Why no uptick in interest for lps by Chicago , Moodies , Yes

True, but I wasn't the one asking about airplay, I was just opining about what is played.

 

I've got the gold discs, I've got the SACDs and I've got the audiophile reissue lps. Hell, I've even got the reel to reels. Barring a house fire, I don't foresee myself ever buying another Moody Blues album, save maybe the one recent studio I never bought.

 

But who are buying these old lp's? Are they the people listening to oldies radio or younger people not listening?

 

Yeah, Chicago Transit Authority and the first Doobie Brothers albums are very much alike.

Sort of like debuts from Barbara Streisand and Nicki Manaj. Almost dopplegangers.

 

True, but couldn't the same be said of old Zeppelin records too, in that all of us who wanted them already have them? But for some reason used records are hard to find cheap.

 

My guess it's probably a combination of supply/demand and groups falling in and out of favor. Big Moody Blues fan and have to say I spent more than $1 for each of the classic 7 1st press UK vinyl. I'll never get my money back but nor do care as it was still was worth it to me. Still love the music and these lp's were definitely a step above what I previously had.

 

All of us who wanted them already have them, true. But, unlike the acts being discussed here, the kids have never stopped liking Zeppelin, Floyd or AC/DC. There's not been an uptick on those groups, they've remained hot items from day one. And demand is driving up prices.

Where the "uptick" has been, IMO, is in obscure, bandwagon jumping psych groups. MGM Bosstown Sound stuff used to be common and in the $8.00 range. Now it's often $40.00 for Ultimate Spinach and even St. John's Green is a $20.00 record.

 

Huh? I am not seeing $5 common ELO albums or $40 Ultimate Spinach records here in Boston. $1-3 for ELO. $8-10 for Ultimate Spinach.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to think my thousands of vinyl LPs are suddenly much much more valuable. But in terms of relatively common mainstream stuff, I don't get that sense, outside of a few select groups and albums.

 

trust me the moodies uk deccas don't do much in the UK either

 

Madonna at $25 an LP? Unless it's her 90s or 2000s work, your friend's customers are really getting ripped off. I can probably find links to sealed copies of her first five albums for $10 or less this minute. I guess my only question is how can someone afford to spend over $25 on a Madonna LP, but not possess enough intelligence to find that same LP for literally 1/25 of the price online?

Generally speaking, most of the artists (Blondie, Cars, Rick Springfield, Rod Stewart, Elton John, etc) you mentioned in your original post are still dollar bin artists in cities like LA and Portland, unless you're talking about sealed copies or audiophile pressings. Every so often I'll wander into a store where the mark-up is so insane that I wonder who in the world could be buying these common titles at such outrageous prices. I guess your friend knows the answer.

 

It's quite reasonable to believe that bosstown sound stuff was more regionally successful in Massachusetts, and, thus, there is a higher supply still floating around. When I was in school in the early 90s that MGM and Flick-Disc stuff was everywhere, but it's almost completely dried up, and when it does appear it's in the "collectibles" section at a definite premium.

I didn't post on ELO, but around here dollar bins are for beaters, stuff that was never popular, and syrupy non rock schlock.

 

Threads like this only show how sheltered most middle aged guys on audiophile oriented forums are. I know plenty of young people who like all three bands. Some of them are musicians. One of them (23 y.o.) wanted a copy of CTA because he found one at a yard sale and the LP with Freeform guitar was broken. He loves that track, its very weird and not something heard on many albums, like Revolution #9. Several of Chicago's LPs have been recently re-released - in several formats. I doubt this is being done because nobody buys them. My oldest told me hes played In Search Of The Lost Chord a few times at house parties, and his friends loved it, the consensus being its a great album. I see 'kids' fairly regularly at local stores with a Moody's album or two tucked in their arms as they go up to buy.

As far as whats dated...practically everything gives away its date. Some sounds are more 'in' than others, but even that evolves with time. To me Velvet Underground sounds part & parcel to the 1960's. I realize their general minimalist garage-y sound got heavily emulated beginning in the 90's, but it still sounds completely of its time. And thats a good thing. I hear modern releases that sound barely a step or two modernized (only in production) from Grand Funks first two albums; so called stoner rock. Theres also a core of prog fans, most of whom are clearly in their late teens & twenties. While music sub genres may not be mass consumption / show-biz / teen fodder like Lady Gaga, they're nevertheless a viable scene.

 

Not for clean ones. I too see $8-10 Ultimate Spinach Lps, but not VG+ copies at that price.

 

For a sheltered middle aged guy, I don't even know what Ultimate Spinach is/was. Is it some kind of benchmark for vinyl prices?

 

Ultimately, I don't think you could find a more accurate barometer.

 

As many people (and threads) have mentioned before, some acts age better than others. Zeppelin, Floyd, and The Beatles still appeal to younger listeners who are eagerly hunting for vintage vinyl, so even though there are millions of albums out there... Demand still exceeds supply.

On the flip side, acts like the Moody Blues haven't aged well, nor have they really cultivated their legacy well. Or a perfect example is Deep Purple vs. Black Sabbath... Both very influential, similarly-styled bands, but Sabbath has a better legacy now and their used records go for double what Purple does.

I recently discovered the first two Chicago albums and they're surprisingly good... But yes, that band did themselves no favors with their legacy. 35 years of dentist office music tends to ruin your cred. And just to prove the point, both Chicago records were minty and ran me a whopping $1.50 combined.

Who else... ELO has been featured on numerous recent soundtracks and have been reappraised.
Yes has some cred from younger kids getting into prog rock, although those same kids don't seem to appreciate Tull near as much.
Madonna sells better than Pat Benatar because Madonna still has giant tours and gets name dropped by up-and-coming pop artists. Name the last time you saw Pat on a major TV network.
I'd argue against Rod Stewart being a hot seller again. Every Picture, perhaps... But Foot Loose & Fancy Free, or Night On The Town, or all those terrible 80s records... Those are still $1 bin material.
The big price jumps, IMHO, have been with acts from the 80s who have now been reappraised AND didn't sell huge numbers on vinyl in the first place... So supply is quite scarce considering. This would include The Cure, The Smiths, The Replacements, Metallica, Iron Maiden, and GN'R. Good luck finding a decent original of Appetite or Lies for under $20 now...

 

Things change. In the '80s, you couldn't give away R&B or jazz from the '70s. Now the R&B, particularly, is hot stuff.

Currently, the rising tides of prices have mostly affected rock and soul. Stuff like folk and country, outside of a handful of artists who have significant presence outside those genres, languishes.

 

I find 70's singer songwriter fare like James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Cat Stevens (including some terrific records) is even more ubiquitous in the dollar bins than the mainstream prog bands mentioned in the thread title.

 

Completely disagree about YES. They are one of the most iconic bands of the 70's. Not just their music, but Roger Dean 's artwork. Along with Zeppelin and Floyd, Yes defined 70's rock for celestial travelers everywhere!

 

Not the UK pressings,you don't.UK Island pressings of Traffic are not cheap either.
United Artists pressings,either the black labels (both versions),or the orange and magenta labels are ALWAYS trashed.I have yet to find a playable early UA copy of the first two Traffic albums.

I don't know whether to sell my quad LPs,CTA included,or buy a vintage CD-4 decoder.I have yet to play any of them.

To repeat what I said,go onto ebay or Popsike,and price UK original pressings of Moody Blues LPs.The US and Canadian pressings have no reason to sell for more than a few dollars.They're garbage.

 

I have about 5 Moody Blues CDs in mint shape from the late 90s. Ask your son if he would like to buy by them. Very reasonable price.

 

I think that is for a couple of reasons. First off, some of those records just did not age well with time. Chicago never made another record as good as the first one in my opinion. Secondly, classic radio stations play a lot of those songs all the time. Therefore, there in not the immediate urge to go out and purchase those records.

The records that are selling for the most money are those that are connecting to a younger generation. The boomers have already heard that music a lot. Boomers are not the age group pushing the sales of vinyl. If anything, they are downsizing if they still have any vinyl left.

 

For whatever reason, every US copy of the first Traffic album that I have ever seen has been trashed as well.

 

I think Peter Gabriel probably gives their early albums some cred in the eyes of youngsters today. And, even though I'm innately skeptical towards prog, the first five Genesis albums with Peter Gabriel are overall really good, and, in my lone personal opinion, stand the test of time better than most of the Moody Blues' stuff does, although I certainly don't hate the Moody Blues. On the other hand, I almost never spin any of the Moody Blues records that I do own, while I listened to The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway fairly recently.