I still really love the record store experience. I love pretty much every aspect of it, and living in San Francisco has a benefit in the awesome resource that is Amoeba records. I should also mention that I recently fixed my component turntable and have been getting into vinyl, so I went over there to buy some used records as well as CDs, and I noticed some things.
I suppose vinyl is inherently cool, but I want to talk about how Amoeba's pricing of said vinyl struck me as oddly indicative of what is and is not cool in terms of old(er) music these days. They get a lot of used vinyl there, so much so that they are offering to give away boxes of it for art projects or industrious DJs or community vinyl reconditioning experiments. Naturally they don't take scratched up stuff, so most of the albums look great. The main differences therefore are in price, and after my experience on Saturday I found myself (over)analyzing some of the current trends in retro-music coolness, as indicated (solely) by the seemingly arbitrary pricing of good condition vinyl.
Steely Dan The Royal Scam
Price = 3.99
Purchased!
Why do people hate the Dan? I seriously don't understand why no one (apparently) desires this album. There were two of these! This record particularly strikes me as a highpoint of 70s cool. Slick production, hot solos, cryptic lyrics concerning San Francisco. How can Journey be making such a comeback whilst Fagen and Becker get no love?
Van Morrison Astral Weeks
Price = 26 dollars
Not Purchased!
Van is most certainly the man, and this album proves it. I've been familiar with it for several years now, but it has come back up in my musical rotation lately, and I thought I'd see about the vinyl. It was only available as a new pressing, hence the inflated price. I had no idea the kids were purchasing this stuff, but all in all, it's a good thing. Sunny days ahead.
Paul Simon Paul Simon
Price = 2.99
Purchased!
This is a classic for sure. I guess Graceland is probably selling well right now, based at least in part of Vampire Weekend's success and I couldn't find a copy of that at all, new or used. This not being sought after doesn't really surprise me, but it doesn't mean it's not fucking great. Terrific songwriting like Mother and Child Reunion and Me and Julio, and the other album tracks really showcase him as an interesting and I think highly underrated guitar player.
Velvet Underground Velvet Underground
Price = can't remember, but it was expensive
Not Purchased
Not to be confused with The Velvet Underground and Nico, this is the third LP, post-John Cale that has Candy Says and Pale Blue Eyes on it. Scorchingly affecting on headphones. Anyway, VU are forever cool, so this isn't really surprising, but again, there were new pressings of what I was considering their least appreciated (but also best, in my opinion) album so I guess it's still selling. On the plus side, the CD is mixed/mastered to have that hi-fi that's sort of intentionally lo-fi feel to it and almost reminds me of how vinyl sounds anyway.
J.C. Superstar
Price = 3.99
Purchased
I won't bother to defend this. It's obviously uncool, but I love it.
Bill Cosby To Russell, My Brother, Whom I Slept With
Price = 1.99
Purchased
The Cos is cool. I think he gets minimal respect because he's more understated then many modern comedians, more of a storyteller really and less like what stand-up comedy has evolved into. I think he's cool, but it's unlikely that the popular opinion will turn on that one anytime soon. I particularly liked this album cover and will probably hang it up.
Bruce Springsteen Various Albums
Price = various prices!
None Purchased
An interesting one for me because I am convinced he's coming back on the coolness wheel. I've always idealized the man, but my peers have and continue to be somewhat hard on him (this despite the fact that the almost uninanimous "Best Record of 2007", Arcade Fire's Neon Bible draws very heavily and unabashedly from The Boss). Born in the USA was present in multiple cheap copies as this is often considered to the young, hip, newly-converted Springsteen fan to be a lowpoint (Wrong!). Nebraska, the de facto "it's cool to like this (Springsteen) record cause its sparse and edgy" option, was not to be found. Again, no real surprise. All in all though, there were just very few choices for a man who's recorded albums consistently for 35 years. Someone is buying up these other 70s gems (Born to Run, Darkness on the Edge of Town, Greetings From Asbury Park, etc...). I guess I'm saying...Bruce is coming back. Believe.
trenchantly insightful,
The Amazing Rob
4 comments:
There's nothing wrong with JC Superstar - as long as you're jiving to the sounds of the rock album version, and not the soundtrack to the film. The film version of the songs are weak.
truth--this is the rock album. funky as hell, really.
JC Superstar = GREAT.
No defense necessary.
Also, Cos = GENIUS.
You can't Dan without The Scam.
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