Putting A Value On Vinyl Records - Part Two
Robert Benson - 14th April 2008
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In part
one we discussed the most important element of vinyl
record appraising, the condition of the record and LP
jacket or sleeve and the methods used in grading a vinyl
record. In this section we will explore other elements that
factor into the value of a record.
Scarcity
Many, many millions of vinyl records are in circulation, with
almost every household in the US, either having some vinyl
records at one time or another. We even had a vinyl record
'boon' from around 1955-1980. But, how many of those records
are still around and more importantly, what condition are they
in?
For instance, rhythm and blues records from the 1950s suffered
from poor promotion and publicity, therefore there were fewer
of these that were pressed. The record companies that produced
these particular records were small and lacked the resources
that the larger record companies enjoyed, some may have been
limited to only one or two thousand being pressed, On the other
hand, the Beatles records were massed produced and they
benefited from much larger pressings and are a fairly common
record (depending on the label) and some are not worth as much
as one might think. This brings us to another
element-demand.
Demand
Like any other commodity, vinyl records are subject to the old
supply and demand adage that is prevalent in any free market
society. Record values were affected by the Internet age,
especially with the many online auction sites. Records that
were thought to be rare and valuable suddenly came out of the
closets and basements and were put up for sale and brought some
prices down.
But, that has evened out at this time and the record guides and
prices reflect that. If there is a demand for a certain genre
or artist, chances are the price will go up, more people want
these type of record and there is more competition for them.
For instance, the music genre called Northern Soul (commonly
known as Motown) enjoyed resurgence in sales in the past few
years, driving up the prices. Conversely, there is not a lot of
demand for classical music (in fact, there aren't even any
price guides for this genre of music); therefore you cannot
expect to get much for the records.
History
This element of putting a value on a vinyl record goes hand in
hand with the relative scarcity of the record. Many special
musical genres in recorded music often command a higher price
because of their place in music history. For instance, the
early roots of country music from the early 1930s and 1940s,
early jazz recordings, the rock and roll 'infancy' recordings
(including rockabilly, rhythm and blues, the 'girl' groups of
the 60s, ) are often highly sought after and therefore of more
value. Some early Motown, psychedelic music, surf music, garage
band rock and doo wop often command a higher price because
these are records that have a prominent historical value in
recorded sound.
Artist or Group
Obviously there are some musical icons that sell better than
others and are in command. Early Elvis records, the Beatles,
the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, Jimi
Hendrix just to name a few all command top dollar because there
is always a demand for these records. But that is not to say
that some obscure bands or artists are precluded from being
valuable, on the contrary, there may be an artist that you have
never heard of and the record may be selling for thousands of
dollars.
LP Jacket, Inserts, Picture Sleeves
When issued, some records came with an added incentive and that
is also collected and can add value to a record. LPs came with
fantastic artwork, inner sleeves with liner notes, lyrics,
posters, cut out and all these elements are included when
establishing a resale price. Again, the condition of these
'extras' must be taken into account when ascertaining the value
of the record. 45rpm records came with picture sleeves and some
of them are even more valuable than the record that they may
hold.
The Year of Release
First pressings may be of more value than a reissue of the same
record ten years later. For instance, a Beatles record that was
released in 1965 is of more value to a collector than a reissue
that was released in 1980.
The Record Label
Some record labels are also more collectible than others. Old R
& B or jazz on the record label Bluenote is generally worth
more than if the same music and artist are released on another
label. Another example is Beatles records released on the
Capitol record label as opposed to the Vee Jay label. For
instance, if you were to the record 'I Want To Hold Your Hand'
on the Capitol label, it will generally be worth more than the
same record on the Apple label (which was formed after the
record was issued). Certainly there are exceptions, but there
are a lot of record labels that suffered from poor distribution
and, quite frankly, there are not that many to be had.
Stereo vs. Mono
As a general statement, all 45s manufactured by all record
labels after 1970 were pressed in stereo. But there were labels
that issued records between 1957-1970 that were issued in both
formats, and you would have to check the catalog number of the
record to find out which one you may have. Some mono versions
may be worth more than there stereo counterparts, while some
records in stereo may be worth more than mono; it all depends
on the artist and label.
As we review this two part article, we see that there are many
elements that can factor into ascertaining what a record may be
worth. We have covered the basics, there are more like picture
discs, colored vinyl, promotional releases, misprints, why even
the color of the record label may affect the price; but this is
a good starting point. One element we should highlight is what
you get for a record can also be determined to who you are
selling the record to, a dealer will probably give you only a
portion of what the record may be worth, or you may be able to
find a rare and valuable record at a garage sale for pennies on
the dollar. And that is the fun part for record
collectors!
Robert Benson writes about rock/pop music, vinyl record
collecting and operates http://www.collectingvinylrecords.com,
where you can pick up a copy of his ebook called "The
Fascinating Hobby Of Vinyl Record Collecting."
Source: http://megamusictalent.com
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