About Rare Jazz Records

Collectible vinyl jazz records run the gamut from some of the earliest blues, ragtime, and Dixieland 78 RPM recordings to bebop, hard bop, and free jazz LPs. Along the way, the genre includes big band swing, West Coast cool, and international flavors.

For collectors of jazz on vinyl, several names are legendary, but not the ones you might first expect. Sure jazz fans want their Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Cab Calloway, and Dave Brubeck, but the names they tend to gravitate to are those of the record labels that recorded the work of these and other geniuses of the art form...

One of the first labels was Brunswick, which in the 1920s was one of the biggest record manufacturers in the U.S. Back then the discs were made out of shellac and ran at 78 RPM. Brunswick artists (along with those of subsidiary label Vocalion) included the likes of Duke Ellington and Fletcher Henderson—in the 1930s, the company pressed Artie Shaw and Gene Krupa 78s.

Brunswick did such a good job that when England’s Decca records decided to start a U.S. subsidiary, it hired Jack Kapp of Brunswick to run the new company. One of Kapp’s lasting achievements was an 11-year relationship with Louis Armstrong, who recorded 166 tunes for the label. By the 1950s, Brunswick would rerelease many of its recordings from the 1930s and 1940s on LP, bringing Jelly Roll Morton, Art Tatum, Cab Calloway, Count Basie, and Dixieland jazz by the New Orleans Rhythm Kings to new audiences.

Another early jazz label whose 78 records are considered rare and collectible is Bluebird. It began as a budget label for RCA Victor but quickly evolved into a home for the blues, particularly the work of Chicago artists Big Bill Broonzy, Leadbelly, and Sonny Boy Williamson. Blues aside, one of the label’s best-known artists was Glenn Miller, who cut "In the Mood" and many other classics for Bluebird.

Continuing in this colorful vein is Blue Note records, which was founded in 1939 as a home for jazz exclusively. Saxophonist Sydney Bechet was one of the label’s first finds, but Blue Note really hit its stride after the war with recordings by Anita O’Day, Lester Young, Thelonius Monk, Art Blakely, and Max Roach. In the 1950s, Miles Davis, Gerry Mulligan, Charlie Parker, Lionel Hampton, Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, and Kenny Burrell (and that’s just the tip of the iceberg) had all recorded for Blue Note.

For Blue Note collectors, one of the main differentiators in the value of a vinyl LP is the pressing location. The key is the address on the labels on both sides of a record. Pressings with the address of 767 Lexington Avenue are generally more prized than pressings labeled 47 W. 63rd St. or simply New York, USA.

This pressing differentiation is also true for Prestige Records, home to Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli in the 1930s, Duke Ellington and his Orchestra in the 1940s, and Sonny Stitt, Zoot Sims, and the Modern Jazz Quartet in the 1950s. For Prestige, catalog numbers from 7001 to 7141 with a New York City address on the label are generally the most sought after.

Meanwhile, in California, Chet Baker, Gerry Mulligan, Bud Shank, and Laurindo Almeida were recording 10- and 12-inch discs for Pacific Jazz Records, which was founded in 1952 before being gobbled up in 1957 by Liberty Records. These days, Blue Note distributes Pacific’s short-lived, but highly regarded, catalog.

One of the unexpected outlets in the 1950s for some of the original jazz pioneers was Hollywood. For example, Louis Armstrong’s trumpet work and vocals on the soundtrack for the 1956 film High Society contributed to its brisk sales (Bing Crosby’s duet with Grace Kelly, plus other tracks by Frank Sinatra, probably didn’t hurt the disc, either). And Armstrong had another movie-related hit in 1963, when an LP version of Hello Dolly! was released to capitalize on his best-selling single from the film of the same name.

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Lee Morgan On Blue Note #4$1,575 Ends in 19 hours 4 bids 68 watchers
Jutta Hipp On Blue Note$1,325 Ends in 19 hours 4 bids 55 watchers
Tommy Flanagan On Prestige$1,247 Ends in 18 hours 4 bids 56 watchers
Hank Mobley On Blue Note #1$1,100 Ends in 19 hours 3 bids 34 watchers
Lee Morgan On Blue Note #1$1,000.00 Ends in 19 hours 1 bid 31 watchers
Hank Mobley On Blue Note #3$1,000.00 Ends in 19 hours 1 bid 43 watchers
Lee Morgan On Blue Note #2$810.00 Ends in 19 hours 2 bids 28 watchers
John Jenkins On Blue Note$600.00 Ends in 19 hours 1 bid 30 watchers
Jackie Mclean On Blue Note #2$555.00 Ends in 19 hours 6 bids 31 watchers
Clifford Jordan On Blue Note$520.00 Ends in 19 hours 2 bids 33 watchers
Thad Jones On Blue Note$500.00 Ends in 18 hours 1 bid 26 watchers
Dizzy Reece On Blue Note$500.00 Ends in 19 hours 1 bid 22 watchers
Dizzy Reece ~ Soundin' Off ~ Blue Note ~ Dg Ear Superb$445.00 Ends Monday 8 bids 27 watchers
Freddie Redd On Blue Note$415.00 Ends in 19 hours 3 bids 27 watchers
Paul Chambers On Blue Note$400.00 Ends in 19 hours 1 bid 27 watchers
Hank Mobley On Prestige$400.00 Ends in 19 hours 2 bids 30 watchers
Blue Note 4158 Hank Mobley Blue Mitchell "good Move" Lp$360.00 Ends in 3 hours 9 bids 19 watchers
Cannonball Adderley On Blue Note$355.00 Ends in 19 hours 2 bids 28 watchers
Sonny Rollins-plays-period 1204-super Rare!!!$348.00 Ends in 16 hours 9 bids 27 watchers
Sonny Rollins Lp Saxophone Colossus 1956 Prestige Dg Ny$338.00 Ends Tuesday 7 bids 48 watchers
John Coltrane On Prestige #1$333.00 Ends in 19 hours 6 bids 42 watchers
Jackie Mclean On Blue Note #3$333.00 Ends in 19 hours 3 bids 18 watchers
Blue Note 4032 Sonny Red Wynton Kelly Dg Mono Nm/nm Hot$327.00 Ends in 2 hours 8 bids 30 watchers
John Coltrane On Prestige #3$315.00 Ends in 19 hours 3 bids 20 watchers
Jackie Mclean On Blue Note #1$310.00 Ends in 19 hours 2 bids 21 watchers
Phil Ranelin Vibes From The Tribe Lp Original Jazz Funk$302.00 Ends Thursday 9 bids 40 watchers
Shirley E O Tuca Trio Mega Rare Original Brazil Lp Nm!$299.99 Ends Wednesday 1 bid 6 watchers
Kenny Dorham Lp Afro Cuban Blue Note Dg Nyc Mono Orig.$290.50 Ends Tuesday 6 bids 40 watchers
Blue Note 4040 Freddie Hubbard Tina Brooks M- Dg Rvg Lp$277.00 Ends in 3 hours 4 bids 51 watchers
Eric Dolphy On New Jazz$261.56 Ends in 19 hours 3 bids 18 watchers
Freddie Hubbard On Blue Note$260.00 Ends in 19 hours 2 bids 46 watchers
Kenny Dorham Lp Round Midnight Cafe Bohemia Blue Note $260.00 Ends Tuesday 7 bids 38 watchers
Hank Mobley Lp Mobley's Message Prestige Dg Nyc Mono $260.00 Ends Wednesday 8 bids 17 watchers
Tommy Flanagan On New Jazz$250.00 Ends in 18 hours 1 bid 25 watchers
Bent Axen Trio Poll Winner 59 Rare Original Danish Jazz$202.50 Ends Wednesday 6 bids 30 watchers
Horace Parlan On Blue Note$200.00 Ends in 19 hours 1 bid 20 watchers
Lp Curtis Fuller New Trombone Us Prestige 7107 M-$199.00 Ends Sunday 1 bid 2 watchers
Baby Face Willette Face To Face Blue Note Lp 1961 Dg$190.50 Ends in 19 mins 11 bids 14 watchers
La Kabala Mega Rare Psych Latin Jazz Soul Funk Peru Lp$177.50 Ends in 1 hour 11 bids 36 watchers
Blue Note 4084 Baby Face Willette Grant Green Ben Dixon$161.50 Ends in 2 hours 8 bids 24 watchers
Miles Davis Complete Blackhawk Sessions 7 Lp Mosaic Box$154.49 Ends in 19 hours 7 bids 17 watchers
Sonny Clark-sonny's Crib Orig Blue Note (46w. 63rd St) $152.50 Ends Wednesday 3 bids 9 watchers
Rare Frank Frost "hey Boss Man!" Blues Lp, Vg+$150.00 Ends Thursday 1 bid 14 watchers
John Coltrane On Prestige #2$150.00 Ends in 19 hours 1 bid 30 watchers
Sonny Rollins And Thad Jones Lp Plays Period Dg Mono $127.50 Ends Tuesday 4 bids 20 watchers
7 Rail Band Numu Hypnotic Afro Jazz Ethio Manding Mali$117.50 Ends Wednesday 7 bids 19 watchers
Wendell Harrison Tribe Jazz/funk 45 Farewell To Welfare$112.50 Ends Thursday 2 bids 26 watchers
Red Garland Lp All Mornin Long 1957 Prestige Dg Nyc $111.00 Ends Tuesday 8 bids 26 watchers
Abdul Hannan The Third World Private Free Avant Jazz Lp$109.50 Ends Sunday 4 bids 19 watchers
Blue Note 4183 Larry Young Grant Green Rvg Ny Mono Nm$103.50 Ends in 2 hours 6 bids 24 watchers
Bill Evans How My Heart Sings Dg Mono Orig Nm Superb$103.50 Ends Wednesday 2 bids 10 watchers
Eels Electro-shock Blues 2 Lp 10in Blue Vinyl Oop Rare $103.24 Ends Monday 6 bids 21 watchers
Webster Young ~ For Lady ~ Prestige ~ Paul Quinichette$102.50 Ends Wednesday 4 bids 16 watchers
Johnny Griffith-trio-workshop Jazz 205-motown$102.50 Ends in 17 hours 7 bids 11 watchers
Grant Green Am I Blue 4139 Blue Note Ny Label Lp$100.00 Ends Tuesday 2 bids 10 watchers
John Wright Trio "south Side Soul" Original Prestige Lp$100.00 Ends Wednesday 2 bids 9 watchers
Jazz Symphonics Beginning Renfro Og Private Rare Lp $99.99 Ends Thursday 2 bids 22 watchers
Holy Grail Lloyd Glenn 10" Lp Swing Time Jazz Blues R&b$99.99 Ends Saturday 1 bid 2 watchers
Sambrasa Trio -- Brazil Bossa Jazz Lp Verocai Mp3 Rare$99.99 Ends Thursday 1 bid 13 watchers
Bill Evans Moonbeams Dg Mono Original Near Mint$99.99 Ends Wednesday 1 bid 13 watchers

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