This week’s theme is pretty much what it says: Tracks from 10 random Blue Note records, Artists include Lee Morgan, Art Blakey, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, Arthur Taylor, Philly Joe Jones, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Louis Smith, Dizzy Reece, Jackie McLean, Pete LaRoca, Cliff Jordan, Jon Gilmore, Freddie Hubbard, Curtis Fuller, Sonny Clark, Dexter Gordon.

This week’s theme. Jazz vocals and instrumentals from the Great American Songbook. Featured artists include Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Bill Evans, McCoy Tyner, Red Garland, Jackie McLean, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Sarah Vaughan, Rosemary Clooney, Scott Hamilton, Art Pepper, Paul Chambers, Philly Joe Jones, Sonny Rollins, Thelonious Monk, Dexter Gordon, Kenny Drew, Dizzy Reece, Stan Getz, and many more.

We were also watching some jazz vinyl from the Jazz Record Center, including Mal Waldron, Mal/2, Prestige 7111. This was an original yellow label pressing with the New York address. We assessed the record as being in VG++ condition, based on the description, and the cover as VG++. We threatened to possibly bid on this copy, since we don’t have an original, John Coltrane is one of the musicians, and, at the time, the bidding was in the $260 range. Alas, we moved on to other events in our life, hence the relatively infrequency of recent posts, and forgot all about Mal/2. The final price was $568.88, which would have been beyond our bidding in any case. Nothing ventured, nothing lost, nothing gained – except I still have my Japanese pressing.

As I am typing this and creating new links, I am on the Jazz Record Center web site and I see they have another auction closing in about five days. Let’s see, here is a deep-groove West 63^rd Street pressing of Lou Donaldson, LD+3, Blue Note 4012. Interesting that they don’t use the word “original” in the description, so perhaps someone can shed light on why this copy would not be an original. In any case, the record and cover look to be in M- or VG++ condition. The bidding starts at $150 and so far there are no bidders.

From the same auction: Workin’ With the Miles Davis Quintet, Prestige 7166. This is an original yellow label New Jersey pressing. The record and the cover both look to be in M- condition. The cover is still in its original shrink wrap and, psychologically, it definitely looks cooler in the shrink wrap. Perhaps that is leading to higher bidding? The bidding on this one has already surpassed $400.

Let’s look beyond the usual suspects, at least as far as eBay sellers. Here’s one:  Dizzy Reece, Star Bright, Blue Note 4023. This looks to be an original deep-groove West 63^rd Street pressing. The record is listed in M- condition and the cover is VG+, with some writing on the back. The auction closes in about five days from this posting and the bidding is in the $600 range.

One more: Johnny Griffin Sextet, Riverside 12-264. This looks like an original pressing with the small reels and mic logo and the deep grooves. It also has promo stamps on the cover and label. I don’t remember all the factors that go into making these early Riverside’s original, so I could be missing something? Anyway, this copy is listed as VG++ for the record and VG++ for the cover. Nice looking copy. Bidding starts in the $250 range and so far there is no action. If it were a Blue Note with this personnel in this time frame, who knows what it would be. But it isn’t.

Dexter Gordon, A Swingin’ Affair, Blue Note 4133. This was also in VG++ condition for the record and the cover. I had predicted that this copy would set a new high for A Swingin’ Affair. The final price was $707. And the final answer? Yes, it did set a new high. The previous high, per Popsike,  was $705.

There are a bunch of records from the $1,000 bin sitting in my watch list. Some of these go back a couple of months. Let me clean those out as a first step in shrinking the list:

Dizzy Reece, Star Bright, Blue Note 4023. This was an original West 63^rd Street pressing. The record and cover were both rated in M- condition. The final price was about $1,091.

Donald Byrd, Byrd in Hand, Blue Note 4019. This was also an original West 63^rd Street pressing. The record and cover looked to be in M- condition. The final price was $1,175.

Grant Green, Idle Moments, Blue Note 4154. This was an original New York USA pressing, probably in VG+ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. The final price was $1,302.

John Jenkins with Kenny Burrell, Blue Note 1573. This was an original West 63^rd Street pressing that looked to be in VG+ condition for the record and VG for the cover. The final price was $1,915.

Jackie McLean, Jackie’s Pal, Prestige 7068. This was an original New York yellow label. The record and cover looked to be in about VG+ condition, with a promo stamp on the back. The final price was $1,137.

Jutta Hipp With Zoot Sims, Blue Note 1530. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing. The record looked to be in VG+ or VG++ condition, and the cover was graded as VG+. The final price was $2,247.

Introducing Johnny Griffin, Blue Note 1533. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing. The record looked to be M- and the cover was VG+. The final price was $2,045.

Sonny Clark, Dial S for Sonny, Blue Note 1570. This was an original West. 63^rd Street that looked to be in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. The final price was $2,605.55.

Donald Byrd, Byrd Blows on Beacon Hill, Transition 17. This was an original pressing without the booklet. The record was graded in VG++/M- condition and the cover was VG+. The final price was $1,775.

Hank Mobley Quartet, Blue Note 5066. This was an original 10-inch Lexington Avenue pressing. The record and cover both looked to be in VG+ condition. The final price was $1,625.

Horace Parlan, Us Three, Blue Note 4037. This was an original West 63^rd promo copy. The record was VG and the cover was VG+. The final price was $1,200.

Tommy Flanagan Overseas, Prestige 7134. This was an original New York yellow label. The record sounded like VG+ condition and the cover VG, based on the seller’s descriptions. The final price was $2,862.

BTW, I got an email from a guy who has a collection that belonged to Bob Scobey, the Dixieland trumpeter who died in 1963. He sent me pictures that were mostly 78 RPM records, with a few 10-inch LPs sprinkled in. He says he has a lot more photos. The collection is in the Los Angeles area. If anyone is interested, send me an email and I’ll put you in touch.

We had two experts weigh in on the John Coltrane autograph from the album Coltrane Live at Birdland, Impulse A-50. The sense from both experts was that the authenticity was questionable at best. I was persuaded by the argument from d_notes about the Sharpie pens and what would have happened to those signatures if they had really been signed in 1966, so I came down on the “probably not original” side. Not that I would have bid anyway without some level of authentication. Anyway, as you may have seen, there were 11 bidders, 33 bids and a ton of action from snipers at the end of the auction. The final price was $2,038.

Which leads me to another question. Back when I was doing eBay regularly and buying records I used BidNip as a service to snipe my bids. I haven’t used it in a while because I haven’t bought records in a while. Is that still a viable service? For those of you who bid regularly, is there a different sniping service that you would recommend? Is sniping still considered legal and ethical? Have the rules changed in the past couple of years? One of the reasons I ask these questions has to do with Tina Brooks, True Blue, Blue Note 4041. This is another record I had mentioned in my previous post, in the context that the record was VG- and the cover was VG+ and I have a nice VG+ copy of the vinyl with no cover. I figured I could perhaps upgrade, but when the bidding got into the $800 range, it become beyond what I thought would be reasonable, for me. Anyway, the final price was $1,590.55, which, even in this market, seems a lot for a VG- record. I mean, I don’t even put VG- records on my turntable. But, the market is the market.

Finally, there was a seller who had some nice 10-inch LPs at what I thought were reasonable prices. For example, Thelonious Monk, Genius of Modern Music, Volume 2, Blue Note 5009. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing listed in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover. The start price was $259 and there were no bids. The record is now listed for $255 as a Buy-it-Now price. There was also The Amazing Bud Powell, Volume 2, Blue Note 5041. The record was VG+ and the cover was VG. Love the cover on this one. The original price was $295 and there were no takers. The item has been relisted for a Buy-it-Now price of $275. Perhaps we are seeing something happening to the market for 10-inch LPs? I choose not to speculate, having been wrong consistently pretty much every time I try to gauge the market.

There were several surprises from the auction, including this one: Chet Baker, Chet, Riverside 299. This was an original deep groove pressing with the small labels, looking to be in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It features Bill Evans, which always increases the value, but I was still surprised to see it sell for $1,225. I noticed on one of my other posts that a reader had a nit to pick with me, regarding my ongoing sense of surprise at record prices going up when, in fact, they’ve been going up for as long as I’ve been doing the Jazz Collector site and, to be completely honest, well before that. The commenter definitely makes a good point. My astonishment at prices probably should have been tempered long ago, but, remember, I did start collecting in an era well before eBay, when you could go into a Titus Oaks record store and walk out with 20 original Blue Notes in M- condition, each priced at $5 — and with a 15% discount to boot because you purchased so many records. That did happen to me and the expression of glee on my face and joy to my core that I experienced walking out of that store still comes back just thinking about that particular day. In any case, based on Popsike, this version of Chet does represent the highest price paid for a copy of this record.

Here are a few more from the same auction:

Dizzy Reece, Blues in Trinity, Blue Note 4006. This was an original West 63^rdStreet pressing listed in Mint condition, not even with a “minus.” The final price was $1,784.

Charlies Mingus, Blues & Roots, Atlantic 1305. This was the original mono pressing with what JRC calls the “spiral labels,” which I have often seen referred to as the “bullseye labels.” Whichever label you choose to use, this one was also in Mint condition and sold for $510.

Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, A Night in Tunisia, Blue Note 4049. This was an original West 63^rdStreet pressing, also in beautiful condition, described by JRC as “extraordinary.” The final price was $431, which might have been a surprise to me when I first started writing this post, but which no longer qualifies due to my newfound sense of enlightenment.

As for current listings, there is a new auction from the Jazz Record Center, including this heavyweight from my want list: Cliff Jordan, Blue Note 1565. This is an original New York 23 pressing that looks to be in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover, although the JRC typically does not assign grades on its listings. The start price is $250 with about four days left. So far there are no bidders, but we expect that condition to change well before the auction closes. From the same auction is The Incredible Jimmy Smith at the Club “Baby Grand” Wilmington Delaware, Blue Note 1629. This is an original Lexington Avenue pressing that looks to be in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. The start price is $150, which is somewhat surprising given the general lack of interest — relatively, of course — in Jimmy Smith records, even the Blue Notes, and even the Blue Notes with horn players. But the folks at the Jazz Record Center have a great handle on the market, so I imagine this one will eventually wind up selling. I just noticed, in looking at their listings, that they entire auction is Blue Note, as is my entire post today, so I’m sure many of you will be interested in that.

The same seller has Dizzy Reece, Blues in Trinity, Blue Note 4006. This is an original West 63rd Street pressing listed in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. The bidding is in the $125 range, but there are already 11 bidders and more than 30 bids. So this one will get quite a bit more action and perhaps the competition will push it towards the $1,000 bin.

From Italy is the popular seller bullsite2000, who has this Blue Note rarity that, quite honestly, I don’t ever recall seeing: Lionel Hampton, Jazztime Paris, Blue Note 5046. This is an original Lexington Avenue 10-inch LP, and just looking at the beautiful clear pictures of the labels is enticing enough. This one is listed in M- condition for the record and the cover and is currently in the $150 range with less than two days ago, but it has not yet reached the seller’s reserve price. This must be the most expensive and collectible record in the Lionel Hampton catalog, right?

From the same seller is Lee Morgan, Candy, Blue Note 1590. This is an original West 63rd Street pressing also listed in M- condition for the record and the cover. The bidding is currently in the $925 range with less than two days left. Could this be destined for the $2,000 bin, considering the condition of the record and the reputation of the seller? I say yes. But, will even a price in that range exceed the seller’s reserve price. Stay tuned. This seller posts great pictures with his listings, which is another factor in getting high prices.

Also from Italy is Kenny Drew, Undercurrent, Blue Note 4059. This looks to be an original West 63rd Street pressing with the one-sided deep groove. The record and cover are listed in M- condition and the seller sure does show a lot of pictures, to help with the authenticity of the listing? He is a relatively new seller with a bit more than 100 feedbacks and is asking a lot as a starting price, in this case $3,000.

BTW, while I’m thinking about it, now that the John Coltrane documentary Chasing Trane has been out there for a bit, has anyone seen it and what did you think?

This is an interesting record, but the seller still seems to be figuring things out in terms of how to list on eBay: Dizzy Reece, Asia Minor, New Jazz 8274. This looks to be an original purple label pressing with the deep grooves. The start price is $175 and so far there are no bids. There is also a buy-it-now price of $227.50. Also, the listing says “local pick-up only” in Palm Harbor, Florida. Somehow I don’t think the seller meant to only offer local pick-up, unless there’s a hidden cult of Dizzy Reece fans in Pal Harbor, Florida that we aren’t aware of. Just a lesson to proofread your listings if you are selling on eBay.

And, as is often the case, a golden oldie from my want list: Cliff Jordan, Cliff Craft, Blue Note 1582. This is an original West 63rd Street pressing listed in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. It is a relatively new listing with more than six days to go. The bidding is in the $200 range and the seller has a reserve price that hasn’t yet been me. I would expect this one to well exceed $1,000, possibly $2,000. Certainly too rich for my blood.