Another Adventure, Part 1: Ornette, Monk, Dee and Me

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I owe you all a story.

It started last Halloween. A new commenter on Jazz Collector, who identified herself as Dee Dee, submitted the following:“I am Ornette’s stepdaughter – raised with Monk in the house frequently. I’m needing now to part with his and my mother’s vinyl collection, AND my original silver gelatin art photography – an AUTOGRAPHED edition of one single print of these historic musicians:

Count Basie
Miles Davis
Dizzy Gillespie
Horace Silver
Art Blakey and Billy Higgins
Gil Evans
Gerry Mulligan
Cecil Taylor and Tony Williams
Abbey Lincoln
Gato Barbieri
Pharaoh Sanders
Charlie Haden
Ernie Andrews
Mal Waldron
Steve McCall
Charlie Rouse
Freddie Greene
Bobby Bradford
Bela Fleck
Buster Williams
Chico Freeman and Pacquito d’Rivera
Eddie Palmieri
Eddie Gomez
Milton Nascimento
Djavan
Joao Bosco
Ivan Lins
Airto Moreira
Jose “Cheo” Feliciano
Francisco Aguabella
Willie Colon
Yomo Toro
Dave Valentin
Papo Lucca
Yolanda Rivera” Read more

Rare Vinyl, eBay Complaints: An Email Grab Bag

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Somebody sent me this link: Sonny Rollins, Saxophone Colossus, Prestige 7079. This was an original New York yellow label in nice condition, VG++ for both the record and the cover. It sold for $2,028. Not sure why this particular link was sent to me, but I figured I’d share it nonetheless. Nothing seems out of whack to me, in terms of the eventual price or the provenance of the record as an original pressing. Maybe someone else can find something. You have all been more observant than I have been lately, it seems. Perhaps too many distractions at my end. Maybe I should just retire from work and devote myself full-time to Jazz Collector. 🙂

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Original Blue Notes? $1.57 Each? I’m a Dreamer, Aren’t We All?

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Back on eBay. This seller has a lot of nice records closing today, including: Paul Chambers, Whims of Chambers, Blue Note 1534. This is a West 63rd Street second pressing that looks to be in VG++ condition for the record and probably VG+ for the cover. The bidding is in the $465 range, fairly steep for a non-first pressing. One of the things that caught my eye was the shrink wrap still on the cover. A first pressing wouldn’t have had the shrink, but what struck me was the sticker on the shrink, which said “SPECIAL PRICE $1.57.” Imagine being able to buy this for $1.57. On further examination, the seller has a bunch of other original pressings with the same SPECIAL PRICE $1.57 sticker, including Dexter Gordon. A Swingin’ Affair, Blue Note 4133; Duke Pearson, Wahoo!, Blue Note 4191; and Donald Byrd, A New Perspective, Blue Note 4124, among others. I have a dream where I go back in time and walk into a record store and all of these records are sitting there at $1.57, sealed, and I buy them all, every last one. Read more

Random Musings on Random Jazz Vinyl

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Here are some more random jazz records we are watching this week on eBay, starting with Steve Lacy, Soprano Sax, Prestige 7125. This is an original yellow label pressing with the New York address. The record looks to be in VG++ condition and the cover also looks like it is VG++. The start price is in the $100 range and, so far, there are no bids. I’ve never heard this record, nor have I ever owned it, but I would like to. A copy recently sold for around $480, which would be out of my comfort zone anyway, even if I were inclined to buy on eBay. Read more

Miles, Morgan, Monk and More

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Today we will view some random jazz vinyl from my eBay watch list, starting with Miles Davis, Volume 2, Blue Note 5022. This is an original 10-inch Lexington Avenue pressing. The record and cover are both listed in VG+ condition. Bidding starts at around $100 and so far there is no auction action. The auction closes in about three days. This record caught my eye, even though I already own it, because it is such an awesome cover and because I recently view a collection loaded with 10-inch records. At this point I have passed on purchasing the collection because the seller has it over-priced, but I am hoping he comes back to me when he realizes I made a fair offer. Will keep you posted. Read more

Cool Struttin’ With Some Bop and Blues

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We mentioned the passing of Jack Sheldon last week and now someone in the Jazz Collector world will get to honor him by purchasing one of his rarer and most highly sought LPs, specifically The Jack Sheldon Quartet, Get of Out Town, Jazz:West LP 1. This is a 10-inch record listed in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover, although the picture looks more like VG to these eyes. There are 13 bids and the price is in the $170 range with less than a day left on the auction. We’ve written about this record once before, back in 2018, when a copy in worse condition than this one – with a G cover – sold for $450. At the time, we had never seen a 10-inch Jazz:West LP and, to be fair, we’ve still never seen one live, only on eBay. I just checked Popsike, and $450 was the top price for this LP, matched almost exactly a year ago by a nearly mint copy. Read more

A Recurring Case of Blue Note Envy

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Back to eBay with four Blue Notes that come to you straight from my want list, leading off with Sonny Red, Out of the Blue, Blue Note 4032. This looks to be an original deep-groove West 63rd Street pressing that appears to be in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. The bidding is now in the $300 range with four days left on the auction. This is a record that has sold for more than $1,000 several times in the past, with a top price of $1,802, according to Popsike. I certainly wouldn’t be surprised to see this copy end up in the $1,000 bin. This is a record I once owned and stupidly traded away back many years ago – I would say nearly 40 years? – when  I was transitioning from fan to collector and I had set out to fill in all of the first 200 or so yellow-label Prestiges. Read more

Jimmy Heath, RIP

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Lots of news from the Jazz world, not all of it good. In case you haven’t heard, Jimmy Heath died this morning. He’s been a fixture in jazz since the early days of the bebop era and a major figure in the evolution and history of the music. I had the privilege of seeing him perform many times, back in the days of Jazz Interactions in New York. He was also at the premiere of the Chasing Trane documentary when I saw it in 2016 and I’ll never forget him standing up and singing the theme of Part 2: Resolution of “A Love Supreme.” He may have been diminutive in size, but he was a giant in stature. Who’s left? Read more

New Year’s Vinyl, One More Time

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I’m clearing out whatever backlog I have in my watch list, so I can start the year fresh.This one is from back in November: Dave Burns, Vanguard 9111. This was an original mono, promo record with deep grooves and  white label. The record and cover were both listed in M- condition. The final price was $166. I’m not exactly sure why I was watching this or even saved it for so long, but I can guess that I was wondering how much longer an album like this can remain of interest to collectors? Vanguard was not a premium label and Burns was not a premium artist, although he always accorded himself well on recordings and in live performances, when I had the rare opportunity to see him play. There still seems to be demand for his two original Vanguard LPs, based on Popsike results, so I guess part of the question answers itself: Yes, there is still demand. For how long? Anyone’s guess. Read more

New Year’s Vinyl

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Happy New Year everyone. I hope all of your vinyl dreams come true. Perhaps you can find some on eBay, where we are, per usual, watching jazz records from our perch here far above Manhattan (well, actually, just seven stories), including the album Tenor Conclave, Prestige 7074. This is one of those jam session records featuring Hank Mobley, John Coltrane, Al Cohn and Zoot Sims, not to mention a pretty good rhythm section in Red Garland, Paul Chambers and Art Taylor. This is an original New York yellow label pressing that looks to be in VG+ or better condition for the record and Ex for the cover. The auction closes in more than three days and so far there are no bidders at a start price of $175. Read more