Tea for the Tillerman Reissue

[StereoNut]

I want a bigger allowance, so I can afford them! 

[tmazz]

The release has been delayed for a month until mid-July. 

[BobM]

Funny - I was just on the site today to find out where my order was and all I saw was "back ordered" with no indication of the new date.

Thanks for the update Tom.

[tmazz]

Funny - I was just on the site today to find out where my order was and all I saw was "back ordered" with no indication of the new date.

Thanks for the update Tom.

I get a new release newsletter from them and got the news from there. The new projected ship date is 7/14/11. Here is the page on Chad's web site that mentions it:

http://store.acousticsounds.com/d/75015/Cat_Stevens-Tea_For_The_Tillerman-200_Gram_Vinyl_Record

[etcarroll]

On Acoustic Sounds weekly email they say Aug. 1.

I guess the July date is for folks who already paid.

[BobM]

Just received my copy today. I guess the delay is for new orders.

[tmazz]

Just received my copy today. I guess the delay is for new orders.

Bob, who did you order yours from? I spoke with customer service at Acoustic Sounds this afternoon and they told me that they wouldn't be shipping any until at least the 14th.

[tmazz]

The release date was pushed out again. Aug 1st is now Aug 11th. 

[tmazz]

After all the wait the LP finally arrives early last week and to took me until last night to get the time to sit down and actually listen to it.

Well Chad was right , it was worth the wait. I compared it to my former standard for this album, the MoFi UHQR pressing and Chad's version was clearly better on many fronts. In general everything was just cleaner and more detailed. The soundstage was deeper and there was a more apparent spacial separation between the lead and back-up vocals. The bas line while a bit lower in volume was much cleaner and tighter. All in all  it just sounded more natural and real and less like a recording than the UHQR did. Work seems to be slowing down a bit so I should have some more listening time over the next few weeks and will compare the new LP to some of then other versions I have collected over the years. For only $30 this is a clear winner. (I wonder what this will do to the resale value of the UHQRs. Chad has a used one listed on his site for $250. My gues is that they were issued in such a limited quantity that the collector demand may keep the price up even if the ausiophiles demand switches over to the new pressing. It will be interesting to watch anyway.)

[jsaliga]

I very much doubt that the Analogue Productions release will have any affect on market prices of MoFi UHQR vinyl.  There are a lot more people who know the MoFi brand than are familiar with the Analogue Productions brand.  Out of print MoFi reissues still fetch top dollar despite the fact that in numerous cases there are better sounding reissues available -- I don't think that will change in the foreseeable future.

--Jerome

[tmazz]

That is kind of what I was thinking, however in the years since the 30th Anniv. Darkside of the Moon LP came out (which was clearly superior sonically to the UHQR), the price of the UHQR has dropped from about $1200 down to $800 - 1000 for a mint used copy while the Sgt Pepper UHQR has more than doubled in price and is now passed DSOTM to be the highest priced UHQR (there is no audiophile vinyl alternative for Sgt Pepper except the regular MoFi pressing). Was the price drop caused by a drop in demand because audiophiles had a cheaper source for a better pressing of DSOTM leaving only collectors to fight over the UHQRs? Who knows? It is really hard (at least for me) to figure out exactly what drives the prices in the collectors market. (Of course in the case of Sgt Pepper anything rare and Beatles automatically demands big bucks from collectors.) It's not like I'm looking to buy any of the UHQRs, but it will be interesting to watch what happens to the prices in reaction to Chad's release.

[jsaliga]

I think price fluctuations are normal for any collectible.  I have noticed that vintage and collectible LP prices are down across the board, but I believe that to be a product of the tough economic times we are in.  Talk of another recession coming right on the heels of the one we just lived through is no doubt going to depress prices even further.  Record dealers need to eat too and they can't sit on expensive inventory forever.  

I recently bought a MoFi set of The Beatles in minty condition for $400.  I have seen prices average about $1,000 and saw one sealed set sell for $3,500 about 3 years ago.

--Jerome

[tmazz]

I recently bought a MoFi set of The Beatles in minty condition for $400.  I have seen prices average about $1,000 and saw one sealed set sell for $3,500 about 3 years ago.

 

I picked up one of those sets in 1985 from a dealer that was clearing them out and when I opened the box I found that every one of the LPs was dished. The dealer had kept them laying on their sides in his storeroom which left the reords with no support in the middle since the sit in the box in between those plastic spacing fingers, which do a great job keeping the records straight when they are standing up vertical, but cause them to warp when you lay the case down on its side. The dealer said I could either have a refund or try one ome set, but if I took another set it would be non-refundable. (He didn't want me to open any more boxes that the then would no longer be able to sell as new.) Well, I looked at the rest of his stock and he had a dozaen more copies all of which were stored in the same way, so I opted for a refund. Looking back the dishing was not that bad and if I had owned my VPI bak then the clamp might very well have flattened them out, but the Thorens I owned at the time had no clamp so back they went. ABout a year after that the price spiked up and I have never found a reasonable priced set since. Like everything else with collecting, you just have to be in the right place at the right time with cash in your pocket.

Someday............