Skip to main content

Why Buy Albums

In this episode - Why Buy Vinyl Albums . . .

Do you consider yourself a music lover? During my high school and college days (1970-1979), music was about what it took to recreate the concert experience. Pulse-pounding bass and drums, hypnotic electric guitar leads, remarkable rhythm, and distinctive vocals. 

How, you ask? High-fidelity recordings could only be reproduced for consumers from vinyl LP record albums. And, of course, BIG speakers. (The first digital compact disc (CD) was released in 1982 in Japan). In my dorm at Western Illinois University, college was contesting who owned the "best" speakers and quality hi-fi amplifier. To name a few from that era, Pioneer, Sansui, Kenwood, Marantz, and Harman Kardon, among many others.

Another essential component was the turntable. Audio-Technica, Denon, Technics, Marantz, Onkyo, and Pioneer have made a big comeback in recent years.

I remember my roommates' "Rig," a Marantz 1070 amplifier, Technics turntable, and BIC Formula Four speakers. My tiny Pioneer integrated system didn't stand a chance.

However, the question remains, have you ever experienced music reproduction from a quality stereo system with a turntable and LP record?

You may be thinking, "Why bother? We have the convenience of modern digital devices that integrate with home, personal, and car audio systems?"

During a Saturday visit to our local record store - Standards in Vista, CA. I became giddy about a find. I dictated a text to Lori, "You'll never believe what album I found for six dollars."

With her iPhone in hand, which contains our entire music collection (BTW), her response, "I say, why buy albums?"

My first thought was, what, are you kidding? "An LP album is a multi-sensory experience." Allow me to rationalize.

While flipping through bins of "old" records, I discovered a used copy of Madman Across the Water by Elton John and Bernie Taupin. You've probably heard many of the hits; Tiny Dancer, Levon, and Madman Across the Water. Of course, we own a digital copy, one of my favorites not in my record collection from the 1970s.

As I opened the bi-fold album, I was surprised to find an intact original booklet of lyrics and photos included with the layered artwork—the cover replicated the authentic look and feel of blue jeans and had a familiar fragrant aroma.

At the height of record production, artists were hired to work with musicians to carefully craft masterful artwork that became the album cover, stunning 12 1/2 inch square pressed artwork, the liner notes, lyrics sheets, and sleeve design.

Today when you purchase (or should we say rent), a digital version included is a miniature of the album cover artwork on your phone; I'm sorry, that's just not the same.

My listening friends, the full sensory experience of a rich concert re-creation involves; slide the record from its sleeve, place it on the turntable, turn it on, check the playback speed, clean the disc, place the tonearm, and enjoy!

A rich, deep, resonant, full melodic bass sound fills the room: harmony, rhythm, and the perfect articulation of sound reproduction. So go ahead, live a little, turn up the volume, sit back, close your eyes, and relive that concert experience all over again.

Come on; you still need to ask, "Why buy an Album?"

I'm Patrick Ball; thanks for listening. See you in the next episode.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most Popular of All Time

Boy on a Beam

In this special bonus episode, Boy on a Beam. In a world long ago, when the days moved quite slow, Before buzzes and beeps and the fast things we know, A boy sat quite still on a very fine day, Just staring at nothing . . . and thinking away. No tablets! No gadgets! No screens shining bright! No earbuds stuck in from morning till night. No lists, no charts, and no chores to be done. He just sat there thinking—that's quiet-time fun! His name was Young Albert. He sat in his chair, Thinking of things that weren’t really there. “Suppose,” said Young Albert, with eyes open wide, “I ran super fast with my arms by my side! Suppose I ran faster than anyone knew, And caught up to sunshine that zoomed past me—too! If I hopped on its back for a light-speedy ride, What secrets would I find tucked away deep inside?” “Would stars look like sprinkles, all shiny and small? Would UP feel like sideways? Would BIG feel like Tall?” He giggled and wondered and thought, and he dreamed, Till his head fel...
Post a Comment
Read more

Un-Work the Old-Fashioned Way

🎩   In this special episode. How to Un-Work the Old-Fashioned Way It’s 2026! Yes— this is the year! A different kind of start—you feel it right here? No lists! No demands! No fix-all-your-flaws! No “New You by Tuesday!” No rules! No laws! Those resolutions? Bah! Dusty and dry! We’ve tried fixing everything —so let’s ask why. Why rush and correct and improve and compare, When noticing quietly gets you right there ? So here’s a new project—no charts, no clocks, No boxes to check in your mental inbox. It’s bigger than busy and smaller than grand, It’s called Un-Working —now give me your hand! Un-Working’s not quitting or hiding away, It’s setting things down that shout “Hurry! Hey!” The hustle! The bustle! The faster-than-fast! The gotta-win-now or you’re stuck in the past! That’s the work of Un-Working— plop! —set it free! The titles! The labels! The “Look-At-Me!” The crown that kept sliding and pinching your head— You never looked comfy . . . let’s try this instead: Pick up a tel...
Post a Comment
Read more

When Fear Becomes the Default

In this special episode, When Fear Becomes the Default. Early Sunday morning, I was cycling past a small veterans’ pocket park in San Marcos. The air was still, the streets nearly empty. On one corner stood a young woman, alone, holding a hand-painted sign that read: “Be ANGRY. ICE agents are murdering people.” I pedaled past, but the words stayed with me. I knew the context—the footage and headlines from Minneapolis the day before, already ricocheting through the country and hardening opinions. Even in the quiet of the ride, the noise followed. Two miles later, I stopped at a red light. A black car with dark windows pulled up inches from my bike. My heart jumped. My first instinct wasn’t neighbor —it was threat . I found myself bracing, scanning, and wondering if the person inside was angry, armed, or looking for trouble. Then the door opened. A well-dressed young woman stepped out, walked to the trunk, and pulled out a sign that read “Open House.” She turned, smiled brightly, and sa...
2 comments
Read more

The Thought Experiment–Revisited

In this episode. The Thought Experiment–Revisited The Boy on a Light Beam In 1895, a sixteen-year-old boy did something we rarely allow ourselves to do anymore. He stared into space and let his mind wander. No phone. No notes. No “Optimization Hacks” for his morning routine. Just a question: What would happen if I chased a beam of light—and actually caught it? That boy was Albert Einstein . And that single act of curiosity—a Gedankenexperiment , a thought experiment—eventually cracked open Newton’s tidy universe and rearranged our understanding of time itself. Not bad for an afternoon of daydreaming. Imagine if Einstein had been “productive” instead. He would have logged the light-beam idea into a Notion database, tagged it #CareerGrowth, and then promptly ignored it to attend a forty-five-minute “Sync” about the color of the departmental logo. He’d have a high Efficiency Score—and we’d still be stuck in a Newtonian universe , wondering why the Wi-Fi is slow. In a post I wrote back in...
2 comments
Read more