So, where were we when we were so rudely interrupted. Ah, yes, we were looking at records that crossed the $1,000 barrier. We just did a quick search of eBay and found a few more for you, just from the past few weeks when Jazz Collector went AWOL. Here are a few to peruse and muse about:

Walter Davis, Davis Cup, Blue Note 4018. This was an original deep groove pressing with the West 63rd Street address. It was in M-/M- condition and sold for $1,248. 

John Coltrane, Giant Steps, Atlantic 1311. This was an original mono pressing with the black label. It was also in M-/M- condition. Price: $1,031.66

Art Pepper, Modern Art, Intro 606. This was an original pressing that was in M-/M- condition. Price: $1,075

Yow, I’m sure most of you saw this one: Charlie Parker, Bird Blows The Blues, Dial LP1. This is a 12-inch LP, issued from the Spring of 1949 with no cover. The dealer listed it as being the first 12-inch jazz LP ever produced, which we’ve never seen disputed. This was in VG+ condition, with a yellow label and purple vinyl. Price: $2,850

George Wallington at the Bohemia, Progressive 1001. This was an original pressing that came directly out of George Wallington’s collection. It was listed by his brother, who listed the vinyl as M- and the cover as VG, but he said there were virtually no flaws. The price was $1,380.50.

That’s it for now. We’ll be back soon. Promise.

Since I wrote about collecting autographs recently, I’ve been keeping a watch on eBay for autographed LPs and other items. Generally, my theory holds that, with some notable exceptions, autographs don’t dramatically increase the worth of a collectible. Here’s a case in point: A few weeks ago an autographed copy of the Barry Galbraith LP Guitar in the Wind, Decca 9200, sold on eBay for $41 in VG condition, not much more than what a non-autographed copy might sell for.

 But, then again, there are the exceptions. How about this one: An original copy of the Clifford Brown and Max Roach LP Study in Brown, Emarcy 36037, autographed by Clifford. When you consider that Clifford died in 1956, this is a pretty rare item.  The record and label were in VG condition. Normally, it would go for around $20. With the autograph it sold for $648.

 There were some surprises on eBay over the weekend. As we pointed out last week, a mint copy of Tommy Flanagan Overseas, Prestige 7134 was available for a start price of $1,100. We were curious how high the bidding might go, given that a similar copy sold for $2,414 last year. Well, guess what? It didn’t sell at all. No bids. Not only that, the same dealer also had mint copies of the following records that didn’t sell: Ray Bryant Trio, Prestige 7098, start price of $950; Elmo Hope Trio, Prestige 7010, start price of $950; George Wallington Quintet at the Café Bohemia, Progressive PLP 1001, start price of $1,100. The only record this dealer sold this weekend was a copy of Lawrence Marable Tenorman, Jazz West JWLP-8, which went for $585.75. I have to be honest: I’ve never even seen this record in 35 years of collecting.  

It’ll be interesting to keep an eye out on what happens with other items he has listed this week, including two Clifford Jordan Blue Notes, as well as the Flanagan relisted at $850 with a buy-it-now price of $950. I’m tempted to go for $950, but in the interest of my marriage I’m going to exercise restraint. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if the record is gone by the time most of you read this. It is one of the rarest of jazz collectibles and it has sold for much more in the past

 We spent a good part of the weekend at the WFMU Spring Record and CD Fair in New York. We’ll give you a report tomorrow. Friday will be give-away day. We’ll look through our stuff and try to come up with something interesting and fun. Right now we’re listening to a nice copy of Miles Davis, The Musings of Miles, Prestige 7007. It’s a New Jersey pressing, but it’s very clean. Our New York pressing is not nearly as clean, so we’ll be putting it up on eBay soon. We’ll let you know when it gets posted. See you tomorrow. — Al 

I went to the country for a couple of days and stayed off eBay, cold turkey. I had no outward signs of withdrawal, but my wife swears I was up in the middle of the night screaming incoherently about missing a Donald Byrd record on Transition for $5. Anyway, I’m back and looking at some of the items I was watching over the weekend to see what I might have missed. Here are a few things that are catching my eye:

Ray Bryant Plays, Signature 6008, in M- condition. Price: $576.

Here’s an interesting anecdote about this record: I had a copy for years in very poor condition, with a pretty nice cover, probably VG+. I would work an occasional record show and put this record in a $1 box. It never sold. I was literally about to dump it, when I figured why not put it on eBay? Maybe someone would be interested in the cover. A week later it sold for $99.

 Ray Bryant Trio, Prestige 7098, in M- condition. Price: $675 – did not sell.

This is one that’s been on eBay a few times by this dealer, each time with a lower start price. We’ll keep watching it to see what it sells for. This dealer has had an amazing series of records the past few weeks, all in terrific condition, all at very high prices. In addition to the Bryant LP this weekend, he had a M- copy of George Wallington Quintet at the Bohemia, Progressive 1001, which did not sell at a start price of $895.

 Another dealer with a recent slew of strong collectibles sold a copy of Arthur Taylor, Taylor’s Wailer’s, Prestige 7117, in M- condition for $660. I was watching an earlier version of this on eBay a few weeks ago. I looked it up in the Jazz Collector Price Guide: It was in VG+ condition and sold for $405. If you’re not using the price guide, you should take a look at it. It can come in very handy. This dealer also sold a copy of Blue Mitchell, Out of the Blue, Riverside 293, in M- condition. Price: $338.

For me, the most interesting item from this dealer was a copy of A Recital by Tal Farlow, Norgran 1030, in M- condition. What makes this so interesting is the final sale price: $660.  My best friend Dan Axelrod was close to Tal and I’ve been watching the market for years on his LPs, and this is the highest price I can recall for any of his records.

 Finally, there’s this item: Mary Osborne, A Girl and Her Guitar, Warwick 2004. It was in VG condition and sold for $41.20. I have a copy of this LP with a different cover. On my cover Osborne is standing, kind of straddling the guitar between her ankles. I don’t know which cover came first: Does anybody out there have the answer? Send a note to al@jazzcollector.com.

 That’s it for today. Tomorrow I’ll be back on eBay looking ahead at items for sale over the next few days. See you then. — Al