This week’s theme: Jazz recordings of songs from the pop/rock, television and even maybe a little Yiddish. Artists include George Benson, Freddie Hubbard, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Grady Tate, Ray Barretto, Richie Cole, Bobby Enriquez, Jimmy Rushing, Zoot Sims, Stephane Grappelli, Martin Taylor, Sonny Rollins, George Duke, Roland Kirk, Rosemary Clooney, John Oddo, Seve Lukather, Jackie McLean, Tony Williams, Hank Jones, Charles McPherson, Sonny Criss, Tal Farlow, Cedar Walton.

This week’s theme: It’s summertime, and we are focusing on live recordings made at the Newport Jazz Festival, covering the years 1956 to 1968. Featured artists include Billie Holiday, Lester Young, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Rouse, Paul Desmond, Gerry Mulligan, Dave Brubeck, Duke Ellington, Lambert Hendricks and Bevan, Count Basie, Jo Jones, Roland Kirk, Herbie Mann, Chick Correa and many, many more.

This week’s theme: Roy Haynes Memorial, Part Two. Featured artists include Roy Haynes, Roland Kirk, Tommy Flanagan, Henry Grimes, Sarah Vaughan, Richard Davis, Thad Jones, Jackie McLean, Phineas Newborn Jr., Bill Evans, Oliver Nelson, Freddie Hubbard, Paul Chambers, Eric Dolphy, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell, and many others.

This week’s theme: “Live Jazz.”

From the same seller: Jackie McLean, The New Tradition, Ad Lib 6601. The record was listed as VG+ and the cover was VG. The final price was $4,412. As I mentioned before, this seller is getting these very high prices and is only shipping within the U.S. One more from the same seller: Webster Young, For Lady, Prestige 7106. This was an original New York yellow label listed in VG++ condition for both the record and the cover. The final price was $2,175.  Per Popsike, this is the second highest price we’ve seen for this record. Two years ago a copy sold for $2,584.

And what would a Jazz Collector post be these days without a Blue Note or a listing from the seller Carolinasoul. Here we have both: Tina Brooks, True Blue, Blue Note 4041. This was an original West 63^rd Street pressing. The vinyl was listed in VG MINUS condition and the cover was VG+. The final price was $2,999. I guess the chances of me ever upgrading my cover are getting slimmer and slimmer all the time.

A couple of updates:

It doesn’t look like I will be doing anything substantial with my record collection yet. Those negotiations we were having with our largest client are over and, basically, we got everything we were asking for, so I’m probably locked in to working full time for another year, at least. I’m OK with that. Despite not being in the game of selling records, I do hope to be able to post more frequently on Jazz Collector. I’ve really let the work stuff get to me and occupy a lot of my brain power. Perhaps now that things are settled, I would like to get back to enjoying my connection with the community here.

I received this note from a reader: “I am interested in selling a 1960 photo of John Coltrane taken at Ralph Gleason’s home in Berkeley, CA. The photo was taken by Jim Marshall and is very rare.” The reader was asking about advertising it on the Jazz Collector site, but I’m not offering paid ads at this point, so here is a free ad. Anyone interested can reach out to al at jazzcollector dot com and I can put you in touch with the potential seller.

I also received a note from a reader interested in selling a large desktop lighter cigar that ostensibly belonged to Dizzy Gillespie. Apparently it was given to Dizzy by James Moody and is mentioned in Dizzy’s autobiography To Be or Not to Bop. Again, if anyone is interested you can reach out to me and I can reach out to the owner.

I was watching this copy of the original 78-RPM recording of Billie Holiday, Strange Fruit/Fine and Mellow, Commodore 526. It was at $225 when I did the post and wound up selling for $255. I just checked Popsike and, oddly, a copy sold on June 19 for $1,000. And another copy sold on May 9 for $810. The $1,000 and $810 copies were in better condition than the $225 copy, as you might expect. And further into my watchlist was still another copy of Strange Fruit that looked to be in near mint condition and this one sold for $331.

One of my all-time favorites that I never get tired of listening to: Sonny Rollins Plus Four, Prestige 7038. This was an original New York yellow label with the original framed cover. The record was in VG++ condition and the cover was VG. The final price was $775.75

John Jenkins with Kenny Burrell, Blue Note 1573. This was an original West 63^rd Pressing. The seller confidently declared that this was “easily one of the top ten Blue Note 12-inch LPS in existence.” The seller was bobdjukic so you can draw your own conclusions as to the veracity of that statement. The record was listed as VG+ and the cover as VG++. The final price was $2,381.

From the same seller: Roland Kirk, Triple Threat, King 395-506. This was, according to the seller “one of the rarest jazz albums  in existence . . . copies in good condition of this monster rarity are all but unknown.” This one was in VG condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. The final price was $841.

Here Comes Louis Smith, Blue Note 1584. This was an original West 63^rd Street mono pressing, with the ear, deep grooves, Van Gelder et al. The record and cover were in M- or VG++ condition. The final price was $1,500 and there was only one bidder. I am usually a bit skeptical about records that sell with just one bidder, but $1,500 is not an unreasonable price for this record. My skepticism with one bidder is that the seller could have a shill to get the bidding started at a high asking price and then find that no one else is interested because the start price is so high.  Same seller and same situation with Johnny Coles, Little Johnny C., Blue Note 4144. This was an original New York USA pressing, also M-/VG++ , also just one bidder, with a final price if $500. One more single bid winner from the same seller: Lou Donaldson, Sunny Side Up, Blue Note 4036. This was an original West 63^rd Street pressing with the original cover. Similar condition, M-/VG++. Final price was $1,000.

This record has risen a lot in value since we have been watching records on eBay: Charles Mingus, Mingus Ah Um, Columbia 8171. This was an original stereo pressing with the six-eye label. The record was listed in VG++ condition and the cover was VG. The final price was $239.50.

I wrote about this one skeptically as well: Wayne Shorter, Speak No Evil, Blue Note 84194. This one was pretty well trashed, graded in G+ condition. I even titled the original post “Shorter Shilling.” Turns out there was one bid at $495. I think my original instinct was on target, but you never know. Someone may have really wanted a trashed copy of a semi-original Blue Note. The other one I was watching at the same time, Wayne Shorter, JuJu, Blue Note 4182, in just VG condition for the record and the cover, sold for $621. With five bids and five bidders, this one seemed legit, albeit a bit pricey.

Watch list is still not emptied so to be continued . . . .

Here’s one more from the same seller: Miles Davis, In a Silent Way, Columbia LP CS 9875. This was a sealed copy and “guaranteed original first pressing.” The final price was $200. Just one more: Roland Kirk, Triple Threat, King 395-506. This looked to be an original first pressing and is a quite hard to find record, although, personally, I might not describe it as “insanely rare” or “rarest jazz!” or “true Holy Grail” or “monster rarity,” but, having spent my career as a journalist, I am not particularly partial to adjectives or adverbs, but that’s just a personal preference. I guess in the world of eBay, whatever works is a credo to live by. The record was listed in VG condition and the cover VG+. The final price was $841.

I can’t say any prices are an aberration anymore because the market is the market, so this is the current market for Charles Mingus, Ah Um, Columbia 8171. This was an original stereo pressing with the red and black 6-eye label. The record was listed in VG++ condition and the cover was VG. The final price was $239.50.

Stanley Turrentine, Hustlin’, Blue Note 4162. This was an original New York USA pressing with what looks like deep grooves. I seem to be having trouble lately remembering which pressings in the latter part of 4000 and 4100 series are supposed to have deep grooves, but I’m pretty sure this is one of the ones that is supposed to have them. Why this and not others that were issued in the same time frame? I’m sure someone out there knows the answer. Maybe Lion and Wolff had a premonition that nearly 60 years later collectors would be obsessed with every detail of every Blue Note pressing and they just decided to mess with our heads and are laughing their asses off from the grave. Does anyone have a better idea? Anyway, the record was probably in VG++ condition, based on the description, and the cover was either VG++ or VG+, depending on how you feel about dirt, staining and yellowing. My proclivities push me in the direction of VG+, but I know there are some of you out there who are more generous. The final price was $306.

As for me, The Lovely Mrs. JC and I relocated to The Berkshires last Thursday to get out of Manhattan and our little studio apartment. She is a psychotherapist, as many of you know, and has been able to set herself up with video conferencing so she can continue to see her patients remotely. This is great, of course, because they need her now more than ever and, she is truly compassionate and empathetic and a professional in every way, so I’m sure she is a great comfort to them. We are staying safely inside, avoiding physical contact with people, taking walks, watching TV in the evenings and listening to some music.

As for me, my work is also continuing uninterrupted. If anything, it has perhaps increased a bit. I write about technology and one of my clients has asked me to contribute to an ongoing series focused on cybersecurity during this time. Yesterday I spent an hour on the phone with a retired Army general who was also a deputy assistant secretary of defense for cyber policy here in the U.S.  It was enlightening and gives me the chance to write about something that people will find of value whereby I can offer some degree of guidance.

As for music, records, etc., I have found that I’m using my listening time to go a little deeper into my collection and discover records that I haven’t listed to in a while. The other day I put on the Roland Kirk album “I Talk to the Spirits,” which is one of his best. I’ve written about this before, but I never felt he got the recognition he deserved because his talents weren’t truly captured on records. To be fair, the excitement and energy of his live performances were very hard to match by any jazz artist. I saw him probably a couple of dozen times and he was magical. In addition to “I Talk With the Spirits” I highly recommend Side Two of “Volunteered Slavery,” which was recorded at the Newport Jazz Festival. He blows his ass off on the Coltrane tribute, and throughout you can feel the energy from Kirk, the musicians and the audience. Also, you can try to find the documentary The Case of the Three Sided Dream, which I’ve seen on Amazon Prime.

Speaking of documentaries, this will be a great time to catch up on viewing. I know there was a recent Miles Davis bio on PBS that is available on Netflix, called Birth of the Cool.  I also recently re-watched, probably for the fifth or sixth time, the Bill Evans documentary Time Remembered, which is great and heartbreaking at the same time. I find that watching the documentaries doesn’t get old, because it is like spending an hour or two in the company of that person, and in the case of someone like Evans, spending it in the company of genius. Outside of the jazz realm, I also recently watched (again) two documentaries on Mike Nichols, one called Becoming Mike Nichols, the other the American Masters bio directed by Elaine May. The other night, the Lovely Mrs. JC and I watched Six By Sondheim yet again on HBO. I recommend all of these.

I have many more to recommend, but instead, I will turn it over to my loyal readers, if you are still out there after my latest long gap, to share some of your favorites with us. I am always looking for great documentaries to watch and, at this time, whilst spending the bulk of my hours indoors, I can think of few better things to do than to spend this time in the company of people and artists I admire. Also, now that I am relatively cooped up, as pleasant as it is here in The Berkshires, I hope to be listening more to my records and writing more for Jazz Collector. I am wondering about the impact of the pandemic on our world of eBay, so I will explore that in a future post. In the meantime, please stay safe and healthy.

My second mode of listening is background, and for that I sometimes choose vinyl, and sometimes not. It depends on what else I am doing. If I am doing something that takes 20 minutes or so, or if there are a lot of people in the house and we are playing a game or something, I often put on vinyl because I am being active and don’t mind walking over to the turntable every 20 minutes and turning the record over or putting on a new record. But if I have music on in the background when I am reading a book or relaxing on my iPad with the New York Times or a crossword, then I typically will listen to a digital format, usually Sonos, which I have in all rooms and all locations. I will often put on music that is comfortable in the background, maybe some Ella or Art Tatum or even Bill Evans, stuff I know and don’t have to concentrate too much on, but is comfortable and somewhat soothing even. At night, going to sleep, I always use Sonos. I have created about 60 or 70 playlists I have labeled “Ballads,” as in Ballads 1, Ballads 2, Ballads 3, Ballads, A, Ballads B, in multiple combinations using a mix of music, jazz and vocals, plus other favorites such as James Taylor, Allison Krauss, Nancy Lamott, Sinatra, and The Beatles.

Then, there is the question of what to do with new records that I purchase. In the past, I have always tried to listen to each record before putting it on the shelves and immersing it into the collection. But, that stopped working years ago when I started buying more and more records at at time, and then collections, and, at the same time, stopped spending as much time listening as I did before life got in the way. So, sometimes, new records will get buried in the collection without a listen but with the promise that someday, when I get old and retired, I will have all of this time to put great music on the turntable and it will all come as a pleasant surprise to have fresh music in my ears after all of these years. I do realize that scenario is just a pipe dream and, if the time ever does come where I do have more time to listen, I will much more likely go back to my old friends and enjoy their company and remind myself of great times in my life and how and when I purchased each record and where I was when I first heard it and all of the other associations it brings and all of the other things you do when you get together with friends and family and reminisce.

And that’s my story, today, Dec. 8, 2019. I am perhaps somewhat nostalgic on this day because this was the date, 39 years ago, that John Lennon was shot, just a few blocks from where I am sitting now and writing this post. Sometime this afternoon, I will walk over to Strawberry Fields in Central Park and join the crowds of people there singing Beatles and Lennon songs and paying tribute.

Hank Mobley, Blue Note 1568. This was a West 63rd Street pressing. No New York 23, but an original nonetheless. The record was in VG++ condition and the cover VG+ or VG++. The final price was $3,830. Stanley Turrentine, That’s Where It’s At, Blue Note 4096. This was an original New York USA pressing with one side deep groove. The record and cover both looked to be in M- condition. The final price was $660. I didn’t realize that Turrentine Blue Notes had reached that level (other than Look Out!) because I don’t often watch them. But I guess they have.

By the way, as I’m writing this, I’m noting that WordPress is having problems allowing me to put in hyperlinks, so if the hyperlinks aren’t working it’s not through lack of effort on my part.

I had an eye on this, more for curiosity than anything else: Moondog, Esquire 32-055. This was the original UK pressing that looked to be in VG++ condition for the record and probably VG+ for the cover. The final price was about $370. I had a couple of Moondog original Prestige records but I wound up selling them. Other than the labels and cool covers, is there anything appealing in the music that I was missing?

Finally there was the holy grail of Roland Kirk, Triple Threat, King 539. This was in VG- condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. When we first posted about this the bidding was in the $400 range. If wound up selling for $1,075.