The most rare and valuable jazz records

Last Updated: September 9, 2022

The word “rare” must trigger the release of chemicals in the collector’s brain which suspend rational thought. It’s only a record, for heaven’s sake, but..but..I must have it!!

Possession of truly rare records comes at a price, in the case of jazz, somewhere between $3,000 and $8,000, though not as high as the very rarest punk or reggae singles. You have to bear in mind, scarcity is not the same as quality. There is often a reason why something is rare – possibly it didn’t sell, because it wasn’t very good. To the collector, scarcity has a value all of its own, and exclusivity, being one of the few or only people in the world who owns it. It is a mild version of the art collector, who enjoys being only person in the world to own that painting, (or the number of a limited edition.}

The word rare is also overused in selling records. Records that are not at all rare are often described as rare! to boost auction prices. Early pressings of Miles Davis “Kind of Blue” is often described as rare but there are hundreds of thousands of copies out there. Among truly rare items are original pressings in near-mint condition, of which perhaps no more than fifty to a hundred copies exist of some titles.

To bring some facts to bear on the subject, I have compiled some data from auction results, to identify the most expensive jazz records at auction, and how often they appear at auction, which are shown in the charts below.

The most frequently mentioned are first pressings of early Blue Note titles of Lee Morgan, Hank Mobley and Sonny Clark, which come in at the $5,000 mark. Early Transition label is up there with the most expensive. Many of these copies will be located today in Japan, the biggest market in collectible jazz.

At this level, all the details of first-pressing status must be present. As a listener, it is only the vinyl condition that matters to me, but for elite collectors it is the total artefact, especially the cover which must be perfect: no seam-splits, dinged corners, ring wear, or peeling laminate, and most important, no writing on the cover or labels – no previous owners names, or unverifiable autographs.

Autograph-hunting was common practice in the 60’s, which encouraged many youthful record owners to fake them. Such records are generally valued on the assumption that the “autograph” is fake, unless you can provide proof of provenance.  Some artists commonly autographed records, others rarely. The worst autograph is a personal dedication to someone who isn’t you. “To Charles (signed) ########-” It’s like having an ex-girlfriend’s name tattooed on your arm, a warning to any future one.

A Charlie Parker autographed Dial (below) is quite something.

High-end records have always been rare and expensive and the province of high-end collectors. They rarely found their way into the collections of those of more modest means. It is very common for children or partners to inherit a loved-one’s record collection, search the Internet and become very excited that grandpa had a copy of say, Hank Mobley Blue Note 1568, which turns out on closer inspection to be a Japanese reissue from the 80s. The most desirable titles have been repressed and reissued over many years. Originals in great condition are really rare.

In the era of the internet, prices can be established quickly with a little research on auction-tracking sites such as Popsike  , Gripsweat, Rootsvinylguide or even here at Londonjazzcollector.  Bear in mind that auction prices are the result of auctions, where collectors compete to buy a record, which is not necessarily the same as dealer or shop prices. There are many cases where, in a moment of madness, one bidder has got caught out with an inflated bid and found themselves paying twice the next highest historical price, plus postage tracking insurance and customs charges.  Or suffered buyer’s remorse and failed to complete payment.

Here is the Popsike Blue Note-only leaderboard. Ignore entry No3 Dexter Gordon Gettin’ Around – $8375, – most likely a Japanese buyer entered their bid in Yen instead of USD.  Ebay bid history is not corrected for non-payment, of which there may be a good number of auctions not completed due to non-payment among the highest price sales.

These are the top twenty titles for all labels and titles, as compiled by LJC.

Source: Jazz Collector Database, analysis by LJC

Some records come up for auction much more frequently than their alleged scarcity would suggest. Mobley 1568 a case in point, which is a frequently traded item. High-end collectable records can be a good investment, though some artists have drifted out of fashion and proved a poor investment.  I wonder how the death of Queen Elizabeth II yesterday has affected the value of irreverent The Sex Pistols punk single “God Save The Queen”?

How well a seller describes a record can have a big effect on price – “insanely rare!” hyperbole can add 15-20%. And of course, there is an ever-present risk of fraud, like the gigantic  Nautiluso Ebay scam: an elaborate scheme where an apparently reputable seller, a member since June 8, 2003, in Germany.  began listing a collection of the most sought-after jazz records ever. Details were compiled from a decade of previous top auctions, the records never existed but netted the fraudster, $132,000. before disappearing.

There are investors, traders, and dealers in high-end records, who understand the insatiable desire of a few souls who lust for something almost no-one else has got, something that people in their circle of acquaintances will recognize as insanely rare, writhing in envy.

One quirk of the collector world is the sealed record, a ticket on a mystery tour with an unknown destination. Shrink wrapping became common practice in the early 70s.Very often sealed records are a tease – not the original pressing but a more common reissue a decade later, you will have to but it to find out. Sometimes sealed records are what you hope they are – mint, untouched by human hand. Mostly, they are not.

The high-end collectable jazz universe is very small, maybe only a couple of hundred people in a world population of three trillion. It is much smaller than the high-end rock pop classical reggae singles collector tribes.

Outside of the jazz world, the truly rare and expensive records are associated with rock and pop history. For example, a test pressing of a Beatles recording that was never issued, only one copy exists, owned by Paul McCartney, valued near £1m. Another is the last autograph John Lennon gave on a record cover before being shot dead by Mark Chapman. But my Favorite curio was a record from the estate of Jimi Hendrix which Jimi had been playing when he cut his hand on a broken glass, leaving Hendrix blood in the grooves, verified by the DNA match. Oh nooo! I just cleaned the record!!

A different example of things that are “collectable”. What makes this ticket worth $5,000? What is a piece of “cultural history” worth? At least you can play a record. And how did it come to be “unused”?  It has trappings of OCD, wanting a mint unused ticket. This ticket holder failed to see The Beatles, not much of a storyline, is it?

However, they are not making 1965 again, and perhaps there is something to be said for owning a tiny piece of history. At least you can play this piece – which sells for up to $25,000

Happy hunting.

Reminder:

This is not a record trading site. If you are looking to sell records, there are sites for this purpose, Discogs or Ebay, which have proper protection for buyers and sellers, not the comments section below.