Once again a crazy-rare find in storage has made us unlikely to throw out all the junk in our closets. Record collector Jeff Gold has come across a cache of 149 Bob Dylan acetates, which were found stored in the building where the songwriter rented a room for recording purposes during his stay in the West Village of Manhattan. The acetates were pressed live by Dylan while he experimented during the recordings of the albums Nashville Skyline, Self Portrait and New Morning.
The man who sold Gold the acetates had found a box labelled "Old Records," recognized the address of Columbia Records and a Bob Dylan song title and figured they could be worth something. Something indeed. Among the recordings found on the pressings were previously unheard versions of tracks from the studio releases. Some feature the entire albums laid out in a different sequence than the original album.
The good news and bad news for hardcore record collectors is that Gold is selling a few of the found items on RecordMecca. The bad news, of course, is that it will cost you. An original sequencing of the album Nashville Skyline is currently listed for $7,000.
Everyone who goes to Record Store Day knows that the best part about vinyl versions of your favorite albums are the bonus tracks that don't come on the CD version. Gold hasn't put any of these on sale yet but there were a number of cover songs included among the stash. Dylan seemed to be in a Johnny Cash kind of mood at the time, as electric guitar versions of "Ring of Fire" and "Folsom Prison Blues" were among the acetates.
Gold and friends made digital copies of the most interesting titles, but no word on if (legal reasons) or when they might become available to the public.
