Tag: Kenny Dorham

No Holiday For Watching Jazz Vinyl

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It may be the holiday season around much of the world, but eBay never takes a vacation. Neither, apparently, does Jazz Collector. Here is some interesting jazz vinyl we’ve been watching on eBay. We’ll start with the $1,000 been. This one is still for sale: Hank Mobley, Hank, Blue Note 1560. This is an original pressing that’s listed in near mint condition for both the record and the cover. The price is already more than $1,100 and there are still two days to go.  This is also a regular to the $1,000 bin: Kenny Dorham, Quiet Kenny, New Jazz 8225. This was an original pressing, deep grooves, purple label, and it was listed in VG++ condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $1,415. Merry Christmas for someone. John Jenkins with Kenny Burrell, Blue Note 1573. This was an original pressing that was either M- or very close to M-, based on the seller’s description. It sold for $1,156.99.

Here are a few interesting items closing in the next day or so:

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Watching Some High-Priced Vinyl on eBay

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Before we get into some of the records we’re watching on eBay, be aware that we’ve been having some minor glitches on the site with people posting comments. Not all of the comments are getting posted immediately, and sometimes I have to go in manually and approve them. If this happens to you, don’t take it personally. It’s a technical problem, not a change in philosophy. We’re working to fix it and hope it will be resolved soon. In the meantime, back to watching jazz vinyl:

Hank Mobley Quintet, Blue Note 1550. This looks like an original pressing with the West 63rd address, deep grooves and all of the other original attributes. It is described as being in M- condition for both the record and the cover and it is accompanied by a nice clear picture, as can be seen here. This one has more than five days to go and already has nine bids and is already priced at about $800. It will sell for a lot of money.

From the same seller comes Hank Mobley and Lee Morgan, Peckin’ Time, Blue Note 1574. This is also an original pressing and it is also described as being in M- condition. This one is currently at $405. And, while we’re at it, Kenny Dorham, Quiet Kenny, New Jazz 8225. This one also looks to be in beautiful condition. It is also in the $400 price range. It will also probably sell for more than $2,000.

Jazz Vinyl Today: A Bevy of Blue Notes

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Lots of Blue Notes on today’s watch list, starting with: Cliff Jordan, Cliff Craft, Blue Note 1582. This was an original pressing that was listed in VG++ condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $1,370. We’ve seen this one sell for more than $1,300 in the Jazz Collector Price Guide, but this is quite a hefty price nonetheless.

Kenny Drew Undercurrent, Blue Note 4059. This one had the West 63rd Street address and, from the looks of the pictures, it had deep grooves on both sides, certainly on Side 2. That would make it original either way, no? This was described as being in VG condition, and the cover certainly looked no better than VG. It sold for $427.

Gigi Gryce/Clifford Brown Sextet, Blue Note 5048. This was an original 10-inch LP that was defined as being in “very fine” condition, which, the seller implies, is actually M- condition. The pictures certainly looked very fine indeed, if not M-.  It sold for $372. 10.

If it’s a Blue Note, and it’s one of the coveted artists, the record or cover does not have to be in great condition to fetch a high price. Case in point:

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Updating the $2,000 Jazz Vinyl Bin

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I’ve been checking out some of the recent higher-priced jazz vinyl auctions on eBay and came across some interesting items, including this one, which is completely new to me: Jazz Quintet 60, Metronome 15124. This is an original 1962 Danish pressing featuring Bent Axen and Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen (he must have been a teenager) along with Bjarne Rostvold, Allan Botschinsky and Niels Husum. Don’t know anything about the record, other than it must be highly collectible. This copy was in M- condition for the vinyl and VG++ for the cover and sold for $2,392 with nearly 350 page views. The seller was SweeDeeDee, who had a bunch of nice items on eBay last week.

Here’s a beauty from my friends at Infinity Records on Long Island: Sonny Clark, Dial S For Sonny, Blue Note 1570. This was an original pressing with the West 63rd address, deep grooves, etc., and it was listed in M- condition for the vinyl and what looked to be VG+ for the cover. It sold for $2,100.

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Tracking Some Rare Beauties on eBay

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Couple of interesting jazz vinyl auctions taking place now from sellers who would be quite familiar to the Jazz Collector audience. First up is collossus3: He’s the one who had access to the Leon Leavitt vault and was, he says, able to pick and choose the best copy of each of the rare records. Among those rare records now available on eBay are: Freddie Hubbard, Open Sesame, Blue Note 4040. This is an original pressing and it is described as being in pristine condition, M- all the way fro the record and the cover.  There is a reserve price, which of course is undisclosed, as well as a buy-it-now price of $2,500. So far the bidding has not yet hit the reserve price and is in the $250 range. We’ve seen this record sell for as much as $1,500 in the Jazz Collector Price Guide, so we’d certainly expect the bidding to top $1,000 at some point. Whether that will be enough to hit the reserve price, we’ll see, assuming no one gobbles it up at $2,500. From the same seller comes Horace Silver, Six Pieces of Silver, Blue Note 1539. This is an original Lexington Avenue pressing with the flat edge. It is not only described as being in extraordinary immaculate condition, the vinyl even has  a”jewel-like” finish. Gotta love it. In any case, this one is still under $200 with a couple of days left on the bidding and it hasn’t reached the reserve price either.

The other interesting auction we’re watching is from the seller Sweedeedee from Stockholm, who often has nice pieces for sale on eBay. This week some of his listings include:

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Mobley Blue Note 1568: Looking For A Record?

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As CeeDee was kind enough to point out, there is a killer record (that’s American colloquialism for our Asian and European friends — the record actually hasn’t killed anyone) on eBay now: Hank Mobley, Blue Note 1568. This looks to be an original pressing. The cover is described as “Pristine.” The record is described as “Unplayed.”  The price is now more than $1,000 and there are still six days to go on the bidding. There is also a “buy-it-now” price of $5,000 and, frankly, I think someone will pop in to get this gem off the market quickly, setting a new high price for the Jazz Collector Price Guide. The seller has a full description of how he purchased this record, and many others, from the late jazz vinyl dealer Leon Leavitt. This will be one to keep an eye on.

Also on eBay now: Curtis Fuller, The Opener, Blue Note 1567. This too looks to be an original pressing. It is listed in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover. The start price is $700 and there’s a little more than one day left to bid. So far there are no bidders.

How about some of those items we were watching yesterday?

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Off To The Races, The Chase is On

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We’ll start today’s jazz vinyl watch with a personal favorite that we don’t see that often on eBay: Charles Rouse and Paul Quinichette, The Chase is On, Bethlehem 6021. This is an original red label pressing with the deep grooves. The record is in near mint/ex-plus condition and the cover is VG+. The current price is nearly $300 and there are about 12 hours to go as of this writing. Great record.

Now we go to a conundrum we have mentioned before: How do you value a sealed record without knowing its provenance and then, once you have it, what do you do with it? In this case the record is: Donald Byrd, Off the the Races, Blue Note 4007. This is a mono pressing and the factory seal is still on it. There is no indication of Liberty on the back cover — it looks like an original back cover. The seller, Euclid Records, one of the most credible in our community, makes no claims about the record’s originality and offers no hype. We’ve seen records like this and they’ve been originals, we’ve seen records like this and they’ve been later pressings, New York USA or Liberty. So what would you bid on this record? And, I assume you would open it as soon as you got it, so is there a huge value in purchasing it sealed? This one is priced at more than $150 and there are still three days to go.

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A Trio of Blue Notes For A Monday Morning

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Back to watching records on eBay. Don-lucky send me this as a heads-up, knowing my interest, expressed many times here, in obtaining an original pressing of this record: Freddie Redd, Shades of Redd, Blue Note 4045. This was an original pressing that was close to M- for the record and VG+ for the cover. The price was $721.67. This was way too rich for my blood. As I’ve explained, I’m in transition now, with some records in storage, so my collection isn’t all together in one place, so it’s hard to think about buying more records when I don’t even have access to all of the ones I currently own. Still, if I came upon a nice copy of this record for a reasonable price, or if someone offered up a nice collection, I assume the old adrenaline will kick in and I’ll be peeling off $100 bills.

Here’s some jazz vinyl for the $1,000 bin: Kenny Dorham, Round Midnight at the Cafe Bohemia, Blue Note 1524. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing and it was listed in Ex+ condition for the record — is that better than VG++, but less than M-? — and the cover was VG++. The price was $1,259.77.

This next one didn’t quite make the $1,000 bin but it came close:

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Updates From The Jazz Record Center Auction, Part 2

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We did promise a Part 2 of our post on the recent auction from The Jazz Record Center, so here goes (apologize for the delay):

Why isn’t this record worth more: Thelonious Monk and Sonny Rollins, Prestige 7075? This was an original New York pressing. The record was in M- condition — nearly new — and the cover looked like it was at least VG++, maybe better. It sold for $192.50. I happen to think this is a terrific album. I love Sonny’s interpretation of The Way You Look Tonight. When I was first getting into jazz I used to compare this version to the Stan Getz version on Stan Getz Plays and it took me a while to reconcile not only that it was the same song, but that it was even the same instrument. My ears are obviously much more sophisticated now, but at the time the difference in approach seemed so stark. And I liked both versions. Anyway, I repeat my query: Why is this great original Prestige, featuring two of the geniuses of modern jazz, not even a $200 record?

This has always been one of the rarest and more expensive of the Riversides, for good reason: Sonny Rollins, The Sound of Sonny, Riverside 241. This was an original white label pressing and it was in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $765. It’s the presence of Sonny Clark with Rollins that makes this one so sought-after, no?

Now for a few Blue Notes:

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Watching Jazz Vinyl From the Jazz Record Center

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Our friends at the Jazz Record Center have a new auction this week and we always like to keep an eye on their stuff because it gives a pretty good indication of the overall market, which still seems to be down these days, right? Here are a few of their listings:

Eric Dolphy at the Five Spot Volume 1, New Jazz 8260. This is an original pressing with the purple label and deep grooves. The record looks to be in M- condition, and the cover probably VG+ with some seam splitting. The start price is $75, there are no bidders and there are eight days to go. We’ve seen this record sell for as much as $966 in the Jazz Collector Price Guide, so we’d expect that this will fetch a much higher price than the start price. We’ll see.

Horace Parlan, On the Spur of the Moment, Blue Note 4074. This is a weird one, with a Review stamp on one label with the New York USA address, and the other address the West 63rd Street label. As noted by Fred Cohen, proprietor of the Jazz Record Center, the original pressing on this one should have the West 63rd address on both labels. So what does that make this? Here’s where we get into that whole debate again about original and first pressings. This one has a start price of $200 and no bids as of yet.

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