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Signed Soul records

YemskyYemsky 711 Posts
edited February 2012 in Strut Central
I am sure John Manship knows a bit more than I do about the sale value of records, but this surprised me [found in an article on vinyl records in last weekend's Financial Times 'Smart Arts - How To Spend It Special Arts' edition]:

"The Best examples are still sealed in their original sleeves and have never been played. For collectors of soul music, it's usually best if they haven't been signed by the artist, because that can actually devalue them. There are exceptions, but if a soul record is signed it should be on the back or somewhere unobtrusive. For rock collectors, however, prominent signatures are much more desirable."

Is he right about the devaluing impact of an artists autograph?

I remember taking JB and P Funk records to concerts by Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker, Bobby Byrd, Bootsy Collins, Zapp, etc. in the 80s to get them signed....

  Comments

  • holmesholmes 3,532 Posts
    yes, writing on the cover will automatically bring the value down excepting the most specialist instances. Usually it works inverse, the rarer the LP the less desirable it is to have with writing on the cover. obviously if it's a common LP it doesn't really matter either way. I bought a collection where the guy had heaps of rare LPs but had made it his mission to get them signed by as many artists as possible. All beginning with "To Don"..... kind of loses meaning if your name ain't Don.
  • YemskyYemsky 711 Posts
    Oh, with a dedication like "To Don" on it, I can see that that would suck.
  • leonleon 883 Posts
    There are several threads on this topic iirc. Basicly, an autograph could add value when 1) contemporary, and 2) from a really big name (like Marvin Gaye, Mayfield, etc.).
    Otherwise, most peoples' opinion is it defaces the sleeve.

    Personally, i don't mind the scribblings of the artists at all. I DO mind radio station writing or writing by the former owner....
  • JATXJATX 258 Posts
    [ or writing by the former owner....

    Frank Lopez was so scared his boys would take his Meters 45s that he had to put his name on the a and b side on the three of his I now own.
  • djsheepdjsheep 3,620 Posts
    Records I get autographed, I have no real plans to sell 'em...
  • YemskyYemsky 711 Posts
    [ or writing by the former owner....


    Frank Lopez was so scared his boys would take his Meters 45s that he had to put his name on the a and b side on the three of his I now own.

    My original post in this thread really referred only to the artists' signatures, but since you brought it up, here's an anecdote I was actually thinking about posting in the thread on record digging stories:

    Back in the late 80s, early nineties we had a problem in my home town of Hannover, Germany that quite a few DJs (and maybe punters with access to the DJ booth) were snatching records from other DJs in clubs and at parties. Though I personally never had anything stolen, as a precaution, I started to tag the labels of basically all my records.
    However, at some stage I did a bit of a clear out and sold maybe 20 maximum 25 of those records to a second hand store in town.
    Approximately three years later, I moved to Washington DC for six month and tried to go digging every weekend.
    I was completely gobsmacked when I found one of my own records in a store in the DC area.
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