Autographed LPs: Miles Davis, Chet Baker, Bill Evans

I was curious to see how some of those autographed records from the Jazz Record Center would do on eBay and the results are now in. There was definitely a strong demand.

Chet Baker Quartet, Jazz at Ann Arbor, Pacific Jazz 1203. This was an original pressing with a Chet Baker autograph on the cover, signed and dated from 1973. The record looked to be in M- condition and the cover was probably VG+. The price was $461.

There were several LPs autographed by Miles Davis in the auction, including: Miles Davis, In Person, Saturday Night at the Blackhawk, Columbia 8470. This was an original stereo pressing with the six-eye logo and it was in M- condition all around: In fact, it was described as being in “amazing” condition. It was signed on the back by Miles in red ink. It sold for $566. Also, Miles Davis, Bags Groove, Prestige 7109. This was a later pressing with the blue labels. This one was signed not just by Miles, but by Sonny Rollins as well. It looked to be in VG++ or M- condition and it sold for $195.50. If I had this cover, I’d get rid of the blue-label record and replace it with one with yellow labels, even a New Jersey yellow label. It would just feel better to look at the cover knowing there was a yellow-label pressing inside. Just part of my own insanity, I guess.

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Rare Autographs: Bill Evans, Charles Mingus

A Bill Evans autograph. That’s one of the items on the latest auction from the Jazz Record Center. To me it’s kind of cool to have, but not sure how it fares in the collectibles market. There was that letter from Bill Evans to John Coltrane that sold for $38,000 several years ago. A friend of mine spent a few hundred dollars for a high school yearbook signed by Evans. Anyway, this is a copy of the record Bill Evans, Trio ’65, Verve 8613. It is a second pressing signed on the front by both Evans and Chuck Israels. The start price is $100 and so far there are no bidders.

From the same auction is an Autographed Letter From Charles Mingus on the stationery of Debut Records. It is to a fan/customer who was complaining about a specific pressing in his recording from the Cafe Bohemia. A rare, very cool find indeed. This one is priced starting at $500 and there is already one bidder.