On this page we offer a guide for anyone who wants to know if they have any records of value to sell and how to go about it; and information for those new to record collecting who may be wondering where to start.

Do you have some old records around? Wonder whether to sell them? There are plenty of places to take them. If you have lots of not very collectible stuff, you could donate to the local charity shop who will probably have an expert to sort them, or you could try a record shop who will give you a low per record price. However, if you have anything valuable, and this page will help you recognise that, then you will get a better price from a dealer. Most will offer about 50% of the value, but we tend to offer 60-75% of the value. Please get in touch and ask - there is an easy email button at the bottom of the page.

Record collecting is a growing pastime - a great hobby as you get great music to listen to, artwork to admire, and an investment for the future. The value of the rarities is going up at a much faster rate than inflation or a savings plan. This page should give you some hints as to where to start if rock and folk are your sort of music. Please get in touch if you want further information, or a free copy of our comprehensive guide to collecting records.

The best way to spot a collectible record is from the label. Below we talk of the most collectible labels and illustrate it with some of them. Please note that not all of them are pictured, so don't be put off if you have a label that is not shown. It is also worth mentioning that, almost without exception, UK issues of international artists are the most desirable and worth more than a foreign issue.

CONDITION
Before delving into the individual labels it is important to mention condition as this has a huge impact on the value of vinyl. Collectors want Mint records - that is those that look as good as the day they were made. When you are looking at music that is 40+ years old though this is highly unlikely and so dealers grade their records according to how far away from this they are. Sleeves are graded seperately to vinyl and it can depend on the rarity of the record as to how much it affects the price.

VERTIGO
Arguably the most collected label for the progressive rock enthusiast is this "swirl" Vertigo label. Most of the music on this label is great progressive rock and the label looks great on the turntable! The UK copies of these are worth a lot more than those from other countries, but label completists will want all of them.

HARVEST
Most of the records released on this label before about 1972 are collectible. If an EMI logo is on the left of the label it is a second pressing and worth about 50% of those without the logo!

NEON / DANDELION / NEPANTHA

BLUE HORIZON / DERAM NOVA

All the records on these five labels are collectible. Any records from 1967-1970 which are Mono pressings are worth more then their stereo releases. Deram Nova was also known as Decca Nova.

PRIVATE PRESSINGS
There are several private labels such as WORONZOW, DEROY and SRT. Almost all of these are collectible, especially pre-1980s. if you have a label which is neither from a recognised company, or featured on this page, please get in touch.

ISLAND
Early records on this label were on a white or pink label. There were 3-4 different designs to the pink label and each one is worth something. It takes an expert eye to know which ones are first pressings and therefore most valuable. Later Island used a "pink rim" label which is also collectible but not so valuable.

DAWN / DERAM

REGAL XONOPHONE / CHARISMA
Most of the records on these four labels are valuable. Dawn released some great progressive rock and folk LPs which are desirable, but they also put out some pop records which are less desirable, except for label completists. Charisma early recordings were on a pink "scroll" label, and slightly later on the "Mad Hatter" label pictured left.

TOPIC / FOLK HERITAGE

MIDAS / WESTWOOD
These are the most collectible folk labels and most of the music issued on these labels is desirable

ATLANTIC / DECCA

PARLOPHONE / TRANSATLANTIC
There are many records released on the big labels which are worth money. This is where expert knowledge is necessary. For example, Led Zeppelin on the plum and red Atlantic label, or Rolling Stones on unboxed Decca labels. Parlophone were responsible for the early Beatles albums, but they were reissued so many times with just small changes to the labels that there are websites dedicated to spotting just the valuable Beatles LPs! Almost all of the purple and white Transatlantic label are desirable, as are the early (pre-1970) Decca recordings. An unboxed Decca label is worth about 3 times the amount of the boxed issue. Again, please get in touch for clarification or valuation on any of these LPs.