Vinyl; Clutter or Classic? 5 ways to make the most of your records.

Today has been Record Store Day in the UK, with many independent record retailers coming together to celebrate the art of music.

As a fabulous way of getting people into stores, many artists have produced special edition vinyl and CD releases, and in my home town of Manchester, it has caused something of a stir!

Hordes of people have been queueing to gain entry to a number of popular stores, such as Piccadilly Records, in order to bag themselves a limited edition item.  There have been famous musicians DJ-ing in some stores, as well as bands playing live.  It has been a real treat by all accounts!

Many people have moved on from vinyl, past CDs, the mini-disc, and now through to i-Tunes and Spotify, but some still love nothing more than to enjoy opening up the crisp sleeve of a 7 or 12″ record, slipping it onto the turntable and blasting out those tunes on a record deck.

I grew up in the 70’s, where my Dad (journalist by day/DJ by night) would keep us well abreast of the current trends, with rafts of 7″ singles and 12″ albums – everything from the Beatles and Joni Mitchell to Motown classics and Stars on 45 compilations.  He spun the ‘wheels of steel’ week after week and held on to his treasures for many years.  However, with a number of house moves under his belt, and then moving abroad some years ago, he passed these on to me for ‘safe-keeping’.  His way of avoiding the inevitable task of letting go for good, perhaps?

Luckily, I have sufficient space to store these classics for both me and my family to enjoy now.  I’ve a turntable that hooks up by USB to my computer and we often have a ‘vinyl’ night – essentially me taking a trip down memory lane playing my Dad’s and my own classics and giving my girls some laughs along the way!!

I often wonder who else stores such treasures, but unused and out of the way in a garage or loft; packed away from the world and taking up (likely) much needed space.  Holding onto things for the memory, but at the expense of living or storage space for more essential items, is a false economy.  Either take them out and get some use out of them, or let them go (not ‘get rid’!).

And here’s how;

1. Check online for vinyl buyers or sell through eBay or similar.  Collections of a specific genre tend to sell better than single items.
2. Donate to a local interest group or ask family and friends if they would like to take them from you.
3. Frame your favourite albums in a specially sized frame, like these.
4. Create your own timepiece and add a clock face, similar to these.
5. Turn your vinyl into something completely different by trying one of these ideas on Pinterest.

I’d love to know what your first vinyl purchase was!  Mine?  Blondie – ‘The Tide is High’.  Please leave a comment and share!