Tag: JR Monterose

A New Mini Adventure in Jazz Collecting

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I decided to bid on that Monk record from the Jazz Record Center auction: The Unique Thelonious Monk, Riverside 12-209. The main reason was that I really wanted the record. As you can see from the accompanying photo, the record I own is a blue label and the cover has ugly taped seams both on the top and on the bottom. Plus, the record plays with a lot of surface noise, not anything you would really want to put on your turntable. But that wasn’t the only reason for my interest in bidding. I probably haven’t bought or sold a record on eBay in at least 10 years. I wanted to go through the experience again, see if anything had changed, see if the old adrenaline rush would still be there. I also wanted to write about the experience to share with the dwindling Jazz Collector audience, which is what I am doing now. Read more

Rare Jazz Vinyl, Sonny Rollins, MOMA, Me & Bob Porter

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I just logged in to my eBay watch list and the first three items were recent sales from the seller 1molecularrman. Prices seemed really high to me, so perhaps he has a great reputation, or a magic touch, or maybe he is just bobdjukic incognito. Anyway, these were the records: Thelonious Monk/Sonny Rollins, Prestige 7075. This was an original New York yellow label. The record was listed in VG++ condition and the cover was VG+. The final price was $1,375. Based on a quick look over at Popsike, that is the highest price ever recorded for this record. And, to note, neither the record nor the cover was in near mint condition. Read more

Starting Points for Rare Jazz Vinyl

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I haven’t been watching eBay as diligently during the summer as I normally do, and I haven’t actually sold anything on eBay in more than a dozen years, so this observation may be dated, but . . . . is it just me, or are sellers consistently putting a higher start price on their auctions of rare jazz vinyl? I was just updating my watch list and flagged several titles that had high starting prices and no bidders. At first I assumed it was all from a single seller. But when I opened up the listings, they were all from different sellers. Here are some of those records, starting with Mal Waldron, Left Alone, Bethlehem 6045. This was an original red label pressing. If you can read through the seller’s tome and ‘tude, eventually you can find the condition of the record, which was listed as NM-. The cover was described as “pretty nice-very nice” and the picture shows a pretty clean front cover, with wear on the top and some old tape on the back. To me, pretty nice-very nice translates to VG+. The bidding start at $800 and so far there are no takers. Read more

Potpourri of Vinyl, Record Shows, Old Photos

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Clearing out my inbox one more time, starting with a note from our friend CeeDee with a link to two eBay auctions. First up is Kenny Dorham, Una Mas, Blue Note 4127. This was an original New York pressing with the ear and the Van Gelder stamp. This was listed in M- condition for the record and the cover. Why did CeeDee send this to us? I would guess the final price, which was $810. That’s the highest price we’ve ever seen for Una Mas, confirmed by a peek over at Popsike. The second link from CeeDee seems to be an aberration: JR Monterose, The Message, Jaro 8004. This was a Fresh Sounds reissue that would typically sell for about $10 or $20. This one sold for $182.50 and it wasn’t even in mint condition. The seller doesn’t mention that it is a reissue in the listing, but the pictures clearly show that it is. IMHO, the buyer was either careless or clueless or perhaps a combination of the two. In any case, that is quite a tidy sum for a reissue, no? Read more

Back in Action: Updating the $1,000 Bin

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Been so busy around here, haven’t even been on eBay in days. So what have we been missing? Here’s some interesting jazz vinyl stuff.

Donald Byrd, Byrd, Transition 5. This was an original pressing with the booklet. The record was listed in VG condition and the cover/booklet both looked very nice, probably VG++ the way we rank things around here. The price was $1,336.55. I was willing to sell my Byrd’s Eye View on Transition, no booklet, but no one has really taken me up on my offer to shop through my collection in person. Now, I’m starting to pack things up in preparation for the big moves, coming soon — although the “store” is still open.

This one also made it to the $1,000 bin: Jutta Hipp With Zoot Sims, Blue Note 1530. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing, quite lovely, and it was in what looked like VG++ condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $1,300. Just seeing pictures of those Lexington Avenue labels gets the heart kind of racing.

While we’re on Blue Note Lexingtons, how about this one from the same seller: J.R. Monterose, Blue Note 1536. This also looked quite lovely, probably VG++ condition for the record and the cover. It sold for $1,200.

 

Updating the $1,000 Bin & A Few More

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Here are some $1,000 and near-$1,000 records we missed:

Kenny Dorham, ‘Round About Midnight at the Cafe Bohemia, Blue Note 1524. This was an original pressing that was listed in M- condition for the record and excellent condition for the cover, which is, what, VG+, VG++? This one sold for $1,315.

People have already commented on this one elsewhere on Jazz Collector, but it seems reasonable to me, given the state of the Blue Note market: Cannonball Adderley, Somethin’ Else, Blue Note 1595. This looked like an original pressing and was in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $1,250.

This one came from the bobjdukic batch and, given the condition, sold for a fairly whopping price tag: Lee Morgan, Indeed!, Blue Note 1538. It was listed as “insanely rare” (of course), but it was also listed in VG to VG-minus condition for the vinyl, which would definitely indicate surface noise. The cover was VG+ and the price was an even $1,000, which, I suppose, is a sign of something  to conspiracy theorists.

Here was an original copy of Sonny Rollins, Saxophone Colossus, Prestige 7079, the barely missed the $1,000 bin. This looked to be in VG+ or VG++ condition for the vinyl and probably around VG+ for the cover. It sold for $948,

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eBaying This Week: JR,Trane and More

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Another week, another 7,000 or so jazz records on eBay. Here are some of the ones we’ll be watching for you at Jazz Collector:

As noted, the lovely bobdjukic is back with a lot of superbly hyped records, including: J.R. Monterose, Blue Note 1536. This looks clearly to be an original pressing and it is listed in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover. It closes at the end of the week and is already at $510. This will certainly be in the $1,000 bin soon. From the same seller, among others, is John Coltrane, Lush Life, Prestige 7188. I mention this because I have a friend looking for a nice original pressing of this record. This one looks to be in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. It is now at $100. I’m sure you all know the great story behind this record, about the trio side which was only a trio side because Red Garland forgot to show up for the date.

This is from another seller: Lee Morgan, City Lights, Blue Note 1575. This one looks to be VG++ for the record and perhaps VG+ for the cover, although part of the top right corner is off. The current price is $485 and there are about three days left.

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Rare Jazz Vinyl Collectibles From Three Tenors

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We did a whole riff on this record a few months ago and actually came up with some never-heard-before tapes of J.R. Monterose, which, to my knowledge, may still be available. Check it out here and here. Anyway, another copy of this record sold recently: J.R. Monterose In Action, Studio 4 SS 100. This was an original pressing. The vinyl was listed as M- and the cover looked to be VG++, based on the description. The price was $1,911.

Here’s another non Blue Note for the $1,000 bin: Dexter Gordon, Dexter Blows Hot and Cool, Dootone 207. This was an original red vinyl pressing. The record was listed as VG++ and the cover was VG+. The price was $1,137.

This one really got top dollar, more than you would normally expect to see for a Jazzland LP:

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Monterose For the $2,000 Bin

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Here’s a nice one coming up from Euclid Records: J.R. Monterose, Blue Note 1536. This is an original Lexington Avenue pressing. The record is VG++ and the cover is VG+. The current price is about $530. Speaking of J.R., one of his albums recently sold for more than $2,000: J.R. Monterose In Action, Studio 4 SS 100. This was an original pressing that looked to be M- for the record and VG++ for the cover. The price was $2,025, either enhanced or depressed by the signature of a local disk jockey on the back. Signatures can be tricky, especially if it’s not the signature of one of the artists. By the

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An Avalanche of Thousand-Dollar-Plus Jazz Vinyl

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We’ve been off line for a couple of days, just got back, went to My Ebay and noticed that the auctions of the seller Nautiluso are now in the midst of closing. Wow! Wait till you see these prices. Here’s a start:

Jutta Hipp with Zoot Sims, Blue Note 1530. Like most of the others in this group, this was listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. The price was $3,342.99.

J.R. Monterose, Blue Note 1536. Condition: M- for record and cover. Price: $2,247.22

Lou Donaldson, Quartet, Quintet, Sextet, Blue Note 1537. Condition: M-. Price: $1,175

Hank Mobley With Donald Byrd and Lee Morgan, Blue Note 1540. Condition: M-. Price: $1,705.

Tommy Flanagan Overseas, Prestige 7134. Condition: M-. Price: $2,247.

Bill Evans, Waltz For Debby, Riverside 399. Condition: M-
Price: $1,500.

As noted, this is just a small sampling. There will be more to come. It would be great if some of the winners of this vinyl will report back to us on the condition and whether these records are, indeed, as pristine as they seem.

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