Before the price guides - THE BIG BLACK BOOK

[Vadnochka]

Some of you out there may remember back in the early 90's that I became a familiar sight at all manner of gigs around the country - from Keele to the Ritz, Wilton, 100 club, Brit, Embankment, Holy Cross and hundreds more, right up until I disappeared again in '98 having sold masses of sounds to the likes of Kenny B., Carl W., Steve C. and others - that I used to carry a large black index book which contained a fairly extensive A - Z of quality rarities and their listing source and prices asked and achieved. This became an abundant point of reference for almost all of the big ticket pieces of that era, so much so that I was continuously being asked for advice on pricing and would I copy the info contained within, only too willing to advise but too much trouble to copy and print info back then so that never happened.

Well guess what - following a search for some old paint references in my loft I came across an old box in the far corner - opened it up and lo and behold - numerous old copies of Goldmine & Discoveries - unbelievable stuff on set-sale and auction from this previous incarnation of rare soul listings from the USA - a box of vinyl - I'd somehow forgotten about - OMG - and my big black book. - Absolutely fascinating reading.

Listings from A-Z - Manship / Brady / Anglo / John Doe / Out-A Site / Adey P. / Boogaloo / Rob Smith / Andy Rix  plus numerous other ad hoc listings from individuals - given the current frenzy about prices I thought if anyone was interested on a time line / price inflation-deflation view from an accurate document - 1993 -1998 - I'd list examples from this period over a period of weeks to try and put into perspective the current exasperation at current prices and also show from these listings just how common some of the supposedly big ticket sounds are / were ?

Some examples -

Jimmy James - This heart of mine - Piccadilly - £3

Volumes - ain't gonna give you up - Karen  £12

Masquaraders - Do you love me baby - Wand - £50

Masquaraders - How - La Beat - £80

L. Allen - Can't we talk it over - Green Dolphin - £90

Ivorys - Please stay - Despenza - £100

Terry Goodnight - I never knew - Phelectron - £400

Tempos - I'll never forget - Diamond Jim - £400

Johnny Honeycutt - I'm coming over - Triode - £600

Carol Fredericks - I couldn't care less - Stonel - £1000

I never actually listed most of the RCA / MGM / Verve & major label  rarities because they were to all intents and purposes  too common and had a fixed price between £30 & £100 depending on issue / demo

I'll list a few actual dealer comparisons over the weekend and see what that throws up against current variations -

Anyone with a specific question / request - give me a shout via forumn

Steve

[Frankie Crocker]

Nice read. Thanks for posting. Wish I'd hung on to the sales lists from decades ago but they piled up to ridiculous quantities. Agree with you on the RCA label, particularly white demo copies that were generally pretty common and overpriced, and in the main, still are.

[Dobber]

i dont who would pay a grand for carol fredericks...dreadful in any era! i had a red issue and couldnt give it away,but them others would have been nice at them prices!

[Vadnochka]

The thing with Carol Fredericks - personal tastes aside is that back in the early nineties it was a seriously rare piece - most dealers had never had one - and also most people were only familiar with it if they had bought / copied the c60/90 tape from Richard Domar that carried this track and a meaningful price was a matter of conjecture but what I do know is that Mr. Chadwick paid a grand cash at the Ritz for one - although that was probably just loose change during that period of his excess and did not truly reflect the sounds value although it did reflect its rarity then.

[Lionelonthevinyl]

Looking forward to seeing what you post after more rummageing.....very interesting.....thank you....Rob

[Russ Vickers]

What records were in the box Rob ???

Russ