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A Jazz Vinyl Potpourri From Jazz Record Center

July 5, 2012 Al One comment

We always like to watch the auctions from the Jazz Record Center because they are a nice gauge of the overall market. Here are a few items from their latest auction, starting with: Sonny Rollins, The Sound of Sonny, Riverside 241. This is an original pressing with the white labels. It is listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. The start price is $200 and so far there are no bidders, but we’d expect that to change. We’ve seen copies of this record sell for more than $500 in the Jazz Collector Price Guide.

Bud Powell’s Moods, Norgran 1064. This is an original yellow label pressing. The record and the cover both look to be in M- condition. It has a cover design by David Stone Martin and has a start price of $100. We’d also expect this one to sell, right?

The bidding has already started on this one: Dizzy Reece, Star Bright, Blue Note 4023. This is an original pressing that also looks to be in M- condition for both the record and the cover. The auction closes in about five days and the bidding is now in the $260 range.

Autographed LPs: Miles Davis, Chet Baker, Bill Evans

April 18, 2012 Al 5 comments

I was curious to see how some of those autographed records from the Jazz Record Center would do on eBay and the results are now in. There was definitely a strong demand.

Chet Baker Quartet, Jazz at Ann Arbor, Pacific Jazz 1203. This was an original pressing with a Chet Baker autograph on the cover, signed and dated from 1973. The record looked to be in M- condition and the cover was probably VG+. The price was $461.

There were several LPs autographed by Miles Davis in the auction, including: Miles Davis, In Person, Saturday Night at the Blackhawk, Columbia 8470. This was an original stereo pressing with the six-eye logo and it was in M- condition all around: In fact, it was described as being in “amazing” condition. It was signed on the back by Miles in red ink. It sold for $566. Also, Miles Davis, Bags Groove, Prestige 7109. This was a later pressing with the blue labels. This one was signed not just by Miles, but by Sonny Rollins as well. It looked to be in VG++ or M- condition and it sold for $195.50. If I had this cover, I’d get rid of the blue-label record and replace it with one with yellow labels, even a New Jersey yellow label. It would just feel better to look at the cover knowing there was a yellow-label pressing inside. Just part of my own insanity, I guess.

Catching Up on Some 10-Inch Jazz Vinyl

February 17, 2011 Al 13 comments

Can’t sleep so I’m up early updating the Jazz Collector Price Guide. Here are some 10-inch records that will be going in:

Miles Davis All Stars Volume 2, Prestige 200. This looks to be an original pressing with the yellow label, probably one of the first Prestiges to have the famous yellow label. The record was listed in VG++ condition and the cover was VG+. The price was $204.50.

I think this was the first LP issued by Blue Note: Mellow The Mood, Blue Note 5001. It features Ike Quebec, Benny Morton, Buck Clayton and others. The record was VG and the cover was VG++. You’d think it would fetch a high price just for the historic value. But, alas, this copy did not: It sold for $28.

I’ve never seen this one and it has quite a cool cover: Bill Jennings/Leo Parker Quintet, Billy in the Lion’s Den, King 527. This was listed in VG condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $81.

Hard to find this one in M- condition, but here was a copy: Gerry Mulligan Quartet, With Chet Baker, Pacific Jazz 5. It sold for $115.52.

And now for some 10-inch Blue Notes:

Jazz Vinyl on eBay: Mobley, Clark, Trane, Pres, Chet

January 19, 2011 Al 7 comments

Another day, another couple of thousand jazz records on eBay. Here are some of the ones we’re watching:

Hank Mobley, No Room For Squares, Blue Note 4149. This looks to be an original pressing, with the New York USA label and the ear, and it is listed in M- condition for the record and what looks to be VG++ for the cover. You may recall that a recent copy of this record sold for $1,009. I’m sure the seller here, Atomic Records, noticed as well. This one is currently in the $130 range but has yet to meet the seller’s reserve price.

Sonny Clark, Dial S For Sonny, Blue Note 1570. This is an original pressing with the West 63rd label, deep groove, etc., and it is listed in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover. The current price is around $425 and there is still one day left on the auction.

This one doesn’t usually go for a big price, but it is in nice condition and it is a promo copy (it’s also a fantastic record, musically): John Coltrane, Live at Birdland, Impulse 50. This has the white promo label and is listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It has one bid, but the price is $198.

Catching Up on Some Odds & Ends

January 18, 2011 Al One comment

Here are some non-Blue Note odds and ends we’ve been watching:

Blue Mitchell, Blue Soul, Riverside 309. This was one of the ones from the recent bobdjukic auction. It was listed in VG++ condition for both the vinyl and the cover and it looked to be an original deep groove, blue label pressing. It sold for $275. One of the reasons I was watching this is that I just bought another small collection and a nice original mint copy of this record was in the batch. There were also a few original Blue Notes so, if I ever get back to selling records on eBay, I’ll have some nice items to start with . . . . or if I have Jazz Collector readers come to the house, as previously proposed.

Harry Carney With Strings, Clef 640. This looked to be an original pressing, although there was no picture of the label, with a beautiful cover illustration by David Stone Martin. It was listed in VG+ condition for both the record and the cover and sold for $110.50. You have to wonder how much longer there will be a market for Harry Carney LPs. Case in point: The Astaire Story. This was the original Mercury boxed set in beautiful condition, signed by Astaire, with the Stone Martin illustrations and the exclusive photos. In M- condition, this would have sold for somewhere in the range of $2,000 just a few years ago. Now, the seller had a start price of $800 and there were no bidders.

Jazz Vinyl Price Update: No Blue Notes, But Nice LPs

December 30, 2010 Al 4 comments

I’m spending some time this weekend updating the Jazz Collector Price Guide after a brief hiatus and, in going through the updates, I’ll be putting in a few records that are a bit more obscure, either by artist or label, than the normal batch of Blue Notes and Prestiges. Here are a few worth pondering:

Don Sleet, All Members, Jazzland 45. This was an original orange label mono pressing. The record looked to be VG++ and the cover was listed as VG. The price was $94.

Mike Cuozzo with the Costa-Burke Trio, Jubilee 1027. This was an original pressing and the value is certainly aided by the presence of Eddie Costa. It was only in VG condition for the record and the cover and still sold for $108.50.

Bill Perkins, Just Friends, Pacific Jazz 401. This was an original pressing sold by the Jazz Record Center. It was in excellent condition — the words “immaculate” and “exceptional” were used in the description. It also benefitted from the presence of strong sidemen, in this case Art Pepper and Richie Kamuca. The price was $330.55.

Another Tail of Two Covers

February 27, 2010 Al 7 comments

So I was at a record store recently and on the shelves saw a copy of the record 3 Degrees East –3 Degrees West on World Pacific. It had a cover I hadn’t recalled seeing. Even though I was pretty sure the cover I had at home was the original, the price was cheap enough so I purchased it. It was interesting when I got home and compared the two covers. The cover on the left in the picture is the original. This is the one I had in my collection. It has a copyright date of 1956 on the back and is on Pacific Jazz Records, PJ-1217. It also has the “kakubushi” framed cover. The record I purchased at the store, with the cover on the right, is copyrighted from 1957 and is on World Pacific Records, also number PJ-1217. The liner notes and pictures on the back are the same. Not sure why the company would re-release the record with different packaging just a year later: You’d think if

Album Covers

Catching UP: Kenny Dorham, Johnny Griffin

November 13, 2009 Al 3 comments

Time to catch up on some jazz vinyl we’ve been watching this week. Let’s start with a little KD: Kenny Dorham and Jackie McLean, Inta Somethin’, Pacific Jazz 41. The vinyl on this was in VG++ condition and the cover looked to be VG+. This is a nice record, but I’ve never thought of it as a high-end collectible. However, I will have to rethink that now that is has sold for $667.56. Also, there was this: Kenny Dorham, Afro-Cuban, Blue Note 1535. This was an original

Jazz Vinyl, Way Out West

October 30, 2009 Al 4 comments

Here’s one we wouldn’t have expected to sell for as much as it did: Bill Perkins, Just Friends, Pacific Jazz 401. This was an original pressing in M- condition and it was offered by the same guy who was offering some other LPs that he purchased from the late Leon Leavitt. Anyway, we’ve tracked this one before in the Jazz Collector Price Guide and the highest price was $128. This one sold for a cool $800. This one is of similar vintage: Playboys, Art Pepper and Chet Baker, Pacific Jazz 1234. This was an original pressing and it was also listed in M- condition for both the record and the cover. It sold for $660. And, while we’re on the West Coast, there is this: Art Pepper Quintet, Discovery 3023. This is an original 10-inch pressing. It was listed in VG++ condition for both the record and the cover, and it sold for $428.99.

10-Inch LPs

Another Dolphy Collectible; Some LPS on eBay Today

March 2, 2009 Al 2 comments

Last week we were watching the record Eric Dolphy in Europe, Debut 136, which eventually sold for $1,375. This weekend there was another nice European rare Dolphy for sale: Eric Dolphy Last Date, Fontana 681-008. To my knowledge, this was an original pressing originally issued in Holland. This one was in beautiful M- condition and sold for $596.50.

While I’m here, I may as put in a reminder that we have a few records for sale on eBay today. Here are a couple:

Mundell Lowe, New Music of Alex Wilder, Riverside 219. This is an original