This week’s theme: Jazz Singers, American Songbook. Pretty self-explanatory, don’t you think? Featured artists include Ella Fitzgerald, Oscar Peterson, Dinah Washington, Quincy Jones, Helen Humes, Helen Merrill, Clifford Brown, Anita O’Day, Billie Holiday, Ben Webster, Chet Baker, Beverly Kenney, Johnny Smith, Lous Armstrong, Diana Krall, Stacey Kent, John Coltrane, Johnny Hartman, Joe Williams, Count Basie, Rosemary Clooney.

A reader writes that he recently  found a series of Jazz Review magazines at an estate sale. Most of these seem to be from the late 1950s and early 1960s. He’s been selling them on eBay, but if anyone is interested they can contact me and perhaps get access to some of them before they are offered to the general public. This is one of the listings that has already sold: The Jazz Review.

There will be a New Jersey Record Bash this year, June 19-June 21 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Edison, New Jersey. I used to attend this even fairly regularly, sometimes as a vendor, sometimes as an attendee, always as a buyer. It was always a good event, but I haven’t been in years. You can get details at their site 49^th Annual Jazz Record Collectors’ Bash.

Speaking of record shows, the WFMU Record fair is back in New York this year, Nov. 8 and 9 at the Metropolitan Pavilion. That was always one of the best shows around, so I’m planning to be in New York for that one, strictly as a buyer. Not looking to sell anything . . . yet.

I’m on the mailing list for Craft Recordings and they recently sent me a press release announcing reissues of six albums that are being released on vinyl in the next few weeks. They are Bill Evans, Interplay; Bill Evans Moon Beams; Here’s Lee Morgan; Introducing Wayne Shorter; Benny Golson, Gone With Golson; and Looking Ahead with Ken McIntyre and Eric Dolphy. These are part of the Original Jazz Classics collection. When the OJCs first came out on Fantasy in the early 1980s, I was not a huge fan. Didn’t like the soft vinyl and soft covers. Hey, I’m a collector of original pressings. I bought some for the music, but always tried to replace them with originals. What’s the verdict on the current crop of OJCs? Maybe I’ll pick one up, just to report back to you all. I sold or traded my original copy of the McIntyre/Dolphy record, so that’s a possibility. I’ll also take a gander at the rest of the series.

This one is about two months old, so it may no longer be relevant, but someone sent me a list of CDs she is trying to sell. Lots of Bird, Coltrane, Freddie Hubbard, Miles, Clifford Brown, Sarah Vaughan, Lee Morgan, etc. As I said, she may have gotten rid of them already, but if anyone is interested, I can try reaching out to her. Just send me an email.

Someone posed this question to me: “Do you know anything about Jell Records in Newark, NJ? In the 1960s Jimmy McGriff released a Christmas LP.” My answer was no, I do not. Anyone out there?

This one is very old, sent to me about a year ago. I put in a file and forgot about it, until now. Perhaps it is still relevant, perhaps not: I own “das Chet -Baker-Buch” an illustrated portrait by Herbert Joos. Bonz Edition Number One. 039/100 1990 Herbert Joos/Bonz Verlag. Printed in Germany. Any information about how much the book is worth and any collectors out there who would be interested in buying. I also have several Chet Baker vinyl records and CDs. Many thanks for any info and kind regards.”

Another one I know nothing about: Hello:  “I’m looking for the two 45s and two 78s that Beverly Kenney recorded but these songs never appeared on albums.  Any ideas or clues?”

Now that I’ve opened the inbox, I realized I was also opening up a can of worms for myself. I still have more than a dozen old emails to go through, dating back a couple of years. If I find anything interesting, and still relevant, I’ll post it one of these days. Sorry to anyone who sent me an email, expecting it to be posted on JazzCollector.com, and did not see it.

Finally, our friend Stuart Levine, who just wrote the post about Blue Note Gold in Tokyo, reports that he is looking to obtain a First Stereo, black label Riverside pressing of Bill Evans Sunday Night at the Vanguard. So if anyone can help, you know where to find me. I wouldn’t mind a black label stereo original myself. As it is, when I listen to Sunday Night at the Vanguard, I typically listen on my Japanese pressing.

Here are a few jazz vinyl auctions I’m watching that will close this week:

Beverly Kenney Sings With Jimmy Jones and the Basie-Ites, Roost 2218. This is an original pressing listed in EX condition for the record and VG for the cover. The start price is $400 and so far there are no bidders.

Pete LaRoca, Basra, Blue Note 4205. This is an original New York USA pressing listed in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover. The bidding is already in the $750 range.

Zoot Sims – Bob Brookmeyer Octet, Stretching Out, United Artists 4023. This looks to be an original red label mono pressing. The record is listed in M- condition and the cover is Ex. I’ve had this record for years and it wasn’t until I began typing this and looked at the back cover that I realized Brookmeyer was a co-leader of the date. I just assumed it was Zoot and Al Cohn.

Charlie Parker in Sweden, Limited Edition, Sonet SLP 27. This is, apparently, a rare limited numbered edition, of which this copy is number 734. Until reading this listing I wasn’t aware that there was a limited edition of this record. I’m pretty sure I have some copy of it, but I will have to look to see if mine is numbered. This one looks to be in M- condition for both the record and the cover. There are about three days left in the auction and the bidding is nearing $200.

Beverly Kenney With Jimmy Jones and the Basie-Ites, Royal Roost, 2218. This is a nice record and I could use a clean copy, which this is, at least for the vinyl, which looks to be M-. The cover looks to be about VG or VG+ depending upon how you feel about tape stains, about which I personally don’t feel to good. This one is in the $60 range.

Here’s an interesting package of Hank Mobley records on Blue Note:

Fred has them listed as “The Last Mobleys on Blue Note.” The package consists of three records: Far Away Lands, Blue Note 84425; Another Workout, Blue Note 84431, and Straight No Filter, Blue Note 84435. All of the records look to be in near mint condition. The start price for the package is $100 and so far there are no bidders. I have to admit that I own all three of these records and I’ve never listened to any of them. They just never felt like real Blue Notes to me. Maybe this weekend I’l pop one on the turntable up here in The Berkshires.

Beverly Kenney Sings For Johnny Smith, Roost 2206. This was an original pressing with the blue label and deep grooves. The record was listed in mint condition and the cover was VG++. There were 18 bids and the record sold for $660. I’m sure there are Beverly Kenney records that have sold for a higher price, but that’s the highest that we’ve ever seen in the Jazz Collector Price Guide.

The same seller had several other interesting items as well, including: Steve Lacy, Evidence with Don Cherry, New Jazz 8271. This was an original purple label pressing listed in near mint condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. This one sold for $687, setting another record for the Jazz Collector Price Guide. And here’s another:

Hank Mobley, Mobley’s Message, Prestige 7061. This was an original New York yellow label pressing listed in near mint condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. It sold for $1,204.95. The seller is doing something right and, to his credit, his listings have a very polished and professional look and the pictures are very clear.

Kenny Drew, Undercurrent, Blue Note 4059. This was an original pressing with the West 63rd Street address and the deep groove on one side. Notice how the seller took a nice clear picture of the deep-gooved side and stepped back for the picture of the other side. No matter. This one sold for $960.

Art Pepper Quartet, Modern Art, Intro 606. This one was rated in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover. I have to give the seller and/or Photoshop credit — that is a fine looking picture of the cover and it certainly looks a lot more appealing than VG+. I have a feeling some of the bidders felt the same way: This one sold for $1,580 with 20 bids and about half as many bidders. Love the simplicity of the cover of this one. Anyone know who did it? Intro is not a label that gets noticed too often.

J. R. Monterose, The Message, Jaro 5004. This looked to be an original mono pressing in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. It sold for $888.78.

Beverly Kenney, Like Yesterday, Decca 8994. This was an original deep-groove pressing with the pink promo label. It looked to be in quite gorgeous condition and was graded M- for both the record and the cover. Quite a nice find, which was reflected in the final price, which was $790, the highest we’ve ever seen for this record.

Jutta Hipp with Zoot Sims, Blue Note 1530. This is an original Lexington Avenue deep groove pressing. The record is listed in near mint condition and the cover is VG. The bidding is in the $200 range, there are two days left and it has yet to reach the seller’s reserve price. While we’re on the subject: Jutta Hipp, New Sounds From Germany, Blue Note 5056. This is an original 10-inch record. The record is in VG+ condition and the cover is listed as M-. There are five days left on this one and the bidding is now in the $140 range. It will go quite higher.

Tommy Flanagan Overseas, Prestige 7134. This is an original New York yellow label in what is described as M- condition for both the record and the cover. The seller does mention “three tiny clicks, barely audible,” which is honest of him to mention and perhaps doesn’t diminish from the M- grade. Can you listen to almost any record without three tiny clicks somewhere? This one is now in the $335 range and has not yet met the seller’s reserve price.

Here’s a nice jazz vocal LP I wouldn’t mind owning:

Beverly Kenney, Like Yesterday, Decca 8948. This one has the rainbow label, so I’m not sure if it is an original. Perhaps one of the experts among the Jazz Collector readers would know the answer. This one is listed in excellent condition for the record and probably VG++ for the cover, although the seller’s descriptions are not quite clear. The bidding has reached $100, which means I would bet the record is probably an original pressing despite my lack of clear expertise on all things Decca.

Gigi  Gryce – Clifford Brown Sextet, Blue Note 5048. This one had a nice picture with it, as you can see, but the description wasn’t very complete. The seller noted that the record was glossy and had a few light marks and the cover had some wear, but there wasn’t any M- or VG+ or other grading to which we are normally accustomed. Nonetheless, there were bidders attracted to this type of description — optimists I would say — and the record sold for $608. Our previous high for this record in the Jazz Collector Price Guide was $579.

What do you think of records like this next one:

Miles Davis Volume 2, Blue Note 1502. This was not an original pressing but based on the label I would guess (?) that it was a second pressing? It has the deep grooves, no flat edge and it has the Lexington Avenue address on one side and the West 63rd address on the other. I tend to prefer that my records be of a singular vintage: It’s less confusing. Anyway, the vinyl was M- and the cover was VG++ and the price was $67, not bad for an early, but not original, pressing.

I liked the way this one was listed: Beverly Kenney Sings for Johnny Smith, Roost 2206. This was an original pressing, the vinyl was VG, the cover was VG++ and the price was $71. What I liked about this listing was the brief bio of Kenney because I had actually forgotten about how tragic her story was. Not sure if that was original writing from the seller, or if he took it from somewhere else, but it was quite informative. Take a look if you’d like.

The Magnificent Thad Jones, Blue Note 1527. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing. The record was in VG+ condition and the cover was VG++. The price was $336. A second copy of this record also sold in the last couple of days. The seller described the vinyl as VG to VG+ and the cover seemed to be about VG+. The price of that one was $199.99.

Beverly Kenney Sings For Playboys, Decca D8743. The record was in M- condition — probably unplayed, according to the seller — and the cover was VG+. The price was $399.99, the highest price we’ve seen for any Beverley Kenney record in the Jazz Collector Price Guide.

Bill Evans, New Jazz Conceptions, Riverside 223. This was an original pressing with the white label as well as the first cover. The vinyl was in M- condition and the cover was listed as VG+. The price was $709.99.

We had mentioned yesterday the Arte Shaw LP on Clef:

Arte Shaw and His Grammercy Five Volume 4, Clef 645. This was an original pressing with a David Stone Martin cover and the presence of Tal Farlow on guitar. The record was M- and the cover was VG+. The price was low, as we expected: $43. In the same vein, there was this record: Billie Holiday at Jazz At the Philharmonic, Clef 169. This is a 10-inch LP that also has a beautiful cover by David Stone Martin. The record was VG and the cover was VG+. The price was $40.59. In my view, it means that there are still bargains out there — in terms of great music and nice collectibles — although there may not be a market in the future when/if you want to sell items like these.

Jutta Hipp, Jutta, Blue Note 5056. This was an original 10-inch LP in VG+ conditon, both record and cover. The price was $330.

Jackie McLean, Capuchin Swing, Blue Note 4038. This was a second pressing in M- condition. The price was $191.30.

Sonny Rollins, Newk’s Time, Blue Note 4001. This was an original West 63rd street pressing in VG+ condition, both record and cover. It sold for $598.

Here’s a real heavyweight we’ve talked about previously:

Tina Brooks, True Blue, Blue Note 4041. This was an original pressing. The record was in VG condition, the cover was VG++. The price was $1,625.

Bill Evans, Waltz For Debby, Riverside 399. This was an original blue label mono pressing. The record was VG++ and teh cover was VG+. The price was $355.

Freddie Redd, Shades of Redd, Blue Note 4045. This was an original West 63rd Street pressing. The record and cover were both in VG+ condition. The price was $715.

John Coltrane, Tenor Conclave, Prestige 7074. This was an original New York pressing. The record and cover were both VG+. The price was $276.11.

Beverly Kenney, Born to be Blue, Decca 8850. This was an original promo copy. The record was VG++ and the cover was VG+. The price was $230.50.