The 10 most valuable albums of all time
Some outdated records fetch £10,000, others – this kind of as a Blur LP really worth £70 – are quickly risers 
Downloading music may possibly be the future but vinyl reigns supreme for the music cognoscenti. And that could indicate that your treasured record collection is made up of some true investment hits.
If you were a punk in the Seventies and have stashed away a copy of the 1977 Intercourse Pistols record God Save the Queen , it could be really worth £8,000. Much more realistically, a 1995 box set of the albums of Blur, the Britpop favourites, could be well worth £70.
But if you have a assortment of Bucks Fizz LPs, they are unlikely to be well worth a great deal. Tom Fisher of south London’s Rat Data stated: “For data to be saleable the artists have to have credibility. If individuals beneath 23 think the artist is awesome – a band this kind of as the Rolling Stones, for example – then they will sell.”
Dave Hawkins of Cannonball Records in Stoke-on-Trent additional that rates of data by singers from the Fifties and indeed pre-Beatles rock and roll had fallen. “But rock music from the late Sixties and early Seventies is going up in value, so artists such as Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin and other more obscure bands are a excellent investment,” he said.
“Jazz and classical also have their very own sought-after objects, with original stereo albums on Decca and HMV commanding higher rates.” Mr Hawkins is specifically keen on jazz and mentioned authentic Hank Mobley albums on the Blue Note label sold for “effectively over four figures”. Reggae and northern soul records can promote for huge sums also – they had been played so a lot at parties that copies in very excellent situation are uncommon.
Ian Shirley, editor of Record Collector’s Unusual Record Cost Manual , mentioned that even though huge artists had been usually collectable, “1 tip is to purchase information pressed in the late Nineties to early 2000s. The CD was dominant then, which saw constrained pressing of albums of even significant names this kind of as Blur”. He additional: “If you are going to get information as an investment do your research ahead of acquiring. There are some genres exactly where prices are falling, this kind of as rock and roll and early Sixties pop, whereas there are other people – Nineties vinyl – exactly where prices are going through the roof.”
Dave Hawkins
Mr Fisher stated: “Collectors who acquire Beatles albums want pieces in superb issue. With The Beatles’ White Album (released 1968) there is a amount on each cover: collectors want lower numbers.” Mr Shirley explained: “We are talking £4,000-£10,000 for these numbered one to one hundred.”
Situation with data is everything. It was widespread to compose your identify on the sleeve when you took a record to a party, Mr Hawkins explained, but that will have devalued it. It is crucial that each the vinyl and sleeve are in good condition. “Holding the vinyl in a sturdy light will generally demonstrate any signs of damage to the surface,” he explained.
The second key condition of vinyl is rarity. For illustration, the Beatles sold millions of data, but finding a copy of any of their singles in unplayed situation is practically extremely hard, so collectors shell out a premium for them. Mr Shirley mentioned a copy of the initial Beatles album, Please Please Me (1963 ), was 1st pressed on the gold and black Parlophone label but it soon switched to yellow and black. If you have a stereo black and gold copy in mint problem it is well worth £5,000 or more.
You can buy old data on the world wide web, at fairs and in expert stores. But locating genuine gems is challenging. “It really is a good deal to do with instinct,” said Mr Fisher. He discovered an unlabelled acetate (a record manufactured right from the master tape) but had a feeling about it – and he was appropriate. It was of Mick Jagger and John Lennon singing blues track Also Several Cooks from 1974. He purchased it for £20 and it offered for £1,400 11 many years in the past.
Top tip: Just as in stamp collecting, errors or tiny releases add to values. A brown vinyl copy of Twilight Zone by Iron Maiden can promote for about £800, Mr Hawkins explained, as a few escaped prior to they had been pressed accurately in red vinyl.
If you have a copy of the Clash’s very first album from 1977, search out for a sticker on it: the first 10,000 had 1 that competent you for a free EP if you sent it off. Most consumers did so – that means that 1 with a sticker, even in poor issue, will be really worth £50 or a lot more.
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‘Hendrix is like Picasso’: The other music memorabilia that can be really worth a fortune
It really is not just music recordings that are well worth collecting. Music memorabilia can command huge charges.
A latest sale at Christie’s integrated a plectrum when owned by John Lennon that went for £4,000. It also incorporated a Beatles salary receipt for £16,250 and £10,000 for eight lines of lyrics written by Jimi Hendrix in 1966.
With music memorabilia, provenance and fame are everything. Mike Bloomfield of rockpopmem.com said: “There is absolutely a premier league for rock memorabilia that would include the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and the Intercourse Pistols.” He extra that some collectors chose to focus on specific bands, even though other people collected types of memorabilia such as tickets, posters, fliers and even clothing. “Age is essential,” Mr Bloomfield added. “A ticket for a Who concert from 1965 could promote for £100: one particular from the Eighties or Nineties may only reach £10.”
Concert posters are well-liked, notably these promoting Beatles, Led Zeppelin and Sex Pistols gigs. “Prices of memorabilia have doubled in the final 10 many years for the premium artists,” Mr Bloomfield extra. Nevertheless, he explained charges had dropped for pieces relevant to artists such as Cliff Richard and Adam Faith whose supporters are ageing and who no longer have the “cool factor”.
To illustrate this, Rockpopmem.com has a 1968 John Lennon autograph on sale for £975 – but an Eighties autograph by Peter Noone of Herman’s Hermits is on sale for £25. A Sixties Alma Cogan autograph can be bought for £70. Memorabilia does not want to be ancient to be worth some thing: Mr Bloomfield stated Oasis products have been collectable now and would be in 20 years’ time too.
Simon Lindley of Paul Fraser Collectibles explained: “There’s an nearly magical aura about rock stars like John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain that helps make them irresistible to collectors. Hendrix guitars are like Picasso paintings – they’ve been touched by genius, and that energy continues to resonate through the generations. Today we spot more importance than ever on pop culture and the worth of iconic memorabilia keeps going up to supporters these products are historic treasures.”
Bonhams has just held an auction that incorporated a guitar as soon as owned by Who guitarist Pete Townshend, who usually smashed his instruments on stage. Bonhams’ last enjoyment memorabilia sale incorporated a guitar owned by Robert Smith of the Cure: it was estimated to go for £3,000-£5,000 but offered for £27,500. Katherine Schofield, a professional in entertainment memorabilia at Bonhams, explained it had great provenance and handful of Cure products came to marketplace. “Also, I believe the Cure’s fan base is now of an age in which they have the disposable revenue to buy such pieces,” she additional.
Genres worth collecting:
one. Progressive rock
two. Reggae
three. Northern Soul
four. Jazz
5. Best classical soloists
And individuals not…
one. Pop music
2. Novelty songs
3. ‘Unfashionable’ singers
four. ‘Popular’ classical artists (this kind of as James Final)
five. Compilations
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