Are You Sitting on Easy Money?
With the introduction of iPods and Spotify wrapped playlists, we thought vinyl records were a thing of the past. And to be fair, for a few years, they seemed to drop off in value. However, a resurgence brought them back to life and made us all fall back in love with the grandfather of music! With its newfound popularity, you never know what kind of gems are sitting in those milk crates at home. Let’s dive into a few precious items you might have in your very own collection.
1. Kind of Blue, Miles Davis (1959)
You’ll be anything but blue with this record in your collection. While it might be hard to say goodbye, you can easily rake in close to one thousand dollars if you have the teal blue copy with a 6-eye label. These, in particular, are more valuable than the copies printed after it, which used a 2-eye label.
2. Please Please Me, The Beatles (1963)
Sometimes, subtle colors make all the difference between a few hundred dollars and a few thousand. If you have this classic Beatles album sitting at home, look for the rarest pressing: gold lettering on a black label. They’re worth a fortune to true fans, and some pay upwards of ten grand for one.
Parlophone Records, derivative photo by Snowmanradio on Wikimedia
3. The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, Bob Dylan (1963)
Of course, it’s not always color that earns more money—it’s track changes. This popular Dylan album replaced four tracks with new songs, but due to a mix-up, an unknown number of original albums were released. Only a few made their way out of the weeds, and it’s considered one of the rarest albums around. It’ll also score you a nice chunk of change.
4. Yesterday and Today, The Beatles (1966)
Oh, we’re not done with The Beatles yet. They’re still one of the biggest bands around, so what did we expect? Well…not the original cover, which featured the band with dismembered doll parts. Yeah, people weren’t happy, and the studio scrambled to recall the original, but if you still have a copy, you could earn well into the thousands.
H. Michael Karshis on Wikimedia
5. The Velvet Underground & Nico, The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967)
Remember how upset people got about the banana in the art gallery? Well, bananas on album covers are also worth a ton of money. This album didn’t exactly do well, but it hardly matters now. If you have the original pressed copy with a banana on the cover, you’re looking at a nice paycheck.
6. The Who Sell Out, The Who (1977)
What can we say? People love a deal, and that’s what they wanted with this album. Not only did you score The Who’s third studio album, but fans also received an awesome poster inside. Only a thousand copies were pressed, which, ironically, is what you can earn from selling it.
7. Street Fighting Man, The Rolling Stones (1968)
The Rolling Stones didn’t always plan to play it safe—policemen surrounding an injured protester seemed like a good cover at the time, but the real-life Democratic National Convention riots put a stop to their plans. They decided to pull the original cover, but a few copies were pressed and sold anyway. If you have one, you’re looking at thousands of dollars.
8. The White Album, The Beatles (1968)
Yup, we’re still talking about The Beatles! Everyone and their grandma knows about The White Album, and you might want to ask for her copy. These records were branded with low serial numbers, which people will (and have) spend thousands of dollars on.
Aselfcallednowhere on Wikimedia
9. Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin (1969)
We’re back to blue, baby. This album didn’t blow over well with critics when it was first released, but that’s hardly your concern—the only thing you have to worry about is the lettering on the front. If it’s orange, keep it in your collection. If it’s blue and in good condition, you can score several hundred dollars for it.
10. “The Prettiest Star”, David Bowie (1970)
This isn’t technically an album, but a song. Either way, if you somehow have your hands on a copy, you can sell it for hundreds or even thousands of dollars. It’s a rare piece, especially because the original features Bowie in studio with Marc Bolan before it was re-recorded in ‘73.
11. Spirit in the Night, Bruce Springsteen (1973)
We doubt true Springsteen fans will part with this item. However, if you’re looking to make a few hundred dollars (or upwards of $5K), you can always toss this to the wind and see how much money comes back.
Jose Antonio Gallego Vázquez on Pexels
12. Diamond Dogs, David Bowie (1974)
No one wants to see that much of a dog, and neither did RCA, Bowie’s label at the time. Upon noticing the exposed pooch, they airbrushed future copies, but employees at the time made off with some originals, and the un-edited artwork can score thousands.
13. Hotel California, The Eagles (1976)
Maybe the reason this fetches so much money is that no one wants to part with it! We can’t blame them—Hotel California is not only an amazing album, but an iconic song. But if you’re brave enough to sell your mint condition copy, you can probably see a hefty price tag.
14. Exodus, Bob Marley & The Wailers (1977)
Though not as popular as Legend, this record was still revered by critics as one of the most important albums of all time. We’d understand if you didn’t want to let that go, but good condition copies still rake in hundreds of dollars in online auctions.
15. The Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd (1977)
You’ve seen the cover art on t-shirts and pressed albums alike. The thing is, not every copy is made the same; if you have a light blue prism on the front (not a dark one), that distinction marks a first press, which can earn well over a grand.
16. Rumors, Fleetwood Mac (1977)
Rumors is thankfully unescapable. It was a best-selling album in its heyday and remains a popular choice even among young listeners today. Because of that, we doubt you have a sealed copy at home, but if you do, you might just see hundreds of dollars. Even mint condition copies can score a pretty penny.
17. Xanadu, Olivia Newton-John & Electric Light Orchestra (1980)
Okay, so we have two iconic musicians on one album? Take our money! Well, actually, don’t because the movie sucked. Regardless, the stunning Newton-John reportedly disliked her photo on the cover so much that she asked for it to stop printing. Of course, original copies survived, and they can earn several thousand dollars.
18. Bleach, Nirvana (1989)
You’ll need a keen eye for detail to spot this album’s value. Don’t worry, they’re easy to pinpoint when you know what you’re looking for: original pressings are white, and the third pressing has a red and white, and a blue vinyl, respectively.
19. The Black Album, Prince (1994)
Believe it or not, Prince himself actually stopped this album from printing…because he thought it was evil. We’ll skip the details, but his epiphany hit too late in the game—500,000 promotional copies were already pressed and sold. He eventually released a CD version, but original copies of the vinyl sold for nearly $50K.
20. Lafayette Blues, The White Stripes (1998)
Only 15 copies of this album were released, each hand-painted by Dave Buick, the founder of Italy Records. We won’t lie: it’s rare to have a copy, and rarer still to sell it, but doing so could land you at least $10,000.
