Logo DON and CHRIS' OLD STUFF WHOLESALE VINTAGE ANTIQUES and COLLECTIBLES
All items guaranteed old and original. MC, Visa, Am Exp, Discover, and PayPal accepted. - Public Welcome

Spacer
Vintage Wholesale
Antiques
and
Collectibles
Down Arrow Key
Spacer


Spacer
Spacer
Ordering Shipping Spacer*Spacer Our Guarantee Spacer*Spacer About Us Spacer*Spacer Contact Us Spacer*Spacer Privacy Policy Spacer*Spacer View Cart Spacer
0
Your Cart:
$0.00

Guide to Buying, Selling, and Collecting Vintage Music Related Backstage Passes


Music related backstage passes are one of the most interesting and rapidly expanding areas of collecting. Sports backstage passes and backstage passes of all other sorts aren’t far behind. We are the largest wholesaler of backstage passes in the world and have vast experience selling them. You can check out our vast array of dealer priced backstage passes by CLICKING HERE.


This time period reminds me of back when Halloween collecting caught on. In the 1980s, some articles were written in The Antique Trader about what a wonderful collectible Halloween items would make. Shortly thereafter, they caught on. They were very inexpensive and plentiful for awhile, but, as time passed, the supply dwindled and prices went way way up.


Music related backstage passes have caught on similarly over the past few years.  They are at the stage where the supply is still good for some of them, but dwindling for others, and the demand is growing. Collectors and investors are snapping up the ones that they believe will have the most value when the supplies start to dry up.


So, you might be thinking, how do you know which ones will have the most value, and how soon will the supplies dry up. We will go into both of those topics later in this guide.


What is a backstage pass?


For the most part, a backstage pass is a credential that identified that the wearer had access to various areas during an event. They came into widespread use around 1979/80 (more about that later). They are still used at most music events (concerts, festivals, etc.), most large sporting events (baseball, football, wrestling, boxing, etc.), political rallies, large fireworks displays, TV/Movie/Theatre events, Comedy act events, and much much more.


Who collects/buys backstage passes?


A lot of backstage passes are sold to music collectors.  A lot are also sold by collectibles dealers as conversation pieces. Some are also sold to decorators who combine the passes with other items like tickets and photos and perhaps a signed guitar in a display box. Many collectors frame them. They make a beautiful collage of any given artist.


a) Collectors

- Some collectors want only one band, e.g. Van Halen only.  Some want passes from a genre and or era, e.g. Classic Rock bands from the 1990s. Some want passes made for radio stations. Some want only All Access passes. Some collect music festival passes. Some only collect ones with a picture of the full band on them. Some even collect passes that glow in the dark (they do make a fun display when you turn the lights out, and there are more than you think out there). There is no end to what they collect really, and new collectors are joining in on a daily basis.


b) Gifts/Conversation pieces

- Backstage passes are often bought for a reasonably priced gift. For example, let’s say your husband/wife is really into Van Halen music. For ten to twenty bucks retail you can buy them a genuine Van Halen backstage tour pass. It’s a personal gift that someone can really relate to. Did you know that 90% of the population listens to an average of 32 hours of music a week (according to Nielsen Ratings). The gift market is huge and growing rapidly.


c) Decorators

- I have seen some awesome displays used by decorators. For example, one display had a picture of Van Halen in the center surrounded by backstage passes and tickets and other memorabilia. It was perfect for a music room.


d) Investors

- Some knowledgeable people, and some speculators, believe that backstage passes will be traded like baseball cards one day.  As an example, there would be, and already are to some extent, investors wanting every Van Halen pass from tour 1 and every Van Halen pass from tour 2, etc. etc.  Some tours will be more desirable than others and some will be in short supply. As time passes, getting complete sets could be nearly impossible without spending a fortune. Who knows what a complete set of Bob Dylan passes might be worth (there are probably around 150 or so different)? They might go for crazy money one day. So, the idea is buy them now on the cheap, and try to make a killing later with what will be very rare sets over time. Investors are trying to get as many different types of passes as they can from top name artists before the the supply dissipates (more on that later).


Here’s a little history


Back in the 1950s and 60s, it was easier to get backstage. A pretty girl or someone with a business card that looked official could usually get there. As time passed, and concerts and venues got bigger and more complicated, more security was needed to limit access to only individuals who needed to be there. By the 1970s there was a big need and no solution.


There is some speculation about who invented the first modern type of backstage pass, but it is most commonly believed that it was Dave Otto and the OTTO printing company who grew to be the largest music industry printer in the world. In 1973, OTTO introduced the cloth backstage pass. It was a square or rectangle made of rayon that was printed on with an adhesive back applied. Some companies such as Fasson and Starliner caught on to this idea, and started making passes too. They were not widely embraced till around 1979 (that story later), but they were made in small quantities before that. The earliest pass that I have ever seen that I am sure about datewise is a cloth pass marked OTTO on the front with a dark brown back that says "Sharks” and pictures a pretty girl. The Sharks only existed from about 1972 - 1974, so they are from 1973 or 1974. I would say they are a holy grail pass for collectors as they are the earliest known pass produced by OTTO, and are super rare.  Passes made between 1973 and 1979 are mostly basic (except some early OTTO examples). Any band could go to a printer and have them print up a pass using a Fasson or Starliner backing. They were usually just two colors and basic. Then it all changed in 1979 when OTTO started mass producing them.


Here is the story as told by Dave Otto (still president of OTTO printing). "Well, we were printing passes for local promoters here in Cincinnati, for the Coliseum and a couple of different venues (1979). The band Boston was coming out on tour. They were coming into Cincinnati, so we put together a complete set of backstage passes as it's known today from Photographer and All Access, Before Show After Show and all the different categories. Five different colors. We used their album cover, which was the upside down guitar which looked like a spaceship. Great graphics. We used that as the main piece of the art. We met them backstage that night and said to them, You haven't authorized us to print these. We'll give 'em to you. You're going out on this world tour. You need a set of backstage passes that will compliment your tour. So, they loved 'em. What we did was put our name and phone number and address on the back of the passes and on the laminates. From that point on, as they went from city to city, country to country, the backstage pass, literally the way it is today, was born.”


When other music groups saw the passes, they noted the OTTO name and phone number on the back, and OTTO started getting orders form all the major groups. They moved quickly to develop the business worldwide and to make the passes difficult or impossible to reproduce by those wanting to sneak in a concert or, even worse, a dressing room.  It was a great idea, as it is nearly impossible to reproduce an image printed on cloth without it looking fuzzy. Within a year, it was a huge business with only minor competition. As time passed they were innovators. They started using laser foil and holographic images which can’t be reproduced. More recently they started using sheet laminates which are thick hard plastic with the images somehow printed on them. Again, these are pretty much impossible to reproduce.


Players in Backstage Pass Production


a) OTTO Printing & Entertainment Graphics

- OTTO has been in the backstage pass business big time since 1979. There were a few much smaller batches printed before that, but they are very rare. They were the innovators and the biggest producers of backstage passes from the beginning and still are today. 


They were and still are considered the gold standard and best quality passes that have ever been produced.


They tend to have the highest value for passes produced after 1978.


b) PERRi Entertainment/Thunderbird

- Here is the story as told to me by Tony Perry (owner and friend of mine) before he passed away.  He was working as a waiter at a fancy restaurant, and always waited on the owner of T-Bird Passes around 1990 (T-Bird was a minor player - Tony told me that they put the T-Bird on the back of some of the later passes to just to keep changing things up.). The guy decided to retire and literally gave the business to Tony, who knew little about it at that point. Tony worked his tail off and after a few years decided to expand the business at whatever cost. So, he offered money losing deals to groups like the Rolling Stones just to get their business. After a few years of that, the business started to decline as he was losing money hand over foot, and by 2000 he could see the writing on the wall. It was a rags to riches to rags business. By 2003, he was out of business. 


The printing and artwork on PERRi passes is often high quality, but the backing is thin and feels cheaper than OTTO.  They were a major pass producer in the 1990s, but not on the scale of OTTO.


When the company went bankrupt, there was the equivalent of a semi full of old vintage backstage passes that sold at the liquidation auction, and they show up at Ebay auctions regularly. Most are relatively common, and they generally sell for about half of what an equivalent OTTO pass goes for. One exception is Nirvana. Most of their passes were made by PERRi and often sell for high prices.


c) Access Pass and Design

- When PERRi went out of business, Seth Sheck who was a former employee, acquired PERRi’s client lists, and applied them to his new company called Access Pass and Design. They have slowly built the business, and now have developed into a competitor with OTTO, though not nearly at that scale yet.  You will see a few passes they have produced for major groups, but they are not popular in the collecting community yet.


d) Fasson -

Fasson has made generic adhesive backings since the 1970s. Many printers used their backings. The early ones can be worth a lot of money, and so not surprisingly, the early valuable ones have been widely reproduced.  The reproductions are easy to tell for the most part. If it is from before 1983, it should have a brown back that says Fasson. Fasson has not made brown backs since that time. Fasson only makes white backs now. So, if you see a pass from before 1982 with a white Fasson backing, it is almost certainly a fake. To confuse things a little more, a few music groups made their own passes with Fasson or Starliner backings. The most well known is the Beach Boys. Gary Nichamin was the photographer, graphics designer, and stage manager for the Beach Boys. He designed and issued Beach Boy passes personally at concerts. He used local printers and both Fasson and Starliner backs at times to produce them. The early Fasson passes can bring good money. The later ones are pretty much ignored in the collecting community with the exception of the Beach Boys passes.


e) Starliner

- Like Fasson in almost all respects. They also have made generic adhesive backings since the 1970s that have been used by printers worldwide.  I have even seen OTTO passes where the OTTO logo was printed over the top of the Starliner logo on the back. This would have been a situation where OTTO ran out of their standard backing and procured some Starliners to fill in. Like Fasson, some of the early stuff can bring good money, but there is not much of it around. And also like Fasson, the later ones are pretty much ignored in the collecting community with the exception of the Beach Boys passes.


What are the various types of Backstage Passes?


By far the most common types are cloth and laminates. Cloth has been phased out since around 2000, and replaced with a vinyl material, but most people still classify them with the cloths.


Cloth passes have a front with a piece of rayon covering it that is printed on.  They rough surface is nearly impossible to reproduce on a printer. The backs are adhesive paper.


Laminate passes are just what they sound like. A cardboard pass that is laminated.  Try putting a laminated pass on a copy machine and see how it comes out.  They are nearly impossible to reproduce on a copy machine.


What else is classified as a backstage pass?


In common usage, there are other items that are referred to as backstage passes, though technically they are not exactly the same. Here are the most common examples:


a) Radio Station Commemorative/Souvenir Passes -

They look like backstage passes, but were radio station giveaways. They were all made to commemorate an event, but in small quantity for that day only. They were made to be collectibles. Some could be redeemed for passes, but most were advertising souvenirs or contest promotions.  They are sometimes marked on the back as to what their use was.  For example, they might say something like "if you are the first one spotted wearing this patch (they often called them patches), you will get to meet Bon Jovi (or whoever) and get a free Bon Jovi jacket”. Almost all of these are cloth passes.


b) Promotional Backstage Passes -

These were passes that were not made for an event. They were made to promote the maker’s business. They are sometimes call vintage backstage passes by people pretending/or not knowing their true age, and sometimes considered reproductions.  Neither of these things are true. Most were made by OTTO, the largest producer of backstage passes in the world around 2002. They took some old original printing plates and produced what looked like old passes on the front, with a newer backing which is easy to identify on the reverse. They printed a large number at that time for promotional purposes. If you were a major band considering using OTTO passes, OTTO would send you a promotional package which included these promotional passes.  Since the potential OTTO customer would see major names like Bob Dylan or Paul Simon on the front of the backstage passes, they would feel like this is the place the big guys come. These are very easy to distinguish.  One the back, in small print, they all say "[email protected]”.  This exact wording was never used before 2001.  So, if you have a 1992 Bob Dylan OTTO pass that has the line "[email protected]” somewhere on the back, it is a promotional backstage pass made in 2002. These were not meant to fool anyone. They were simply advertising vehicles. They are collectible in their own right, but not worth anywhere near the original 1992 Bob Dylan passes. Most of these are laminated passes.


c) Non Radio Station Commemorative Passes

- Some of these were produced to commemorate events after they happened, such as Kurt Cobain’s passing or an anniversary of Jimi Hendrix passing. Most likely, because they were made after the event that they are commemorating, they have never been as popular or sold as well (not to say they couldn’t some day) as regular backstage passes. Contrast this to Radio Station Commemorative passes which were made for a specific event in advance of the event.


d) Reproduction Backstage Passes

- Genuine backstage passes are/were made in such a way that they are nearly impossible to reproduce exactly, however there are some out there, and a fair amount are pre 1980 passes. They are not that difficult to spot. Here are some ways to tell.


Laminate Reproductions - Most of these are easy to spot. OTTO and the other pass manufacturers used a printing process. Most of the reproductions are simply a photo of an old pass. Photographic passes are shiny and have a different look than printed passes. They are almost always slightly blurry. So, if you have a shiny pass that looks a little blurry (not necessarily a lot), it would be highly suspicious.


Cloth Reproductions - It is nearly impossible to photograph a cloth pass without showing the detail of the cloth itself which is clear to see in a picture. So, the ones that are out there tend to be poor quality and fairly obvious, or ones with very few colors that can be photographically enhanced. The most ominous ones, are the pre 1980 passes. OTTO began mass production of backstage passes around 1979.  They caught on so quickly, that by 1980, they were the main backstage passes used. Prior to that, passes were not in widespread use. The ones used (most groups didn’t even use them up until then) were made by small local printers in small quantities and were usually low quality two or three color passes (often just black and white). Most had backings that were manufactured by Fasson or Starliner, though there were others. Irregardless of the company, almost all had a dark brown color to the backing. Since all passes were low quality back then, you can’t tell by that, but…..  there is a giveaway. Almost all pre 1982 reproductions say Fasson or Starliner and have a white backing.  Most, if not all, of the originals had brown backings. So, they are very easy to spot.


Note on reproductions:  First of all, I have heard some people say there are a lot of reproductions out there.  That’s not exactly right.  More precisely, there are a lot of pre 1980 reproductions out there, there are a small amount of photographic reproductions out there, and there are also a fair amount of promotional and non-radio commemorative backstage passes that people mistake for reproductions. If you read the above sections on reproductions, you will be able to recognize most of them without a lot of effort.  One other thing to note is that people generally reproduce passes that they think are high end good sellers.  So, for example, if you see a Pink Floyd pass with a pig on it that looks photographic and it is listed for $100, the odds are much higher that it is a reproduction.  Pink Floyd passes generally bring more than your average pass, and a rare one with a pig on it might bring big bucks, but if it looks photographic (which it probably will), it’s likely a repro. This is a typical example of the type of reproductions that you might find on a large auction site that does a bad job policing it’s sellers (you all know who I mean).


What can you learn from the front and back of a backstage pass?


There is a lot of information that you can glean about a particular pass simply by looking closely at the front and back. Both OTTO and PERRi passes have a lot of variations.


OTTO fronts and backs - The way it worked with OTTO was that you could put anything you wanted on the front or back of the pass, but they gave you a discount or free extra colors if you let them put OTTO advertising on them. Some have an OTTO mark on the front. Most have OTTO info on the back. Some have both. To make it more confusing, some were printed with blank backs or backs with just a rectangle on them.


Here is an example to sort that out. KISS passes made by OTTO were made in all of the variations mentioned above on different tours and even on the same tour. The way it worked was that if they put the OTTO info on the reverse, they got a couple extra colors on the front for free. Some have the OTTO mark on the front too. They very likely got a further discount for that. You will also see some laminates with blank backs or a big rectangle. The reason for this was that the band’s photographer was supposed to take pictures of each person receiving a pass, paste it on the back, and laminate it on site.  Since this was not always practical, you most often see blank backs that were laminated with no picture. There are some that have the OTTO mark on the front that are blank backs too. KISS likely got a small discount for that, but probably not as large as putting OTTO advertising on the whole back. So, don’t get hung up on where the OTTO mark is.  If there is no OTTO mark anywhere, it could still be legitimate, as a band could print whatever they wanted, and I have seen some come out of original OTTO boxes, but you don’t see that very often.


What is probably more important is the actual OTTO or PERRi info listed on the backs of most passes. It will often tell you exactly what time period that backing was produced, the location, before or after the internet, and general time period. See "How to date backstage passes” below for more detail.


Both OTTO and PERRi went to great lengths to produce high quality artwork for the front of their passes. At both companies, a lot of attention was paid to the front of the passes, but quality control was lacking on the backs. OTTO cloth passes were supposed to say "Do not apply to suede, velvet, corduroy, metal or plastic”, whereas laminates did not. But there was no logic to which back they used. It seems that they just used whatever plate was handy. The backs are commonly upside down or a cloth back on a laminate or visa versa.  From what we have seen, this doesn’t seem to affect value much, if at all, because this is really the way they were made and used. PERRi passes have the same exact issues. I think what it all boiled down to was that the companies cared mostly about getting great artwork on the front, and their name (in any form) in as many places as they could.


How to date OTTO backstage passes


Some are dated on the front, and many have the tour names on them.  Tours only last a few years on average, so they can be easily looked up online to get approximate dates. If there is no date and no tour name, usually the information on the back will help to figure it out (unless it is a blank back). One thing to keep in mind about all of this is that if a seller does not show a picture of the back of a pass, you don’t really know what you are getting. I would avoid those sellers. You need to see the back to be sure what you’ve got. There is a reason they don’t show you the back. Sometimes it is laziness, but occasionally there is a problem with the pass. If someone won’t show you a picture of the back, don’t buy it is my motto.


Here are examples of things that appear on the back of OTTO passes in specific time periods to help you figure out a date. There are subtle differences in a lot of these like the order things appear in or the appearance of USA for example, so look closely.


Here is a summary of what you should see during different time periods from 1979 - 2012 on the back of OTTO passes that have printing on the back. Please note that there was some overlap.  So, for example, the marks that appeared from 1983 - 1987 might have very well been still used at the beginning of 1988.


1979 - 1981

TOTTO PASS

For the finest quality in Tour Passes, Laminates and Peel

Off I.D.’s call:

Steve OTTO

Cincinnati, Ohio

513/621-1674

————————————————

1981 - 1982

(Lettering on back runs diagonally)

OTTO Entertainment Graphics Printed in the U.S.A.

1127 Vine Street

Cincinnati, Ohio 45210

513-621-9799

————————————————

1983 - 1986

OTTO

1127 Vine Street

Cincinnati, Ohio 45210

The #1 Entertainment Printer

Division of Jack OTTO and SONS INC.

————————————————

OTTO MOVED FROM CINCINNATI TO NORTHERN KY IN 1988 and so you will see passes with both addresses during this time period.


1987-1988

OTTO

1127 Vine Street

Cincinnati, Ohio 45210

The #1 Entertainment Printer

IMC OTTO US/ OTTO UK

Specialist in Total Tour Printing


1987-1988

OTTO 

200 Clark Street

Dayton, KY

"The number one entertainment printer”

Email: OTTO US/OTTO UK

Some also say "Say No to Drugs” in large letters

————————————————

Please note that a FAX phone numbered appeared in this time period

1988 - 1995

"Do Not Litter”

OTTO 

200 Clark Street

Dayton, KY 41074

(606) 291 - 7700

FAX (606) 291-7795

"The number one entertainment printer”

————————————————

Please note the [email protected] web address. This only appeared during this time period.


1996 - 2001

"Please Do Not Litter”

OTTO 

200 Clark Street

Dayton, KY USA 41074

(606) 291 - 7700

FAX (606) 291-7795

"The number one entertainment printer”

plus the following in another block

[email protected]

http://www.ottoprint.com

————————————————

Please note that the [email protected] does not appear on any pass before late 2001


2001 - 2012

"Please Do Not Litter” on some but not all

OTTO 

200 Clark Street

Dayton, KY USA 41074

(606) 291 - 7700

FAX (606) 291-7795

http://www.ottoprint.com

and

http://[email protected]

————————————————


So…… How much are they worth?


Like most other things, value is almost always determined by supply and demand. The items with the greatest demand and the smallest supply will have the greatest value at an auction. This holds true for backstage passes too, but there is one very large thing to keep in mind. The supply of backstage passes is dwindling steadily, and considering the large demand, we believe prices have nowhere to go but up. Ten years from now we may very well look at the prices and realize we should have kept everyone until then.


a) Supply

- As the supply dwindles, prices will go up. So, how quickly will the supply dwindle? Most of the passes that are out there now were found awhile ago. When OTTO moved to KY in 1988, the warehouse was cleaned out and a lot of very old passes that had never been used were salvaged.  This happened again in 2012 when OTTO took on a new partner and they got their wires crossed, and he unintentionally liquidated everything in the warehouse that they were not using anymore including some skids of old passes that were leftovers from tours that had never been used. Those ended up in a barn in Pennsylvania where they were all recently sold. There have also been some boxes of passes that turned up from former employees and roadies who were in charge of distributing them at concerts too. Radio stations have been known to have a box or two of old radio passes still hanging around also. We have slowly been hoarding all of the passes we can from all of these sources, and I can tell you for sure that the supply is dwindling rapidly now.  There are very few more to be found, but there is still time to get some the ones that are out there.


The ones that are getting very difficult to find are the ones from the Vine Street address (1979 - 1988). A lot of those early ones are in collections already, but there are still some out there at reasonable prices. Ones from 1989 - 1999  time period that are reasonably priced, but many of the better bands are starting to dry up.


b) Demand


1) Currently, backstage passes from rock, metal, and popular pop artists/bands sell the best and are in huge demand. More people attended rock and pop concerts than any others, and so it’s a memory of their youth for a lot of people. Big rock bands like Guns n’ Roses, Van Halen, Def Leppard, and the others we grew to love in the MTV era are very popular. The same is true of the big pop names such as Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Prince.


2) There is also a big demand for cult groups that you don’t hear on the radio much because they don’t fit the format. Some have massive followings and their passes are very popular with collectors. They sell very well. Some examples would be the Grateful Dead (throwback hippie band), PHISH (improvisational jam band), and Danzig (Death Metal).


3) Deceased artists - Whenever an artist passes, the demand for their passes or any merchandise goes through the roof for a few months. This will likely always be the case.


c) Pricing

- It depends on all of the above, but here are a few example to get you started.


Prince Passes - High Demand, Moderate supply of some passes, very low supply of some others.

Most Prince cloth passes retail from about $10 - $20.  $50 for a really scarce one would not be unusual. 

Most Prince laminated passes retail from about $10 - $30.   $50 or more for a really scarce one would not be unusual.


If you take a look at the above example, you have to realize that the supply of Prince passes is disappearing fast. So, if you wait too long, the prices will likely be higher. It is easy to find out which ones are rare.  If you have one that doesn’t show up on Ebay, it is likely rare.


Here’s another example


Rock bands from the 1990s - The price will depend on how popular the band was, and how many passes are out there for that band. So, maybe Van Halen was a little more popular than Bon Jovi, but they are both big names that a lot of people saw in concert.  Which do you think will sell for more. Supply and demand are about the same for both, and the pricing was about the same for both, but since Eddie Van Halen passed, Van Halen passes go for more.


Here are some general guidelines to assessing price:


- Popular Rock/Metal bands Like Guns n’ Roses,Metallica, Pink Floyd, Van Halen, Bon Jovi, Tom Petty, Aerosmith, etc. etc. Any major rock/metal bands/artists tend to be the easiest to sell.

- Popular pop artists like Michael Jackson, Madonna, or Prince are equally good sellers.

- Folk artists are a mixed bag. Bob Dylan passes are one of the very best selling backstage passes of all types we have ever seen. Some of the other big names like Joni Mitchell, Simon and Garfunkel, Peter, Paul, and Mary, etc. etc. sell decently. However, bands/artists that are not well known in the folk arena don't have much of a following.

- Country artists don’t have as much demand at this time with the exception of the big names like Garth Brooks, Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton and grammy award             winners which all sell regularly. I think there is a lot of opportunity to pick up well known country artists at bargain prices still.  There is still a decent supply.

- The same goes for rap artists.  The big names like Run DMC, Eminem, Usher, LL Cool J, Snoop Dog, etc. etc. all sell decently along with some of the very early stuff like Eazy-E. Rap passes are still plentiful and can often be bought at bargain prices.  Over the next few years, the supply is going to disappear with them too and prices will go up.

- Popular Blues artists - Big name guitar players like Stevie Ray Vaughan are very high dollar passes as the supply is about gone and the demand is huge. Most blues artists are slower sellers unless they are a big name like Stevie Ray or B. B. King which sells pretty well.

- Christian Artists - They are not big sellers at this time, but some of the first Christian Rock groups like Stryper are gaining in popularity.

- Gospel Artists - There were never a whole lot of backstage passes made for these artists. I'm not sure why, but there are some people out there looking for them.


The bottom line of all of this is that they are mostly going to be bought up and go into collections over the next 5 or so years, and like Halloween collectibles did 35 years ago, the prices will go up on all of them. I believe the best way to evaluate is to look at how popular the artist was. The more popular they were, the more demand there will be over time.  If I had to guess which one might be the very best investment, I would say buy every Bob Dylan pass you can at current prices. He is probably the best known musician on the planet, is still well respected, and is 80 years old now.  Seems like a no brainer.  You can still buy a lot of nice passes from well known musicians for $8 - 15.  I wouldn’t stray too far outside of that range.  However, over the next few years you may have to.


THIS GUIDE WAS WRITTEN BASED ON MY 10 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE BUYING, SELLING, AND COLLECTING BACKSTAGE PASSES. There are no guarantees. These are my opinions based on my experience with owning the largest collection of OTTO backstage passes in the world, and having sold many thousands of them. This guide will updated as time passes. If you find any information that you think is in any way incorrect or misleading, please let us know and we will correct/update it if appropriate.


Sincerely,

Don Wallingford

Spacer

Subscribe to our mailing list below, and receive updates to this catalog as we uncover new finds

Spacer
Vintage Wholesale
Music & the Arts 
Passes, Tickets
Programs, etc.
Down Arrow Key
Spacer


Spacer
Spacer