I'm almost 28yo, and being a product of the 90's, I grew up with CD's and iTunes/iPods/MP3 players (back when they were measured in megabytes!), and eventually the iPhone/Android phones. So I grew up with digital media, and definitely took advantage of LimeWire and other P2P services. However, it reached the point where the music was almost meaningless; having access to literally any song at the press of a button. Somewhat like cheats in video games, they're fun for a few minutes, but you do miss the challenge. I feel like that towards records. My parents never played records (didn't have a player) though my dad still bought records from markets, etc, so they were around while growing up. I enjoy the ritual of playing a record. Taking it out of the sleeve, cleaning it, placing the stylus down, and just enjoying the music. I also feel that I listen to records differently to streaming a song. Streaming music is a space filler, or something to listen to while doing something else (always have my JBL Flip 3 Bluetooth speaker going while having a shower!). Whereas with vinyl, it's a specific thing. I am listening to this album because I want to listen to this album; I'll sit back with a beer in hand and just listen. It's a different purpose. I also enjoy the larger artwork, and am a sucker for limited editions and coloured pressings 😂
I only like records, CD's and digital sound crap, tapes are just OK, hiss and limited top end are it's short comings. I used to take the radio/tape player to the bathroom in my teen years
@Mitchell Denham: Sounds like you have an attitude problem bruh. If you would actually enjoy the music itself, you would sit back with a beer in hand and listen to an album no matter what the format is... but you don't, cause you enjoy fiddling with physical things more, than actual listening. It's only a different purpose because you intentionally want and make it out to be.
I’m 14 and I love all formats. I have a Crosley turntable because it is all that I can afford. I feel like kids my age who do collect vinyl get crap for that but I honestly say that, for me, it is honestly all that I can afford and I’m sure that is the case for many collectors my age. But then when people my age do it for popularity, I call that bull crap, people should buy vinyl because they love the music not for popularity.
Very well stated. Hopefully, when you have the money, you’ll upgrade your turntable. You’ll be amazed at the difference in sound. In the meantime, enjoy your childhood. This is when you create lasting vinyl memories!
The best system in the world is at the end of the day the one you can afford and souds good to you. When you start making money you can always upgrade if you feel it’s worth it. Most of us didn’t start at the point we are now and most likely most of us are middle aged or older with a substantial income. If the passion is there, your upgrades will come in time 👍🏻 But than again, if the Crosley sounds good enough, you have more money to spend on records 😄
Those people giving the younger folks grief about cheap record players forget what us kids of the 60s &70s played theirs on. And those early records of ours are the first pressings of Beatles , Stones and Zeppelin that they pay a fortune to own now. I had a small collection of records until I met a friend in junior year of high school that had an enormous collection. That did it for me. Never dumped records for cds , just added them to the collection. Great topic
"I remembered the time I streamed that album and pressed play on my phone", says nobody ever because streamers don't have cool stories to tell compared to record collectors. :)
I was born in 1957 and grew up in the 60s and 70s. Teen years in the 70s. Vinyl was the only media around for me. I would to a local store that sold 45s for twenty-five cents each that came off of jukeboxes. I also went to a hobby shop that sold vinyl records. I would go every weekend.
I grew up only downloading music, never even bought a cd. Vinyl is the first psychical purchace I made regarding music because the artwork, the vinyl itself and the experience of dropping the needle I witnessed at a friend's house just sparked something in me. Collecting/displaying the lp's and upgrading my soundsystem has been a great journey and I look forward to meeting other (dutch) enthusiasts in the future. Keep on spinning!
i am 60 years old (but only 33 rpm inside)...and i don't mind...i got to see the who with keith moon, led zeppelin with john bonham, the stones in '75 at madison square garden, pink floyd with richard wright, queen open for mott the hoople...and so many others who are no longer with us...i've been collecting vinyl all my life, and sadly purging a few due to moving a few times...but growing up in new york, there were always alot of great used records stores..and i came out of the womb wanting to buy albums...my first album was 'elvis' golden records'...still have it today...the song 'hound dog' was what started me on everything...collecting, performing, etc...and before i left new york, i had over 9000 vinyl albums...i tried cd's in later years, but just never dug the sound...i'd rather put on an old velvet underground vinyl than a pearl jam cd (even though i like pearl jam)...so, we all collectively held our breath and now vinyl is finally back...and it is so true, to be able to encourage and expose young people who grew up with cds and streaming to how the music is really supposed to sound...and what they missed not being 60...best always to ya' frank...peace...rocky
rocky-o I’m 49 years old. Elvis Golden Records was my first LP as well. I was 7 then. I still have that record although as a 7 year old I didn’t treat it very well. So I also have a fairly recent reissue that sounds fantastic and amazingly...is still one of my most listened to records.
Started in 70’s. Took a pause at 89/90 (marriage,3 kids,bought house) Restart 12/13. NOT completeist. Only have around 300. Almost all I want. Missing , about , 20-25 albums and exactly 8 grails. Many bands/artist I only have a greatest hits , which is enough. Only 5 or 6 bands that I want as much as possible of. Stay safe.
I turned 50 this year. Everything you mentioned in your story was exactly the same for me. My passion for buying music in both formats (vinyl and cassettes) started with my parents because they used to buy 45s and cassette tapes and it stemmed from there.. 80s I was purchasing vinyl and cassettes every week 90s was slowly changing to CDs but still buying vinyl once in awhile my local music store were slowly changing to Cds. Cassette tapes were pretty much non existant by mid 90s. (I had to drive almost 2 hours to a store that was still selling records mint pressings for dirt cheap). Throughout 00s I mainly bought Cds and the odd record once every so often and its still that way now. However I'm glad that I kept my records and Cds.
First LP I purchased was Styx Paradise Theater when I was in the fifth grade. My music consumption habits were similar to yours up until last November when we bought a house with a finished basement where I could set up a proper stereo. For me, the answer to Why Vinyl is that I want to hear my favorite classic albums the way the artist/producer/engineers intended. For this reason I try to get VG or NM copies of original or near original pressings and I listen to them with no bass or treble adjustments. I wanted to hear why everyone went nuts for The Beatles and Led Zeppelin and Santana back then so I wanted to hear it the way they intended it. Geeky I know but I’ve heard amazing details in the last year in songs I’d heard for decades on radio and streaming services. It can be very moving and awe inspiring.
I don't have a problem with anyone that prefers to stream music, but they're missing out on the tactile pleasures of collecting vinyl records, holding the albums in their hands, admiring the cool covers, reading the liner notes, marvelling at the grooves producing music, and enjoying the ritual of playing a record.
@TorontoJon : Well, maybe they are just more focused on what the actual musical content sounds like... after all, that's the point of albums no matter what the format is, you know, actually listening to them.
I started collecting music in 1974 and there were only 3 options for music 1. radio, 2. 8 track tape and 3. vinyl. I regret getting rid of my vinyl when CD's were introduced. After a 30 year lapse, I'm back listening to vinyl. I LOVE the EXPERIENCE.
I started with 45's but developed a love of soundtracks & so quickly graduated to LP'S. This was the mid 70's so radio was diverse & there were multiple chain & independent stores. It was & is a great hobby. A great joy.
I'm 25 and in love with collecting music! I have 200 or so CD's and about 40 records, I got into it becouse of my father, he played Dire straits in the car and I frigging loved it (I always say that your latest trick got me into buying rock CD's) and my brother introduced me to Arctic Monkeys so I also started collecting their stuff on CD. I always thought of myself as an CD person, untill my dad got his records from the ceiling and I was in love with it, I got some records here and there. About ten of them. It was this March when I watched some or your and Dylan's videos and you guys made me fall in love with the hobby! I updated my gear and now I love the sound of records! I still buy CD's but my focus is on records ❤️
Started in the late 60's with a portable record player for my affordable 45 records. All the local dinners had the mini jukebox on each table. First 33 rpm player in the 70's was a Dual turntable with a Pioneer integrated amp and a Sansui to listen to Alison Steele The Nightbird on WNEW-FM. Moved up to a Thorens 145 turntable and a Tandberg 310 Mk II cassette deck to make mix tapes from my LP's. Bought a lot of import LP's from Tower Records in NYC. Had to migrate to CD's when LP's became hard to get. Used a DAT tapedeck for my mixtapes. Kept my Thorens for my vintage LP's which I still have today. Glad to see the love of analog come back both with LP's and cassette tapes.
As a 90s kid I grew up with cassette first, and then CDs. I've been collecting CDs since I was 10, and still doing so now! Although here in Indonesia, the physical media has been on a decline. A few years ago Indonesia's biggest music shop (called Disctara) closed many of their shops. But until I was 24 ish I started buying vinyl because I've always been fascinated with them. While CD sales were on a decline, vinyl was making a comeback. And as someone who still believes that music still needs a physical manifestation, I jump onto the vinyl wagon. Also since CDs are getting more expensive (since we gotta import them now), it became more worth it to buy records than CDs (records are slightly more expensive than CDs!). I still do buy both CDs and vinyl of my really favourite albums tho. I hope to continue collecting vinyl! Cheers :D
I still have the first record I ever bought. Sting Dream of the Blue Turtles. I maybe bought one or two more records then moved on to CDs.I moved over seas to work. I then switched to CDs. What got me back into the hobby,I went to a live jazz show at a local venue and next door there was a record store and it brought back nostalgia.So the next day I went back and bought some CDs and registared for a prize and I won a record! I was hooked again.I have bought over 60 percent of my collection from that store and just picked up # 100 this weekend! I love the sound of vinyl and I love the artwork. Thanks for sharing this with us!
I got back into collecting vinyl after I restored a 1915 Victor Talking Machine. I went to a record store looking for old 78s. The bug bit me and here I am collecting and listening to the music I grew up with. The process of playing a record has me hooked on vinyl. Holding the actual album makes it real.
Great vid! I’m 36 and grew up collecting Cd’s and made the transition to records now and couldn’t be happier. Has really reconnected me to more music. And actually this past Friday I picked up a “new release” record from a local shop on the day it came out. And to be able to still do that was soooo awesome. You won’t get that excitement from streaming. Keep spinning!! Cheers!!
Great video, Frank. I agree with everything you said. The thing I love about vinyl is that it demands my attention as a listener. It’s not just background noise. There is nothing quite like dropping the needle and sitting down and pouring over those liner notes and admiring the artwork on the jacket while that record plays.
Great video as usual Frank! I was born in 58 and started my obsession as a small child playing 78's on a wind up gramophone in my grandpa's basement. I still marvel at the sound coming off disc's as much as I did then. Keep on spin'n!
about to be 26 and found a record player at a thrift store and decided to take it home, got my first few vinyl's and fell in love, always been a massive music fan but always felt something was missing with just streaming music, and your right the ritual of taking out the record placing the needle to sit back and enjoy is an amazing experience
Hi Frank, I was pretty much always into music from a baby when I used to watch the vinyl spinning round untill I fell to sleep. My gran used to buy me 7" singles of the Smurfs and the Muppets and I'd sit there mesmerized by them playing. Any money I had usually went on records and the first I bought was Paul McCartney's-Frog Chorus from WH Smith's for 25p. When I left school in 1990 vinyl was being replaced by cd's and living in a small town meant I couldn't get hardly any vinyl I wanted so moved over to cd's and cassette tapes which I could get easily. I always kept my collection and when we got the internet found I could get records again so started collecting and now have over 4000 vinyl records. My friends son has just turned 11 and got a budget record player and he was so excited to have one. It's great to see vinyl being enjoyed by the younger generation the same as I still enjoy it now. Love your videos, keep up the great work and say hi to your family from the UK!
In the sixties I started with 45’s and then progressed to lps. The experience of purchasing the lp at the record store, opening it up...smelling it, yes, smelling it and putting it in the record player... wow, what a blast! Mind you, most of the songs I hadn’t heard before because there was no internet. Of course the art work, the other records they’d advertise on the sleeve etc..There’s a place for downloading and cd’s etc, but none compare to vinyl.
My first album was Steve Miller Band's "Fly Like An Eagle" when I was 9yo and that was when it was released in 1975, right after that was KISS 'Alive' and slowly bought LP's back then..when I was a young teenage I bought cassettes almost exclusively and kept that going until the latter part of the 80's and switched over to CD's and I stopped buying vinyl then. When I started working at a record store all thru the 90's I kept adding CD's to my ever growing collection and started buying LP's then when they were not sought after. Advance forward to very recently I got back into vinyl fully and have re-enjoyed that medium all over again. Saying all of that I'm not exclusive to vinyl! I stream music and still have CD's as well along with my growing LP collection. I will always enjoy LP's and the tangible aspect of it. Thanks for great insight on 'Why Vinyl?' Frank...another great video
Thanks for the vinyl journey Frank. This was one of your best videos. We love your story, your thought process and your sense of humor. My wife is a few years older than me and grew up with vinyl. Her parents had a large family stereo system in the living room, which included a record player and her older brother had a record player in his room. So it was how she enjoyed music. I, on the other hand, grew up with cassettes. We had many cassettes and ways to play them. I didn’t get my first record until college when I went on a trip to Denmark in 1991. One of the guys I met there got a record for his birthday and the sister of the guy I was staying with had a good collection. I thought it strange but interesting. I only purchased a few records when I got back to the states because I was still into cassettes and well into CDs by then. It wasn’t until 1995/1996 that the underground hip-hop culture pulled me in, reintroduced me to vinyl and showcased the DJ (Turntablist). I was hooked and the rest is history. Hip-Hop lead to Electronica, Drum n’ Bass, Acid Jazz & Trip Hop, which lead to New Wave, Punk & Post-Punk, which lead to Jazz, Reggae, Rock, etc... Thanks again for the walk through history. Be Blessed and Keep on Spinning... 🙏🤘
It's the process of collecting, cleaning, playing, recording, reading liner notes, listening, and the community for me. Pretty much the same experience you have with your collecting. I have met some great people over the years who have this love for collecting music and it has enriched my life.
I missed this one! You are the reason I got back into collecting! I had a small collection when I was younger, but never took it too far. Then a couple years ago I found your channel and the fire was re-lit and my passion re kindled... Thanks! :)
Born in 1965, got my first album around 11 or 12. Elton John, Greatest Hits vol 1. Heard a lot of what two older siblings had. Started buying records and moved on to KISS and harder rock. Pretty much followed the path you did. We had some 8 tracks, then cassettes to be on the move. Recorded albums and made mixed bag tapes off albums, friends music and off the radio. In college when the CD craze started. Bought first CD player after college. Got married, started a family, when my son was walking and could reach the turntable, it got put away for a long time. After I finished my basement, I reassembled the component system and started listening to vinyl again. Started buying some records at garage sales, goodwill stores. A friend who was moving gave me a Sanyo turntable and a stack of records. Revitalized the turntable.. visited a record store to get a stylus and started browsing. Took off from there. I have probably added 150 plus records since then. The vinyl community is tremendous to interact with and see what they like. Love the effort that goes into it, the sound, the artwork and album oriented music. Nostalgic and I like finding a used record and wonder, ‘who all listened to this record, ‘ did they gather with friends or discover an artist for the first time..... its just cool.
I'm 52 and grew up with vinyl, but in my 20s I was always broke and had no turntable, I would just buy cassettes or CDs. I stopped buying cassettes in the 90s, and in my 30s I finally got another turntable so I picked up this hobby once again and have never looked back. I'm really into vintage albums when I can find a good deal, they sound so much better if they've been taken care of and in good shape. I'm rocking a Pioneer PL30 with an Ortofon 2M blue cartridge and a Cambridge Audio 651P pre-amp. Sounds great to my middle age ears.
Similar story for me, in the 80s everything was on vinyl, through the 90s CDs kicked in so collected that until mp3 and streaming took over most of that. Around 2015 I started noticing new, cool stuff coming out on vinyl again and a few years later started getting into audiophile youtubers. That grew into me wanting to get back into the record collecting hobby. Right now, I'm at 200 records (mostly second hand) and still have about double that amount in CDs. Lovin' the digging and exploring musical genres, though focus shifted to new stuff and reissues.
My vinyl story is similar to yours, Frank. My mom is a huge music lover. She passed it on to me. When I was about 7, she bought me a suitcase type record player that only played 45’s. When I was 10 or 11 (I am 52), she bought me a cheap record player that played all sized records. My first full album, I received it for my 12th birthday. It was AC/DC’s Back in Black. I still have it. This started my journey. I have about 500 records. About 40 or so of those are 45’s. Of course I have a much better set up for listening to my collection. I’m not going to quit collecting. In fact, my 30 year old son is a collector. I guess he will acquire mine when I’m gone.
Being born in '88, vinyl was on the decline when I was growing up, and CDs were all the rage. I have always loved CDs (and still do), but my parents had a small-ish vinyl (maybe between 50-70, I guess) and cassette collection, and both those formats were way more exciting to me, since I felt they were like a time capsule of sorts. My dad has this awesome Hi-Fi stereo system, brushed steel Kenwood amp, tuner and EQ, and a great looking cassette deck, all full of lights and stuff, and a Kenwood KD-2055 turntable, so it just looked amazing too. I always felt so nice when my parents played something on it. When they stopped listening to it, around the year 2000 they let me keep it in my room, and it's probably then where I got the analog bug, because they mostly had disco albums and music that wasn't really 'my' music, so I just started buying my own, because around that time vinyl was so cheap, and it was there in abundance in record stores. I never set out to have a collection, per se, I just bougjt something I wanted and all of a sudden I had filled a shelf with only albums that I bought, and I've just kept going since then. I don't have a huge collection, considering how long I've been buying and listening to vinyl, but it's quality over quantity, right?
I was a child of the 70s and 80s I loved spending hours at the music store looking over all the tapes! I had boxes of tapes! Once CDs came out I slowly switched to CDs. Once mp3s and online streaming took off I faded away from physical media purchases except for a few of my favorite bands. Fast forward to 2017 my wife bought me a record player for Christmas and I finally got into record collecting. I went with a buddy to a local record store and bought some of my favorite albums on vinyl including So Far So Good So What by Megadeth! I'm all in! I love going to music stores again digging through crates! I missed collecting music and records are truly the best in experience compared to all other music mediums.
My dad was in the USAF. From 1967 to 1969 we lived in Goose Bay Labrador. Then we went to Ft. Worth TX. I got a transistor radio. On KFJZ I started hearing some songs that really steered me into rock. Whole Lot of Love - Led Zeppelin, American Woman - The Guess Who and late at night I heard the erie In-a-gadda-di-vi-da - Iron Butterfly the 17 minute version. My dad let me play a record on the family stereo and I was hooked!! In the 70's my friends were doing a early version of Napster file sharing via cassette tapes!! Even in 1988 when I got a cd player I never got rid of my lp's and 45's and maxi singles. I remember buying that Quit Riot album you were holding. I was stationed in Germany. They had record shops everywhere. In Munich I would go to the WOM (World of Music). I started buying lp's again when I saw them in Best Buy before the resurgence. I missed the Ramones when they were around in the 70's. So that got me buying again! I'm a big Guess Who fan. I found a nice used lp of Road Food acouple years ago. The song Road Food was a b side on the single Clap For the Wolfman. There album American Woman is a classic! It was always exciting when I bought a 45 and flipped it over hoping it would be something great!! After 1 year in Ft. Worth noooo back to Goose Bay again 2 more years in the black hole!! Then one day a ray of sunlight from the outside world I heard AT 40 and Casey Kasem was counting down at #10 Bang A Gong Get It On - T- Rex!! Been a music fanatic all my life!! Great to see so many fellow fanatics are still out there!!
I have burned many of my vinyl records to CD for two reasons; to make them more convenient to listen to but also to extend the life of the recording. I've read that the life of a vinyl record is...100 plays! Doesn't sound like a lot. Of course the records still play after 100 spins, but the sound quality from that point on becomes more and more degraded. One of the best things about CD's is that they never wear out, with proper storage and handling. But I still love my record collection, and what you said about the artwork is very true, Frank. CD's and cassettes just don't have the same "canvas" to create great album art. A good example is The Rolling Stones "Their Satanic Majesties Request". The artwork for that ultra-psychedelic album cover must be seen full size to appreciate how intricate and beautiful it is. (By today's standards that cover is downright garish. But I still love it!)
@@chrisnorton2837 Yes, they're not totally indestructable. But they can last longer than vinyl records. BTW, do those discs that don't play have those paper adhesive labels affixed to them? I have several discs that I put those paper labels on that are now unplayable as the adhesive on the labels has migrated to the playing surface, rendering them unplayable.
@@tomfurgas2844 some with paper lables and some without. Granted, I usually used to buy whatever cd was on sale, but still... bummer. And I've had cds I bought from local bands fail too. Seems like cds can be hit or miss unless they are professionally made.
I enjoyed that Frank. Lots of fun hearing other people's origin stories. My first vinyl was given to me by my older relatives who knew I liked music and donated items to increase my collection. Didn't have the money in those days for buying new. One of my most prized possessions is an original copy of The Glen Miller Story Soundtrack. Early 33/3 from 1954. Helped to give me a love for all genres.
People that love things create subconscious ( or sometimes conscious) rituals surrounding them. How many of us remember our process for setting up to smoke weed? Getting the materials out , setting them up , how we smoked and our rules in smoking with others. I havent smoked weed in almost 25 years but the memory is vivid. We get attached to the ritual and it creates a sense of nostalgia and connection with the process and its powerful. I too am a child of the 70s / 80s and i vividly remember laying on the floor listening to moms Beatles albums and Dads Dr Hook albums. Listening to vinyl now connects me to that young child experiencing the awe of discovering new music and enjoying a connection to it that was lost with the digital download era.
I am old (65) and have hauled my album collection around from the 60s, 70, and 80's. Over covid I had my original 1975 Marantz 2230b reciever and 1980 sony PS-X55S turntable serviced. Bought new speakers and pulled our my old collection. Over the past year I have gotten into Nick Cave, Porcupine Tree and quite a few Blue Note releases. Love the process and I agree with young folks comments that you actually listen to music on vinyl. It is not a space filler.
I got into vinyl because I love Takarazuka theatre (it's an all-women's theatre company in Japan that has been around for over 105 years) and I have a degree in jazz vocal performance. The only way I could hear the fantastic renditions of jazz standards by my favorite Takarazuka actresses, or even hear certain shows they put on that were unreleased on video, was if I got a record player and records! Now I just can't stop growing my collection, hearing music I can't get anywhere else by my absolute most favorite voices in the world... there is nothing like it.
Great video Frank! My love affair with vinyl is very much like yours. I got my first vinyl a 45rpm copy of CCRs Looking My Back Door from a neighbour who got 2 of them at his birthday party. When I got older I went to Sam the Record Man every Saturday for their weekly $5.99 sales. I got most of my Lps this way. I got my first stereo system for one of my birthdays. It was a very cheap plastic all in one system. But it got me interested in vinyl so much more. I began upgrading my systems along with my record collection too. I also got into cassettes as most cars had cassette players and I copied my records to play in my car. As things changed I switched to 💿 cds. But I still kept my records in storage as well as my turntable. I didn't buy vinyl for many years as I worked to raise my family. But once they were on their own, I made a music room and bought a NAD 7120 amp and used my own home theater Athena ASBS2 bookshelf speakers and dusted off my old Technics SLDL1 turntable. I have since upgraded both my amp and speakers which is also part of the fun of the Vinyl experience. As well as a few years ago I began to collect reissues and new vinyl as well as old Lps that I missed the first time around. I enjoy the superior sound, artwork, lyric sheets as well as the feeling of becoming one with the music if that makes any sense. Lol.
Hey there, Frank...Another great video as always! In my case, it was my dad who started my collecting journey...He fished an old GE Wildcat out of the neighbor's trash and gave me a box of old 45's that the same neighbor threw out...Apparently, the overarm on the GE was broken, but it could still play records...I received it as a gift when I was about 6 or 7 and I was in heaven playing 45's all day! Eventually, my parents took us kids to lots of garage sales and thrift shops and I picked up a few records that way, too...My cousin also was an influence, as she had a large collection of rock 45's...Eventually, I got my first cassette player at age 13...It was an Emerson and I bought a ton of cassettes for it...Soon, I had a Panasonic boombox, too, but I never gave up my record collection...In fact, I still have the GE, the Emerson, the Panasonic and most of the records! I got into cassette singles in the late 80's and like you, had a period where I was more into CD's and tapes from about 1990 to 1999...Around 1999-2000, I met a man at work who was forever to be known as my "vinyl mentor"...His enthusiasm for the hobby is what got me back into records full swing and I went back and bought every 45' I missed out on in the 90's...I continued to buy new release 45's and got back into visiting a REAL RECORD STORE in my area and bought a ton of used vinyl from them...My mentor encouraged me and he had such a passion and excitement for vinyl that you've never seen before...He could tell you about artists, labels. pressings, and whatnot...A fountain of knowledge and info! Sadly, after a 20+ year friendship with this man, who was like a second father to me, he recently passed away at the age of 74 on September 5th...He always said that you could count your true friends on one hand and thankfully, we both thought the same of each other and expressed it many times over the years! And he was the only guy who would pick up the phone if I wanted to talk to him at 1AM in the morning! I am at a huge loss now, but I will always remember the MANY, MANY conversations we had about music and vinyl (and plenty of other topics)...I have been listening to a lot of his favorite records lately, esp. from his Top 5 favorite bands (in no particular order...Uriah Heep, Pink Floyd, ELO, Deep Purple, The Moody Blues) and one day, hopefully I will be as great of a mentor to someone else in this hobby (or just life in general) as he was to me! I know I will continue to collect records, as he was the one who re-kindled my love for the format and now I can't stop! Plus, I've invested a lot into my collection and I don't like paying twice for something I already have (unless it's something like a superior reissue!)...Anyway, I've been collecting music all my life and can't imagine a more satisfying hobby to keep me out of trouble than this one! If any of guys love this hobby they way you say you do, then you owe it to yourself to share it with at least one other person in your life...You never know, that ONE person may be the one who takes off and runs with it the way I did!
Hi, I'm a millennial and I started collecting during the pandemic. The format is so amazing, and they're printing 33s for new artists! Love it! And the there's a certain quality to the music that you don't really get from mp4s. Thanks for the vid, made me vinyls more :)
Hi Frank, my name is also frank. I live in Stuttgart Germany. My first record player was a DUAL 604 as you showed in your video. I grew up in the black forest not far away from the town where Dual factory was. Actually the brother of my best friend worked in the eighties at the DUAL factory. So he got special prizes that we could afford. I kept my record collection and my dual, but almost listened exclusevly to CDs after their invention. Yes I liked very much to get rid of the crackles an pops. A few years ago I found my old dual again in my cellar and bought a new cartridge. And was blown away from the sound. Since then I prefer vinyl again and bought a lot of records again on vinyl that I own already on CD. It's a whole other experience listening a vinyl record. Yes I like the ritual too and made my peace with the crackles and pops. At the moment I own 5 Dual players from different periods, from idler drive to direct drive. I bought them mostly for ten bucks on the flee market and restored them myself. I like vinyl and the players. And I like your channel very much, Frank! Stay safe! Greetings from Stuttgart!
Hello Frank in Stuttgart. I love Dual turntables. It sounds like you have quite the collection. Vielen Dank, dass Sie sich mein Video angesehen haben. Frank
Great video. To your 3 reasons on "Why vinyl" i would add this one as #4: Pride! Let me explain: When you download or stream music, even if your phone is broken or not well taken care of, the music will always sound the same. In the case of a record, it is 100% up to you. When i play my old kiss albums and they sound as good as the day i bought them, i feel that sense of accomplishment of holding on to something for decades and keeping it well preserved. Keep up the good work and sorry for my broken english as its not my birth language.
Although I don't have a record player, I still love to collect records and love playing the album on Spotify and looking at the physical record sleeve and artwork. There is something special about listening to an album and having a physical copy of it to hold in your hand as well. Its an immersive experience you can't get with streaming alone. I am a kid of the 90s and grew up with CDs and loved looking at at the artwork etc. Records are the next best thing.
I used this same Logic loop from your intro for a commercial I made for my pirate radio show in college. I will always be able to instantly recognize it.
After abandoning the LP format since the mid 80's I got back into vinyl again in 2000 when I attended a all night rave party and hearing electronic dance music, drum & base, hip hop, all played on (then) modern vinyl records and I was amazed. I started adding new punk, hip hop, grunge LP's to my record collection since then.
Cool video !!! And it is a fact that radio played a fundamental role in most of us (I still have BASF tapes with the 1st show of a Top Rock Band in Brazil - The Queen in 1981, March 20 - which I recorded directly from the radio). I also have tapes, CDs and digital music (mp3 & mp4), but vinyl has always been my favorite medium and is still up to date, mainly for the pleasure of handling the cover and turning the LP's with the greatest listening experience... 🤩🎶😎
I was also an 80s kid, and I had vinyl records back then. We got those Disney records from our parents, and yes, I did the Columbia House thing. Still owe them money. 😀 I got my ABBA records that way, before moving on to rock bands like Journey and Def Leppard. In my teen years cassettes became the trend. Loved the portability, hated the hungry stereo systems. 😡 I started getting into CDs in the late 80s, early 90s, slowly, alongside cassettes. Then I had some cassettes stolen from my car, and dove fully into CDs. I now have an enormous CD library. My first modern vinyl LP came with Dream Theater's "Black Clouds and Silver Linings" collector's edition box set. When they announced this I almost laughed, like "Vinyl? Is that still a thing?" But slowly I started collecting records again, seeing the start of the new vinyl resurgence. Wasn't until just last year or so that I finally picked up a Crosley player. (yeah yeah, I get it 🙄) Now I have a modest yet growing record collection. I still like CDs and still buy them. They're convenient, and can still have some cool packaging. (earbooks, anyone?) But LPs just have that wow factor that makes them stand out. 👍
Listening to music on vinyl is a very deliberate experience, generally not a passive listening experience. You drop the needle, sit in your favorite seat and read the lyrics check out the artwork and enjoy the music on npurpose, your not skipping tracks your listening to an album ... it's an experience ...I love it and have since I got Kiss Destroyer when I was a kid back in '76 ... even though I also transitioned to close in the 90's I never let my collection go and continued to pick up used and new vinyl long after my record player broke. Eventually I got another one and it's still amazing
Love these stories Frank! I had a small record collection as a kid. But mostly bought cassettes mainly because they were the cheapest format at the time. Then I switched to CDs for a long time. Still buy a lot of CDs. But around 2010 I was at my local music store where I usually picked up CDs and DVDs and for some reason the record shelve there caught my eye. I saw a Billy Idol Rebel Yell LP that was in the front and it looked dead mint. Obviously a common record but it was only $5. So I picked it up that day without even having a record player. Eventually looking up records online and discovering Reissues were being made on vinyl. And also finding the Vinyl Community on RUclips was huge! It peaked my interest enough and I picked up a player and been collecting ever since.
Me the warm sound of playin vinyl. I've been in this hobby since I was 12 years old. Started out buyin 45's when my mom would allow me to buy one of them 7 inchers whenever she would be at a department store. As I got older began my album buying ventures. By the time I graduated from Hi School and got a job then I was able to do this. 43 years ago I had a 8 track player in my car bought a quite a few 8track tapes back then when u were still able to buy them. Still was buying albums at the time also. These days I have been able to get my nephew into listen & buy albums he likes more into alternative rock then my classic rock but I still try 2 get him eventually over to my vein of classic rock in time.
I got a great turntable then I got out some of my mint vinyls from the 60’s. (I took care of my records.) I used a anti static bush on each one then wet cleaned them just prior to playing. It has been about 20 years since I played a vinyl. Wow! I didn’t realize how great they sound even after listening to nothing but CDs! I agree now with many of you, there is something about handling the record, getting it to look and play like the day you got it and studying the jacket front and back. The only way I can describe it was a “ enchanted evening”. 🤩🤩🤩
Awesome video Frank . I have always been a huge fan of music. From hearing April Wine for the first time . Being in my Uncle's basement hearing the Who . Guess who . Wings etc. And being on vinyl . I grew up with that. Getting the 4 solo albums from KISS . For Christmas as well a Blondie album . My collection began to grow. Until like you said . Cds began to make their way in to stores and record selections began to shrink. So I shared a similar path as you.it wasnt until a few years ago . That began getting back into albums again. And getting my Dads album collection . It was the memories of being in that basement listening and being introduced to bands like UFO /Uriah Heep. /Triumph. /Teaze and Moxy . Listening to albums with my Uncle and Dad . Brought me back . It is great to see kids going through the used shops here or Sunrise. Picking up an album . Being undecided. Offering my praise for a great pick. Keep spinning Frank . Love the videos
I'm 35yo and I got back into Vinyl 3 years ago because while yes I grew up with cassettes & cd's, I was always playing my dad's records and really enjoyed that experience as a kid, so I figured why not get one or two, and I really enjoyed it and since I do like alot of older music, it just made sense and now I have a ton of records, I love going to flea markets and looking, and the experience is unmatched, also the sound is always nice because records have limits to how loud the sound can be, where CD's sadly alot of them get mastered too loudly or brickwalled.
I know exactly what you are talking about, born 1966, it was the same for me. Had so many tapes from friends, but having the vinyl record was the real deal, you proud possession.
There's 2 reasons why I collect vinyl records.....1st is that listening to a vinyl record on your turntable forces your to hear the ENTIRE album, side one/track one to side two/last track. Obviously you can lift up the tonearm and move it to a selected song, but for the most part you're going to be forced to listen to the ENTIRE album. Just imagine if The Beatles "Sgt. Pepper.." had been released on compact disc first? I guarantee this classic album would NOT have the stature that it has today, because too many listeners would have skipped over certain songs......and 2nd reason why I collect vinyl records is because it brings me back my childhood memories of the 1970's / 80's and going into department stores and just browsing around the music department and staring at all those amazing LP cover artwork. I can still remember looking at KISS ALIVE sitting on the shelf and thinking "wow!"
You bring up an interesting and great point... the order of the songs and what was on side one vs side two, was all a part of what made those old days great... to this day, someone might say, what's your favorite Rush album... and my reply is "I love the 2nd side of Caress of Steel!" or Rush's 2112. for example... it's an album side... "the whole song?" "Yes... the whole f-ing album side is one song!" (it's a journey really)... Ha ha ha ha.. It would not have been the same had it been released on CD first without that context.
Oddly, I've found that I like most songs when listening on vinyl. Without that option to easily skip a track(s), your mind kind of tricks you into liking every song. It's like, "This song is not that bad, and I know a really good song is coming up." I've always wanted to write an article on this topic.
Buying records is a deeper commitment than other formats. It also has a visible connection to the past (gramophones, juke boxes), and home stereos have evolved. I don’t understand how a needle in a plastic groove can reproduce all those sounds, but I can see it happening, unlike cd, cassettes and 8 tracks which are hidden during playback. Only reel to reel machines have the same tangible, visual connection that records have. I have always had records. I’m not a collector, I’m an owner and listener (and a lifelong fan).
Short n sweet. I've always been into record 's from being a child to present day, I am now 48 years of age, love em ,dig em and always will. I am also into cassettes playing them and even recording my favourite monthly show on the radio. Frank, I love your show so never give in ma man ,you're the best out there.🇬🇧
I'm a child of the 1970's and 1980's. I graduated in 1994. I first started collecting 8 tracks then went onto vinyl records, I came from a musicial family. I listen mostly to cds and records. Records to me have more hands -on and memories associated with different songs or a particular band/album. Oh yeah I also did cassettes and made my own mixtapes. I was a member of Columbia House and BMG Music. My youngest son is now 14 and he's been getting into records since last october and has about 50-80 of his own records already
I have had probably 3 turntables when I was a child up to my teen years (My first was a Silvertone record player with colorful lights). Had I known records were going to be collectables and cherishable items, I would have taken much better care of them then, but I have come back to them in more recent years and I always clean them and hold them by the edges. What's crazy is I still have my copy of The Beatles 'Rock & Roll Music' from 1976, and it's still playable and doesn't look bad at all.
Greetings from Memphis, TN I'm 57 and grew up listening to records, so I guess I never considered it a "hobby". My mother used to play Otis Redding and Al Green records on a Magnavox console in the living room which shared a wall with my bedroom. Those consoles where the size of a coffin but had some great electronics in them. Worked in radio for 15 years which fueled the fire. Actually played original label 45s on these Sherman tank-like turntables back in the day (wish I knew what they were). Then it went to carted tunes, CD and ultimately voicetrack automation which decimated small market radio. I do enjoy my records. We have a 22 year old daughter that grew up listening to records, has a very nice system (Santa says you're welcome) and a great beginning to an enviable collection. We live in a world with such disdain for history, traditions and basic mores it's nice to know that we can pass along a true appreciation for well reproduced music/spoken voice.
Thinking about this, perhaps my choice to use the word "hobby" was wrong. To me, music is not a hobby... it's just life. I suppose, for me, the hobby part is hunting down various pressings, forever tinkering with gear, etc. Cheers! Frank
i started when i was 17 in 2009 my mum had a record player just sitting there and after i'd seen vinyl on old school TV shows i got fascinated by it and at 30 i listen solely to LP cassette and CD
This was awesome, Frank! I have the same memories you do, albeit a little earlier, having come of age in the late 70s. But I did a lot of albums, a few cassettes, then switched to CDs, and finally, in the early 2000s, I changed to MP3s, both through sources like Limewire and Napster, and through legit sources like Amazon and eMusic - never have been able to stomach iTunes/AppleMusic, because it was easier and way less expensive.. Now that I'm getting back into my vinyl and CDs because I miss what I used to listen to, it's been a crazy ride. I'm still not totally set up again yet, but i'm almost there, and I can't wait - I have tons of new stuff to listen to, and can't wait to share it with everyone.
As a small child I grew up with records but when I started listening to music on my own cassettes were the standard. Funny thing is the first brand new LP I purchased was Def Leppard Hysteria and was a little upset and didn't know why I bought it. At that time out record player was junk, a GPX all in one system and I wax unable to play it any other way. Who knows what I did with that LP. After that it was tapes until I heard a CD that my cousin got and was amazed. At that time and to me CDs are an amazing piece of technology. I still have the first 2 CDs I bought in 1990. I collect LPS now because I am more responsible and can take care of them better, I have much better equipment than when I was young. And I can afford to purchase LPS and CDs and have multiple copies because I listen to music all the time, the car, at work, when I am walking. Its satisfying to have original LPS from the 60s, 70s and 80s playing at home on a good system. I prefer not to buy re-issues but do buy new releases.
Very well said concerning vinyl records being about the experience and community. While I grew up with a record player (I still have a few of the records,) it wasn't until a favorite artist of mine (Kevin Max) did a PledgeMusic campaign to fund his album. A copy of the album came in the mail, and a curiosity to hear the album on vinyl prompted me to buy a record player. From there, more records began to be added to the collection. As for artwork, my favorite is Blackstar by David Bowie, where fans have tried dissecting the packaging to find hidden messages. Going back to the community and funding the artist who did a campaign has done several other campaigns, and I have a few records that have autographed covers (the test pressing has my name on it.) Kevin's latest funding campaign actually lists the donors on the album packaging. Thankfully, I haven't had to deal with equipment snobs during the times I've gone record hunting (although admittedly, I am not always the biggest fan of hunting for deals.) As a Crosley owner, I have other matters to worry about at the moment before upgrading equipment (such as bills and living.) For laughs, I have been wanting to recommend they create a crowdfunding campaign to buy me a new record player while I take care of my bills.
Same thing happened to me. But once I got sick and tired of CDs in the late 90's I stopped buying them entirely and went back to Vinyl as the only media source i purchase. I still record my new records on the first play to cassette on my restored Pioneer Elite deck on NOS Maxell XLII and XLIIS tapes. Love records and treat them well!
I still like Cassettes but definitely not as much as records. Cassettes bring me back to the days when my folks would listen to them in the car. Good days.
Like Frank, I'm a middle aged guy who grew up first listening to records and then cassettes and CD. I agree with Franks three reasons for collecting records, but I'd like to add another to the list. I got back into records in the late 90s for a slightly different reason... discovery. I found that I could pick up records very cheaply from theft stores and garage sales. Nowadays I love buying new vinyl, but I still frequent shift stores for records because you can still find cheap records from artists you've never heard of, many of whom will never be on streaming services because they have long been forgotten. Local Rock and Jazz legends, Big Bands, Poetry, Spoken Word, and Kids records, much of it may be junk, but it is interesting to check out! I think of it as Urban Archaeology.
The artwork and inserts always did it for me, always remember "back in the day" just sitting there learning lyrics of my new albums as well as any additional song info that was included. I'm with you , I still buy CDs and stream, but vinyl still sounds more appealing TO ME :)
Aside from the art work and its tangibility, the memories that comes along with it. Like what you said we only have video games , Slurpee and records back in the day. We swapped albums back then and when the double cassette player/recorder was introduced, everyone had their own personalized compilations.
Hi Frank, I went to buy a limited edition double album released this Saturday at my local shop (they weren't allowing pre orders, which you would think they would with the way things are) by the time I got there they'd all gone, sold their entire allocation to one customer (an ebayer). Those albums now for sale on eBay for twice their original price. We've all missed out on stuff but this is getting too much. What do you think, should they have limited sales to one per customer? Was I right to tell them I'll never set foot in their place again? Today, angry I went online and got a flac of the album for free, didn't feel like a win cos I haven't got what I wanted to collect. You don't mind being 26th in a queue and missing out to genuine fans but when someone hoovers up 25 copies to profiteer it stinks. In my opinion the stores don't help themselves sometimes.
I am almost 50 I will admit I had a few records when I was young, but I gravitated more towards cassettes. They were more portable you can listen to them in your car then CDs came along. I still have all 300 of my cassettes that I still have since I was a teenager in the mid to late 80. And of course hundreds of CD's And then a couple years ago I realize that Vinyl was coming back. Back and listening to records as a kid I really didn't pay attention to the quality of a vinyl record until I bought my first Crosley suitcase player just to get me started back into listening to vinyl bought a couple albums from that moment I was hooked the sound is so much different. I started collecting again and now have a audio technical 120 turntable and I got my 24 year old nephew into vinyl( he has hundreds of songs only from being downloaded no physical media) I explain to him how important the physical media is I love going to record store and actually having something physical in my hand that I bought albums have much more pleasing artwork you actually invest more time into your music putting it on to a turntable and listening to it. What if there's no Internet you can't listen to your music without Internet. So he's hooked on vinyl now has almost as much vinyl as I do which is only a couple hundred but I've only been collecting again for a little over a year. I can say I got a younger generation into the hobby!!
I bought albums throughout the mid to late 80's and then switched completely to CDs. I kept most of my albums but traded half of my Queen albums for some reason (my favorite band ever). Then, around 2016 I started listening to vinyl again and I was hooked. I still think some CDs sound better than vinyl, and some vinyl sounds better than CDs. There's not a clear cut winner in my opinion. I do love the bigger artwork, that's for sure. I enjoy collecting both and is a great journey. Frank, thanks again for a another great video!
I got into listening to vinyl records in 2006 when i found my parents record collection in the garage of the house i live in now. Found classic rock like Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Elton John, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, The Beatles, and the list goes on. Ever since i started buying LPs i haven't stopped sold off some and trashed some that were just in bad shape. I bought cassettes first in about 1999 then quickly switched to CDs in 2000. I have a bigger CD collection but love the experience of putting on an album to the packaging and superior sound quality and some might dissagree and good for your own opinion. I have slowed down with buying records since im running out of room for more.
In 1971 I was just 13 years old, my older brother was listening to rock music on the radio and his friends knew some things, but only the basics. One day I overheard "The Changeling" by The Doors on the radio and went crazy. That's it! The next day we went to the record store in the neighborhood to buy it (I'm talking about the single), but unfortunately he did not have it ... We did not leave empty-handed, we got the "Fire And Water" LP by Free! Everything was new to me, but where to listen to the album? We went to a friend of my brother's who was listening to records from his father's turntable. There I saw for the first time, a huge collection of ... 50-60 records. I had contracted the disease, but the symptoms were not yet obvious. We continued to buy records in the limited rock music market of that time, until my brother went to America for military training. I gave him a list, because I was already listening to blues and records of this kind was rare in Greece. Fortunately he found many of them. When it came time for the cd we all fell into the trap. I made a collection of 500 cd's without stopping to buy vinyl. In 2001 I finally realized my mistake and sold them (fortunately at a good price) to buy the LPs. Today I have 3200 records and I am a happy person. Unfortunately my two sons do not show any interest in vinyl, maybe the type of music they listen to... The seasons change. I have to believe that they will be sold in flee market. But until that happens, I will be happy in my kingdom.
Great video I Remember Buying my 1st Vinyll record for my birthday I had $5 I went and bought Fleetwood Mac rumors I was 7 years old My sister kind of talk me into it but it was still worth it then I got in to kiss and that's another story But I Kept Buying records until I got into my late teens Along with C d's And then I kind of lost interest in vinyl Until about Ten years ago I enjoy it the Sound is a lot different Then A CD I need to slow down now I am getting older But I'll never stop it's too much fun I love my vinyl Sundays Keep on spinning 😝🤘
I started thanks to my dad, I grew up on most of the stuff he liked and ever since I was 9 or 10 he would tell me about his record collection, what he had and his stories from DJ-ing in the mid 80s. And from time to time we would check out the local thrift stores and record stores in search of a good record player for a decent price but to no avail. Fast forward to last summer (I was 15) when we find a really nice akai ap-b20c from the early 80s in value village for a around 25 bucks (it was missing its head-shell, cartridge, stylus and belt). Fast forward a little bit more to halloween day 2021 when we buy all of the missing components from a guy who lived 10 minutes away from us (we had some nice speakers and a nice amp at home), we then stop by value village to buy my very first records and on that particular day there was only one...it was B.J Thomas raindrops keep falling on my head album since that was the only thing I was sort of familiar with. On the very next day we got lucky at value village and found The Game by Queen as well as john denvers greatest hits and a tony bennett album. and for quite a while i enjoyed those until i bought my first new album which was a re issiue of paranoid by black sabbath (Probably my favourite album ever) and I knew I had to have it. I am now 16 and my collection has slowly grown to about 30 records and I plan on going past 200. I have enjoyed every second of the vinyl experience since I can also share it with my parents. Your vids have helped me out a whole lot with finding my way through the world of vinyl and I intend on collecting till the end. Peace and love from a fellow Canada man
I can remember as a young kid going into old ice cream shop / small diner with a record jukebox. It was the coolest thing to watch and listen too. Then going to record stores and seeing records and 8- tracks as far as the eye could see. Everyone had record players growing up. I would put a stack a records on my player and when one record was done it would drop another record to be played. I would go to bed at night that way for many years. Records are still my favorite way to listen to music. I have every record,I ever bought to this day. Lots of albums and 45s and 78s.
Living in Japan and discovered a 40 year old Technics SL-2000 in a closet a month and a half ago and found this little jam packed record store. The place was a mess, stacked on top of each other in no discernible order, musty and dirty. But I found Billy Joel Glass House, and a number of others. But then we went to Kyoto and found several record stores all in the same area. I found some of the finest records, Dave Brubeck, Chick Corea, Van Halen II, Journey Escape, Billy Squier Emotions in Motion, Ghostface Killah (instrumental) Beastie Boys In Sound From Way Out (French release with tracks they didn’t have on the CD I bought in the USA. Rush Permanent Waves, and many many more. I’ve already blown a LOT of money on it.
It’s not just how we take care of vinyl that affects the sound quality, it’s also how well is it pressed and mastered. This to me is really the key to good sounding vinyl (though I readily admit the importance of keeping your vinyl clean). One gripe that audiophiles as well as more casual listeners have with modern vinyl is the quality of the album pressing. All too often, new records are scuffed, warped and could even have hairline scratches, just to name a few of the problems. And don’t get me started on how much they want for these records to begin with!!! Also: I’m glad that you spoke up for those just getting into vinyl who have Crosleys or other suitcase or all in one players. As you said, everybody has to start somewhere. If someone doesn’t have a lot of money and wants to get into vinyl, why make them feel badly just because they can’t afford a better system? I’d much rather see someone having a Crosley and buy their records at the thrift shop (which is another whole topic in itself), than being turned away from the hobby by vinyl snobs (Maybe, pal, you can afford a $10,000 TT, but not everyone is as rich as you obviously are). (I hope you know, Frank, that last comment wasn’t for you, but for the snobs) I for one enjoy hearing about people’s vinyl journeys. Good one, Frank! And I’ll keep listening to you and not the snobs.......
I certainly relate to what you said and I love my vinyl. I am now 56 and have all original pressings bought in the day. I may get slated for this but I generally do not like the remastered sound and the costs are too high for my budget now as I am unemployed. Vinyl has its own unique sound and I know a lot of people hate streaming, but streaming can be good, just different, and there is so much out there which is great for my broad tastes.
What's up Frank! I didn't buy any records in the 80s. It was all radio, tapes and CDs. LOL yeah I got a lot through BMG. I remember listening to friend's records like WASP and Lionel Ritchie or my parents records like Bob Seger. I notice your shelves are getting full and lots more collectables on the walls and shelves! Looking good man. Thanks for keeping vinyl records alive and helping to bring in a new generation of buyers. Cheers ~Corey
I have, and listen to all types of media. I never stopped listening to vinyl. When cds came out I did stop buying vinyl. Cds are more convenient, especially back when I used to drink alcohol. Alcohol and vinyl don't mix. Now i mainly listen to vinyl and reel to reel tapes. I copy my new vinyl on reel to reel and mainly listen to the tapes. I've been doing that since I was a kid in the early 70s. That's why all the records I purchased new are in near mint condition. It's a lot of work to listen to vinyl compared to cds . With vinyl you have to brush it, use the Zerostat. Then do it all over again for side two. But it's worth it.
I used the family turntable in the late 80s/early 90s but my first own music experience was CD. I got into records around 2000 and stuck with it a few years, but I did not know how to take care of a record or properly set up a record player, cartridge, etc. and sold the lot. I got back into it all in 2018 with vigour, with adult money, learned knowledge and a passion for physical media!
I download or stream all of my music. I feel like vinyl is a good way to support the artists. I buy vinyl when I go to shows or buy them from their merch sites.
You nailed it Frank 🤘I also started with records and tapes as a kid in my early teens but sold nearly all of my records except a couple of first buys and gifts in my early 20s and went to CD for a number of years and back to vinyl about 6 years ago as a hobby and then 3 years ago as a serious collector of hard rock and metal on both CD and vinyl. Thanks for sharing your experiences mate.
Started out buying LPs, then started buying CDs of some of the same albums i had on vinyl. In recent years i've returned to buying LPs again. Nothing cooler than lowering the arm and watching the record go around and around.
I'm almost 28yo, and being a product of the 90's, I grew up with CD's and iTunes/iPods/MP3 players (back when they were measured in megabytes!), and eventually the iPhone/Android phones. So I grew up with digital media, and definitely took advantage of LimeWire and other P2P services.
However, it reached the point where the music was almost meaningless; having access to literally any song at the press of a button. Somewhat like cheats in video games, they're fun for a few minutes, but you do miss the challenge. I feel like that towards records.
My parents never played records (didn't have a player) though my dad still bought records from markets, etc, so they were around while growing up.
I enjoy the ritual of playing a record. Taking it out of the sleeve, cleaning it, placing the stylus down, and just enjoying the music. I also feel that I listen to records differently to streaming a song. Streaming music is a space filler, or something to listen to while doing something else (always have my JBL Flip 3 Bluetooth speaker going while having a shower!). Whereas with vinyl, it's a specific thing. I am listening to this album because I want to listen to this album; I'll sit back with a beer in hand and just listen. It's a different purpose.
I also enjoy the larger artwork, and am a sucker for limited editions and coloured pressings 😂
Being 26, same boat! Agree with what you said here, especially the coloured pressings :P
I only like records, CD's and digital sound crap, tapes are just OK, hiss and limited top end are it's short comings. I used to take the radio/tape player to the bathroom in my teen years
80s baby, and I could not agree with this more. You took the words out of my mouth!
I am 28 and feel the same way! Although I really miss listening to the music and holding the artwork in your hand and looking at it.
@Mitchell Denham: Sounds like you have an attitude problem bruh. If you would actually enjoy the music itself, you would sit back with a beer in hand and listen to an album no matter what the format is... but you don't, cause you enjoy fiddling with physical things more, than actual listening. It's only a different purpose because you intentionally want and make it out to be.
I’m 14 and I love all formats. I have a Crosley turntable because it is all that I can afford. I feel like kids my age who do collect vinyl get crap for that but I honestly say that, for me, it is honestly all that I can afford and I’m sure that is the case for many collectors my age. But then when people my age do it for popularity, I call that bull crap, people should buy vinyl because they love the music not for popularity.
You are wise beyond your years!
That's awesome. Enjoy the music!
Very well stated. Hopefully, when you have the money, you’ll upgrade your turntable. You’ll be amazed at the difference in sound. In the meantime, enjoy your childhood. This is when you create lasting vinyl memories!
The best system in the world is at the end of the day the one you can afford and souds good to you. When you start making money you can always upgrade if you feel it’s worth it. Most of us didn’t start at the point we are now and most likely most of us are middle aged or older with a substantial income. If the passion is there, your upgrades will come in time 👍🏻
But than again, if the Crosley sounds good enough, you have more money to spend on records 😄
Im also 14 and i agree
Those people giving the younger folks grief about cheap record players forget what us kids of the 60s &70s played theirs on. And those early records of ours are the first pressings of Beatles , Stones and Zeppelin that they pay a fortune to own now. I had a small collection of records until I met a friend in junior year of high school that had an enormous collection. That did it for me. Never dumped records for cds , just added them to the collection. Great topic
true the best of us had a crappy stereo center with a bsr turntable , but boy did those record sound good!!!
"I remembered the time I streamed that album and pressed play on my phone", says nobody ever because streamers don't have cool stories to tell compared to record collectors. :)
I grew up in the 60s and that was the only media available, still collecting vinyl
I was born in 1957 and grew up in the 60s and 70s. Teen years in the 70s. Vinyl was the only media around for me. I would to a local store that sold 45s for twenty-five cents each that came off of jukeboxes. I also went to a hobby shop that sold vinyl records. I would go every weekend.
I grew up only downloading music, never even bought a cd. Vinyl is the first psychical purchace I made regarding music because the artwork, the vinyl itself and the experience of dropping the needle I witnessed at a friend's house just sparked something in me. Collecting/displaying the lp's and upgrading my soundsystem has been a great journey and I look forward to meeting other (dutch) enthusiasts in the future. Keep on spinning!
i am 60 years old (but only 33 rpm inside)...and i don't mind...i got to see the who with keith moon, led zeppelin with john bonham, the stones in '75 at madison square garden, pink floyd with richard wright, queen open for mott the hoople...and so many others who are no longer with us...i've been collecting vinyl all my life, and sadly purging a few due to moving a few times...but growing up in new york, there were always alot of great used records stores..and i came out of the womb wanting to buy albums...my first album was 'elvis' golden records'...still have it today...the song 'hound dog' was what started me on everything...collecting, performing, etc...and before i left new york, i had over 9000 vinyl albums...i tried cd's in later years, but just never dug the sound...i'd rather put on an old velvet underground vinyl than a pearl jam cd (even though i like pearl jam)...so, we all collectively held our breath and now vinyl is finally back...and it is so true, to be able to encourage and expose young people who grew up with cds and streaming to how the music is really supposed to sound...and what they missed not being 60...best always to ya' frank...peace...rocky
rocky-o I’m 49 years old. Elvis Golden Records was my first LP as well. I was 7 then. I still have that record although as a 7 year old I didn’t treat it very well. So I also have a fairly recent reissue that sounds fantastic and amazingly...is still one of my most listened to records.
Only 33 inside... LOVE IT!
Started in 70’s. Took a pause at 89/90 (marriage,3 kids,bought house) Restart 12/13. NOT completeist. Only have around 300. Almost all I want. Missing , about , 20-25 albums and exactly 8 grails. Many bands/artist I only have a greatest hits , which is enough. Only 5 or 6 bands that I want as much as possible of. Stay safe.
I turned 50 this year. Everything you mentioned in your story was exactly the same for me. My passion for buying music in both formats (vinyl and cassettes) started with my parents because they used to buy 45s and cassette tapes and it stemmed from there.. 80s I was purchasing vinyl and cassettes every week 90s was slowly changing to CDs but still buying vinyl once in awhile my local music store were slowly changing to Cds. Cassette tapes were pretty much non existant by mid 90s. (I had to drive almost 2 hours to a store that was still selling records mint pressings for dirt cheap). Throughout 00s I mainly bought Cds and the odd record once every so often and its still that way now. However I'm glad that I kept my records and Cds.
First LP I purchased was Styx Paradise Theater when I was in the fifth grade. My music consumption habits were similar to yours up until last November when we bought a house with a finished basement where I could set up a proper stereo. For me, the answer to Why Vinyl is that I want to hear my favorite classic albums the way the artist/producer/engineers intended. For this reason I try to get VG or NM copies of original or near original pressings and I listen to them with no bass or treble adjustments. I wanted to hear why everyone went nuts for The Beatles and Led Zeppelin and Santana back then so I wanted to hear it the way they intended it. Geeky I know but I’ve heard amazing details in the last year in songs I’d heard for decades on radio and streaming services. It can be very moving and awe inspiring.
Great video! I grew up with CDs, but got into vinyl later on in life. The whole experience of vinyl is wonderful. I love the community too.
Same
When the 90s came around,
I almost gave up playing records But I stuck it out.
It is said that most vinyl records today come from a digital master source. probably a master that is 24 bit PCM or DSD
@@Andersljungberg I mainly listen to 50’s and 60’s music on vinyl, so no digital sources for me.
@@vintageandvinyl no 80s 😁
I don't have a problem with anyone that prefers to stream music, but they're missing out on the tactile pleasures of collecting vinyl records, holding the albums in their hands, admiring the cool covers, reading the liner notes, marvelling at the grooves producing music, and enjoying the ritual of playing a record.
Even better ... the sound vs streaming
@TorontoJon : Well, maybe they are just more focused on what the actual musical content sounds like... after all, that's the point of albums no matter what the format is, you know, actually listening to them.
I started collecting music in 1974 and there were only 3 options for music 1. radio, 2. 8 track tape and 3. vinyl. I regret getting rid of my vinyl when CD's were introduced. After a 30 year lapse, I'm back listening to vinyl. I LOVE the EXPERIENCE.
I started with 45's but developed a love of soundtracks & so quickly graduated to LP'S. This was the mid 70's so radio was diverse & there were multiple chain & independent stores. It was & is a great hobby. A great joy.
I'm 25 and in love with collecting music! I have 200 or so CD's and about 40 records, I got into it becouse of my father, he played Dire straits in the car and I frigging loved it (I always say that your latest trick got me into buying rock CD's) and my brother introduced me to Arctic Monkeys so I also started collecting their stuff on CD. I always thought of myself as an CD person, untill my dad got his records from the ceiling and I was in love with it, I got some records here and there. About ten of them. It was this March when I watched some or your and Dylan's videos and you guys made me fall in love with the hobby! I updated my gear and now I love the sound of records! I still buy CD's but my focus is on records ❤️
Started in the late 60's with a portable record player for my affordable 45 records. All the local dinners had the mini jukebox on each table. First 33 rpm player in the 70's was a Dual turntable with a Pioneer integrated amp and a Sansui to listen to Alison Steele The Nightbird on WNEW-FM. Moved up to a Thorens 145 turntable and a Tandberg 310 Mk II cassette deck to make mix tapes from my LP's. Bought a lot of import LP's from Tower Records in NYC. Had to migrate to CD's when LP's became hard to get. Used a DAT tapedeck for my mixtapes. Kept my Thorens for my vintage LP's which I still have today. Glad to see the love of analog come back both with LP's and cassette tapes.
As a 90s kid I grew up with cassette first, and then CDs. I've been collecting CDs since I was 10, and still doing so now! Although here in Indonesia, the physical media has been on a decline. A few years ago Indonesia's biggest music shop (called Disctara) closed many of their shops. But until I was 24 ish I started buying vinyl because I've always been fascinated with them. While CD sales were on a decline, vinyl was making a comeback. And as someone who still believes that music still needs a physical manifestation, I jump onto the vinyl wagon. Also since CDs are getting more expensive (since we gotta import them now), it became more worth it to buy records than CDs (records are slightly more expensive than CDs!). I still do buy both CDs and vinyl of my really favourite albums tho. I hope to continue collecting vinyl! Cheers :D
I still have the first record I ever bought. Sting Dream of the Blue Turtles. I maybe bought one or two more records then moved on to CDs.I moved over seas to work. I then switched to CDs. What got me back into the hobby,I went to a live jazz show at a local venue and next door there was a record store and it brought back nostalgia.So the next day I went back and bought some CDs and registared for a prize and I won a record! I was hooked again.I have bought over 60 percent of my collection from that store and just picked up # 100 this weekend! I love the sound of vinyl and I love the artwork. Thanks for sharing this with us!
I got back into collecting vinyl after I restored a 1915 Victor Talking Machine. I went to a record store looking for old 78s. The bug bit me and here I am collecting and listening to the music I grew up with. The process of playing a record has me hooked on vinyl. Holding the actual album makes it real.
I'm 14 yo and i'm getting into vinyl "again". My dad used to play us records on a console stereo back when i was a baby
Great vid! I’m 36 and grew up collecting
Cd’s and made the transition to records now and couldn’t be happier. Has really reconnected me to more music. And actually this past Friday I picked up a “new release” record from a local shop on the day it came out. And to be able to still do that was soooo awesome. You won’t get that excitement from streaming. Keep spinning!! Cheers!!
Great video, Frank. I agree with everything you said. The thing I love about vinyl is that it demands my attention as a listener. It’s not just background noise. There is nothing quite like dropping the needle and sitting down and pouring over those liner notes and admiring the artwork on the jacket while that record plays.
Great video as usual Frank! I was born in 58 and started my obsession as a small child playing 78's on a wind up gramophone in my grandpa's basement. I still marvel at the sound coming off disc's as much as I did then. Keep on spin'n!
about to be 26 and found a record player at a thrift store and decided to take it home, got my first few vinyl's and fell in love, always been a massive music fan but always felt something was missing with just streaming music, and your right the ritual of taking out the record placing the needle to sit back and enjoy is an amazing experience
Hi Frank,
I was pretty much always into music from a baby when I used to watch the vinyl spinning round untill I fell to sleep. My gran used to buy me 7" singles of the Smurfs and the Muppets and I'd sit there mesmerized by them playing. Any money I had usually went on records and the first I bought was Paul McCartney's-Frog Chorus from WH Smith's for 25p. When I left school in 1990 vinyl was being replaced by cd's and living in a small town meant I couldn't get hardly any vinyl I wanted so moved over to cd's and cassette tapes which I could get easily. I always kept my collection and when we got the internet found I could get records again so started collecting and now have over 4000 vinyl records. My friends son has just turned 11 and got a budget record player and he was so excited to have one. It's great to see vinyl being enjoyed by the younger generation the same as I still enjoy it now. Love your videos, keep up the great work and say hi to your family from the UK!
In the sixties I started with 45’s and then progressed to lps. The experience of purchasing the lp at the record store, opening it up...smelling it, yes, smelling it and putting it in the record player... wow, what a blast! Mind you, most of the songs I hadn’t heard before because there was no internet. Of course the art work, the other records they’d advertise on the sleeve etc..There’s a place for downloading and cd’s etc, but none compare to vinyl.
My first album was Steve Miller Band's "Fly Like An Eagle" when I was 9yo and that was when it was released in 1975, right after that was KISS 'Alive' and slowly bought LP's back then..when I was a young teenage I bought cassettes almost exclusively and kept that going until the latter part of the 80's and switched over to CD's and I stopped buying vinyl then. When I started working at a record store all thru the 90's I kept adding CD's to my ever growing collection and started buying LP's then when they were not sought after.
Advance forward to very recently I got back into vinyl fully and have re-enjoyed that medium all over again.
Saying all of that I'm not exclusive to vinyl! I stream music and still have CD's as well along with my growing LP collection. I will always enjoy LP's and the tangible aspect of it.
Thanks for great insight on 'Why Vinyl?' Frank...another great video
Thanks for the vinyl journey Frank. This was one of your best videos. We love your story, your thought process and your sense of humor.
My wife is a few years older than me and grew up with vinyl. Her parents had a large family stereo system in the living room, which included a record player and her older brother had a record player in his room. So it was how she enjoyed music. I, on the other hand, grew up with cassettes. We had many cassettes and ways to play them. I didn’t get my first record until college when I went on a trip to Denmark in 1991. One of the guys I met there got a record for his birthday and the sister of the guy I was staying with had a good collection. I thought it strange but interesting. I only purchased a few records when I got back to the states because I was still into cassettes and well into CDs by then. It wasn’t until 1995/1996 that the underground hip-hop culture pulled me in, reintroduced me to vinyl and showcased the DJ (Turntablist). I was hooked and the rest is history. Hip-Hop lead to Electronica, Drum n’ Bass, Acid Jazz & Trip Hop, which lead to New Wave, Punk & Post-Punk, which lead to Jazz, Reggae, Rock, etc...
Thanks again for the walk through history. Be Blessed and Keep on Spinning... 🙏🤘
Thanks for sharing your story as well. I am glad you enjoyed the video.
Frank
It's the process of collecting, cleaning, playing, recording, reading liner notes, listening, and the community for me. Pretty much the same experience you have with your collecting. I have met some great people over the years who have this love for collecting music and it has enriched my life.
The ritual is a big part of it, for sure. Thanks for the comment.
Frank
I missed this one! You are the reason I got back into collecting! I had a small collection when I was younger, but never took it too far. Then a couple years ago I found your channel and the fire was re-lit and my passion re kindled... Thanks! :)
Born in 1965, got my first album around 11 or 12. Elton John, Greatest Hits vol 1. Heard a lot of what two older siblings had. Started buying records and moved on to KISS and harder rock. Pretty much followed the path you did. We had some 8 tracks, then cassettes to be on the move. Recorded albums and made mixed bag tapes off albums, friends music and off the radio. In college when the CD craze started. Bought first CD player after college. Got married, started a family, when my son was walking and could reach the turntable, it got put away for a long time. After I finished my basement, I reassembled the component system and started listening to vinyl again. Started buying some records at garage sales, goodwill stores. A friend who was moving gave me a Sanyo turntable and a stack of records.
Revitalized the turntable.. visited a record store to get a stylus and started browsing. Took off from there. I have probably added 150 plus records since then. The vinyl community is tremendous to interact with and see what they like. Love the effort that goes into it, the sound, the artwork and album oriented music. Nostalgic and I like finding a used record and wonder, ‘who all listened to this record, ‘ did they gather with friends or discover an artist for the first time..... its just cool.
I'm 52 and grew up with vinyl, but in my 20s I was always broke and had no turntable, I would just buy cassettes or CDs. I stopped buying cassettes in the 90s, and in my 30s I finally got another turntable so I picked up this hobby once again and have never looked back. I'm really into vintage albums when I can find a good deal, they sound so much better if they've been taken care of and in good shape. I'm rocking a Pioneer PL30 with an Ortofon 2M blue cartridge and a Cambridge Audio 651P pre-amp. Sounds great to my middle age ears.
Similar story for me, in the 80s everything was on vinyl, through the 90s CDs kicked in so collected that until mp3 and streaming took over most of that. Around 2015 I started noticing new, cool stuff coming out on vinyl again and a few years later started getting into audiophile youtubers. That grew into me wanting to get back into the record collecting hobby. Right now, I'm at 200 records (mostly second hand) and still have about double that amount in CDs. Lovin' the digging and exploring musical genres, though focus shifted to new stuff and reissues.
What I like about vinyl is that it forces you to sit and listen. I also like the dynamic range in LPs.
My vinyl story is similar to yours, Frank. My mom is a huge music lover. She passed it on to me. When I was about 7, she bought me a suitcase type record player that only played 45’s. When I was 10 or 11 (I am 52), she bought me a cheap record player that played all sized records. My first full album, I received it for my 12th birthday. It was AC/DC’s Back in Black. I still have it. This started my journey. I have about 500 records. About 40 or so of those are 45’s. Of course I have a much better set up for listening to my collection. I’m not going to quit collecting. In fact, my 30 year old son is a collector. I guess he will acquire mine when I’m gone.
Being born in '88, vinyl was on the decline when I was growing up, and CDs were all the rage. I have always loved CDs (and still do), but my parents had a small-ish vinyl (maybe between 50-70, I guess) and cassette collection, and both those formats were way more exciting to me, since I felt they were like a time capsule of sorts. My dad has this awesome Hi-Fi stereo system, brushed steel Kenwood amp, tuner and EQ, and a great looking cassette deck, all full of lights and stuff, and a Kenwood KD-2055 turntable, so it just looked amazing too. I always felt so nice when my parents played something on it. When they stopped listening to it, around the year 2000 they let me keep it in my room, and it's probably then where I got the analog bug, because they mostly had disco albums and music that wasn't really 'my' music, so I just started buying my own, because around that time vinyl was so cheap, and it was there in abundance in record stores. I never set out to have a collection, per se, I just bougjt something I wanted and all of a sudden I had filled a shelf with only albums that I bought, and I've just kept going since then. I don't have a huge collection, considering how long I've been buying and listening to vinyl, but it's quality over quantity, right?
I was a child of the 70s and 80s I loved spending hours at the music store looking over all the tapes! I had boxes of tapes! Once CDs came out I slowly switched to CDs. Once mp3s and online streaming took off I faded away from physical media purchases except for a few of my favorite bands.
Fast forward to 2017 my wife bought me a record player for Christmas and I finally got into record collecting. I went with a buddy to a local record store and bought some of my favorite albums on vinyl including So Far So Good So What by Megadeth! I'm all in! I love going to music stores again digging through crates! I missed collecting music and records are truly the best in experience compared to all other music mediums.
My dad was in the USAF. From 1967 to 1969 we lived in Goose Bay Labrador. Then we went to Ft. Worth TX. I got a transistor radio. On KFJZ I started hearing some songs that really steered me into rock. Whole Lot of Love - Led Zeppelin, American Woman - The Guess Who and late at night I heard the erie In-a-gadda-di-vi-da - Iron Butterfly the 17 minute version. My dad let me play a record on the family stereo and I was hooked!! In the 70's my friends were doing a early version of Napster file sharing via cassette tapes!! Even in 1988 when I got a cd player I never got rid of my lp's and 45's and maxi singles. I remember buying that Quit Riot album you were holding. I was stationed in Germany. They had record shops everywhere. In Munich I would go to the WOM (World of Music). I started buying lp's again when I saw them in Best Buy before the resurgence. I missed the Ramones when they were around in the 70's. So that got me buying again! I'm a big Guess Who fan. I found a nice used lp of Road Food acouple years ago. The song Road Food was a b side on the single Clap For the Wolfman. There album American Woman is a classic! It was always exciting when I bought a 45 and flipped it over hoping it would be something great!! After 1 year in Ft. Worth noooo back to Goose Bay again 2 more years in the black hole!! Then one day a ray of sunlight from the outside world I heard AT 40 and Casey Kasem was counting down at #10 Bang A Gong Get It On - T- Rex!! Been a music fanatic all my life!! Great to see so many fellow fanatics are still out there!!
I have burned many of my vinyl records to CD for two reasons; to make them more convenient to listen to but also to extend the life of the recording. I've read that the life of a vinyl record is...100 plays! Doesn't sound like a lot. Of course the records still play after 100 spins, but the sound quality from that point on becomes more and more degraded. One of the best things about CD's is that they never wear out, with proper storage and handling. But I still love my record collection, and what you said about the artwork is very true, Frank. CD's and cassettes just don't have the same "canvas" to create great album art. A good example is The Rolling Stones "Their Satanic Majesties Request". The artwork for that ultra-psychedelic album cover must be seen full size to appreciate how intricate and beautiful it is. (By today's standards that cover is downright garish. But I still love it!)
Cds die too. A lot of my old cds that I burned 10 or so years ago won't play now.
@@chrisnorton2837 Yes, they're not totally indestructable. But they can last longer than vinyl records. BTW, do those discs that don't play have those paper adhesive labels affixed to them? I have several discs that I put those paper labels on that are now unplayable as the adhesive on the labels has migrated to the playing surface, rendering them unplayable.
@@tomfurgas2844 some with paper lables and some without. Granted, I usually used to buy whatever cd was on sale, but still... bummer. And I've had cds I bought from local bands fail too. Seems like cds can be hit or miss unless they are professionally made.
I enjoyed that Frank. Lots of fun hearing other people's origin stories. My first vinyl was given to me by my older relatives who knew I liked music and donated items to increase my collection. Didn't have the money in those days for buying new. One of my most prized possessions is an original copy of The Glen Miller Story Soundtrack. Early 33/3 from 1954. Helped to give me a love for all genres.
People that love things create subconscious ( or sometimes conscious) rituals surrounding them. How many of us remember our process for setting up to smoke weed? Getting the materials out , setting them up , how we smoked and our rules in smoking with others. I havent smoked weed in almost 25 years but the memory is vivid. We get attached to the ritual and it creates a sense of nostalgia and connection with the process and its powerful. I too am a child of the 70s / 80s and i vividly remember laying on the floor listening to moms Beatles albums and Dads Dr Hook albums. Listening to vinyl now connects me to that young child experiencing the awe of discovering new music and enjoying a connection to it that was lost with the digital download era.
I am old (65) and have hauled my album collection around from the 60s, 70, and 80's. Over covid I had my original 1975 Marantz 2230b reciever and 1980 sony PS-X55S turntable serviced. Bought new speakers and pulled our my old collection. Over the past year I have gotten into Nick Cave, Porcupine Tree and quite a few Blue Note releases. Love the process and I agree with young folks comments that you actually listen to music on vinyl. It is not a space filler.
I got into vinyl because I love Takarazuka theatre (it's an all-women's theatre company in Japan that has been around for over 105 years) and I have a degree in jazz vocal performance. The only way I could hear the fantastic renditions of jazz standards by my favorite Takarazuka actresses, or even hear certain shows they put on that were unreleased on video, was if I got a record player and records! Now I just can't stop growing my collection, hearing music I can't get anywhere else by my absolute most favorite voices in the world... there is nothing like it.
Great video Frank!
My love affair with vinyl is very much like yours.
I got my first vinyl a 45rpm copy of CCRs Looking My Back Door from a neighbour who got 2 of them at his birthday party.
When I got older I went to Sam the Record Man every Saturday for their weekly $5.99 sales. I got most of my Lps this way. I got my first stereo system for one of my birthdays. It was a very cheap plastic all in one system. But it got me interested in vinyl so much more. I began upgrading my systems along with my record collection too. I also got into cassettes as most cars had cassette players and I copied my records to play in my car. As things changed I switched to 💿 cds. But I still kept my records in storage as well as my turntable. I didn't buy vinyl for many years as I worked to raise my family. But once they were on their own, I made a music room and bought a NAD 7120 amp and used my own home theater Athena ASBS2 bookshelf speakers and dusted off my old Technics SLDL1 turntable. I have since upgraded both my amp and speakers which is also part of the fun of the Vinyl experience. As well as a few years ago I began to collect reissues and new vinyl as well as old Lps that I missed the first time around. I enjoy the superior sound, artwork, lyric sheets as well as the feeling of becoming one with the music if that makes any sense. Lol.
Hey there, Frank...Another great video as always! In my case, it was my dad who started my collecting journey...He fished an old GE Wildcat out of the neighbor's trash and gave me a box of old 45's that the same neighbor threw out...Apparently, the overarm on the GE was broken, but it could still play records...I received it as a gift when I was about 6 or 7 and I was in heaven playing 45's all day! Eventually, my parents took us kids to lots of garage sales and thrift shops and I picked up a few records that way, too...My cousin also was an influence, as she had a large collection of rock 45's...Eventually, I got my first cassette player at age 13...It was an Emerson and I bought a ton of cassettes for it...Soon, I had a Panasonic boombox, too, but I never gave up my record collection...In fact, I still have the GE, the Emerson, the Panasonic and most of the records! I got into cassette singles in the late 80's and like you, had a period where I was more into CD's and tapes from about 1990 to 1999...Around 1999-2000, I met a man at work who was forever to be known as my "vinyl mentor"...His enthusiasm for the hobby is what got me back into records full swing and I went back and bought every 45' I missed out on in the 90's...I continued to buy new release 45's and got back into visiting a REAL RECORD STORE in my area and bought a ton of used vinyl from them...My mentor encouraged me and he had such a passion and excitement for vinyl that you've never seen before...He could tell you about artists, labels. pressings, and whatnot...A fountain of knowledge and info! Sadly, after a 20+ year friendship with this man, who was like a second father to me, he recently passed away at the age of 74 on September 5th...He always said that you could count your true friends on one hand and thankfully, we both thought the same of each other and expressed it many times over the years! And he was the only guy who would pick up the phone if I wanted to talk to him at 1AM in the morning! I am at a huge loss now, but I will always remember the MANY, MANY conversations we had about music and vinyl (and plenty of other topics)...I have been listening to a lot of his favorite records lately, esp. from his Top 5 favorite bands (in no particular order...Uriah Heep, Pink Floyd, ELO, Deep Purple, The Moody Blues) and one day, hopefully I will be as great of a mentor to someone else in this hobby (or just life in general) as he was to me! I know I will continue to collect records, as he was the one who re-kindled my love for the format and now I can't stop! Plus, I've invested a lot into my collection and I don't like paying twice for something I already have (unless it's something like a superior reissue!)...Anyway, I've been collecting music all my life and can't imagine a more satisfying hobby to keep me out of trouble than this one! If any of guys love this hobby they way you say you do, then you owe it to yourself to share it with at least one other person in your life...You never know, that ONE person may be the one who takes off and runs with it the way I did!
That's awesome.
Hi, I'm a millennial and I started collecting during the pandemic. The format is so amazing, and they're printing 33s for new artists! Love it! And the there's a certain quality to the music that you don't really get from mp4s. Thanks for the vid, made me vinyls more :)
Columbia House and BMG Music service over and over again for a few years there! Vinyl and then CDs!
Hi Frank, my name is also frank. I live in Stuttgart Germany. My first record player was a DUAL 604 as you showed in your video. I grew up in the black forest not far away from the town where Dual factory was. Actually the brother of my best friend worked in the eighties at the DUAL factory. So he got special prizes that we could afford. I kept my record collection and my dual, but almost listened exclusevly to CDs after their invention. Yes I liked very much to get rid of the crackles an pops. A few years ago I found my old dual again in my cellar and bought a new cartridge. And was blown away from the sound. Since then I prefer vinyl again and bought a lot of records again on vinyl that I own already on CD. It's a whole other experience listening a vinyl record. Yes I like the ritual too and made my peace with the crackles and pops. At the moment I own 5 Dual players from different periods, from idler drive to direct drive. I bought them mostly for ten bucks on the flee market and restored them myself. I like vinyl and the players. And I like your channel very much, Frank! Stay safe! Greetings from Stuttgart!
Hello Frank in Stuttgart. I love Dual turntables. It sounds like you have quite the collection. Vielen Dank, dass Sie sich mein Video angesehen haben.
Frank
Great video. To your 3 reasons on "Why vinyl" i would add this one as #4: Pride! Let me explain: When you download or stream music, even if your phone is broken or not well taken care of, the music will always sound the same. In the case of a record, it is 100% up to you. When i play my old kiss albums and they sound as good as the day i bought them, i feel that sense of accomplishment of holding on to something for decades and keeping it well preserved.
Keep up the good work and sorry for my broken english as its not my birth language.
Although I don't have a record player, I still love to collect records and love playing the album on Spotify and looking at the physical record sleeve and artwork. There is something special about listening to an album and having a physical copy of it to hold in your hand as well. Its an immersive experience you can't get with streaming alone. I am a kid of the 90s and grew up with CDs and loved looking at at the artwork etc. Records are the next best thing.
I used this same Logic loop from your intro for a commercial I made for my pirate radio show in college. I will always be able to instantly recognize it.
After abandoning the LP format since the mid 80's I got back into vinyl again in 2000 when I attended a all night rave party and hearing electronic dance music, drum & base, hip hop, all played on (then) modern vinyl records and I was amazed. I started adding new punk, hip hop, grunge LP's to my record collection since then.
Cool video !!! And it is a fact that radio played a fundamental role in most of us (I still have BASF tapes with the 1st show of a Top Rock Band in Brazil - The Queen in 1981, March 20 - which I recorded directly from the radio). I also have tapes, CDs and digital music (mp3 & mp4), but vinyl has always been my favorite medium and is still up to date, mainly for the pleasure of handling the cover and turning the LP's with the greatest listening experience... 🤩🎶😎
The year was typed wrong, now it is correct 🤷🏻♂️
I was also an 80s kid, and I had vinyl records back then. We got those Disney records from our parents, and yes, I did the Columbia House thing. Still owe them money. 😀 I got my ABBA records that way, before moving on to rock bands like Journey and Def Leppard. In my teen years cassettes became the trend. Loved the portability, hated the hungry stereo systems. 😡 I started getting into CDs in the late 80s, early 90s, slowly, alongside cassettes. Then I had some cassettes stolen from my car, and dove fully into CDs. I now have an enormous CD library.
My first modern vinyl LP came with Dream Theater's "Black Clouds and Silver Linings" collector's edition box set. When they announced this I almost laughed, like "Vinyl? Is that still a thing?" But slowly I started collecting records again, seeing the start of the new vinyl resurgence. Wasn't until just last year or so that I finally picked up a Crosley player. (yeah yeah, I get it 🙄) Now I have a modest yet growing record collection.
I still like CDs and still buy them. They're convenient, and can still have some cool packaging. (earbooks, anyone?) But LPs just have that wow factor that makes them stand out. 👍
Listening to music on vinyl is a very deliberate experience, generally not a passive listening experience. You drop the needle, sit in your favorite seat and read the lyrics check out the artwork and enjoy the music on npurpose, your not skipping tracks your listening to an album ... it's an experience ...I love it and have since I got Kiss Destroyer when I was a kid back in '76 ... even though I also transitioned to close in the 90's I never let my collection go and continued to pick up used and new vinyl long after my record player broke. Eventually I got another one and it's still amazing
Love these stories Frank! I had a small record collection as a kid. But mostly bought cassettes mainly because they were the cheapest format at the time. Then I switched to CDs for a long time. Still buy a lot of CDs. But around 2010 I was at my local music store where I usually picked up CDs and DVDs and for some reason the record shelve there caught my eye. I saw a Billy Idol Rebel Yell LP that was in the front and it looked dead mint. Obviously a common record but it was only $5. So I picked it up that day without even having a record player. Eventually looking up records online and discovering Reissues were being made on vinyl. And also finding the Vinyl Community on RUclips was huge! It peaked my interest enough and I picked up a player and been collecting ever since.
Cool story man. It's funny how that works out sometimes...
Me the warm sound of playin vinyl. I've been in this hobby since I was 12 years old. Started out buyin 45's when my mom would allow me to buy one of them 7 inchers whenever she would be at a department store. As I got older began my album buying ventures. By the time I graduated from Hi School and got a job then I was able to do this. 43 years ago I had a 8 track player in my car bought a quite a few 8track tapes back then when u were still able to buy them. Still was buying albums at the time also. These days I have been able to get my nephew into listen & buy albums he likes more into alternative rock then my classic rock but I still try 2 get him eventually over to my vein of classic rock in time.
Frank, I couldn’t agree more. It’s all about the music. I own and listen to both vinyl and cd.
I got a great turntable then I got out some of my mint vinyls from the 60’s. (I took care of my records.) I used a anti static bush on each one then wet cleaned them just prior to playing. It has been about 20 years since I played a vinyl. Wow! I didn’t realize how great they sound even after listening to nothing but CDs! I agree now with many of you, there is something about handling the record, getting it to look and play like the day you got it and studying the jacket front and back. The only way I can describe it was a “ enchanted evening”. 🤩🤩🤩
Awesome video Frank . I have always been a huge fan of music. From hearing April Wine for the first time . Being in my Uncle's basement hearing the Who . Guess who . Wings etc. And being on vinyl . I grew up with that. Getting the 4 solo albums from KISS . For Christmas as well a Blondie album . My collection began to grow. Until like you said . Cds began to make their way in to stores and record selections began to shrink. So I shared a similar path as you.it wasnt until a few years ago . That began getting back into albums again. And getting my Dads album collection . It was the memories of being in that basement listening and being introduced to bands like UFO /Uriah Heep. /Triumph. /Teaze and Moxy . Listening to albums with my Uncle and Dad . Brought me back . It is great to see kids going through the used shops here or Sunrise. Picking up an album . Being undecided. Offering my praise for a great pick. Keep spinning Frank . Love the videos
Great story!
I'm 35yo and I got back into Vinyl 3 years ago because while yes I grew up with cassettes & cd's, I was always playing my dad's records and really enjoyed that experience as a kid, so I figured why not get one or two, and I really enjoyed it and since I do like alot of older music, it just made sense and now I have a ton of records, I love going to flea markets and looking, and the experience is unmatched, also the sound is always nice because records have limits to how loud the sound can be, where CD's sadly alot of them get mastered too loudly or brickwalled.
The cool thing about Limewire and Napster was finding odd downloads of live performances or bands doing covers before RUclips.
Yes, for sure. This is a good point.
I know exactly what you are talking about, born 1966, it was the same for me. Had so many tapes from friends, but having the vinyl record was the real deal, you proud possession.
I loved hearing about your story with vinyl. Way to go Sheri! That Kiss album was a great Father's day gift.
Thank you Melinda.
There's 2 reasons why I collect vinyl records.....1st is that listening to a vinyl record on your turntable forces your to hear the ENTIRE album, side one/track one to side two/last track. Obviously you can lift up the tonearm and move it to a selected song, but for the most part you're going to be forced to listen to the ENTIRE album. Just imagine if The Beatles "Sgt. Pepper.." had been released on compact disc first? I guarantee this classic album would NOT have the stature that it has today, because too many listeners would have skipped over certain songs......and 2nd reason why I collect vinyl records is because it brings me back my childhood memories of the 1970's / 80's and going into department stores and just browsing around the music department and staring at all those amazing LP cover artwork. I can still remember looking at KISS ALIVE sitting on the shelf and thinking "wow!"
You bring up an interesting and great point... the order of the songs and what was on side one vs side two, was all a part of what made those old days great... to this day, someone might say, what's your favorite Rush album... and my reply is "I love the 2nd side of Caress of Steel!" or Rush's 2112. for example... it's an album side... "the whole song?" "Yes... the whole f-ing album side is one song!" (it's a journey really)... Ha ha ha ha.. It would not have been the same had it been released on CD first without that context.
Oddly, I've found that I like most songs when listening on vinyl. Without that option to easily skip a track(s), your mind kind of tricks you into liking every song. It's like, "This song is not that bad, and I know a really good song is coming up." I've always wanted to write an article on this topic.
Buying records is a deeper commitment than other formats. It also has a visible connection to the past (gramophones, juke boxes), and home stereos have evolved. I don’t understand how a needle in a plastic groove can reproduce all those sounds, but I can see it happening, unlike cd, cassettes and 8 tracks which are hidden during playback. Only reel to reel machines have the same tangible, visual connection that records have. I have always had records. I’m not a collector, I’m an owner and listener (and a lifelong fan).
Short n sweet. I've always been into record 's from being a child to present day, I am now 48 years of age, love em ,dig em and always will. I am also into cassettes playing them and even recording my favourite monthly show on the radio. Frank, I love your show so never give in ma man ,you're the best out there.🇬🇧
I'm a child of the 1970's and 1980's. I graduated in 1994. I first started collecting 8 tracks then went onto vinyl records, I came from a musicial family. I listen mostly to cds and records. Records to me have more hands -on and memories associated with different songs or a particular band/album. Oh yeah I also did cassettes and made my own mixtapes. I was a member of Columbia House and BMG Music. My youngest son is now 14 and he's been getting into records since last october and has about 50-80 of his own records already
I have had probably 3 turntables when I was a child up to my teen years (My first was a Silvertone record player with colorful lights). Had I known records were going to be collectables and cherishable items, I would have taken much better care of them then, but I have come back to them in more recent years and I always clean them and hold them by the edges. What's crazy is I still have my copy of The Beatles 'Rock & Roll Music' from 1976, and it's still playable and doesn't look bad at all.
Greetings from Memphis, TN
I'm 57 and grew up listening to records, so I guess I never considered it a "hobby". My mother used to play Otis Redding and Al Green records on a Magnavox console in the living room which shared a wall with my bedroom. Those consoles where the size of a coffin but had some great electronics in them. Worked in radio for 15 years which fueled the fire. Actually played original label 45s on these Sherman tank-like turntables back in the day (wish I knew what they were). Then it went to carted tunes, CD and ultimately voicetrack automation which decimated small market radio.
I do enjoy my records. We have a 22 year old daughter that grew up listening to records, has a very nice system (Santa says you're welcome) and a great beginning to an enviable collection.
We live in a world with such disdain for history, traditions and basic mores it's nice to know that we can pass along a true appreciation for well reproduced music/spoken voice.
Thinking about this, perhaps my choice to use the word "hobby" was wrong. To me, music is not a hobby... it's just life. I suppose, for me, the hobby part is hunting down various pressings, forever tinkering with gear, etc.
Cheers!
Frank
i started when i was 17 in 2009 my mum had a record player just sitting there and after i'd seen vinyl on old school TV shows i got fascinated by it and at 30 i listen solely to LP cassette and CD
This was awesome, Frank! I have the same memories you do, albeit a little earlier, having come of age in the late 70s. But I did a lot of albums, a few cassettes, then switched to CDs, and finally, in the early 2000s, I changed to MP3s, both through sources like Limewire and Napster, and through legit sources like Amazon and eMusic - never have been able to stomach iTunes/AppleMusic, because it was easier and way less expensive.. Now that I'm getting back into my vinyl and CDs because I miss what I used to listen to, it's been a crazy ride. I'm still not totally set up again yet, but i'm almost there, and I can't wait - I have tons of new stuff to listen to, and can't wait to share it with everyone.
iTunes do have crap sounding files, 80's music having little bass, I don't bother with any streaming, I'm strictly vinyl person
As a small child I grew up with records but when I started listening to music on my own cassettes were the standard. Funny thing is the first brand new LP I purchased was Def Leppard Hysteria and was a little upset and didn't know why I bought it. At that time out record player was junk, a GPX all in one system and I wax unable to play it any other way. Who knows what I did with that LP. After that it was tapes until I heard a CD that my cousin got and was amazed. At that time and to me CDs are an amazing piece of technology. I still have the first 2 CDs I bought in 1990. I collect LPS now because I am more responsible and can take care of them better, I have much better equipment than when I was young. And I can afford to purchase LPS and CDs and have multiple copies because I listen to music all the time, the car, at work, when I am walking. Its satisfying to have original LPS from the 60s, 70s and 80s playing at home on a good system. I prefer not to buy re-issues but do buy new releases.
Very well said concerning vinyl records being about the experience and community. While I grew up with a record player (I still have a few of the records,) it wasn't until a favorite artist of mine (Kevin Max) did a PledgeMusic campaign to fund his album. A copy of the album came in the mail, and a curiosity to hear the album on vinyl prompted me to buy a record player. From there, more records began to be added to the collection. As for artwork, my favorite is Blackstar by David Bowie, where fans have tried dissecting the packaging to find hidden messages. Going back to the community and funding the artist who did a campaign has done several other campaigns, and I have a few records that have autographed covers (the test pressing has my name on it.) Kevin's latest funding campaign actually lists the donors on the album packaging. Thankfully, I haven't had to deal with equipment snobs during the times I've gone record hunting (although admittedly, I am not always the biggest fan of hunting for deals.) As a Crosley owner, I have other matters to worry about at the moment before upgrading equipment (such as bills and living.) For laughs, I have been wanting to recommend they create a crowdfunding campaign to buy me a new record player while I take care of my bills.
Same thing happened to me. But once I got sick and tired of CDs in the late 90's I stopped buying them entirely and went back to Vinyl as the only media source i purchase. I still record my new records on the first play to cassette on my restored Pioneer Elite deck on NOS Maxell XLII and XLIIS tapes. Love records and treat them well!
I still like Cassettes but definitely not as much as records. Cassettes bring me back to the days when my folks would listen to them in the car. Good days.
Like Frank, I'm a middle aged guy who grew up first listening to records and then cassettes and CD. I agree with Franks three reasons for collecting records, but I'd like to add another to the list. I got back into records in the late 90s for a slightly different reason... discovery. I found that I could pick up records very cheaply from theft stores and garage sales. Nowadays I love buying new vinyl, but I still frequent shift stores for records because you can still find cheap records from artists you've never heard of, many of whom will never be on streaming services because they have long been forgotten. Local Rock and Jazz legends, Big Bands, Poetry, Spoken Word, and Kids records, much of it may be junk, but it is interesting to check out! I think of it as Urban Archaeology.
The artwork and inserts always did it for me, always remember "back in the day" just sitting there learning lyrics of my new albums as well as any additional song info that was included. I'm with you , I still buy CDs and stream, but vinyl still sounds more appealing TO ME :)
Aside from the art work and its tangibility, the memories that comes along with it. Like what you said we only have video games , Slurpee and records back in the day. We swapped albums back then and when the double cassette player/recorder was introduced, everyone had their own personalized compilations.
Hi Frank, I went to buy a limited edition double album released this Saturday at my local shop (they weren't allowing pre orders, which you would think they would with the way things are) by the time I got there they'd all gone, sold their entire allocation to one customer (an ebayer). Those albums now for sale on eBay for twice their original price.
We've all missed out on stuff but this is getting too much. What do you think, should they have limited sales to one per customer? Was I right to tell them I'll never set foot in their place again?
Today, angry I went online and got a flac of the album for free, didn't feel like a win cos I haven't got what I wanted to collect.
You don't mind being 26th in a queue and missing out to genuine fans but when someone hoovers up 25 copies to profiteer it stinks.
In my opinion the stores don't help themselves sometimes.
I am almost 50 I will admit I had a few records when I was young, but I gravitated more towards cassettes. They were more portable you can listen to them in your car then CDs came along. I still have all 300 of my cassettes that I still have since I was a teenager in the mid to late 80. And of course hundreds of CD's And then a couple years ago I realize that Vinyl was coming back. Back and listening to records as a kid I really didn't pay attention to the quality of a vinyl record until I bought my first Crosley suitcase player just to get me started back into listening to vinyl bought a couple albums from that moment I was hooked the sound is so much different. I started collecting again and now have a audio technical 120 turntable and I got my 24 year old nephew into vinyl( he has hundreds of songs only from being downloaded no physical media) I explain to him how important the physical media is I love going to record store and actually having something physical in my hand that I bought albums have much more pleasing artwork you actually invest more time into your music putting it on to a turntable and listening to it. What if there's no Internet you can't listen to your music without Internet. So he's hooked on vinyl now has almost as much vinyl as I do which is only a couple hundred but I've only been collecting again for a little over a year. I can say I got a younger generation into the hobby!!
I just jumped back in thanks to your channels influence. Honestly I love going to the record store again. I'm into used LP's. Thanks for your help.
That is awesome!
I bought albums throughout the mid to late 80's and then switched completely to CDs. I kept most of my albums but traded half of my Queen albums for some reason (my favorite band ever).
Then, around 2016 I started listening to vinyl again and I was hooked. I still think some CDs sound better than vinyl, and some vinyl sounds better than CDs. There's not a clear cut winner in my opinion. I do love the bigger artwork, that's for sure. I enjoy collecting both and is a great journey. Frank, thanks again for a another great video!
I got into listening to vinyl records in 2006 when i found my parents record collection in the garage of the house i live in now. Found classic rock like Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Elton John, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, The Beatles, and the list goes on. Ever since i started buying LPs i haven't stopped sold off some and trashed some that were just in bad shape. I bought cassettes first in about 1999 then quickly switched to CDs in 2000. I have a bigger CD collection but love the experience of putting on an album to the packaging and superior sound quality and some might dissagree and good for your own opinion.
I have slowed down with buying records since im running out of room for more.
In 1971 I was just 13 years old, my older brother was listening to rock music on the radio
and his friends knew some things, but only the basics. One day I overheard "The Changeling" by The Doors on the
radio and went crazy. That's it! The next day we went to the record store in the neighborhood to buy it (I'm talking about the single), but unfortunately he did not have it ...
We did not leave empty-handed, we got the "Fire And Water" LP by Free! Everything was new to me, but where to listen to the album? We went to a friend of my brother's who was listening to records from his father's turntable. There I saw for the first time, a huge collection of ... 50-60 records. I had contracted the disease, but the symptoms were not yet obvious. We continued to buy records in the limited rock music market of that time, until my brother went to
America for military training. I gave him a list, because I was already listening to blues and records of this kind was rare in Greece. Fortunately he found many of them. When it came time for the cd we all fell into the trap. I made a collection of 500 cd's without stopping to buy vinyl.
In 2001 I finally realized my mistake and sold them (fortunately at a good price) to buy the LPs.
Today I have 3200 records and I am a happy person. Unfortunately my two sons do not show any interest
in vinyl, maybe the type of music they listen to... The seasons change. I have to believe that they will be sold in flee market. But until that happens, I will be happy in my kingdom.
Great video I Remember Buying my 1st Vinyll record for my birthday I had $5 I went and bought Fleetwood Mac rumors I was 7 years old My sister kind of talk me into it but it was still worth it then I got in to kiss and that's another story But I Kept Buying records until I got into my late teens Along with C d's And then I kind of lost interest in vinyl Until about Ten years ago I enjoy it the Sound is a lot different Then A CD I need to slow down now I am getting older But I'll never stop it's too much fun I love my vinyl Sundays Keep on spinning 😝🤘
I started thanks to my dad, I grew up on most of the stuff he liked and ever since I was 9 or 10 he would tell me about his record collection, what he had and his stories from DJ-ing in the mid 80s. And from time to time we would check out the local thrift stores and record stores in search of a good record player for a decent price but to no avail. Fast forward to last summer (I was 15) when we find a really nice akai ap-b20c from the early 80s in value village for a around 25 bucks (it was missing its head-shell, cartridge, stylus and belt). Fast forward a little bit more to halloween day 2021 when we buy all of the missing components from a guy who lived 10 minutes away from us (we had some nice speakers and a nice amp at home), we then stop by value village to buy my very first records and on that particular day there was only one...it was B.J Thomas raindrops keep falling on my head album since that was the only thing I was sort of familiar with. On the very next day we got lucky at value village and found The Game by Queen as well as john denvers greatest hits and a tony bennett album. and for quite a while i enjoyed those until i bought my first new album which was a re issiue of paranoid by black sabbath (Probably my favourite album ever) and I knew I had to have it. I am now 16 and my collection has slowly grown to about 30 records and I plan on going past 200. I have enjoyed every second of the vinyl experience since I can also share it with my parents. Your vids have helped me out a whole lot with finding my way through the world of vinyl and I intend on collecting till the end. Peace and love from a fellow Canada man
I can remember as a young kid going into old ice cream shop / small diner with a record jukebox. It was the coolest thing to watch and listen too. Then going to record stores and seeing records and 8- tracks as far as the eye could see. Everyone had record players growing up. I would put a stack a records on my player and when one record was done it would drop another record to be played. I would go to bed at night that way for many years. Records are still my favorite way to listen to music. I have every record,I ever bought to this day. Lots of albums and 45s and 78s.
Living in Japan and discovered a 40 year old Technics SL-2000 in a closet a month and a half ago and found this little jam packed record store. The place was a mess, stacked on top of each other in no discernible order, musty and dirty. But I found Billy Joel Glass House, and a number of others. But then we went to Kyoto and found several record stores all in the same area. I found some of the finest records, Dave Brubeck, Chick Corea, Van Halen II, Journey Escape, Billy Squier Emotions in Motion, Ghostface Killah (instrumental) Beastie Boys In Sound From Way Out (French release with tracks they didn’t have on the CD I bought in the USA. Rush Permanent Waves, and many many more. I’ve already blown a LOT of money on it.
It’s not just how we take care of vinyl that affects the sound quality, it’s also how well is it pressed and mastered. This to me is really the key to good sounding vinyl (though I readily admit the importance of keeping your vinyl clean).
One gripe that audiophiles as well as more casual listeners have with modern vinyl is the quality of the album pressing. All too often, new records are scuffed, warped and could even have hairline scratches, just to name a few of the problems.
And don’t get me started on how much they want for these records to begin with!!!
Also: I’m glad that you spoke up for those just getting into vinyl who have Crosleys or other suitcase or all in one players. As you said, everybody has to start somewhere. If someone doesn’t have a lot of money and wants to get into vinyl, why make them feel badly just because they can’t afford a better system? I’d much rather see someone having a Crosley and buy their records at the thrift shop (which is another whole topic in itself), than being turned away from the hobby by vinyl snobs (Maybe, pal, you can afford a $10,000 TT, but not everyone is as rich as you obviously are).
(I hope you know, Frank, that last comment wasn’t for you, but for the snobs)
I for one enjoy hearing about people’s vinyl journeys. Good one, Frank!
And I’ll keep listening to you and not the snobs.......
I certainly relate to what you said and I love my vinyl. I am now 56 and have all original pressings bought in the day. I may get slated for this but I generally do not like the remastered sound and the costs are too high for my budget now as I am unemployed. Vinyl has its own unique sound and I know a lot of people hate streaming, but streaming can be good, just different, and there is so much out there which is great for my broad tastes.
What's up Frank! I didn't buy any records in the 80s. It was all radio, tapes and CDs. LOL yeah I got a lot through BMG. I remember listening to friend's records like WASP and Lionel Ritchie or my parents records like Bob Seger. I notice your shelves are getting full and lots more collectables on the walls and shelves! Looking good man. Thanks for keeping vinyl records alive and helping to bring in a new generation of buyers. Cheers ~Corey
I collect vinyl for the tangibility, the sound (in some cases), and the fascination I have with how its possible to etch soundwaves into plastic!
I have, and listen to all types of media. I never stopped listening to vinyl. When cds came out I did stop buying vinyl. Cds are more convenient, especially back when I used to drink alcohol. Alcohol and vinyl don't mix. Now i mainly listen to vinyl and reel to reel tapes. I copy my new vinyl on reel to reel and mainly listen to the tapes. I've been doing that since I was a kid in the early 70s. That's why all the records I purchased new are in near mint condition. It's a lot of work to listen to vinyl compared to cds . With vinyl you have to brush it, use the Zerostat. Then do it all over again for side two. But it's worth it.
My thoughts exactly - I love vinyl for the physical aspects and (A/B comparing with streaming) the sound is simply better!
I used the family turntable in the late 80s/early 90s but my first own music experience was CD. I got into records around 2000 and stuck with it a few years, but I did not know how to take care of a record or properly set up a record player, cartridge, etc. and sold the lot. I got back into it all in 2018 with vigour, with adult money, learned knowledge and a passion for physical media!
I download or stream all of my music. I feel like vinyl is a good way to support the artists. I buy vinyl when I go to shows or buy them from their merch sites.
You nailed it Frank 🤘I also started with records and tapes as a kid in my early teens but sold nearly all of my records except a couple of first buys and gifts in my early 20s and went to CD for a number of years and back to vinyl about 6 years ago as a hobby and then 3 years ago as a serious collector of hard rock and metal on both CD and vinyl. Thanks for sharing your experiences mate.
Thanks for the comment \m/
I agree with you100 percent, Frank. And yes, I used Columbia House to expand my collection. I miss it. Cheers!
Started out buying LPs, then started buying CDs of some of the same albums i had on vinyl. In recent years i've returned to buying LPs again. Nothing cooler than lowering the arm and watching the record go around and around.