would be many other spouses there.  She was wrong: There were three others, and two of them fell asleep before the hors d’oeuvres were served. So that left me and another guy. We started chatting. I told him about Jazz Collector. “Really,” he said. “I’m moving to California in two weeks and I was thinking about selling my jazz collection.” “Really,” I said. “This could be

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Jazz Vinyl Countdown: Jackie For Sale

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We had mentioned seeing this record on eBay the other day: Jackie McLean Consequence, Blue Note King GFX-8172. This is a 1965 record that was not issued in the United States and was, in fact, issued on this Japanese pressing for the first time. It’s a nice record featuring Jackie with Lee Morgan, Harold Mabern, Herbie Lewis, Billy Higgins. The first track, Bluesanova, is slightly Sidewinder-like and there’s a nice medium tempo version of My Old Flame. We didn’t realize it was a valuable collectible until we saw the copy on eBay at more than $100: It eventually sold for $185.50. That copy was in M- condition for both the record and the cover. Our copy is M- for the vinyl and VG++ for the cover (there’s a little wear around the edges). In any case, we are going to try something a little different with this record: We are going to

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Now Available: Vintage Autographs, High End Audio

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We get all kinds of random inquiries here at Jazz Collector. We’ll post a few here, in case anyone is interested or has any comments.

One of our readers has a set of three vintage photos, autographed, framed and mounted. All three photos appear to be made out to Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis. The signatures are from Dizzy Gillespie: “To my Dixieland friend — Dizzy G” (that’s what it is, although it would be tough to associate Lockjaw with Dixieland); Dave Tough: “To Jaws, Dave Tough;” and Sidney Catlett: “Blow that horn Jaws! — Sidney Catlett.” It is certainly an interesting piece of jazz memorabilia. If you are interested drop us at note at al@jazzcollector.com and we’ll put you in touch with the seller.

Another of our readers is moving from New York to California and has a batch of high-end audio equipment he is looking to sell. This includes a Klyne pre-amp; B&K stereo amp; Carver tuner; Sota turntable; Sumiko tonearm; Snell speakers and

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WFMU Record Fair Coming To NY in Two Weeks

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Someone asked on a recent post if we will be attending the WFMU Record Fair this year. The Record Fair, which is the top record show in the New York Metropolitan area, is coming up in less than two weeks: It begins on Friday, October 23 and ends on Sunday, October 25. It’s definitely worth attending: There are generally bargains to be found and also some nice collectibles at collectible prices. For the past couple of years we’ve taken a table but this year we will find ourselves in Washington DC for personal business on Friday and Saturday. Our plan is to show up on Sunday morning to do some shopping and socializing, with the expectation that anything worth purchasing will be long gone by the time we show up. Still, we’ll be there and we’ll certainly feel the rush of adrenaline our body automatically pumps in the presence of so much jazz and other vinyl.

Jazz Vinyl Countdown: Benny Golson On Riverside

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This is one of our favorite records: Benny Golson, The Modern Touch, Riverside 256. It is a very nice sextet recording from 1957 with an all-star lineup: Kenny Dorham on trumpet; Golson on tenor; JJ Johnson on trombone; Wynton Kelly on piano; Paul Chambers on bass, Max Roach on drums. Love Dorham’s playing on this LP, JJ as well, and the arrangements are solid. It’s also one of those records on which both sides are equally good and listenable. We highly recommend it and we know we are going to keep it in our collection. The issue, however, is this: We have both an original pressing of this record on Riverside as well as a reissue on Jazzland: Reunion, Jazzland 85. The reissue is in a little bit better condition and, to be honest, they both sound about the same to us on our equipment. So which to keep, the one in better condition or the original?

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Jazz Vinyl Countdown: Paul Gonsalves on Argo

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This is one that is quite similar to the Seldon Powell Roost jazz vinyl LP we put up yesterday: Paul Gonsalves, Cookin’, Argo 626. It is also a quite rare and collectible record in nice condition by a tenor player who is excellent but not quite in the same category as the greats. This is also a record that has sold for more than $200 in the Jazz Collector Price Guide. As well, it is a record for which we have no particular attachment: We purchased it a couple of years ago as part of a small collection. This has a price tag on it and it also has a better cover than the Seldon Powell: An action picture of Gonsalves and the “Daddy-O Presents” tag, which makes it quite interesting. Nice package and a nice record.

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Jazz Vinyl Countdown: Seldon Powell on Roost

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Here’s the record: Seldon Powell Sextet, Roost 2220. We had this one in a pile to sell. Why: Well, we have no personal attachment to the record, can’t even remember when or where we bought it. We had never listened to it despite owning it for several years. Seldon Powell is a nice tenor player, but, face it, he’s not Sonny Rollins or John Coltrane. The sidemen are good, but nothing special: Jimmy Cleveland, Freddie Green, Aaron Bell, Roland Hanna, Osie and Gus Johnson. Most importantly, this is a record that is quite collectible and could fetch a fair price. In the Jazz Collector Price Guide we’ve seen it sell for more than $200. So, we put it on the turntable this morning with the expectation that we would most likely be selling this record on eBay. So, what’s the verdict?

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