Rarity Ratings

A rarity rating scheme used in the discography to try and give an idea of the collectability of each record. The rating is devised from a number of parameters, including price, scarcity and general interestingness. It is, of course, just my opinion and "what you like to collect" is a far more important criterion.

The rating categories are as follows:

COMMON
Records with a rating of "common" are those records that form the basic foundation of any collection. "Common" records may be easy to find in excellent condition, or they may be less interesting than other records, maybe because they don't have a picture sleeve. Virtually all cassettes will be classified as "common" (whether they are easy to find or not) because few people collect them. You should be able to find these records in mint or excellent condition quite cheaply at a UK record fair
AVERAGE
Records with a rating of "average" are those records that are a little bit harder to find, or are from a country that didn't release too many singles, or maybe have a particularly strange combination of tracks. If you find these records on sale at a UK record fair in excellent condition, they will not be too expensive.
UNCOMMON
Records with a rating of "uncommon" are starting to become collectable, and won't turn up in excellent condition too often (and may be getting a little tatty if they do). As a consequence, they will be starting to become pricey, but nothing excessive
SCARCE
Records with a rating of "scarce" are those records that you can find at specialist events, but that don't turn up too frequently elsewhere. If you shop round you should be able to find these records at affordable prices, but they will usually be quite expensive
RARE
Records with a rating of "rare" are those records that you see but can't afford, and they've always gone when you finally save up and go back to get them. But at least you can tell people you saw one! Usually expensive.
MEGARARE
Records with a rating of "megarare" are those records that are the jewel in the crown of any collection. You may collect for years and never see some of these. Unless you are very lucky, these records will be very expensive, even in only VG condition
IMPOSSIBLE
What do you do when something is rarer than "megarare"? Well Spinal Tap turned their amplifiers up to 11, and I also add an extra classification. If you need to ask the price of one these records then you can't afford it. If you are selling then name your own price.

The discography breaks down as follows...

common (1787 entries)
average (1272 entries)
uncommon (411 entries)
scarce (227 entries)
rare (136 entries)
megarare (93 entries)
impossible (27 entries)

Remember, mint and excellent mean there should be barely any deterioration in condition. Prices should always be adjusted accordingly for poorer condition records.

A number of other tabulations are available: