So far, my excursion deeper into the depths of my collection has only yielded positive results. It has convinced me that I could probably pull out virtually any record from my collection and be at the very least satisfied with the quality of the music. Which is saying something, because there are more than 7,000 vinyl records sitting on these shelves. I’m sure there are probably a few records that won’t make my personal grade – I am not partial to the organ, for example – but I have been aggressive about pulling those records out of the collection and moving them off the shelves. What I am going to do with those records is something to be decided, but sometime in the future you might see them in some kind of offering here at Jazz Collector or on eBay. Stay tuned.

l give you a couple of other records that ended up the turntable. The other day my friend Dan sent me a link to the Miles Davis record Blue Moods, Debut 120. He had never heard the record, nor had never heard of it. Fortunately, I had a very nice clean copy sitting right behind me on the shelves so I put it on. Interesting record with very interesting instrumentation, Miles with Britt Woodman on Trombone, Teddy Charles on Vibes, Charles Mingus on Bass and Elvin Jones on drummers. Music is terrific, but the quality of my pressing leaves a lot to be desired. It looks pristine, perhaps played once, but there is some surface noise that seems to be in the pressing, which wouldn’t be surprising, perhaps, as Debut did not have strong financial backing and the recording was back in 1955. Another great thing about these original records are the liner notes. In here, we have stories of Mingus giving Elvin a hard time. Of course, Mingus had a financial stake in Debut and thus would be concerned about the quality of the playing. And, also, he was Mingus, so he didn’t particularly need a reason to be obstreperous. And Elvin was still pretty young and just making his mark. If any of you has this record and wants to take the time to give it a listen, I’d be curious if your copy also has pressing-related surface noise, or if it’s just me.

I have all of the Curtis Counce records on Contemporary, but can’t recall ever listening to one, until last week when I put on The Curtis Counce Group, Contemporary C3526 from 1957. The personnel is Counce on bass with Jack Sheldon on trumpet, Harold Land on tenor, Carl Perkins on piano and Frank Butler on drums. Another winner. Sheldon and Land are both inspired and in their primes.

The final record in this series was a guitar record, Dick Garcia, A Message From Garcia, Dawn 1106. This one looks to be from 1956 and features a young Bill Evans on several tracks. The record is surprisingly well recorded and features some nice playing from Gene Quill on alto. Garcia plays well in the Tal Farlow mode, but not quite as creative or dexterous as Tal, but, then again, no one else was either. Anyway, I recommend all of these records and I recommend going through a similar process if you have listening time, rather than putting on one of your tried and true go-to records. Like me, I imagine you will be pleasantly surprised and perhaps find some inspiration.

While I’m looking at whopping prices, here’s another: Hank Mobley and Lee Morgan, Peckin’ Time, Blue Note 1574. This was an original pressing with the deep grooves, ears, West 63rd address, etc. It was listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $2,750.

And then there are some records that don’t sell at all, or sell for relatively low prices. To wit:

Lee Konitz Meets Jimmy Giuffre, Verve 8335. This was an original pressing with the trumpeter logo. It features Konitz as well as Bill Evans, Hal McKusick and Warne Marsh, among others. The record was listed Excellent condition and the cover was VG+. I’ve always viewed this as a nice collectible, yet nobody wanted it at $35. It’s a weird world when the extremes are so out of proportion — some collectible records selling for $3,000 and more, and others not even drawing a bid at $35.

I also thought this one had some interest for collectors, particularly aficionados of jazz guitar because of the presence of Dick Garcia, but I was apparently wrong: Johnny Glasel, Jazz Session Featuring Dick Garcia, ABC Paramount 165. This was an original pressing that looked to be in VG+ condition for the record and the cover. Nobody wanted it for $9.95.

Here’s another rare jazz guitar record that I thought wouldn’t sell, but wound up getting some bids at the end: Chuck Wayne Quintet, Progressive Records 1003. This was an original 10-inch record, featuring Zoot Sims and Brew Moore. It’s a very rare record and one you don’t see very often. This copy was in M- condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. The start price was $50 and there was no bidding until the last few hours/minutes. It wound up selling for $89.80.

Johnny Glasel, Jazz Session, ABC Paramount 165. This was an original pressing featuring Dick Garcia on guitar. The record  and cover were both in M- condition. The price was $86. We had asked if anyone knew much about this record. Turns out our good friend Dan Axelrod knew Johnny Glasel quite well. He was president of the musicians union in New York and a regular on club dates. I’ve asked Dan to fill in the blanks on some of this and he has promised to do that, so stay tuned. 

Sheila Jordan, a Portrait of Sheila, Blue Note 9003. Speaking of jazz guitar (that was Dick Garcia we just mentioned), this LP features some great work by Barry Galbraith. This was an original pressing. The record was in M- condition and the cover was VG+. The price was $79.16.

John Coltrane, Giant Steps, Atlantic 1311. This was an original black label in M- condition. The price was $154.27. A similar copy sold for more than $1,000 a few weeks ago. What was the difference? Who knows.

This is one of interest to us: Johnny Glasel, Jazz Session, ABC Paramount 165. This is also from one of our favorite sellers, Analogman on Long Island, aka Infinity Records. About 25 years ago we purchased a collection and this record was in there primarily, we think, because of the presence of Dick Garcia on guitar. So it’s one of these records that’s been sitting on the shelf for 25 years and we’ve never played it. We’ve also rarely seen it on eBay, so we’re interested to see what it will sell for. We’ll try to listen to it later today and give you a report.

Today we’ll spend a little time watching eBay.

Here are some of the interesting items from the past couple of days. I especially like the LPs autographed by Woods and Farlow, not just because of the signatures, which are cool, but also because the records seem to be in nice condition.

 Phil Woods, Warm Woods, Epic 3436, in M- condition and autographed by Woods. Price: $395

 Tal Farlow, Fascinatin’ Rhythm, Verve 8011, in M- condition and autographed by Tal. Price: $149.95

 Here’s another interesting guitar collectible. I know there are stories out there about Dick Garcia, so maybe one of our guitar collectors can help us out. We have a Guitar Corner section in the Forums section of the Website, but so far the traffic’s been pretty light.

Dick Garcia, Message From Garcia, Dawn 1106. Seemed to be in VG/VG+ condition. Price: $101.99

Finally, there’s this item by Paul Chambers. I believe this is a reissue of the original LP on the Jazz West label, JWLP-7. It’s interesting that a reissue would sell for so much, although it is rare and it is sealed.

 Paul Chambers, A Jazz Delegation from the East, Score 4033. This LP was sealed. Price: $224.50

And last but not least, here’s a Japanese reissue of an Argo LP. Perhaps one of our readers can tell us the story behind this record and what makes it so collectible. You don’t often see reissues selling for such high prices.

Paul Gonsalves, Cookin’, Argo 626

Happy birthday to Gail and that’s all for today. Don’t forget to check out our forums. We’ll be back on the Web tomorrow. Our next newsletter is Friday. See you soon.  – Al