Collecting Old Sheet Music

One type of paper collectible that many people enjoy looking for is old Sheet Music. The old music is relatively easy to find and is collected for a variety of reasons.

Some collectors love the sheet music for the cover art. Sometimes the collector will look for a particular artist or perhaps they just like the particular feeling they get from the types of illustrations they find on old sheet music. Many will frame these real pieces of art.

Popular songs of specific decades are another area that collectors will look for. Along with songs from Movies and Television Shows, some collectors prefer songs from the theater or showtunes.

Another area that people try to collect is a particular style of music such as Jazz Songs, Classical Music, Gospel, Country songs, and Rock and Roll. While other collectors will look for a specific composer or lyricist for their collection.

Yet another area of sheet music collections will be on a thematic basis. Perhaps the collection will encompasss only songs that have to do with Transportation.

Whatever the reasoning behind the collections, the collector of sheet music can find pieces with relative ease. Sheet music has been produced for over 2 centuries. Generally, collecting sheet music is relatively inexpensive as a hobby with many pieces starting at $2.00 and going up from there.

We offer this grading system for the person who would like to begin collecting old sheet music.

FINE: No tears, no writing, no stains on the cover or inside. In other words (near mint).

GOOD: some wear, maybe a smudge or small stain, inside complete, small tears less than 3/4 inch.

FAIR: Some stains, tears and smudges, etc.

POOR: Large tears, stains, generally 'beat-up'

The Paper Trail offers a nice selection of antique, vintage, and contemporary sheet music.

Our website is The Paper Trail

Collecting a Household Icon: The TV Guide

Collecting TV Guides has become quite popular with many collector of paper and ephemera. The first National issue of TV Guide was published on April 3, 1953. The cover had a photo of Lucy and Desi's newborn son along with an inset of Lucille Ball. That issue books for $1950.00. Any cover with Lucy is usually valued higher than most other issues of TV Guide.

The celebrity on the cover dictates the value of most the magazines. The more popular the star, the higher the value placed on the issue. Many collectors concentrate on a particular star; although there are some who are tying to collect every issue.

There is a relatively new book out for people who have an interest in collecting TV Guides. TV Guide Celebrating An Icon. The book has photos of every TV Guide published up to October 2005 along with a price guide.

Many of these old issues can be found on my website. I have fun things like September 16, 1978 issue with the original cast of Battlestar Galactica, Al Hirschfeld illustrated covers and many more.

Visit the website at: The Paper Trail

John Clymer - Cowboy Artist of America

Born in Ellensburg, Washington in 1907 John P Clymer is best known for his historically and geographically accurate illustrations and paintings of the American West. During his long career he was a cover artist for The Saturday Evening Post from 1942-1962 and painted over 70 covers for the magazine. Clymer joined the Cowboy Artist of America in 1969 and was particularly fond of painting scenes of the Pacific Northwest where he grew up. His paintings are shown in the Clymer Museum in his hometown of Ellensburg along with the Eiteljorg Museum of Art in Indianapolis, Indiana and other museums.

John P Falter - Nebraskan Cover Artist

John Falter (1910-1982) Born in Plattsmouth, Nebraska. Well known for his Americana style of cover art.

Falter's first Saturday Evening Post cover, a portrait of the magazine's founder, Benjamin Franklin, is dated September 1, 1943. That cover began a 25-year relationship with the Saturday Evening Post, in which Falter produced 128 covers for the magazine until the Post ceased publication in 1969. Falter commented, "There were plenty of Rockwell imitators and J. L. Leindecker imitators. My main concern in doing Post covers was trying to do something based on my own experiences. I found my niche as a painter of Americana with an accent of the Middle West. I brought out some of the homeliness and humor of Middle Western town life and home life. I used humor whenever possible." Of Falter's 128 covers, nearly all were his own ideas. "Four didn't make it," he said, "probably 12 ideas were supplied by the Post." Falter also did illustrations for Good Housekeeping, The Home magazine, the Ladies Home Journal, Cosmopolitan, McCall's, Life and Look. (Exerpt from an article on the website of the Museum of Nebraska Art).

His covers are highly collectible today.

Collecting Magazine Cover and Advertising Illustration Art

Artists and illustrators in past decades had to compete for the honor and recognition that they received when they were picked to create the cover for magazines like The Saturday Evening Post, Collier’s, Ladies Home Journal, Country Gentleman, and many others. At the time they wanted the prestige and recognition of their talents, little did they know that in the future many of them would become collectible items.Norman Rockwell became quite famous, as we all know. Did you know that many of the items that you see today started out as a cover for The Saturday Evening Post? Rockwell did many covers for that particular magazine along with others. He also did quite a lot of artwork for advertising campaigns. As much as we love Rockwell’s work, there were many other artists whose work is just as stunning and detailed as Mr. Rockwell’s work. Names you may or may not be familiar with are J. C. Leyendecker, Stevan Dohanos, John Clymer, John Falter, and George Hughes. These men also did many Covers for different magazines at a time when we didn’t have television to watch. Folks looked forward to the new magazine’s arrival to not only read the articles but to admire the cover. Today many people have come to recognize the talents of the Cover Artists and try to collect all of the covers that a particular artist did for a particular publishing company or sometimes for all of the companies that they worked for.You can find many of these original covers along with advertisements from the magazines done by advertising illustrators and cover artists at our website. We offer a nice selection with new items added daily. Most of our paper items include shipping to a US address and a certificate of authenticity. We also offer a Newsletter Subscription for our customers. Come visit us to find out more about the artists who illustrated advertisements and the covers of magazines. We are located at:http://www.tias.com/stores/tpt