Just a quickie tonight since I’m about to get evicted from my computer room by a gaggle of shrieking sleepover friends of my daughter. I buy a lot of new LPs and love ’em and I’m still working my way back through all manner of artists’ back catalogues. I own a few good records now, well, 1805 of them to be precise (don’t tell the wife!) but incredibly cool as I undoubtedly am, I still get surprised by all the gaps I have in there.
It was only last week that I bought Clash London Calling and The Band Music From Big Pink for the first time in my life*, and yesterday I bought Thin Lizzy Jailbreak and Rainbow Long Live Rock’n’Roll – too many, too many!
These aren’t rare records, I don’t crave originals as long as reissues haven’t skimped on the sleeves and liners, I’m fine, I’ve always wanted them but just hadn’t got around to them yet.
I’m rapidly coming to realise I won’t get to ever own everything cool on vinyl and that I’m doomed to reenact a harrowing Sisyphusian ordeal, except it’s all about the wax and gate folds, rather than boulders and ancient Greek mythological shit like that.
So my idle question to all you gnarly, obsessive, imbalanced, socially inadequate musical types out there is what classic(s) might we be surprised that you have never quite got around to buying yet?
576 Down (still).
*on lovely fat 180g re-released vinyl.
CB is complete. “Philosophy of the World” by The Shaggs was the last piece and i bought that years ago. Now it’s all gravy.
I would like to see a level across that top shelf. Looks just a bit bowed.
That’s where I keep the really HEAVY metal.
And the Bow(ie)
(Groans) you’re banned from 1537 for 18 minutes for appalling punning. You’ve only yourself to blame.
Can’t speak highly enough of both London Calling and Big Pink – two albums that changed everything!
Not a lot of mainstream stuff missing about which I care (e.g.: no intentions to add any Billy Joel). Probably the oddest gap is The Kinks. Virtually nothing.
Plenty of stuff on CD that I’d love on black of resources allowed.
Me too, not sure why it hasn’t happened yet. I need to hoover up a bit of early Springsteen too.
I always hoped that one day I could cross ‘LP collection’ off my to-do list.
Isn’t that like crossing ‘Breathe’ off your to-do list?
Yup, done that!
Until today I had no Dire Straits, some would say this is a good thing but now I have the three I need.
I love the first three – although I might hide them if anyone cool comes round to visit.
I don’t know anybody really cool, I do however live in the land of hipsters so I could claim it was ironic, those however are the three I just got.
Eh. Oooft. I have many classic albums spaces in my record collection. Nabbed a few this year and really need to get more Sabbath. Particularly Master of Reality. I keep spotting Dark Side of the Moon and know I should add it, but always think “next time”. I’m gonna add Parsons’ GP, but I just never see it.
Terrifying addiction ain’t it?
Addiction? Eh … no addiction here, sir. No … not at all. Nope. No way.
Computer room? I thought you lived in a hollowed-out volcano! Damn, dashed by disappointment. As for your storage space requirements,how about employing some children to stand very still and balance the record stacks on their (eventually) flattened heads?
Sorry to disillusion you, but FIFA had baggsied them all before I could get to them.
I’m missing the Johnny Moped album too.
I’ve been really lucky this year, filling in many of the gaps… Television, Big Star, The Clash, etc. I guess the one big surprise in my collection is the lack of Rolling Stones! I have a copy of Hot Rocks, that’s it!
No Stones?!! That seems to be quite a theme here. I have a huge Kinks/Byrds/Gram Parsons void in my collection.
Get Parsons first! So awesome!
Too many to mention in the ‘rock’ field… But, for a start, Astral Weeks, anything by Johnny Cash, Gram Parsons, Warren Zevon, James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Crosby Stills & Nash… Basically, my knowledge and possession of ‘rock snob’ music is virtually non-existent!
Please tell me that you at least own all of Five Star’s output? Otherwise, I’m afraid you can’t hang out here!
You’ve really got a thing about those guys, haven’t you… Happy to say I don’t own anything by the Romford Jacksons but I do have a soft spot for ‘Rain Or Shine’…
Haha, I need to start referencing Dollar, maybe.
Love the pics man…hope those shelves don’t collapse! Cool stuff….props to the comments as well…
So you missing any classics Deke?
How about 1805! Ha that’s a awesome collection….my daughter just started and she’s at around 130 or so..showed her your pics she giggled with delight…
Stop her now, before she ruins her future!
Hahahaha…..Na she’s diggin IT ….she likes buying sealed copies now more than used but she will come around…..Sez she’s buying me vinyl for my Bday in Oct! Can’t wait!
“The Velvet Underground & Nico”. Every time I see it, I pick it up… and then… put it down, thinking “…next time…”
I was like that with Music From Big Pink – that went on for 20 years!
And now you’ll wonder why you spent 20 years without it, I’d wager…
OK. I’m putting all my remaining credibility on the line here… I don’t have any Virgin Steele albums. *goes to get coat*
HEATHEN!
OK OK! I DON’T HAVE ANY OF THEIR ALBUMS EITHER. HAPPY NOW?
HAHAHA I was hoping you were going to say something like that. Good show, sir!
Man, take your coat and go!! Freak.
Wonderful question, but much like my esteemed colleague Hmo, where to begin!
Aarghh too many to mention! I wouldn’t even know where to start…
Slooooan?
Just kiddin’!!
I thought we were taking about classic records?
OOF! 🙂
Hey, don’t diss the Sloan! We Canadians know what we’re talking about!
In the meantime, would some of those free-standing wardrobes work? You could add shelves for your collections and wheels for ease of movement.
It would also be functional for knitting supply storage.
I tried the wardrobe thing, at our old house. It was a little 2-bedroom wartime with zero storage space. The wardrobe were ok (I got them on sale, even) but the spaces between the shelves were too great (at least 1.5 feet), and the shelves were about two feet deep, so even if I had added more shelves, they’d still be way too deep. I ended up just stacking all the CDs in there, rather in neat little rows. This worked well as those cupboards held A LOT of CDs stacked that way, but was absolutely brutal when it came to accessing a specific CD I wanted. I had to pull stacks out onto the floor and then dismantle stacks to get to what I wanted.
Sales are the best! Looking for a CD that way would be so frustrating…you’d have to alphabetize them or use some other type of filing system to save time.
How about installing rolling tracks and adding shallow shelves or baskets?
The sliding baskets could be cool, but they were cheap pressboard shelves (held up with those plastic pegs) and I’d guess, probably, they wouldn’t take too well to screws into them (even with wide washers) and all the weight on four points rather than even distributed… I’m just guessing they would’ve sagged in the middle… Honestly I never considered it at the time, but I would’ve if you’d mentioned it then! It’s all good anyway, I now have a near-perfect* solution!
* I say near-perfect because it’ll be perfect when I get more (I need it).
Ah yes the limitations of pressboard. At that point where reinforcements are needed you might as well build your own wardrobes.
We’re looking forward to learning more about your near-perfect/perfect solution 🙂
Dude. I just have to mention too, I love those pics of your shelves. They hold so much promise! I love pics of others’ collections. Fantastic!
Thank you. Ever since I was a really little kid I used to love looking through LP collections of all my parents’ friends. Their bookshelves too.
I know! I always find myself ignoring the conversation and perusing all the titles…
Another option would be a modification…shelves at the upper portions of the walls, nearer to the ceiling. Typically unused space.
I have that shelf! It currently holds some nice box sets.
All of them! I’m still surprised at this situation…I have some digital files but it isn’t the same. *Le sigh*
The problem with all of us online is, by saying that you will get a million suggestions about what to buy 😉
I have seen several people in the last week or so say, “I can’t afford to buy everything you guys suggest!” It’s true! But I have been collecting a long long time.
Yes it’s true! I need/want dedicated rooms…music and books! I used to have lots and there’s been some streamlining so I have the excitement of rebuilding. It can be a bit overwhelming and I end up wandering around in circles trying to decide which to get first.
I would looooove a dedicated room. So badly! We’ve been trying to buy a bigger place for a couple years but unexpected illnesses and so on have put the brakes on it for the time being. The problem with being a collector and lover of physical media is storage. This is something I plan to discuss in future months!
Hmm…do you have room for a shed? If so you could look into building one yourself with appropriate insulation etc. It could be your music house 🙂
No but that would be brilliant, absolutely. No we’re in a condo so no yard 🙁
That’s more of a challenge! Can you line the hallways with shelves? You could have Music Walls 🙂
You don’t know how close you are to the actual design I drew up! LOL
How about a warp to another dimension? Like the prison in the early Superman films. Just putting it out there.
The phantom zone, you mean. It has not-so-great acoustics. Sonically it wouldn’t be very good, also it doesn’t have a couch.
What did Zod lie on to listen to his LPs then?
Listen. I don’t know where you’re going with this, but the Phantom Zone isn’t a luxury condo. It’s a punishment!
Well surely it’s about time we marketed a more upscale version for today’s property market. Nice couches and all.
Anyway, no wonder Zod broke out and was a bit naughty on Earth if they didn’t give him a nice couch.
I have a music/sitting room and next year we’re finally putting all the books in one place. Boxes of books under most beds at my place and little shelves everywhere.
You know that we’ll need updated pictures then…especially if you also install a ladder.
Not bragging here, just the facts ma’am, but I’ve got a dedicated room for music and it is the absolute best. Recommended the moment it’s possible. I call mine the Man Cave. It’s been an ongoing project for two years, but each time I attack it, it gets that much closer to perfection.
Storage was a big issue for me, too. A lot of places don’t sell CD storage anymore. But I have that sorted, and I will totally tell you what I did. In fact, Mike, you should swing by. I could show you!
This calls for a blog post series!
I mentioned this recently. I’d said we should all post up a shot of our collections. That could be great fun!
That would be awesome 🙂
He’s not lying.
My CDs live, unloved, in plastic tubs crammed under the stairs. Which reminds me to get to the post office …
That is just all kinds of wrong.
Haha it’s the under-stairs CD trolls!
You could also insulate and convert a garage. Or, when you’re looking at houses, and you think well a 2-bedroom would do it, a 3-bedroom would be nice, get the 4-bedroom. You’re paying a mortgage anyway and if you look you’ll notice that sometimes the prices aren’t all that different. It’s true! We looked for a year before we bought this place, mostly at 3-bedrooms (as we have 2 kids) and we ended up in this 4-bedroom because it was less than some 3-bedrooms! And the 4th room is the Man Cave! S’all good, baby, yeah!
A Man Cave is compulsory. There is almost no point in moving if I can’t have one. After all, I’m the collector here with all this stuff everywhere 🙂 Jen, she knits. She just needs an oversized closet for her yarn and unfinished projects.
Dude, the things you could do if you had a dedicated room. It’s crazy good.
In full disclosure, I have to share my Man Cave with the chest freezer (not a problem, it’s small) but otherwise it’s all music.
If oyu had the 4-bedrooms, you could each have a room for your stuff and then a whole house to rattle around in!
…which would require a bigger sound system. Right? No? Well, that’s what I’m telling Jen anyway.
The hallway idea work, I’ve seen it. I have a buddy in Montreal who is a HUGE science fiction reader. He had 6″ boards lining both sides of his apartment’s hallways, all crammed with sf books. There was still tons of room to get through to the rooms, and I thought it looked pretty damn slick!
I think you told me about that guy.
Remember Lex Luthor’s library from the first Superman movie? The circular thing with the ladder? I WANT THAT!
ALWAYS a bigger sound system, yes! My own system never goes past 1/4 volume. Those PSB speakers would probably shake the walls. So awesome.
I love my PSB’s. I’ve had them for over 15 years.
Mine is real weedy! Too busy buying the wax to upgrade.
I love my PSBs too. I’ve no idea how old they are, I got them used off a guy on Kijiji, but they really are brilliant-sounding.
Here’s another storage idea for you, just replace wine bottles with CD shelves…
http://dornob.com/wonderful-wine-cellars-for-any-room-in-your-house/
HAH! Love it! Brilliant, genius, and talk about something to show off to your buddies.
Yes! The only downside I see is that those systems use the cooler underground temperatures to chill the wine, and even have air vent. If you were to do it for CDs, you’d have to duct it from a furnace and insulate the hell out of it to protect against damp and cold.
You can’t kiss an MP3.
That is what I miss the most.
I have all four albums you display above. But my good buddy Aaron would tell you, I need some classic Stones.
Start with 1968-1972 (Beggars Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, Exile On Main St.). Branch out from there as you see fit. 😉
Or or or…I could buy Emotional Rescue first because I like it a lot.
Do it!
Seconded! Grab a singles compilation too.
I have all four of those albums too – Mike gave me the Rainbow (CD), Scott gave me the Lizzy (CD), and I’ve got the Band and Clash on CD as well as original LPs.
I’m a little disappointed by the Rainbow, apart from a couple tracks it’s a bit plodding, I think. The Lizzy is incredible though.
I really loved them both. I’m pretty much new to the Rainbow and so this was part of my introduction. I liked the really long songs, and Blackmore was a monster! In fact, what a line-up all around!
Apart from a taped copy I had back in 88, this is my very first copy of London Calling.
Ah, London Calling. The almost-perfect Clash record. Seriously, it’s all greatness marred only by the steaming pile that is Lost In A Supermarket. What a stupid song. Alas.
It’s the only LP of theirs I like (I have a swanky singles box set). I’m rocking Brand New Cadillac loads at the moment.
Sure! I figure as long as Stones are going into your ears, it’s pretty much all good. 🙂
Stones in my ear? Sounds like some kind of illness.
Not as bad as catching a bad case of the Beatles.
Oof I can only imagine. I spent pleasant decades ignoring them. But recently I’ve found myself drawn back, in small doses, and so far it’s a controlled descent. I don’t forsee it becoming a situation where I’d need to yell Help!
Seconded on the Singles comp. That London Years box set will work wonders! So. Good.
If Stones In Yer Ears is an illness, I am very often sick!
Also, I’m currently packing a bag so I can move into your house. Specifically that room. But only after that gaggle of girls gets the hell out. There can be no distractions from the musics. I may be there a while. 🙂
Don’t worry you’re tall and thin, there’s room for you in the corner.
“That’s me in the corner… that’s me in the spotlight, grooving to the records…”
First! And in answer to your question: jazz. SO MUCH JAZZ.
Me too!
Jazz is one of those ones that just has to be on LP. Old classics, new whatevers, it’s all better on LP. Blues too. But there’s just so much. It’s overwhelming. Hooray for all the world’s good musics!
Big boos for financial responsibility!
I swear, if I ever win the big one, the binge-shopping is going to be (in the truest use of the word) EPIC.