How the H*ll Did I Get So Much...?

[BeBop]

My past buying seems to have been influenced by my financial situation. I was relatively prosperous during the big Blue Note reissue boom (when internet seller promos drove down prices). So I've got a heap of Jackie Mac, Hank, Jazz Messengers. Fine stuff, of course. But jeez.

I had another big buying spell when cheap LPs were coming out from Jazz Anthology and Il Grandi del Jazz.

And then there was the brief flirtation with being a completist, and a short-lived fascination with Crown Records and its relatives.

(These days, I'm not buying - for other reasons. So I suppose I may end up with a gap corresponding to the decline/final throes of the CD format.)

[WD45]

Yeah, the excitement of acquisition takes over sometimes.

I have the same issue with Jackie Mac in my collection. Or hard-bop, in general for that matter.

[Drew Peacock]

I keep thinking of ways to increase my income to maintain the same % of music expense. I've gone through similar periods where I buy more than I can consume but I've been good about spreading the artists around. That said, I have way to much:

Wynton Marsalis

[BruceH]

I've got a lot of Ellington, but can't say I regret it at all. Could use more, in fact.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Hm, what's OVER-represented?

I've never had enough money to collect records because they're there.

Perhaps I might say that Sonny Stitt is over-represented in my collection, because I have 77 of his albums. I recollect someone on the board telling a story about Jim Sangrey listening to a Sonny Stitt album and exclaiming something like, "why the hell did you make so many albums the same, Sonny?" Well, Sonny made Soul Jazz albums and Bop albums. And I guess half of my Stitts are Bop and half Soul Jazz. So perhaps I can look at those Stitts as two collections.

In any case, I have only about half of Sonny's albums. But I have everything Grant Green ever recorded, that's been released, as leader and sideman. Is that over-represented? But GG is one of my two all time favourite musicians.

I have

Sonny Stitt 77

Jack McDuff 61

Jimmy Smith 60

Gene Ammons 58

Houston Person 58

Jimmy McGriff 55

Stanley Turrentine 54

Lou Donaldson 49

Les McCann 48

Willis Jackson 46

Charles Earland 44

Hank Crawford 41

Groove Holmes 41

David Newman 41

Shirley Scott 40

For all of them except Sonny and Shirley, that's pretty well most or all of their albums as leaders. But these are some of my favourites and I like listening to them and do so a lot. Furthermore, I don't mind having, and listening to, records of these (and others with smaller discographies) musicians that are below par. To me, the below par records are every bit as valuable as the top whack ones because, good, bad or indifferent, they all bear some relationship to the way the musician is. (Except for Lou Donaldson's two Cotillion albums, but I had to buy them to find out if they were really as crappy as they looked, and they are. Yes, I've still got 'em - how, in all conscience, could I inflict them on some gullible frequenter of the local second hand shop?)

Another way of looking at it is to say that even the Sonny Stitts represent only about 1.7% of my collection.

Looking from the point of view of what types of music I've got, which may be what you were thinking of, I get:

Type ......................%

SOUL JAZZ ..........42.05

GOSPEL ..............7.69

MBALAX ..............7.38

BE BOP/MODERN JAZZ ..7.15

DJELIYA .............5.67

RHYTHM & BLUES ......4.84

SOUL/FUNK ...........4.33

LATIN ...............3.77

SWING ...............3.30

BLUES ...............2.65

That represents just under 89% of my albums. You could say Soul Jazz is over-represented in my collection, but I don't think so

So I kind of don't know, really...

MG

[mikelz777]

Scott Hamilton

I bought up a lot of his titles when I started getting into jazz. Back then, he was safe, lyrical and easy for me to digest. Now I find him to be a little too safe and a little too easy to digest. I doubt I'll be re-visiting many of them in the future and have a bunch of them listed for sale.

For those of you who are heavy in Jackie Mac, do you have any bargains or good deals on some of his Blue Notes you'd be willing to offer up?

Edited September 28, 2009 by mikelz777

[mikelz777]

Hm, what's OVER-represented?

The number of CDs in your collection exceeds what your enjoyment of that artist would warrant.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Hm, what's OVER-represented?

The number of CDs in your collection exceeds what your enjoyment of that artist would warrant.

Oh well, us poooor people don't have that problem

Now, if you ask who's UNDER-represented in my collection...

It's be the same list except Grant Green wouldn't be in there

MG

[BeBop]

Hm, what's OVER-represented?

The number of CDs in your collection exceeds what your enjoyment of that artist would warrant.

Or another way I think of it, "if I could trade some of what I have for what I wish I had bought instead..."

[papsrus]

Hm, what's OVER-represented?

The number of CDs in your collection exceeds what your enjoyment of that artist would warrant.

Oh well, us poooor people don't have that problem

Now, if you ask who's UNDER-represented in my collection...

It's be the same list except Grant Green wouldn't be in there

MG

MG, I didn't see Grant Green on your list. I surmised that he's been on fewer than 40 releases.

Sonny Stitt 77

Jack McDuff 61

Jimmy Smith 60

Gene Ammons 58

Houston Person 58

Jimmy McGriff 55

Stanley Turrentine 54

Lou Donaldson 49

Les McCann 48

Willis Jackson 46

Charles Earland 44

Hank Crawford 41

Groove Holmes 41

David Newman 41

Shirley Scott 40

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Hm, what's OVER-represented?

The number of CDs in your collection exceeds what your enjoyment of that artist would warrant.

Oh well, us poooor people don't have that problem

Now, if you ask who's UNDER-represented in my collection...

It's be the same list except Grant Green wouldn't be in there

MG

MG, I didn't see Grant Green on your list. I surmised that he's been on fewer than 40 releases.

Sonny Stitt 77

Jack McDuff 61

Jimmy Smith 60

Gene Ammons 58

Houston Person 58

Jimmy McGriff 55

Stanley Turrentine 54

Lou Donaldson 49

Les McCann 48

Willis Jackson 46

Charles Earland 44

Hank Crawford 41

Groove Holmes 41

David Newman 41

Shirley Scott 40

Yes - 34 (or 35 if you count Dave Bailey's "Reaching out", which always seems to have GG's name on it).

MG

[JSngry]

You know what happens a lot of times? You get a side by a cat you've not really heard before and really dig it, so you want to hear more and you buy more. This goes on for a while without you realizing that you're pretty much hearing the same guy play the same way, just on different tunes. Then one day the realization hits, and you decide whether or not that bugs you, and how much.

Assuming it's the playing you're looking for in the first place and not the tunes.

[Bill Nelson]

This topic brings me back to a maxim of consumption in Economics 101:

the Diminishing Marginal Utility Curve -- the net value/enjoyment from each additional unit -- and the eventual (if not inevitable) downward slope of the curve ... until it flatlines.

Or the consumer has dropped dead.

[Dan Gould]

Gene Harris.

Dude plays the same damn thing every time.

[Alexander]

Hm, what's OVER-represented?

The number of CDs in your collection exceeds what your enjoyment of that artist would warrant.

I went through heavy Miles, Bud Powell, and Stan Getz periods over the years and have tons and tons by these artists (although far from everything). But exceeding my enjoyment? No. I can put on any album by any of these artists and I'm quite happy.

I have everything Joe Henderson released as a leader (except a very early album that is long out of print. Predates even his Blue Note material). All of Lee Morgan's Blue Note releases. Tons of Art Blakey.

But again, these are favorites of mine. I don't think I have too much.

Now there are artists (Sonny Rollins, Keith Jarrett) where I feel I have too little...

Gene Harris.

Dude plays the same damn thing every time.

I think that's about the saddest thing I've ever read. Didn't you used to be "Gene Harris Fanatic"?

[John L]

Sonny Stitt 77

Jack McDuff 61

Jimmy Smith 60

Gene Ammons 58

Houston Person 58

Jimmy McGriff 55

Stanley Turrentine 54

Lou Donaldson 49

Les McCann 48

Willis Jackson 46

Charles Earland 44

Hank Crawford 41

Groove Holmes 41

David Newman 41

Shirley Scott 40

Wow, I never would have thought that Groove Holmes and Charles Earland led than 40 records each. And here I thought that I had a lot of Willis Jackson records.

Edited September 29, 2009 by John L

[BruceH]

77 is only HALF of Stitt's albums? I thought he put out around a hundred, not over 150.

And to think, Television only put out two albums.

[JSngry]

I have everything Joe Henderson released as a leader (except a very early album that is long out of print. Predates even his Blue Note material).

Huh?

[John L]

I have everything Joe Henderson released as a leader (except a very early album that is long out of print. Predates even his Blue Note material).

Huh?

[Stereojack]

I have everything Joe Henderson released as a leader (except a very early album that is long out of print. Predates even his Blue Note material).

Huh?

There are no Joe Henderson albums preceding his Blue Note period. Perhaps you are referring to "Snap Your Fingers" (Todd), a pop album by a singer with the same name, who sounds like Brook Benton. More than once he has been confused with the saxophonist. I see that AMG also lists a 1962 Capitol LP. I have no doubt that this is by the singer

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Sonny Stitt 77

Jack McDuff 61

Jimmy Smith 60

Gene Ammons 58

Houston Person 58

Jimmy McGriff 55

Stanley Turrentine 54

Lou Donaldson 49

Les McCann 48

Willis Jackson 46

Charles Earland 44

Hank Crawford 41

Groove Holmes 41

David Newman 41

Shirley Scott 40

Wow, I never would have thought that Groove Holmes and Charles Earland led than 40 records each. And here I thought that I had a lot of Willis Jackson records.

I think 46 is all the Jackson, with possibly a better compilation of his fifties post-Apollo recordings that I haven't come across. 44 albums plus two compilations of fifties material as a leader, is what I've got of him. There is a raftload of sideman stuff from R&B records in the fifties - much won't be in jazz discographies, so it's hard to trace.

Off the top of my head, there are 4 Earland albums I haven't got, and 1 by Holmes. And I only found out about Newman's last album last night, so that's one of his I haven't got.

MG

[Alexander]

I have everything Joe Henderson released as a leader (except a very early album that is long out of print. Predates even his Blue Note material).

Huh?

There are no Joe Henderson albums preceding his Blue Note period. Perhaps you are referring to "Snap Your Fingers" (Todd), a pop album by a singer with the same name, who sounds like Brook Benton. More than once he has been confused with the saxophonist. I see that AMG also lists a 1962 Capitol LP. I have no doubt that this is by the singer

That might be it. I think I saw it on the AMG. Thanks for clearing that up.

So I have everything he did as a leader (and a LOT of his sideman appearances).

[Stefan Wood]

Over 100 Sun Ra discs.

[AndrewHill]

Over 100 Sun Ra discs.

That's almost twice as many as I have (53 not including the fact that at least three are doubles and one is a 3 cd box set).

I'm not entirely willing to say I have too much yet, although I probably could dispense with at least 10 of them if backed into a corner.

[A Lark Ascending]

There are a batch of major label American jazz recordings from the mid-late 90s that rarely see the light of day - Hargrove, Redman, Lovano etc. At the time I was returning to jazz after a long classical stint. It was before internet days so choice was limited to what turned up in the (provincial) British shops. Needless to say, Verve, Columbia etc releases were always well placed.

Apart from those I'm not unhappy with any areas - I might tire of things for a while but I tend to return sooner rather than later.