Remember your first real record player? The sound of the needle hitting the hard black vinyl, an occasional pop or the gentle hiss that came from years of wear on a particularly beloved record? I was in heaven when they came out with the "repeat" feature and loved the mechanical sound it made as it re-started your record. And what about the beautiful big album covers with photos of your favorite artist and the lyrics to each song printed on the back, the paper sleeve inside that held that magical round disk of vinyl that you could listen to for hours?
First it was 8-track tapes that threatened the vinyl record, then cassette tapes, but the final nail in the coffin was the development of the CD. You could strap a Walkman to yourself and enjoy music on the go with CDs so what was not to love? CD's were small, efficient, the wave of the future, well until MP3s took over the market that is.
First it was 8-track tapes that threatened the vinyl record, then cassette tapes, but the final nail in the coffin was the development of the CD. You could strap a Walkman to yourself and enjoy music on the go with CDs so what was not to love? CD's were small, efficient, the wave of the future, well until MP3s took over the market that is.
Every time I've moved I have brought along with me a stack of LP records, nearly doubling that number when I got married and we added my husband's collection to the mix. They have occupied various places in each house, sometimes the top shelf of a closet, under the bed, or a shelf on a bookcase. I guess there was a part of me that didn't want to let them go, as John Lennon would say "you may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one." Getting rid of those records would have been like losing a part of myself, each album was like a musical scrapbook of my life, reminding me of the highs and lows that come with growing up and then watching my own children grow up.
As nostalgic as I was for the records, I managed to get rid of every record player I had ever owned so somewhere deep in my psyche I knew I was struggling to hold on to the past, but a recent trip to Best Buy changed all that. I had heard about various gadgets that would allow me to listen to my old vinyl records, like USB-enabled turntables such as the one listed HERE on CNET (my go to website for all sorts of electronic product reviews). But the cost of these converters was high when they first came out and I often wondered whether it would be a lot like finding a favorite candy from your childhood, never the same as you remembered. Then on a recent trip to Best Buy to pick up a new CD I stumbled across what appeared to be NEW vinyl records! Yes it's true, vinyl is back and with over 6500 titles on the Best Buy website alone, and a decent selection in store, I knew my pack rat tendencies had not been in vain.
Now don't get me wrong, I will still need to purchase a turntable, but like any new technology that has been on the market for a while, the prices have come down significantly. Amazon has a great selection of turntables in a variety of styles, prices, and quality to whet the appetite of most audiophiles or even people like me that just want a chance to dust off those albums and bring back a few memories. Plenty of places are selling both the players and the vinyl records so I can even add to my collections with new artists I have come to love in the years dominated by CDs and MP3s. And this may even give me an excuse to peruse those milk crates full of vintage LP's at the local used book store!
I will still love my tiny portable MP3 player or the six disc CD changer in my car, but with every snap, crackle, skip, and pop I'll relish listening to those records just as much as I would putting on an old sweatshirt I still have from college. Some things really do get better with age.
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