The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    OK as usual I’ve gone down the rabbit hole full force. Now after a 40-year absence I’m buying vinyl again. Turns out it’s even more expensive than it was back in the 70’s/80’s.

    Fortunately there are a lot of places to score used vinyl around here—at least 2 great shops, and of course antique stores and estate sales.

    I am particularly interested in Blue Note and CTI stuff from the 50’s/60’s—Art Blakey, Lee Morgan, Cannonball Adderley, Hank Mobley.

    I have a pretty full complement of Miles and Coltrane, but any suggestions would be appreciated.

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  3. #2

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    Lol that’s a broad one, we can just suggest our favorite music

    I have a similar taste and I’ve struggled to find any Grant Green on vinyl but I check for it every time. I did get The Sidewinder which is great to sneak in some jazz to non-jazz fans. Also Hank Mobley and Horace Parlan are semi easy for me to find and some of my favorites.

  4. #3

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    Monk, MJQ, Rollins, Phil Woods...

    and Pablo records? Ella and Joe, Duke, Peterson, etc.

  5. #4

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    Those are all good suggestions. But must haves from Monk? Sonny? Hank Mobley?

    By way of example I saw about 10 Monk records yesterday, all new. Each record was over $20, a bit expensive to take a chance on. So how to choose?

    Don’t be shy. You can rank those records.

  6. #5

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    Let me put it this way…which records represent the essential qualities of Blue Note, as in “a classic Blue Note recording”?

  7. #6

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    Hi Jeff,

    For Blue Note on vinyl, the place is the start is the ongoing 'Classic Vinyl Reissue' series that Blue Note started in 2020. All the key classic recordings, cut from the analog sources and reasonably priced (I believe around the $20 mark in the US). The video below is from The In Groove, a US record store. The owner/host has done several videos about Blue Note vinyl, knows his stuff and rates this Classic Vinyl series.

    This link shows the titles currently available in the Classic Vinyl Series: Classic Vinyl Series – Blue Note Records

    If I was going to pick five titles from that list to start a collection with, my personal choices would be Hank Mobley's Soul Station, Joe Henderson's Page One, Wayne Shorter's Speak No Evil, Horace Silver's Song for My Father and Grant Green's Idle Moments.




    Blue Note also have an ongoing Tone Poet reissue series. Lesser-known titles from the Blue Note catalogue, many of which have rarely been reissued. Deluxe packaging and photograph sessions. Priced higher at $35.

  8. #7

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    Quote Originally Posted by David B
    Hi Jeff,

    For Blue Note on vinyl, the place is the start is the ongoing 'Classic Vinyl Reissue' series that Blue Note started in 2020. All the key classic recordings, cut from the analog sources and reasonably priced (I believe around the $20 mark in the US). The video below is from The In Groove, a US record store. The owner/host has done several videos about Blue Note vinyl, knows his stuff and rates this Classic Vinyl series.

    This link shows the titles currently available in the Classic Vinyl Series: Classic Vinyl Series – Blue Note Records

    If I was going to pick five titles from that list to start a collection with, my personal choices would be Hank Mobley's Soul Station, Joe Henderson's Page One, Wayne Shorter's Speak No Evil, Horace Silver's Song for My Father and Grant Green's Idle Moments.




    Blue Note also have an ongoing Tone Poet reissue series. Lesser-known titles from the Blue Note catalogue, many of which have rarely been reissued. Deluxe packaging and photograph sessions. Priced higher at $35.
    Thanks a lot!

    As with guitars, I like to buy used (I have only bought 2 new guitars in 40 years, and those were both travel guitars). The great thing about being a vintage collector and having access to a lot of sources (Craigslist, estate sales, second hand shops, record stores) is the enjoyment of tracking down something at a great price.

    I built my collection a couple of records at a time, mostly $2-4 at used record stores in Atlanta. The thrill of going through the stacks and even smelling the cardboard and vinyl is something that brings me back to that time, when not coincidentally “I was young and full of grace, spirited, a rattlesnake…”

    (Though interestingly I got my first REM album in 1980 in cassette form at Wax’n’Facts. Still have it. Before they became famous.)

  9. #8

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    Blue Note release, Lee Morgan Search For The New Land. A must have. But I’ve never seen it for less than $30. I paid $70 for a sealed album. Why would you expect to pay the same price for records as 40 years ago. Don’t you think used record stores know what jazz albums are worth today?

    Need vinyl recommendations-8100c3ab-1b19-4b1c-a3e2-1ab0e5ead9d6-jpeg

  10. #9

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    Hi Jeff,

    I recommended new sources for classic Blue Note titles as original pressings, and even early reissues from the late '60s, '70s and '80s go for big money (and the quality of reissues can vary).

    The current Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series is cut from analog tapes/masters (ie not just a CD/digital file transfer to vinyl), readily available and sound great.

  11. #10

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    The Classics simply come without the double jackets. But the albums are good, and far less expensive than the Media Matters pressings which sell for $300 and up for many selections.

  12. #11

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    Quote Originally Posted by 2bornot2bop
    Blue Note release, Lee Morgan Search For The New Land. A must have. But I’ve never seen it for less than $30. I paid $70 for a sealed album. Why would you expect to pay the same price for records as 40 years ago. Don’t you think used record stores know what jazz albums are worth today?
    Well I don’t expect to pay exactly the same price for a new record of course. The price of a new record today would be, coincidentally, 3.33 what it was in 1980 based on inflation, or 33 1/3 div by 10.

    Just a few years ago nobody except a few diehards wanted vinyl, so you could get used records all over the place for a couple of dollars.

    I realize they are now more desirable. There are so many records out there in people’s basements and attics, of course, that there are still a lot of bargains to be found. At estate sales they typically go for $2-4. So a lot of opportunities for adding to the collection.

  13. #12

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    You're not gonna get good quality vinyl for $2-4 today and you couldn't 20 yrs ago unless you're talking about some zillion selling commonplace slab of vinyl. I mean are we talking a run of the mill copy of a Paul Simon lp or something like a copy of Lee Morgan's Search For The New Land 2b linked above (great record btw, and the opening music of the exc doc "I Called Him Morgan")
    One can have fun on a small budget w easy to find titles but if you want to get into buying 1st and 2nd pressings of old jazz records be prepared to pay serious $, starting around $20 for easier to find titles @ and getting into the high hundreds and even more depending on rarity/condition etc.

  14. #13

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  15. #14

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    Quote Originally Posted by wintermoon
    You're not gonna get good quality vinyl for $2-4 today and you couldn't 20 yrs ago unless you're talking about some zillion selling commonplace slab of vinyl. I mean are we talking a run of the mill copy of a Paul Simon lp or something like a copy of Lee Morgan's Search For The New Land 2b linked above (great record btw, and the opening music of the exc doc "I Called Him Morgan")
    One can have fun on a small budget w easy to find titles but if you want to get into buying 1st and 2nd pressings of old jazz records be prepared to pay serious $, starting around $20 for easier to find titles @ and getting into the high hundreds and even more depending on rarity/condition etc.
    Agreed but let's not forget there are tons and tons of records out there that come up at garage sales, estate sales, second hand stores, all the time. The sellers in most cases don't have the time or inclination to do due research into what a piece of plastic is worth.

    In other words, this is not a mature collector's market at this time. This is not like vintage Gibsons or Fenders or '60's Mustangs or Corvettes that NEVER come up for sale except in highly curated auctions at a super premium price. There are "barn finds" every day for vinyl.

    I went to a local antique mall a week ago--one seller was selling a couple of hundred titles, mainly country, at $6 a piece regardless of condition. Another seller--who probably read somewhere that albums were hot again--was selling everything for $20, even worn-out old Alabama (the band) records.

    So to quote a famous poet...it ain't necessarily so...

  16. #15

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    Doc, you can spend your time roaming through garage sells hoping to find Jazz records in good condition, or you can buy them new for $20 a pop. Me, my time is more valuable than to scour garage sells for records. And frankly, I’d rather spend that time listening to music. To each their own.

  17. #16

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    Quote Originally Posted by 2bornot2bop
    Doc, you can spend your time roaming through garage sales hoping to find Jazz records in good condition, or you can buy them new for $20 a pop. Me, my time is more valuable than to scour garage sells for records. And frankly, I’d rather spend that time listening to music. To each their own.
    You’ve pretty much described what floats my boat.