Records Matter

Every time I go to my in-laws house, I drool over my step-father-in-law's record collection. He doesn't even have a record player anymore, but he's still got all of his vinyl, and it's fabulous. Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Neil Diamond, Bill Withers, CSNY, Neil Young, John Denver, Donovan, Joe Cocker, Van Morrison, Cat Stevens, Pink Floyd, The Eagles, Elton John, Jackson Browne ... he's probably got 150 or so albums, and it's all stuff that was born on vinyl. A lot of it I've never even heard of.

So I drool over it, and it's gotten to the point where I obsessively think about getting a record player. I don't want a nice turntable that plays through a nice receiver on nice speakers. I want a cheap, all-in-one record player, like the one pictured, or like the one I had when I was a kid. My dad was a DJ when I was a small child and he had a nice little collection of 45s. It's where I met the Beatles' "Penny Lane," "I Wanna Hold Your Hand," and best of all, "Strawberry Fields." I listened to Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction" over and over and over again, my friend. I listened to "Snoopy and the Red Baron," to Electric Light Orchestra, and to so many more songs that I still know all of the words to. I forget a lot about being a kid, but I don't forget those records.

Later I got my own albums. Kenny Rogers, of course, was one of the first, and eventually I became a Billy Joel fan via vinyl. I also bought a lot of 45s. I loved Joan Jett's rendition of "Crimson and Clover" and also the Bangles' "Manic Monday." Also Elton John -- I had "Empty Garden" and "Nikita" on 45s. And who can forget the Beatles montage "Stars on 45"? Classic.

So I'll have a record player soon, and it's going right in my living room. I actually bought four old Billy Joel albums in Philly this past weekend, for a buck a piece, to start my collection. I can't wait to add more.

As much as I like music, I'm not much of a stickler for sound quality, so I won't care that my records will sound like shit compared to my CDs and iPod. I'll be too busy eating up the atmosphere they'll create. I can't wait to gently drop my first "new" record down on the turntable. The smell of old vinyl! I can't wait to lift the arm and lightly lay the needle down on the edge of the record, to feel the record take control of the needle and engage the first song. I can't wait to hear the snap and crackle of audio imperfection as Billy Joel sings "She's Got a Way" to kick off Cold Spring Harbor. I can't wait!

Sure hope it lives up to my expectations, because the anticipation is sort of making me feel like a kid again.