Great to see the gang, as always. And thanks to all who pre-orded the new book, and bought 45s from me.
I had not been to A-town since the spring of 2013; that show was a disaster for me (one reason I stopped attending). I wasn't prepared for the appearance of a legendary collector / dealer. Bumped into him and said hello at breakfast in the hotel where I stayed, and he mentioned having a list of "better stuff". I bought a few cool 45s, some for upgrades, which will soon make a couple of collector pals very happy.
A tasty smattering of top-shelf New England 45s on the 5 page list: J. Goon & Belvederes; Mystic Five "It doesn't Matter"; Rogues (Peyton); Levis (Fleetwood) What Fours (Fleetwood); Shilos (Norfolk); New Fugitives (Glo); Eastern Alliance; Travis Pike's Tea Party; Specters (Melbourne) Triangle (Fun); Outside In; Florian Monday "Rip It Up"; some Aussie 45s - In-Sect (three of theirs, I snagged my fave), Derek's Accent, Moods, Sunsets, several monsters - Human Expression "Love At Psychedelic Velocity", Dovers "Third Eye"; Scorpio Tube; Beachnuts (Showcase); Remaining Few (Askel) mixed in with a fairly priced cross-section of U.S garage & psych 45s.
Needless to say, several of us die-hards were transfixed at his table. I'm sure he left the show a lot richer - many 45s left the boxes (I think he may offer what did not sell at the show here on G45 as set-sale items soon - will keep you non attendees posted). Otherwise, while traversing 'round the aisles, I spotted good, decent, and mostly lousy low-end garage along with the usual, overgraded and overpriced discs that have been fixtures in some dealer boxes for nearly a decade. As I only arrived for Friday and the Saturday show, I don't know what else was found or dealt during the week - told it 'twas nothing much to be had although I caught wind of a Benders 45 ending up in a friend's collection.
As Mr. Heikotter77 noted, many of the long time legends were no-shows, either for health reasons, or because they bailed for the Ponderosa stomp. The latter really missed out this time!
I had a fun time, but the upbeat nature cast some jarring melancholy when I got the news that three collectors I've known for years had either passed away recently, or, in one case, who told me while I chatted with him that he just got diagnosed with a near-fatal illness before heading to t he show, which just floored me. You'd never guess by his appearance. It made me well-aware of how fleeting all of this is in the grand scheme of things.
