Old Vinyl Records That Are Worth Thousands Today

Year: 1972
Record label: ABC Records 
Worth Today: $1450.00*

Recorded in 1972 in Los Angeles’ The Village Recorder, Can’t Buy A Thrill was Steely Dan’s debut album. It was released in November of 1972, and it marked the beginning of a successful career for the American rock band. The classic rock album kicked off with “Do It Again” and ended with “Turn That Heartbeat Over Again.”

Steely Dan – Can’t Buy A Thrill ©Steely Dan / Pinterest.com | ©discogs / Pinterest.com

The band was founded by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, who did most of the vocals and instrumentals by themselves. Releasing music from 1971 to 1981, and again starting in the 1990s, they have seen massive commercial success.

The artwork on Can’t Buy a Thrill was done by Robert Lockhart and features a scene from Rouen, France (it was banned in Spain). The album’s cover art was later called the seventies “most hideous album cover” by Steely Dan’s own members.

Year: 1966
Record label: Capitol Records
Worth Today: $125,000*

Sometimes, it’s not just the record itself that draws attention, but the artwork. 1966’s Yesterday & Today by The Beatles proved to be famous for more than just John and Paul’s lyrical talents. The compilation album originally had the band on the cover covered in meat. The record label wasn’t too thrilled so decided to swap it out for something more palatable. 

article-image-old-vinyl-that-could-be-worth-thousands-the-beatles-yesterday-today-2

Yesterday and Today was the Beatles’ ninth album on Capitol Records, and it actually contained songs that Capitol refused to release from the band’s EMI albums. It also had songs that the Beatles released elsewhere in non-album form. The idea was to drive up fan purchasing, and Capitol ended up being very successful in that.

There are a select few versions of the album with the original cover still circulating. In February 2013, one such copy sold for $125,000. That’s a lot of money to spend on one circular piece of plastic, but it’s gold dust to collectors. 

Year: 1997
Record label: Parlophone, Hollywood 
Worth Today: $1413.00*

Queen Rocks is unique for Queen. It is a compilation album, but it doesn’t really follow the usual “Greatest Hits” format. Instead, it focuses on deep tracks (though there are a few hits). Other tracks on Queen Rocks include songs that weren’t released as singles, including “Sheer Heart Attack,” “Tear It Up,” and “Put Out the Fire.”

Queen – Queen Rocks @aqueenofmagic / Twitter.com @THEDREAMASTER / Youtube.com

This unique album was manufactured by EMI. In Europe, it was released on Parlophone, but in America, the label credited is Hollywood. Queen Rocks also featured songs without Freddie Mercury on them, yet another reason that this record is a dark horse among the Queen discography.    

Formed in London in 1970, the band comprised of Freddie Mercury, its charismatic buck-toothed leader, Brian May, Roger Taylor, and John Deacon. Queen’s music can be described as pop-rock, progressive rock, and metal.

Year: 1956
Record label: RCA Victor 
Worth Today: $1530.00*

Rock N Roll by Elvis Presley was the UK version of the rock star’s debut album. In America, Presley’s debut was eponymous. Rock N Roll, at the time of its release, was still very novel for certain major labels. The genre itself was uncharted waters for major labels, but Rock N Roll proved the success of the genre.

Elvis Presley – Rock ‘N’ Roll ©ChrisJericho / Facebook.com / ©amazon.com

The album would sell over one million units, making RCA, the record label on which it was recorded, its first million-dollar album. William Robertson took the photo that is on the album cover. Rock N Roll’s album cover made Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Album Covers” list in 1991.

While Elvis died young, and in a compromising position, his legacy still lives on today, both in his music and his family, who work in entertainment as well. Currently, his granddaughter Riley Keough is a successful actress.

Year: 1958
Record label: Kensington
Worth Today: $3,500*

Before Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and John Lennon found Ringo Starr and became The Beatles, they were busy trying to make a name for themselves as The Quarrymen. In a bid to take their first steps to success, the group recorded a cover of Buddy Holly’s “That’ll Be The Day.” 

The Quarrymen | That’ll Be The Day ©ebay | @ebaycouk/Pinterest

The single was never properly released, with Paul only pressing around 50 copies to give to family and friends as a gift. The original copy might be worth an extraordinary amount of money, but reprints still come with a price tag of over $3,500.

In 1997, the Quarrymen had a joyous reunion when the four original, surviving members joined up to play a concert together. They were performing at the fortieth anniversary of McCartney and Lennon meeting (they met at a garden fete). Today, three original members still perform under the Quarrymen band name.

Year: 1958
Record label: Blue Note Records
Worth Today: $1800.00*

RIAA certified Blue Train as a Gold record for a good reason. This John Coltrane studio album was released in January of 1958 to epic acclaim. The record label behind Blue Train was Blue Note Records, and Blue Train would be the only Coltrane album recorded with Blue Note with Coltrane as the leader of the session.

John Coltrane – Blue Train ©RobbAnayaa / ©EdwardHMO / Twitter.com

Recording took place at the Van Gelder Studio. Almost all of the tracks were written by Coltrane himself, and the musician was in the middle of his residency at Five Spot (a New York City jazz club) with Thelonious Monk. Miles Davis, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jonas are the others credited on this classic hard bop album.

The album is considered one of his all time best, which is saying a lot for such a prolific jazz musician. Key songs that have endured from this album include “Lazy Bird” and “I’m Old Fashioned”.

Year: 1973
Record Label: Columbia
Worth Today: $5,000*

Many people might assume that Bruce Springsteen found instant success when he released Born to Run, but he had been hard at the grind for some time prior. His first single was 1973’s “Spirit in the Night.” At the time of its release it largely went unnoticed, but when The Boss hit the bigtime the single became increasingly sought after. 

Bruce Springsteen @Gail Mihalkanin / Pinterest.com | Spirit in the Night (1973) / Wikipedia.org

Only a limited amount were pressed, so if you have a promotional copy lurking in your record collection it could fetch hundreds. The originals come at a much heftier cost, usually setting lucky buyers back around $5,000.

The backstory behind “Spirit in the Night” is interesting. Clive Davis, upon receiving Springsteen’s debut album, became concerned about commercial appeal after he received the record. He refused to release it without more singles, and that led to Springsteen writing “Spirit in the Night,” as well as “Blinded by the Light.”

Year: 1930
Record label: Paramount
Worth Today: $37,100*

Who doesn’t love a rare blues record? Tommy Johnson released Alcohol and Jake Blues in 1930 after landing a distribution deal with Paramount. Even back then, that was a huge deal. The master tapes to the record no longer exist, making every single copy (and there are few) invaluable. 

Tommy Johnson | Wikipedia.org

Johnson was one of the most influential American Delta blues musicians to record during the late twenties, and his style influenced the styles of other artists (whose vinyls are likely worth a pretty penny nowadays) like Howlin’ Wolf, Robert Nighthawk, and Canned Heat, a band that got its name from Johnson’s song, “Big Road Blues.”

In 2013, buyer John Tefteller shelled out $37,100 to become the proud new owner of one copy. He already had one, but according to him, this version was in much better condition. The purchase made sense to him as the vinyl is just so rare it would be stupid not to buy it!

Year: 1986-1987
Record label: Warner Records
Worth Today: $42,300*

In 1987, Prince released The Black Album. The promo edition of this vinyl was somewhat obscure. There was no printed title, credits, photograph, or artist’s name. It was simply a black-sleeved disc. Only one emblem was present on the vinyl: a number “25677” on the disc itself.

Prince ©Featureflash Photo Agency / Shutterstock.com | The Black Album (aka "The Funk Bible") @RACCOONFM1 / Twitter.com

The stylized way he released this album, as well as his general style and demeanor have no doubt influenced the generation of artists after him. His androgynous dress and flamboyant fashions can be pointed to when looking at the pop stars of today, like Harry Styles.

The commercial version of this vinyl had the same number, just in pink. The Black Album was Prince’s response to criticism that he’d become too pop-oriented. The album had heavy subject matter. Prince ordered TBA to be withdrawn shortly after its release, as he was convinced it was “evil.” He replaced it with Lovesexy.

Year: 1969
Record label: Deram Records
Worth Today: $6,669.56*

David Bowie was the eponymous debut album for David Bowie, released in 1967 on Deram Records. It was produced by Mike Vernan at Decca Studios in London. It was recorded from November of 1966 until February of 1967, where it sat on a shelf until June of ’67. The style of David Bowie’s first album doesn’t really resemble his later Ziggy Stardust music at all.

David Bowie @CrayonToCrayon | David Bowie @popsike / Twitter.com

Bowie was a natural musician, forming a love for the craft at an early age. As a performer, he was the total package, creating a unique aesthetic that stood out from every other performer of the day. Rolling Stone even named him the “Greatest Rock Star Ever” in 2016.

NME, a music publication, later said that, compared to his later work, David Bowie was “quaint” and “shocking” because of that. David Buckley, Bowie’s biographer, stated that this vinyl album was the music equivalent of a “madwoman in [an] attic.”

Year: 1971
Record label: Tamla  
Worth Today: $3,000.00*

Released on May 21, 1971, What’s Going On came in vinyl, LP, and album form. The soul album was one of Marvin Gaye’s best, according to critics. Gaye was credited as a songwriter on most of the A- and B-side tracks. The A-side had six tracks, and the B-side had three. The vinyl’s latest sale was on August 6, 2020.

Marvin Gaye – What’s Going On @mdiscosqamigos / Twitter.com | @Guitar Center / Pinterest.com

The titular song has become one of Gaye’s most iconic, setting the mood on many a date night. It is somewhat more of a forlorn energy than his other Motown hits like “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” and “Ain’t That Peculiar”.

Original copies, which have hit $3,000 in price, have an inner sleeve promotional announcing Motown releases. The earliest vinyl pressings were made on dynaflex vinyl by RCA. What’s Going On would get a new vinyl re-release in 2014 on the Vinyl Lovers label.

Year: 1984
Record Label: Festival Records
Worth Today: $9,000*

Irish superstars U2 have made an absolute fortune from their body of work. Back in the ‘80s, they were busy recording “Pride (In The Name of Love).” While usual copies of the record are everywhere, it’s the Australian presses that are incredibly rare and noteworthy. 

U2 @Julie Kay / Pinterest.com | Pride (In The Name Of Love) (1984) @zarank_fuppa / Twitter.com

The lead single of the album, “Pride,” was written about civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. At the time, it received mixed critical reviews, but it has gone on to be one of the band’s most well-known, popular songs. “Pride” has been on countless compilations since the band’s early days.

There are said to be only 50 copies of the translucent vinyl ever made, but a large portion of those no longer exist. We can’t be sure exactly how many copies remain, but when they do surface they can sell for around $9,000. Bono won’t be buying it though – he’s not a massive fan of the song. 

Year: 1968
Record label: London
Worth Today: $17,000*

In 1968, could pre-fame Rolling Stones have realized just how lasting their legacy would last? Probably not. The band was too busy dating gorgeous women and living the jetset life of rock ‘n’ roll stars to think about hardly anything other than music.

The Rolling Stones - Street Fighting Man (1968) ©GAB Archive/Getty Images | @StonesData / Twitter.com

Never ones to shy away from controversy, the band originally featured a harsh black and white image of a policeman standing over injured protesters on the sleeve for “Street Fighting Man.” The record label decided this wasn’t a good idea for the time and destroyed all the copies of the original. Only 18 of the records made it out alive. In 2011, one of these rarities sold for $17,000.

Later, in 1995, Mick Jagger would be interviewed in Rolling Stone by Jann Wenner, and he didn’t hold back. Jagger said that he thought that the seventies’ unrest was “a very good thing.” Jagger, according to his bandmates, was even part of the Grosvenor Square demonstrations and was arrested and charged by police. 

Year: 1968
Record label: Apple Records
Worth Today: $790,000*

The Beatles are so huge it’s only natural that they’ve got several special vinyls to their name. Their self-titled double album from 1968 became affectionately known as The White Album. While it sold an astronomical amount of copies, Ringo Starr held on to the very first copy ever pressed. 

The Beatles @Melanie Dacus / Pinterest.com | The Beatles (White Album) @vvangopher / Twitter.com

The drummer held on to the record with the serial number ‘000001’ right up until 2015 when he decided to let it go to auction. Julien’s in the U.S. found a buyer for Ringo’s prized possession, collecting $790,000. Incidentally, Starr’s drum kit also sold the same day for an astonishing $2.2 million.

For those who may not know, the Beatles founded Apple Records in 1968. It was originally their creative outlet, and, as time went on, other artists appeared on the record, including Badfinger, Billy Preston, Mary Hopkin, and James Taylor. When the Beatles went solo, Apple Records was home to their mid-seventies solo releases.