Welcome to The New, Improved Jazz Collector

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Ernie Henry copyOh my goodness, I woke up this morning and, like many of you perhaps, I was surprised to see a whole new Jazz Collector site. Well, probably not as surprised as most of you, because I knew this was in the works, but I wasn’t expecting it to happen quite so soon and before I even had a chance to discuss it on the site. Anyway, here’s what happened. Tom Stier, the guy who handles all of my Web stuff (since I’m a techno-phobe at heart), informed me a few months ago that the site was going to suffer in Google rankings unless we updated the theme and made it more mobile-friendly. I put off making the move for awhile, just because I didn’t want to be bothered and, since this has never been a money-making proposition, slipping in Google rankings didn’t really have an impact on me. At the same time, we had been talking about adding a real Forum to the site, rather than the cobbled-together effort I had made in the past. Finally, for some reason last week,

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What an Auction! (One More Time)

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Maiden Voyage VinylPlease allow me to dwell one more day on that Jazz Record Revival auction because there are a few more things to point out, as many readers have already done, particularly with that copy of Herbie Hancock, Maiden Voyage, Blue Note 4195 selling for a quite amazing $1,580.

How about this one, with the second cover: Art Blakey, A Night at Birdland Volume 2,Blue Note 1522. This was an odd one in that it had a Lexington Avenue address on one side and a West 63rd Street address on the other. It was clearly not a first pressing, particularly with that cover. But it sold for $236.50.

Someone on the previous post also mentioned this one:

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What an Auction!

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Thad Jones on Blue NoteA lot of us were watching that major auction from Jazz Record Revival and, suffice to say, they had quite an amazing week. Here are some of their higher priced and more interesting items:

The Magnificent Thad Jones Volume 3, Blue Note 1546. This was an original New York 23 pressing listed in M- condition for the record and Ex for the cover. It sold for $1,775. Granted, we’ve been lax in keeping the Jazz Collector Price Guide up to date, but that would be the highest price we’ve ever recorded for a Thad Jones record.

Lee Morgan, Candy, Blue Note 1590. This was an original pressing listed in M- condition for the record and Ex+ for the cover. It sold for $2,938.

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Back in the Vinyl Saddle Again

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Sonny Clark copyTWO WEEKS!!!! The longest I’ve ever gone without posting. Weren’t any of you, aside from Mac, worried about me? I didn’t go anywhere, just took an unexpected and unscheduled break. Now I’m back, but only for a few weeks. I have a two-week vacation coming up in October. Anyone interested in doing some guest hosting for a couple of weeks? Send me an email and we’ll see what we can do.

In the meantime, let’s get back to eBay and see what’s going on. This was on my watch list the last time I looked and now it has sold: Sonny Clark, Cool Struttin’, Blue Note 1588. This was an original pressing with the west 63rd Street address, deep grooves, etc. The record was in VG+ condition and the cover was only VG, but it still sold for $2,081. There was also this one for the $1,000 bin:

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Mobley, Woods, Morgan and — Pucho?

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Lee Morgan CandyCatching up today on the mail and some jazz vinyl we missed, starting with Lee Morgan, Candy, Blue Note 1950. This was an original pressing listed in VG++ condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. It sold for $2,350.55. This seller had a bunch of other interesting items and also has a bricks and mortar store in Brooklyn called Northern Lights Records. Anybody been there? I’ll check it out when I return to New York from The Berkshires, sometime in September I would guess. If I was in a buying head, which I’m not, there were a couple of other items from this seller that were perhaps worth a gamble with marginal condition at a potentially reasonable price.One record I’ve sought for a long time is this one: Phil Woods, Woodlore, Prestige 7018. This was an original pressing listed in VG+ condition for the record and VG for the cover. It sold for $229.06. There was also

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Reorganizing Records: A Particular Insanity?

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So I got up at 6:30 last Thursday morning and decided, on somewhat of a whim, to reorganize my records. By 6:45 I was hauling piles of records between one room and another, climbing ladders, aching my aging muscles, wrenching my aging back. For me, it was the usual: I go through this type of exercise at least once a year, maybe even more frequently. And often, there is no rhyme or reason to what I’m doing, just a desire to physically handle my records and pore through them to once again remind me of what I have and where it is located. Before I get into the details of what I did and why I did it, I am curious to ask: Is this just me, or is it a common affliction of the vinyl collector? Do any of you out there go through an organizing/reorganizing jag on a regular basis?

Anyway, so here’s my latest story.

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How Much Would You Pay For These?????

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Hank Mobley Jazz VinylWhilst I was away there was some email, as usual, so let me get to some of that as long as I am catching up. Clifford sent me a note under the subject “1568 Comedy Watch,” with the accompanying text: “I don’t know if people are getting bored with these, but I still find 1568 auctions fairly amusing/interesting.” Attached was this link to Hank Mobley, Blue Note 1568. The auction as over and the final price was $960. Was it a copy you would actually put on your turntable? Not me. The record was listed in G+ condition. Was it a record you’d be proud to display on your shelves? Not really. The cover was in VG- condition with water damage and small seam split. Was it a record you’d spend $960 on, so you could say you own a copy of the rarest of the rare Blue Notes? Clearly, there was at least one buyer who would say amen to that. It was funny seeing this email from Clifford, because just a few minutes later I got a separate email from Mike with the same link and the following question: “I wondered if you or your readership would be willing to part with US$960 for BN1568 in this condition? Speaking for myself, Read more

Classic Jazz Vinyl — But Will Anything Sell

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Rollins copyFinally back from a long break, and the first thing I’m going to do is take a look at what I left behind on my eBay watch list and catch up. This seller has several nice items for sale, including Sonny Rollins, Saxophone Colossus, Prestige 7079. This is an original New York yellow label pressing listed in VG++ or M- condition for the record and M- for the cover. You don’t run across too many in this shape. There are two days left on this auction, the bidding is in the $1,350 range and so far it has not reached the seller’s reserve price. This one comes from the same seller and also has not yet reached its reserve price: Johnny Griffin, A Blowing Session, Blue Note 1559. This is an original pressing with the New York 23 labels. The bidding is in the $650 range. Surely, the bidding will move into the four figures, but whether that meets the seller’s price won’t be known until the auction actually closes.

Speaking of records not selling:

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Isn’t This a Lovey Day?

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Lovey copyI am watching about 10 jazz records on eBay now and not a single one of them has even a single bid. Could it be that the dog days of August are a good time to be buying? Or are sellers ratcheting up their prices as they see more and more high-ticket sales? Or is it nothing at all and the bidding will come in, as it usually does, at the last minute? In any case, here are some of the items, starting with one we’ve never actually seen in person: Lovey Powell, Lovelady, Transition 1. This looks to be an original pressing with the original booklet. The record is listed in VG++ condition and the cover is M-. Not a record you see very often. This one has a start price of $247.50 and there are more than two days left on the auction. Do you expect it to sell? I do.

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Today’s Blues: Blue Mitchell, and Blue Notes

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Blue Mitchell copyCatching up on my jazz vinyl watch list on eBay. Here are some of the items I missed, starting with Blue Mitchell, Blue’s Moods, Riverside 336. This was an original pressing with the blue labels, reels and microphone logo, etc. The record was listed in M- condition and the cover was VG+. The final price was $540. I know that this record has always been prized among collectors and has gone for pretty high prices, as seen here — higher than most of the Riverside catalogue, except for perhaps Waltz for Debby and maybe one or two others. What I’ve never understood is “WHY?” I know it’s a nice record, but what is it about this particular record that has driven up its value over the years?

This is a Blue Note that’s also seemed to rise in value compared to other records released around the same time:

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