I've seen a lot of people asking for this so I decided to do a
guide. There's not really much to look for but you need to be
careful when you buy stuff. There are several great places to get
them such as Goodwill Stores, Salvation army stores, and flea
markets. Most of those places are pretty cheap on them but also the
condition most of the time is not very good. There is also eBay.
I've used eBay several times myself to get them and it is a great
source. But a lot of people don't know how to grade LP's or weather
or not they're rare. I've seen several listings that say a LP is rare
when in fact there's nothing special about it.
The first thing I'm gonna cover is long playing 33 records. These
come in 2 ways - Stock and Promo. Promo LP's by ABC/Dunhill
have white labels. Promo MCA LP's have gold stickers on the front
that say promo copy. Also MCA would re-number there catalog a lot and
by doing this they would stamp gold stickers on the front with a
new number. That makes those less desireable as well as LP's with
cut corners or saw marks. Those were used as markdowns.
All the following albums are available as LP's. If you want all the artwork that comes with them, be sure to get the original label LP. For example, MCA reissued Son of a Son of a Sailor without the gatefold that originally came with the ABC/Dunhill release. See what you would miss by getting the MCA LP instead of the original.
Down to Earth - Barnaby
Artwork - Front and Back
cover
High Cumberland Jubliee - Barnaby
Artwork - Front and Back
cover
A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean - ABC/Dunhill
Artwork - Front and
Back cover
Living and Dying in 3/4/ time - ABC/Dunhill
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover, Gatefold, Lyric
Sheet
A1A - ABC/Dunhill
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover,
Gatefold
Rancho Deluxe
Artwork - Front cover, Back cover
Havana Daydreamin - ABC/Dunhill
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover,
Gatefold
Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes - ABC/Dunhill
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover,
Gatefold, Lyric Sheet
Son of a Son of a Sailor - ABC/Dunhill
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover,
Gatefold, Lyric sheet
Front
Back
You had to be there - ABC/Dunhill
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover,
Gatefold
Volcano - MCA
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover,
Gatefold, Lyric sheet
Before the Salt
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover
Coconut Telegraph - MCA
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover, Lyric sheet
Somewhere over China - MCA
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover,
Lyric sheet
One Particular Harbour - MCA
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover, Lyric
sheet
Riddles in the Sand - MCA
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover, Lyric
sheet
Last Mango in Paris - MCA
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover,
Lyric sheet
Songs you Know by Heart - MCA
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover
Floridays - MCA
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover, Lyric sheet
Hot Water - MCA
Artwork - Front cover,
Back cover
Off to see the Lizard - MCA
Artwork - Front Cover,
Back cover,
Lyric sheet
Finally there are also 45 single records. These are not very hard
to find and there are several of them. Like 33's, these are only
collector's items if they're original copies. All Down to Earth
singles were on Barnaby, all 45's from A white Sport Coat, You Had
to Be There were on ABC/Dunhill, all other ones are MCA.
There's really nothing hard about collecting these LP's. Some can
have a high price on them but most you can find at a reasonable
price.
LP Buyer's Guide by Bamafan
