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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 8, 2019 at 9:24pm

Yes in the concert poster or handbill in the first uk Muddy Waters tour, Otis Spann was Otis Stann... Only and error... And for this thing, Otis Spann signed Otis Stann, sure. 

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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 8, 2019 at 9:28pm

https://www.ukblues.org/history-of-british-blues-articles-and-essay...

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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 8, 2019 at 9:30pm

And find Otis Stann in this article...

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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 8, 2019 at 10:13pm

Each letter in the Otis Spann signatures are correct and signed sure by his hand... But i think that you see only the T in Stann and this is the problem. Muddy + Otis + Barber signatures is a great piece of story of British Blues. And Memorabilia uk is a honest and correct seller that sold only genuine autographs like Tracks uk.

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Permalink Reply by Tacoma Blues on February 12, 2019 at 8:27am

Mojo:

I am not going to respond further to this thread beyond this last comment. You seem settled that these graphs are authentic, and that is your call. I wish you well should you decide to proceed with the acquisition. I thought I would give you a slightly more detailed explanation of why I am quite sure these graphs are not authentic. First are three examples of Otis Spann signature from this web site.

1. As you noted, I have real concerns about the misspelling of Spann's last name. He knew how to spell his name. Even though there was the typo of his name in the 1958 program, the same misspelling in the reported signature smells to me like someone forged his graph from that program typo. He would not purposefully misspell his own name on the signature.
2. Note the S in his first name. Otis did not connect the S to other letters. He simply dropped the S. Similarly, the crossing of the T in his first name was consistently an independent stroke of the pen. It was not connected to any other letter. The reported example from 1958 seems much too polished
3. Finally, there are too many inconsistencies in the letter formation in the additional text. For example, look at "i" and "o" in Piano versus Chicago. These don't look the same hand to me at all.

Finally, here is 1958 UK LP signed by Muddy and Otis which I am very confident is authentic:

The Spann is spot on with the earlier shown signatures. The Muddy also matches known examples, including the formation of the "M" in Muddy and the presence of the "s" in Waters. I am not doubting the integrity of the original auction house or seller which provided these items. I don''t know their reputation personally. I am simply evaluating the signatures on their own merits. I have numerous copies of Muddy and Spann in my collection, and there is a general consistency in the signatures over time that is not shown in the given example.

I do not wish to argue the validity of the shown piece. That is your call. I simply thought I would go into a little more detail to explain the variances  I see and perhaps help other collectors in the future as they review such things. Thanks.

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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 12, 2019 at 8:49am

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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 12, 2019 at 8:50am

Recordmecca piece bought from an Uk signed in person... 

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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 12, 2019 at 8:53am

You continue but you don't have any signed piece of Otis or Muddy real signed in 1958... The signatures change during the years my friend... 

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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 12, 2019 at 8:59am

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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 12, 2019 at 9:03am

That Lp is a 1958 press maybe but not the signatures my friend...

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Permalink Reply by Mr Mojo Risin on February 12, 2019 at 10:19am

you don't help the collector in this way, but you want to say that the signatures are all fake. If you want study a signature you must have 20 examples of that signature.. 

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Permalink Reply by Tacoma Blues on February 12, 2019 at 12:24pm

I only commented on the Spann & Waters graphs. The others I am not familiar enough with to speak to . There are differences of opinion on this forum, and that is okay. I said from my personal perspective in anything I wrote. There are pieces I have purchased on a gut feel when others were uncertain, and I give you the same leeway.  This is not personal. I only articulated my reasons for the feedback I offered. Your example of the Record Mecca was solid and proves one of your points. The cumulative other items I listed still form the reasons for my feedback. Might I be wrong? Yes. So might you. That is why we all make our own decisions in building our collections. The Blues & Gospel example above if from 1964. I have the signed program from the event with several of the shown graphs that match.

This thread is going downhill and becoming personal. That was never my intent other then to offer an educated piece of feedback as was originally requested. I stand by my initial thoughts, but they are only my own. We each decide what is useful for ourselves in this forums. Best wishes in your collection.

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