Red Rodney, Signal 1206. This is an interesting one because of the condition. There’s a nice clear picture of the cover, which may give the impression that the cover is in nice condition. However if you look closely and read the description, the cover is in only G condition. And the vinyl is only VG. Despite the condition issues, however, the bidding is already more than $400. I guess this LP is in greater demand than I would have realized.

This is another one that’s getting up there in price, somewhat to my surprise: Booker Little, Time 52011. This is an original mono pressing with the deep grooves and gatefold cover. The record is in M- condition and the cover is VG+. The bidding has already topped $250 and the auction closes later today. Perhaps my previous comment about a soft market was premature.

Blue Mitchell, Blue’s Moods, Riverside 9336. This is an original stereo pressing with the black label. The record looks to be in VG++ condition and the cover is probably VG+ or slightly better. Bidding is in the $270 range and there are still more than two days to go.

Billy Bauer Plectrist, Norgran 1082. This is an original yellow label pressing. The record is listed in VG++ condition and the cover is VG. The start price is $150 and so far there are no bidder. I’ll be interested to see if this sells at that start price. There’s always been a kind of separate market for jazz guitar LPs — not just the jazz guys, but the guitar guys and especially the jazz guitar players. I wonder if there is still that interest in a guy like Billy Bauer and/or of there’s still strong interest in Norgran as a label. Something we’ll keep an eye on for the future as well.

Thelonious Monk, Brilliant Corners, Riverside 226. This was an original pressing with the white labels. It was listed in VG+ condition for the vinyl and VG++ for the cover and I recall the seller as being very reputable from previous dealings, as buyer and seller. As I was packing my records to move, I noticed that my copy of Brilliant Corners was a blue-label pressing and it was in maybe VG+ condition. I put this one on my watch list to potentially bid on it, not just as potential fodder for Jazz Collector. I think I would have gone to at least $180 for an original pressing. This one sold for $100, so I missed out.

I also had my eye on this for my own collection, but I knew the price would go way beyond my comfort zone — and it did: Lee Morgan Sextet, Blue Note 1541. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing and the vinyl was in M- condition. The cover was VG+. It sold for $1,475. One of these days I’ll find a reasonable copy for the right price. Right?

There was also a big auction from the Jazz Record Center, including: Toshiko Akiyoshi, Her Trio and Her Quartet, Storyville 918. This was an original pressing that looked to be in M- condition for both the record and the cover. I love the cover. I’m not an art expert, but is that Miro? The record sold for $260. I’ll take a look later at some of the other records from this auction and do another post.

This one sold for top dollar, right: Herbie Hancock, Inventions & Dimensions, Blue Note 4147. This was an original mono pressing with the ear, Van Gelder and New York USA address on the labels. It was in M- condition for both the record and the cover and it sold for $449.

What’s a VG-minus version of this record worth: Jackie McLean, the New Tradition, Ad Lib 6601? We’ll find out later today. This one is just a little bit more than $200 and is a little tempting, to be honest, based on the seller’s description that it sounds decent. I had a VG copy of this I sold years ago for $500 and have always regretted it, and I’d love to get another copy for the collection. Probably not this one, but I’ll keep looking.

Here’s a nice original Blue Note: Horace Silver with Art Blakey and Sabu, Blue Note 1520. This is an original Lexington Avenue pressing in M- condition. I don’t normally think of the Horace Silvers an the same league — value-wise — as some of the other Blue Notes, but this one is already more than $600.

This one is on the verge of breaking the $1,000 barrier but has still no reached the seller’s reserve price: Lee Morgan Volume 3, Blue Note 1557. This looks to be an original first press in M- condition. The current price is $987 with a couple of days to go.

Here’s another 10-inch beauty of a record that sold for more than $500 this week: Clifford Brown, New Star on the Horizon, Blue Note 5032. This one is in VG++ condition for the vinyl and the cover and is close to $200. I want to go back in time and go to a record store in 1955 when this record was new and buy a whole batch of clean 10-inch LPs and bring them back with me to now and play them on my current stereo equipment. Hey, it’s the holiday season, we can all make a wish even if it can’t come true.

First there were those beautiful 10-inch Blue Notes: Clifford Brown, New Star on the Horizon, Blue Note 5032. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing listed in M- condition for the vinyl and what we would characterize as VG++ for the cover. A beautiful copy. It sold for $535.49. From the same seller was this: Miles Davis Volume 2, Blue  Note 5022. This was in similar condition to the Clifford record and sold for $630.

That brilliant copy of Thelonious Monk, Brilliant Corners, Riverside 226, did not reach the  $1,000 bin, to my surprise. This was a white-label pressing in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $898.08.

We’ve never seen a copy of this record fetch a higher price:

Cattin’ With John Coltrane and Paul Quinichette, Prestige 7158. This was a promo copy and it was sold by the Jazz Record Center. It was in near-mint condition and sold for $435. This was from the same auction and also fetched a higher-than-usual price: The Resurgence of Dexter Gordon, Jazzland 29. This was an original orange label pressing that seemed to be in new condition. It sold for $178.38.

Look at the great cover on this one: Thelonious Monk Plays, Prestige 189. This is a 10-inch pressing that was listed in M- condition for the vinyl and VG+ for the cover. It was part of a nice crop of 10-inch Prestiges offered by the Philadelphia Record Exchange and it sold for $295. You may recall that I bid on the James Moody 10-inchers from this auction. I wound up winning all three for about $150 total, about $50 each. To me that’s a fine deal, great music, even though, perhaps, the resale market for these records won’t be so great. Won’t matter though, since I’ll have thousands of records to sell before I get to these.

Some interesting, lower, prices than usual: Sonny Rollins, Tenor Madness Prestige 7047. This was an original New York pressing in VG condition for both the record and cover. This is quite a classic, of course, yet it sold for less than $60. The dealer mentioned something about the cover being “professionally” repaired, whatever that means, so that could have impacted the price. Still, even in VG condition, you’d expect more, based on the prices we’ve seen lately for original Blue Notes and Prestiges. Here’s another:

Teddy Charles, Collaboration West, Prestige 7028. This was also an original New York pressing with the original cover. It was listed in VG+ condition for the vinyl and what looked to be VG++ for the cover. It sold for $56.05. One more: Art Pepper Quartet, Tampa 20. This was a deep groove pressing that was listed in VG++ condition for the vinyl and VG+ for the cover. The price was $77.

Kenny Dorham, Quiet Kenny, New Jazz 8225. This was an original pressing in VG++ condition for both the record and cover and, as noted, it had the promo stamp. It sold for $1,525. Probably would have gotten more without the promo stamp.

Dexter Gordon, Dexter Blows Hot and Cool, Dootone 207. This was an original pressing with the red vinyl. The record was VG+ and the cover was listed in VG+, although there was a full split on the bottom and a partial split on the top. There was some question whether this would prevent it from breaking the $1,000 barrier, but it did not: This one sold for $1,136.

This one had it all going for it: Helen Merrill, Emarcy 36006. It was an original pressing, with the blue writing on the back cover, the seller was Euclid Records and the pictures accompanying the listing were quite clear and bright. The price was $1,568.

This one didn’t quite make the $1,000 bin, but it came close enough to include here: Cliff Jordan, Blue Note 1565. This was an original pressing in VG++ condition for the vinyl and VG+ for the record. It sold for $931.

This is yet another Blue Note that has hit a new high price in the past few weeks, at least as far as we can tell: Donald Byrd, Byrd in Hand, Blue Note 4019. This was an original West 63rd Street pressing and it was listed in M- condition for the vinyl and probably VG++ for the cover. It had a nice picture, as you can see. The price was $637, which was not only a high for this record, but a high for any Donald Byrd Blue Note for the Jazz Collector Price Guide. This follows recent high prices for Wayne Shorter and Ike Quebec on Blue Note as well.

This one was getting a little bidding action and I’m not sure why, although it is certainly an excellent record: John Coltrane, Ole, Atlantic 1373. This seemed to be a routine pressing with the purple and orange label. With Atlantics of this vintage, I’m not sure how to tell if it’s an original, other than the heaviness of the vinyl and cover. Perhaps someone out there has some more information. Anyway this was in M- condition for the record and cover and it sold for $53.01.

I thought this would fetch a higher price: Booker Ervin, The Freedom Book, Prestige 7295. This was an original yellow label pressing, toward the end of the yellow label series, and it looked to be in VG+ condition for both the record and probably VG++ for the cover. The price was $64. A bargain in these times, right?

Let’s close it off with a nice Jackie: Jackie McLean, Makin’ the Changes, New Jazz 8231. This was an original mono deep groove pressing with the purple labels. The record looked to be M- and the cover VG++, at least. The price was $431.

This seller had a bunch of nice records, but they were not in near-mint condition, so the prices seemed pretty reasonable, if you were willing to gamble. Here’s an example: Jackie McLean, Jackie’s Pal, Prestige 7068. This looked like an original New York pressing with the deep grooves and the flat edge and it was listed in VG++ condition for the cover and VG+ for the record. I could see where bidders, such as myself, might be a bit wary. The description of the cover sounded a lot more like VG+ than VG++ and the description of the vinyl used this language: “Scratches can be seen.” The record sold for $260.15. Somebody took a risk. This one came from the same seller: Jackie McLean, Alto Madness, Prestige 7114. This was also  an original New York pressing and this one was listed in

VG+ condition for both the vinyl and the cover. The price was $449. In the Jazz Collector Price Guide, a copy of Jackie’s Pal in M- condition recently sold for nearly $1,600 and a copy of Alto Madness, also in M- condition, sold for nearly $1,000.

This one came from a different seller: Jackie McLean, Lights Out, Prestige 7035. This was also an original pressing. The record was listed in M- condition — unplayed, apparently, until the seller played it — and the cover was listed in VG- condition. It sold for $554.55. If I were home rather than in the country, I might have considered bidding on this one. I think my copy at home has a nice cover, but a VG record. I could have swapped and mixed-and-matched, but without actually viewing my copy, $555-plus was a bit too much too gamble, don’t you think?

Let’s start with a couple more Prestiges. Frank Foster, Hope Meets Foster, Prestige 7021. This looks to be an original pressing with the New York address and the deep groove. It was listed in M- condition for the record and the cover looked to be VG+ or VG++. The price was $548.78, which is a nice price but in this market I would have thought it might have sold for even more. If that Prestige sold for less than expected, this one got top dollar, based on what we’ve previously seen for this record in the Jazz Collector Price Guide:

Booker Ervin, The Song Book, Prestige 7318. This was an original yellow-label pressing. Mike asks in a previous post if this is original and it is. He also asks when Prestige stopped using deep grooves, and I don’t know the answer. Anyone? I’ve seen yellow labels on Prestiges into the mid-7220s, so this was the tail end of the yellow label series. Anyway, this one was in M- condition for the record and cover and sold for $696. Some of our readers theorize that when we call attention to a record, it can inflate the price. Seeing this and seeing how the traffic to Jazz Collector has been growing so quickly, I’m tending to see the logic.

Finally, here’s another for the $1,000 bin: Lawrence Marable, Tenorman, Jazz West 8. A little surprising that this got such a high price, only because of the condition: The record was VG+, the cover was just VG. The price was $1,238.02.

Booker Ervin, The Song Book, Prestige 7318. Booker was one of the unheralded greats on tenor sax and, to me, this is his best record as a leader. He wails on All The Things You Are and Just Friends and shows off his power and warmth on the ballads as well. With an all-star rhythm section featuring Tommy Flanagan, Richard Davis and Alan Dawson. If I ever get back to doing my Jazz Vinyl Countdown, this stays in the collection no matter what. Anyway, the copy on sale on eBay is an

original yellow label pressing and it is listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It is priced at around $200 with a few hours to go.

This is another one that would stay in the collection no matter what — if I had an original copy, which, believe it or not, I don’t: Sonny Clark, Sonny’s Crib, Blue Note 1576. This is an original pressing listed as VG+ for the vinyl and VG for the cover. It is currently at about $340 and, because of the condition, perhaps it will sell for less than $1,000.

This seller has been selling some nice records from Switzerland and he has a bunch more up this weekend, including: Curtis Fuller, The Opener, Blue Note 1567. This is an original pressing and it is listed in VG++ condition for the vinyl and M- for the cover. Bidding has surpassed $500, but it has not yet surpassed the seller’s reserve price.

Finally, the seller roverd-90 is also back with a potpourri of nice jazz vinyl, including: Paul Chambers, Whims of Chambers, Blue Note 1534. This is not an original pressing: It has the West 63rd address instead of the Lexington Avenue address. Still it is in nice M- condition and it promises to sell or a hefty price tag: It is already at $255 with more than two days to go.