Letters to the Editor

This letter to the editor arrived in the analogplanet.com "inbox" this morning. A great way to start the new year!—ed.
(Photo: Houston, one of our Cardigan Welsh Corgis in "party mode").

Hi Michael:

I just wanted to thank you for your fervent passion to keep vinyl alive in these digital times. I have been a big fan of Analog Planet since my early years of collecting. I am 17 years old now but I have been collecting vinyl since I was 12. My first time stepping into a record store was a monumental experience that will always be a watershed moment in my life. It also became my college essay (trying to convert the admissions offices).

I was immediately entranced and have amassed a nice-sized collection due to this unrelenting disease of record collecting. I started as a rock kid and still very much am, but jazz has grabbed ahold of me to a great degree. My Blue Note and Impulse collections are my prized section in my collection. (Those first pressing Van Gelders are pure magic.) Nothing is more satisfying to me than the acquisition of a NJ label Prestige or in one case of mine, a Lexington label Blakey Café Bohemia Vol.1 for 10 bucks. Record collecting has given me new experiences, feelings, perspectives, and influenced my aspiring music critic/journalist dream job.

I have also become locked under the constant need to upgrade my system (I have become a wannabe audiophile.) This Christmas I managed to score a restored tube amplifier pulled out of an old Magnavox console, which sounds fantastic, paired with my Rega RP1. The sickness has begun and has no plans on stopping.

I have came to the conclusion that vinyl is the only worthy format of music. The only word I can use to describe the vinyl experience is simply, “alive.” No compression, no ear-pinching highs, muddy lows, just pure balanced music. I feel terrible for all the other kids my age that will never experience music in its full glory. They are all pinned down by the industry’s new scheme, “streaming.” I don’t feel that bad though because, what will they have 50 years from now? Nothing. Young people need a physical relationship with the experience of listening to music. (and Crosley groove chewers need to be outlawed.) My 13 year old brother got a Pro Ject Debut III for Christmas and he is absolutely loving it. I hooked him up with some of my double copies of certain albums and he now has experienced music in its truest form.

Anyway, just wanted to express my gratitude toward your fantastic reviews and website. I always check out your music and sound ratings before looking at a new reissue. Thank you, and keep on championing vinyl as the supreme music format because I am a fellow believer and you are 100% correct.

Matthew Aquiline

P.S. – I live in snowy Buffalo, NY (although not this year), but this year I was on vacation at Tampa, FL and stumbled into Banana Records, which is supposedly the largest record store ever. Over 2 million records in their warehouse! You wouldn’t believe some of the stuff they have in there. Multiple pressings of almost every album and artist imaginable. They had an aisle filled with, I kid you not, all Blue Notes! Some of them original sealed! I scored a Grant Green –Talkin’ About (w/ the classic organ trio Larry Young and Elvin) with original NY USA labels, ear, RVG in deadwax. If you’ve never been there, check it out.