Steely Dan LP - Two Against Nature - keep or sell? opened or sealed?

I've been culling my record collection, getting ready to sell a bunch. I've discovered some sealed records that are now worth a pretty penny. Some I'll sell, like the Alison Krauss & Union Station Live MoFi box. Others, like the MFSL version of Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, I've recently opened because I needed a new copy. I have no problem opening a record that's now worth a lot of money in order to play it. That's why I've hung onto it for all these years.

I have one LP, though, with which I don't know what to do or how much to charge. I'm looking for your advice.

I have a sealed vinyl copy of Steely Dan's Two Against Nature. It was only available as a European pressing and has a "Made in England" sticker on the back cover. If I remember right, I bought it at either B-Side Records or The Exclusive Company on State Street in Madison, WI, in 2000. Costing $31.99, it was a heck of a lot to spend on a record back then.



The cover is not in great shape. I'd grade it VG+. The shrink wrap is too tight and has creased and bent the cover at the edges.







The record is also an unofficial release, unauthorized by Becker and Fagan and made off of a digital file. In this thread, Walter Becker is quoted as saying an analog mixdown exists to master an LP but nobody has ever gotten around to making an all analog vinyl version. If you want Two Against Nature on LP, this is it.

So here are my questions:

Should I sell it? Would you have an ethical problem with that? It is an official Giant Records/BMG release even though the artist never consented.



Should I keep it? It is a rare record from one of my favorite bands. Not selling it also solves the ethical dilemma of selling an unauthorized record.

If I sell it, should I open it? Because of the tight shrink wrap, the album may be warped although it lies flat on a table. If you were I, would you inspect it before you sell it? If I'm going to sell it on Ebay, I think I could get more money for it sealed. I would not want to take a return if the vinyl was defective. I'd word my listing to insist on that point, realizing that is a bluff and that Ebay really has the final say on this, not me.

Because of the bad jacket, how much is it worth? According to Popsike, open copies go for between $80 to $200. What would you price it at?

I appreciate your advice in advance.

 

It's a crappy digitally mastered LP. It's worth a lot of money.

There is NO QUESTION what you should do: Sell it, sealed, for as much as you can get.

Unless you're a Steely Dan completist that needs this to fill a hole in your collection, that is. And in that case, don't open it.

 

I'm not even sure this place is the ideal crowd for a rare sealed LP, if that makes sense. You could run into the same situation here with someone opening it and saying there's an issue. Away from ebay, it would be Paypal having the final say - six of one...

But I think your chances are far better on ebay, since there will be a much greater concentration of "Steely Dan Completists" who may simply keep the thing sealed. Wouldn't surprise me at all.

 

Yes, it does make sense. I don't think I'd sell it here unless I dump it.

I've though about that option a lot since I wrote the initial post. Don't be surprised if you see a posting for this record in Vinyl For Sale for $40 including shipping. That would cover my initial investment, sales tax and shipping. It would be out of my life and someone else's problem.

The mind games going on in my head right now are really crazy. As a stereo salesman, when my store wasn't having a sale, I sold Yamaha, Alpine and Polk Audio all day long for full retail. Never bothered me one whit. Somehow the idea of selling this album for $150 or more does.

I'm sure it's because I know too much. I know the transfer is a POS, with the pressing disavowed by the artists. On the other hand, selling the MFSL UHQR version of Cat Steven's Tea For The Tillerman for $200 or more won't be an issue for me. The UHQR pressing of the Cat Steven's record is bested by the new 45 RPM version from Analogue Productions but it's not junk. In my heart, I know the Steely Dan record is.

What's the Shakespeare quote from Hamlet? "Conscience makes cowards of us all?" I'm not sure I have the guts to rake somebody over the coals with this record. Mixing my Shakespeare plays, I don't want to end up like Lady MacBeth, trying in vain to wash the blood off my hands.

 

As long as you don't mislead the buyers, I think you should be fine. Sell it as a rare sealed piece of Steely Dan memorabilia. That's honest. If you were to start touting how vinyl is an audiophile medium or anything like that, then you'd be misleading your customers. But all you're doing is announcing you have one, and then it's up to the buyers to do a little homework to figure out if it's worth owning. I would presume most people willing to pay $200 for something like this have done some homework already.

As for selling it sealed: It's a risk. It might be defective, and the buyer MIGHT not shrug and accept that out of print sealed vinyl carries risks. In that case, you take it back and, assuming the defect isn't huge, resell it as opened with the defect described. You will probably STILL get a decent price for it (unless the vinyl is unplayable). I'd say there's at least a 50/50 chance the buyer won't even open it and will just buy it to fill a hole in their collection.

If you decide you simply can't sell it for more than $40, then sell it to me. Ha ha. But seriously, if you decide to do something like that, be careful how you go about it. There are certain sharks on the FS forums here who are known to basically buy things to immediately flip. If you're "giving it away" you might as well try to make sure it goes to a good home, not someone who is willing to soak up the $200+ you're knowingly leaving on the table.

But in lieu of selling it for $40, I'll suggest another option: Sell it on eBay and be upfront about the album: It's digitally sourced and Becker/Fagen aren't happy it exists, although it's a legitimate release. Free your conscience. I guarantee you will STILL get a good price far far in excess of $40.

 

I definitely see that point of view, absolutely. But how do you approach the situation when knowing that there are people out there who don't care about the transfer at all?

But if you really do feel like you'll sleep better, then as Sir Gordon Gekko once instructed - "Dump it."

 

Thanks for the advice. It wouldn't bother me if someone else flipped it. Once I sell it, my conscience is clean. It ain't my problem any more. That would be the whole idea behind dumping it.

And as fair warning for any other posters out there (I know you were joking, kwadguy), don't bother sending me a PM asking to buy it. If you do, I'll make sure you don't get it. I'm not trying to play a game here. This isn't a scheme. I really am conflicted.

 

Sell it for US$ 150 here and give US$ 100 to a charity.

Joachim

 

Boy, I like this. It would allow me to sell it to a Steely Dan completest on SH.tv who wants it and yet do good work the money.

I'd even do it as a Dutch auction. People do this informally all the time here, anyway. I'd start at $250 and go down $25 a day until it was sold. Anything over $40 would go to the American Cancer Society (as I'm a cancer survivor). If instead of a Steely Dan fan, it ended up going for $75 to someone who would flip it, that would be OK, too.

I never would have thought of this option. Thank you, Joachim.

 

Per forum rules, you can't officially hold a Dutch auction. But you can, as you suggest, post it for a high price and then methodically lower the price each day until it sells. You're guaranteed to sell it, and it won't go to a flipper (it won't sell that cheaply). You donate your profits to cancer research and we all win!

 

Put it on Discogs - Mint ones are going for nearly $280!!!

http://www.discogs.com/sell/history/3054898

 

I don't understand the sellers guilt thing. You have a valuable record there, apparently. I would say keep it sealed, look up recent sold values, and price it accordingly. The person that decides of their own free will to buy that copy for $200 or more will be delighted to get it, so don't worry about the buyer. (I was totally over the moon to buy a UHQR of Sgt. Peppers for almost $400.)

If you also had a numbers matching 1964 Corvette, would you keep the original cost of $4,995 and give the other $200,000 to charity? Didn't think so!

 

Let Discogs/ebay/Musicstack be your guide. People collect records for different reasons. You shouldn't presume to know why. Be clear in your ad about the condition. If it's a factory seal, let the market dictate your price.