If you are into collecting music as I am, there comes a time when you notice that some editions you managed to snatch up somewhere along the line have either disappeared or have reached a price that is simply unacceptable. If you regularly scout around the Internet looking for the rarer editions available in either limited form or for a limited time only, it won’t take long until you notice that the hobby you chose is probably the one to take you to your grave a lot faster than others, motor-racing not withstanding.

The two first Count Basie Roulette Live and Studio Boxes released by Mosaic Records have completely disappeared and are commanding anything from $400 to over $1000 on eBay. The wonderful seven-volume (21 CDs) reissue series “The Complete Dinah Washington on Mercury” by Verve, is fetching Amazon marketplace prices – depending on the volume you want and the country your searching in – from anywhere around $40 to $800! Some obscure single CDs might easily set you back several hundred dollars and if you try to get that elusive Blue Note original LP release, you might as well sell a kidney first.

Makes you think, doesn’t it? Continue Reading →