Walter Bishop Jr. | jazzcollector.com

Podcast: Irving Berlin Jazz Songbook

Al — Mon, 03 Aug 2026 12:31:26 +0000

This week’s theme: Jazz and vocal versions of songs written by Irving Berlin. Featured artists include John Coltrane, McCoy Tyner, Sonny Rollins, Ray Bryant, Max Roach, George Bryant, Charles McPherson, Jackie McLean, Rosemary Clooney, Ed Bickert, Scott Hamilton, John Oddo, Scott Hamilton, Warren Vache, Bill Evans, Ella Fitzgerald, Nancy Lamott, Duke Jordan, Walter Bishop Jr., Oscar Peterson, Dinah Washington, Lockjaw Davis, Paul Quinichette, Clark Terry, Lou Donaldson, Horace Silver, Arthur Taylor.

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What is Happening to the Rare Jazz Vinyl Market?

Al — Sun, 27 Aug 2023 17:08:45 +0000

I first started doing Jazz Collector as a newsletter/web site back in 2004 and moved over to the blog format in 2008. Back then, I used to pore through eBay every single day, looking at the complete jazz listings for every 24 hours so I could not only spot the big-ticket items, but also to identify potential bargains. I was really into it then, because I was selling records and, more often, buying records. At some point, however, my real work started accumulating, I bought two major collections to fill out my own collection, the prices on eBay soared into the stratosphere, and the idea of looking at 24 hours of eBay all day and every day became more of a nuisance than a pleasure. It did change the dynamics of Jazz Collector a bit, because I still wanted to write about the market and identify rare records, but I started doing searches based on price, as in the highest priced records.

And that’s what I’ve been doing for many years now. I’m sure most of you noticed, particularly long-time readers such as Rudolf. Which is a long way of getting to this point: As I’ve been doing these searches recently, I’ve been finding that the sellers are asking for higher prices consistently, and the buyers are becoming less interested. I just went on to eBay for the first time in a few weeks and most of the records I looked at had high asking prices and zero bidders. It feels like the market is changing right before our eyes. In any case, rather than focus on records that are not getting bids, let’s start with a couple that are:

Hank Mobley Quintet, Blue Note 1550. This looks to be an original New York 23 pressing. The cover is listed as VG+, but the vinyl looks to be probably VG- or worse. Bidding is in the $230 range, with less than two days left on the auction.

Walter Bishop Jr., Speak Low, Jazztime 002. The listing is very sketchy. I can’t see if it is an original pressing. The grading is VG+ for the record and cover, but there is no description. Still, the bidding is in the $230 range with four days left on the auction.

Now here are some rare jazz records that don’t have bids:

J.R. Monterose, Blue Note 1536. This looks like an original Lexington Avenue pressing, but I’m not sure about the cover, if it is frame or not. The record and cover looked to be in VG+ condition, based on the seller’s grading, but the cover have issues. The start price is about $800 and the auction will likely be closed by the time most of you read this.

Clifford Brown Memorial Album, Blue Note 1526. This looks to be an original Lexington Avenue pressing. The record is listed in VG condition and the cover is VG+. The start price is about $500.

By the way, I just posted a new edition of my podcast, from August 20. It is focused on “live” jazz performances and I think it’s a lot of fun. I have a new radio show coming up tonight, focused on the John Coltrane album Ballads as played by Trane and as sung by Karrin Allyson. If you want to listen live, it is at 8 p.m. Eastern tonight at WTBR-FM Pittsfield. When you get to the site just click “Listen.” I appreciate the feedback I’ve received so far on the podcasts and I’m always hungry for more.

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More Rare Jazz Vinyl, Of Course

Al — Thu, 24 Mar 2016 13:09:12 +0000

Let’s start the day with one of the rarest of the rare, although as rare as it may be, copies seem to be up on eBay quite often: Hank Mobley, Blue Note 1568. This looks to be an original pressing with the West 63rd Street address and, for those who really care, the New York 23 label on one side. This copy is listed in VG++ condition for the record and VG++ for the cover, although based on the pictures the cover may be more in the VG+ range with some damage on the back. The seller is not an eBay regular and has only 11 feedbacks. This one closes Saturday night and is currently in the $2,000 range.

While we’re on Mobley, there is also: Hank Mobley Sextet, Blue Note 1560. This is an original pressing with the West 63rd Street address, deep grooves, Van Gelder, ear, etc. This one is listed in VG++ condition for the record and VG+ for the cover. The start price is $1,250, but so far there are no bidders. This seller has three other records on eBay now, all with starting prices of more than $1,000, all with zero bids as of now. One more, for the record: Bill Evans, Waltz For Debby, Riverside RS 9399. This is an original black label stereo pressing. It is listed in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. The start price is $1,100.

Here’s one from our friends at Funkyousounds: Walter Bishop Jr., Speak Low, Jazztime 002. This is an original pressing in VG++ condition for the record and only VG- for the cover. The bidding is in the $200 range and there are still three days left on the auction.

That Sun Ra Transition acetate we mentioned last week is back, this time at a much more reasonable price clearly designed to sell — and it will because there is no reserve. The bidding is in the $360 range and there are about a dozen bidders I can identify. The auction closes Sunday night. It’ll be interesting to see what this one sells for.

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Back in the Vinyl Saddle Again

Al — Thu, 10 Sep 2015 18:04:05 +0000

TWO WEEKS!!!! The longest I’ve ever gone without posting. Weren’t any of you, aside from Mac, worried about me? I didn’t go anywhere, just took an unexpected and unscheduled break. Now I’m back, but only for a few weeks. I have a two-week vacation coming up in October. Anyone interested in doing some guest hosting for a couple of weeks? Send me an email and we’ll see what we can do.

In the meantime, let’s get back to eBay and see what’s going on. This was on my watch list the last time I looked and now it has sold: Sonny Clark, Cool Struttin’, Blue Note 1588. This was an original pressing with the west 63rd Street address, deep grooves, etc. The record was in VG+ condition and the cover was only VG, but it still sold for $2,081. There was also this one for the $1,000 bin:

Walter Bishop Jr., Speak Low, Jazztime Records 002. This was an original pressing listed in VG+ condition for the record and Ex for the cover. It sold for $1,247.

And here are a few that are on eBay now:

Tina Brooks, True Blue, Blue Note 4041. This is an original pressing that looks to be in about VG or VG+ condition for the record and probably VG+ or better for the cover. There are more than three days left on the auction and the bidding is in the range of $1,275.

This one is from the same seller: Jutta Hipp with Zoot Sims, Blue Note 1530. This is an original Lexington Avenue pressing listed in M- condition for the record and Ex- for the cover. The bidding is now just over $1,000 with three days left.

Sonny Clark Trio, Blue Note 1579. This is an original pressing. The record is M- and the cover is VG++. Obviously a very nice copy of a very rare record. This one closes in four days and has a start price of $1,200. So far there are no bidders.

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For What It’s Worth (Or More)

Al — Thu, 13 Feb 2014 18:14:40 +0000

I’m way, way behind on my posting. Let me catch up on a little on some of the items I was watching, and then we can move forward with some new stuff. Sorry about that. Promise not to wait that long between posts anymore.

Freddie Hubbard, Open Sesame, Blue Note 4040. This was an original West 63rd pressing listed in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. It sold for $1,136.22.

Sonny Clark Trio, Blue Note 1579. This was an original West 63rd Street pressing listed in M- condition for the record and VG++ for the cover. This one sold for $1,555. As many of you may recall, I recently purchased a copy of this in the Baltimore collection. I have been going through this weird process of putting a label on each of my records, describing the condition, whether it is an original and assigning a value to it. Why am I doing this? Well, if I were to die suddenly, it would prevent my kids from getting ripped off. Anyway, for my copy of this record, in M- condition for both the record and the cover. I had put in $1,000. Perhaps it’s time to make an adjustment.

Jutta Hipp With Zoot Sims, Blue Note 1530. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing listed in VG++ condition for the record and only VG for the cover. Despite the cover condition, this one sold for $2,999. As for the one I just purchased in Baltimore? That one was M- for the record an VG++ for the cover. I valued it at $3,000. It may actually be worth more, but $3,000 seems pretty reasonable for my purposes.

Walter Bishop Jr., Speak Low, Jazz Time 002. This was listed in M- condition for the record and the cover, although the cover was probably VG++. No matter. It sold for $1,920.95.

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Two For the $1,000 Bin

Al — Thu, 06 Feb 2014 14:57:10 +0000

We’re watching a couple of records now that look as if they will sell for big dollars, including: Walter Bishop Jr., Speak Low, Jazz Time 002. The record and cover are both in M- condition. What I find interesting here is that it is a Canadian pressing. Typically, Canadian pressings are not considered nearly as collectible as their U.S. counterparts. This one seems to be doing okay in the bidding, however. The current price is $1,111 with a full day left on the auction. The other thing is that the cover is listed as M-, but there seems to be some clear ring wear in the picture. I don’t quite understand the bidding, but it is not my record to buy or sell.

Jutta Hipp with Zoot Sims, Blue Note 1530. This is an original Lexington Avenue pressing listed in VG++ condition for the record and VG for the cover. The bidding had been slow, but it has picked up steam. There are now 28 bids and the price is $1,136.

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How Would You Like These in Your Collection?

Al — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 05:17:39 +0000

We’ve gotten so tied up in the J.R. Monterose stuff the past couple of days, we forgot to go back to eBay to catch up on all of those hot records we were watching last week. So we just took a look and, WOW! The prices are quite staggering, and we will be adding more records to the $1,000 bin — and $2,000 bin — and $3,000 bin — than we have ever previously added at one time. Here’s the list:

Dexter Gordon, Dexter Blows Hot and Cool, Dootone 207. This was an original pressing with the red vinyl. It was in M- condition, both the record and cover. It sold for $3,059. The seller was Herschel78, who had a bunch of hot records last week, a few more of which will appear in this post. I had tried to reach out to Herschel78 to find out more about these beautiful records, but he never replied. Perhaps I’ll try again.

Cliff Jordan, Cliff Craft, Blue Note 1582. This was an original pressing in M- condition, both record and cover. It sold for $2,303.

Cliff Jordan and John Gilmore, Blowing in From Chicago, Blue Note 1549. This was another original pressing in M- condition. It sold for $1,692. A second copy of this record, this one in VG+ condition for the record and the cover, sold for $676.

Lee Morgan Volume 3, Blue Note 1557. This was a Mint copy, sold by our friend and loyal reader Rudolf. It sold for $2,425.

Hank Mobley and Lee Morgan, Peckin’ Time, Blue Note 1574. This was an original pressing also in M- condition, for the record and the cover. It sold for $2,605.

The Magnificent That Jones, Blue Note 1527. This was an original Lexington Avenue pressing, also in M- condition. It sold for $1,525.

Walter Bishop Jr. Trio, Jazztime 002. This was also in M- condition. It sold for $1,635.

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