Serenade to Some Rare Jazz Vinyl

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Clark Terry Jazz Vinyl copyHere are some of the results from the Jazz Record Center auction that closed the other day, starting with Charles Mingus at the Bohemia, Debut 123. This was an original pressing that looked to be in M- condition for the record and probably VG+ or VG++ for the cover. When we first observed this record a few days ago, there were no bids at a start price of $200. We expected that the action would get hot and heavy and it did. The record wound up selling for $1,333.

Clark Terry, Serenade to a Bus Seat, Riverside 237. This was an original pressing with the white label. This is another great and underrated record by Terry, who died last week (the funeral is today in harlem, by the way). I thought I had this record, and I’m pretty sure I did have it at one time, but I don’t think I have it anymore. I was looking for it to review the liner notes. I had never thought about the title of the record before,

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Catching Up on Jazz Vinyl Auctions

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Paul Chambers Jazz Vinyl copyI’m actually cleaning out my eBay watch list in preparation for finally doing a modest updating of the Jazz Collector Price Guide. So, as I clear out records, I will just post some random results for the next couple of days, starting with one for the $1,000 bin: Paul Chambers Quintet, Blue Note 1564. This was an original pressing with the West 63rd Street address. The record looked to be in VG++ condition and the cover was probably VG. It sold for $1,203. This came from the same seller: Kenny Burrell at the Five Spot, Blue Note 4021. This was an original West. 63rd Street pressing that looked to be in VG++ condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $334.

Another Blue Note: Horace Parlan, Headin’ South, Blue Note 4062. This was

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Oh, Those Blue Notes

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Horace copyOh, those Blue Notes. Look at this one: Horace Silver, Blowin’ the Blues Away, Blue Note 4017. This was an original pressing with the West 63rd Street address, deep grooves, ear, etc. It was listed in M- condition for the record and M- for the cover. It sold for $355 with only four bidders. This is a great album, one of Silver’s very best, but I’ve never viewed it as a top-shelf collectible only because it seemed to be more available than many of the other Blue Notes. Perhaps I had an assumption that because Silver was one of Blue Note’s most popular artists they would have printed more copies of his records. Plus, this one had what would prove to be a jazz classic in Sister Sadie. I realize I have not been diligent in updating the Jazz Collector Price Guide, but still the highest price we had recorded for this record was just about $200. Does this new high-water mark surprise me? Not at all. Hey, it’s near mint, it’s a great album, it’s an original Blue Note. Nothing would surprise me. As they say in the commercials: “Priceless.”

I had my eye on this Blue Note beauty, but wouldn’t pull the trigger:

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Modern Art Treated Like Modern Art

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Art Pepper Jazz Vinyl copyHere’s an interesting one: Art Pepper, Modern Art, Intro 606. This looks to be an original pressing. The seller says it is in VG+ condition, but he also mentions that it has “many light scratches and marks.” What’s interesting is that the seller states the cover has been “restored” by a company called Fourth Cone Restoration in Los Angeles. This is the first time I’ve ever encountered a jazz record that had been professionally restored, as if it were a rare painting. Given the value of some of these records, it’s really not a bad idea, is it? I’d love to somehow see the before and after, but, alas, I can’t see me bidding on this record, even though I don’t own an original pressing. The “many light scratches and marks” has danger written all over it. The start price for this record is in the $500 range and so far there are no bidders. One other point: The seller calls this a 1951 pressing. Is that possibly true? I didn’t think they were making 12-inch vinyl in 1951, except for that one Bird promotional record on Dial.

While we’re on the subject . . . . Read more

Mingus, Bud, Trane and More

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Mingus copyHere are some of the jazz records we’re watching on eBay now, including a few from our friends at The Jazz Record Center, starting with: Charles Mingus at the Bohemia, Debut 123. This is an original pressing in M- condition for the record and probably VG+ or VG++ for the cover. The start price is $200 and there are no bidders with three days left in the auction. I have to admit, I’ve been buying jazz records for 45 years now and I’ve never held an original pressing of this record in my hands. There will be bidding, I am quite sure. From the same auction is this: Bud Powell, Jazz Giant, Norgran 1063. This is an original yellow label pressing that looks to be in M- condition for both the record and the cover. The start price on this one is $300 and, as with the Mingus record, there are no bidders as of now.

I guess we’re continuing to see a rise in the value of the John Coltrane Impulses, based on recent auctions such as this one:

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Clark Terry, RIP

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clark copyWoke up this morning to the news that the great trumpeter Clark Terry has passed away at age 94. He certainly lived a full and fulfilling life, inspiring musicians right to the very end. If you want some inspiration yourself, I urge you to see the documentary Keep on Keepin’ On. The film is both a loving biography of Terry, with quotes and appearances from some of his proteges, including Quincy Jones and Miles Davis, and it is also a story of Terry’s ongoing passion for sharing and teaching the music — in this case his mentoring relationship/friendship with a young blind jazz pianist named Justin Kauflin. I saw the movie several weeks ago with The Lovely Mrs. JC and when we got home she wanted me to play some Clark Terry on the turntable. I took out the album Duke With a Difference, Riverside 246. I hadn’t listened to it in years and what a joy it was to hear it again. Great, great record with very interesting arrangements and terrific playing. Terry was one of the last links to an era in jazz that we’ll never see again. We were fortunate to have had him for so long as a player, teacher, mentor, innovator, ambassador and giant of the jazz world.

Not Out of the Blue Quite Yet

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Sonny Red copyThe eBay watch list for jazz vinyl is still pretty full with interesting stuff. Let’s start with one that is not an original and will not even make it to the Jazz Collector Price Guide, if and when I ever get around to updating it again: Sonny Red, Out of the Blue, Blue Note 4032. This is an odd pressing: It has the West 63rd Street address on the labels, but no deep grooves and no ears. It also has shrink wrap, with a stamp that notes the record can be played on stereo players. I’m thinking this may be an early Liberty pressing when they still had old labels left over, although I don’t recall ever seeing other later and/or Liberty pressings of this record. There is a bid on the record at $40, but the seller also has a reserve price that hasn’t yet been met. I’ve had my eye on this record for a long time because I once owned a copy and traded it away about 30 years ago and have never been able to replace it. I can’t see replacing it with a non-original such as this, so the search goes on. Trading away an original copy of this record in beautiful condition was not one of the brighter things I’ve ever done in the world of jazz collecting.

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A Pair of Semi-Originals From the U.K.

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Sonny Rollins copyThere’s a seller on eBay now with a bunch of the U.K Esquire pressings of the original U.S. Prestige records. I never really had access to seeing these covers until eBay and, I must say, they are quite appealing. I find the artwork on the covers to be really cool. And it helps that the sound on these pressings, at least from what I’ve heard, is comparable to the original U.S. issues. Here are a couple from this auction, staring with: Sonny Rollins, Worktime, Esquire 32-038. This is an original Esquire and it is listed in M- condition for the vinyl and Ex for the cover. There is one bidder at approximately $115 and the auction closes in a couple of days. I know it’s not an original U.S. pressing, but it’s a pretty nice package and pretty rare, to boot. Hard to imagine that an early pressing like this from the 1950s won’t go up in value.

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A Diversion Into the World of 78s

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Charlie Parker copyMy eBay watch list is overflowing and there are some interesting items we don’t often see here, including some 78-RPM records. Let’s start with Charlie Parker, The New Sounds in Modern Music, Savoy 510. This is a boxed set of Charlie Parker 78s. Unfortunately, the seller doesn’t say which ones, although if I were interested (as I may be) I would at least attempt to pose the question. The records — can’t call them vinyl — are in VG+ condition and the cover is probably VG or VG+, depending upon the condition. I am probably one of the few among us who still collects 78s. I’ve had the good fortune to run into a few inexpensive collections, and then I was very fortunate with the 78s I purchased in the infamous Baltimore collection. I probably have about 1,000 78s, with probably about 40 Parkers on Savoy, Dial and Mercury, but a Bird Savoy boxed set would make a nice addition to the collection. There is a big concern with buying 78s on eBay, because

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A Couple of Golden Oldies

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Pres and teddy copyGlad so many of you are having fun playing with The Stupid List and enjoying it in the context in which I put it out there. Meanwhile, my watch list on eBay is overflowing and I will start with Lester Young and Teddy Wilson, Pres and Teddy, Verve 8205. This is an original pressing with the trumpeter logo. It is listed in what looks to be M- condition for the record and VG for the cover.  The start price is about $10 and so far there are no bids, with five days left on the auction. This is not a record I would normally be watching here and, in fact, the only reason I noticed it was because I am watching some of the seller’s other items. A couple of things strike me. So far, in all of the comments on The Stupid List post, not a single respondent has mentioned Lester Young as a top five favorite jazz artist, which seems somewhat incredible. If Jazz Collector had been around 30 years ago, Pres probably would have been as predominant on the lists as Coltrane or Rollins. It shows how tastes change and, as time gets further away from the musician’s primary artistic contributions, people tend to either forget the influence, or diminish it or, perhaps, just move on to other artists. Louis Armstrong

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