Having battled with serious vinyl addiction for a few years now I recently decided to stop buying rare 45s. I've sold pretty much everything I have over £50 and haven't bought a record for months.

Record collecting is a funny one for me. Addictive personality and limited funds made it a stressful and sort of un enjoyable hobby. Always chasing the next record I couldn't really afford but somehow raised the dough. Trawling sales lists and ebay for hours and hours and hours. Not being able to afford other things in life as records took priority. Not a brilliant situation when you take a step back and see it for what it is.

I've had times that I've not bought records just to have a break, but I've never felt like I was going to throw the towel in with it. This time feels really different and that buzz and desire has gone.

Now I'm doing other things in life and having money for a change and it feels good.

Anyone else ever felt like record collecting isn't the best thing to have in your life? I've always collected things and always will, but I think rare 45s have had their day with me.

you will be back!

Ha, that's what everyone is telling me, but I know I won't.

Paul,its a balancing act.Real life,jobs,family vs collecting,buying ,going out etc.Sometimes the balance tips one way,then the other.All about priorities mate. Only you know what you need to do.

Edited July 27, 201410 yr by KevH

Two little boys has definitely curbed the madness and I'm not going to soul nights at all anymore really. Also lost interest in djing so that's been sacked off.

I'm not saying this in a negative way. I'm happy now I'm out of the game. Used to have regular chats with people about packing it all in.

Edited July 27, 201410 yr by PaulB

Yes I know what you mean...did exactly the same thing as you and then personal circumstances and a inner revelation meant I gave it upfor good and glad I did..collecting records no different really from collecting other things... will never "complete" what you want... ..started to question why I did it?.... to satisfy some inner need ..lost sight of reality..why buy a piece of music unless to play it to an audience?.... from whom you will not recoup the cost of the record in any event..and if you don't dj what do you do with it once it has come through the post?...put in your box with the rest ,go back to it look at it play it maybe a few times at first and then less and leas

As to investment value?..not sure...tastes change and then return hopefully...have decided that music in whatever form is there to be listened to.. not to be put in a box......and finally seems to me that if you want to hear a particular record its available..and out there somewhere.....also just think about the artist who first recorded the record only to be paid a few dollars and then slip back into obscurity and here we all are years later enjoying his or her music but paying god knows what for the privilege...doesn't seem fair on that original artist does it?....

Paul yes and get exactly what you mean about vinyl collecting especially Northern Soul and I guess most Soulies go through the same thoughts and myself have been collecting since about 1972 and got to have etc etc , even back then paying £5 for some 45's which in relative to my wages then was a lot to buy but seemed to do it every week  and then I let a large collection go after 25-30 years of collecting, but alas the Northern bug was still there loved the music and started again , I guess nowadays thou buying rare Northern and Soul is a very expensive game as you know and there is NEVER a end to it and as you said addictive , many people would associate with that train of thought , today I still buy and collect and indeed sell to fund others , and this is what many Northern Soul people do , I know one day I will sell again so is it a waste of time ?? or that craving ?? both I guess, but must admit have always enjoyed it whatever and to that end get satisfaction owning various 45's but as I said it is a Endless game unless you are a lottery winner most people know that , but to end yes see your point and one which I no doubt will come to myself again , and there is a joy to selling also .... life goes on and we must enjoy it , k,t,f, Gilly

Having battled with serious vinyl addiction for a few years now I recently decided to stop buying rare 45s. I've sold pretty much everything I have over £50 and haven't bought a record for months.

Record collecting is a funny one for me. Addictive personality and limited funds made it a stressful and sort of un enjoyable hobby. Always chasing the next record I couldn't really afford but somehow raised the dough. Trawling sales lists and ebay for hours and hours and hours. Not being able to afford other things in life as records took priority. Not a brilliant situation when you take a step back and see it for what it is.

I've had times that I've not bought records just to have a break, but I've never felt like I was going to throw the towel in with it. This time feels really different and that buzz and desire has gone.

Now I'm doing other things in life and having money for a change and it feels good.

Anyone else ever felt like record collecting isn't the best thing to have in your life? I've always collected things and always will, but I think rare 45s have had their day with me.

 

I've been selling a few lately. Probably not quite at the 'selling up' phase yet, but I've also liked having the money, managed to fund a new high spec PC and a new patio and be able to pay off this year's holiday in one go. All of which feels pretty good.

 

It's odd because when I started selling some I really wondered if I was doing the right thing, and convinced myself that as long as I didn't lose money on any I'd sold that would a good benchmark and maybe even make a profit on others, and maybe one day I might even buy them back. The more you sell the easier it gets to sell I find. and there will come a point (hopefully) when I don't have much of a 'collection' left and I expect that will make it even easier. It's also a good time to sell (I've found) and lot of the stuff I bought a few years ago is popular now.

 

I also found it was a lot easier to sell when I made a conscious decision to stop DJing. It's easy to buy lots and harder to sell when DJing regularly, as I was a couple of years ago. Once I wasn't DJing, it was easy to justify selling and not buying more. I wasn't much of a collector, with just over a 1000 records, but a 'collect to play out and share' person.

 

I've had a couple of people ask me if I'm 'selling up' when they've seen me listing stuff, and I've said no, just because I don't think I'm ready to admit to doing that yet.

 

Lastly, I didn't realise how much importance condition would have later when I was buying. If you are ever unsure if you will keep them forever, don't buy crap, they will be very difficult to sell later.

Edited July 27, 201410 yr by Matt Male

Paul,its a balancing act.Real life,jobs,family vs collecting,buying ,going out etc.Sometimes the balance tips one way,then the other.All about priorities mate. Only you know what you need to do.

 

Spot on mate, priorities change. Northern Soul will always be there. I always think that at least I can still dance to records I sell, especially to DJs I know. It's hard to enjoy dancing to your own records when stuck behind the decks for an hour (unless you're Sean Chapman).

Once it's in your blood it's very difficult to stop. I know a lot of people who have sold up and bought back again, and again, and again.

Once it's in your blood it's very difficult to stop. I know a lot of people who have sold up and bought back again, and again, and again.

 

This is my second time.

 

Unless I win the lottery I'm hoping there won't be a 3rd...

This is my second time.

 

Unless I win the lottery I'm hoping there won't be a 3rd...

i,m on on my third time collecting, yes its in the blood

Pete Lawson once told me......"IF IT`S IN YOUR BLOOD, IT`S THERE FOR GOOD"  I`m on my 3rd time also, end of this year, there going though, saying that I said that last year  

following poor health and inability to travel as i used to to niters   i am in the" not sure" place where i sell some things then get tempted when others comes along.......... i dont play tunes at home much now so thats a indication.....however.i miss the buzz and seeing all my friends made on the scene...... a head and  heart filled  full of soul just never  quite recovers...........and thats  how good it is .....ez

I have lots and lots of records, all kinds of black music, and for the last year have been selling a few bits on discog at a nice profit [mainly]. My criteria for selling is if a record has been sat on a shelf unmoved and unplayed for twnty plus years then do you need it? Flog it to someone who wants to play it and make a little cash. I call it giving the collection a haircut. The playing out boxes remain intact....maybe in twenty years time.

Edited July 27, 201410 yr by dean jj

Matt, it seems we're in similar camps.

I flogged loads last year, made some good money as well, be honest I've still got thousands of records, so I've hardly missed most of them, those I did regret selling I've bought back...

But I must say I've wrestled with flogging all of it bar a 300 or so box, I listen to my I-tunes in the day, so playing records is a night time treat after a hard day, what's put me off is after I've been cherry picked of the so called ' money records' it's bloody hard to shift the small things everybody has, but I don't want to go through life not having Edwin Starr - backstreet and so on....

So I'll keep em... But sell to buy, that way I can actually start saving for my retirement....cause I cant foresee how much they will be worth once the early generations of collectors sell up and move on, that has already started I'd say...

Tricky, and bloody addictive!!

Malcolm

Edited July 27, 201410 yr by Mal C

I've been selling a few lately. Probably not quite at the 'selling up' phase yet, but I've also liked having the money, managed to fund a new high spec PC and a new patio and be able to pay off this year's holiday in one go. All of which feels pretty good.

 

It's odd because when I started selling some I really wondered if I was doing the right thing, and convinced myself that as long as I didn't lose money on any I'd sold that would a good benchmark and maybe even make a profit on others, and maybe one day I might even buy them back. The more you sell the easier it gets to sell I find. and there will come a point (hopefully) when I don't have much of a 'collection' left and I expect that will make it even easier. It's also a good time to sell (I've found) and lot of the stuff I bought a few years ago is popular now.

 

I also found it was a lot easier to sell when I made a conscious decision to stop DJing. It's easy to buy lots and harder to sell when DJing regularly, as I was a couple of years ago. Once I wasn't DJing, it was easy to justify selling and not buying more. I wasn't much of a collector, with just over a 1000 records, but a 'collect to play out and share' person.

 

I've had a couple of people ask me if I'm 'selling up' when they've seen me listing stuff, and I've said no, just because I don't think I'm ready to admit to doing that yet.

 

It's a really interesting phenomena and I've thought long and hard about since I auctioned my first serious Northern Collection off in 1975 to fund my first visit to the U.S. So, I've had 40 years to examine this.

 

The first time, in a way was easiest because the decision was made for me and I had a romantic notion that I'd manage to replace everything I'd auctioned within 10 minutes of landing in New York.  So any potential pain at losing some extremely rare records in the UK was somewhat nullified by the fact that I would be sifting through tens of thousands of records for 10 cents each in the US, so my addiction would be satisfied. And boy, was it satisfied. Whilst I didn't manage to replace everything, I effectively built the foundation of a great 2nd collection with a huge amount of unknowns and 70s killers which eventually became big over the next 30 years at different points. However, by 1977 I was heading in a different direction what with Shalamar, the Jazz-Funk scene and working in the music business. But I was still collecting but a much much wider area than just Northern and so I was into 12"'s, albums and anything else that looked interesting. So, by 1978 I had 40,000 records in total. It gave me security being surrounded by tons of vinyl for some reason and that was when I sort of realised that I was very much defining myself by my record collection.

 

However, maintaining and cataloging that amount of records was taking up a LOT of time and space. Ridiculous really but I didn't want to get rid of anything. So I spent the next 30 years lugging around this huge amount of records to various different homes. From the mid 80s onwards I realised that I never had time to play them and that it was becoming a day or two's work every month to keep them in order as I was always pulling different stuff out for different deejaying gigs so there'd always be piles of records waiting to be re-filed. Organised chaos. Plus, once I examined things objectively, I realised that I was only actually using perhaps 5% of my collection at most. The other 95% on my shelves were gathering dust literally, desperately looking for some love and to be played even.

 

I think the penny eventually dropped in 2008, when I realised that I was hardly playing any records at that point, apart from deejaying. All of my home listening was now via CDs and sound-files which were quicker and more convenient. My CD collection (which was now taking over the whole lounge) was also doubling up all the stuff I'd already got on vinyl which was in a dedicated room upstairs, all the space under the stairs and the overflow in either a garage or storage unit. Ridiculous.

 

So for my own sanity, I realised that I need to seriously thin-down my vinyl. So since 2008 they've been going steadily hopefully to better homes who will give them more love and affection then I've been able to for the last 40 years. I still have several thousand to go yet, so it's been a systematic wind-down operation for the last 7 years and will be ongoing for another 3 years at least I reckon. Plus I still can't resist buying stuff but these days I make sure that more stuff is going out rather than coming in.

 

It's a compulsive obsessive disorder in my opinion, not a gazillion miles different from that program "Hoarders". Except record collectors are much much neater and better organised!  

 

Ian D 

I have lots and lots of records, all kinds of black music, and for the last year have been selling a few bits on discog at a nice profit [mainly]. My criteria for selling is if a record has been sat on a shelf unmoved and unplayed for twnty plus years then do you need it? Flog it to someone who wants to play it and make a little cash. I call it giving the collection a haircut. The playing out boxes remain intact....maybe in twenty years time.

 

Exactly the same philosophy as me. When I can get my collection down to 2 x 500 count play-out boxes for 7" and 12" records then I'll finally be getting there! 

 

Ian D 

This is a conversation I have with my wife as she always calls my collection her pension (so we know who's going first in our house ) I've told her the top end stuff will go without much problem but she'll be left with a good few cheaper tunes that are great records but everyone has them?So the dilemma is does she try to get the £5/10 they are worth,keep them or as I've told to do she should sell them at £1/2 pound each & then at least most will go & she'll have a few extra quid as they are no use stuck in a box in the bottom of a wardrobe?

I have thought on occasions about selling up but just can't bring myself to do it,the thought of a 300 box also appeals to me but never done anything about it?I go back to when I had my stroke & was out of work I still collected,so I more or less know I'll collect til the end?

My names Martyn Bird I'm a vinyl addict

Cheers

Martyn

Edited July 27, 201410 yr by hullsoul

Having battled with serious vinyl addiction for a few years now I recently decided to stop buying rare 45s. I've sold pretty much everything I have over £50 and haven't bought a record for months.

Record collecting is a funny one for me. Addictive personality and limited funds made it a stressful and sort of un enjoyable hobby. Always chasing the next record I couldn't really afford but somehow raised the dough. Trawling sales lists and ebay for hours and hours and hours. Not being able to afford other things in life as records took priority. Not a brilliant situation when you take a step back and see it for what it is.

I've had times that I've not bought records just to have a break, but I've never felt like I was going to throw the towel in with it. This time feels really different and that buzz and desire has gone.

Now I'm doing other things in life and having money for a change and it feels good.

Anyone else ever felt like record collecting isn't the best thing to have in your life? I've always collected things and always will, but I think rare 45s have had their day with me.

Thousands did it in 1980.

See you in 20 years when you can bore us all wanting to relive your yoof! LOL!

Regards,

Dave

The reason people find it so hard to stop collecting is because they never find anything to replace it with.  Trust me, I know from many many experiences.  I've had to sell collections for so many reasons, like an upcoming baby, to get a new kitchen paid for, also general poverty when I lived on my own and didn't have a job.  Then I built them back up again until I had really nice collections of both UK and US originals - but when I decided to sell records for a living, I had to sell them all to fund this and never looked back really.  Some of the astonishing records I've had, how I'd love to have kept them - but for what purpose?  My kids aren't going to want them when I die.  The amount of people collecting them and potential buyers will have decreased, like it does every single week.

 

People are starting to wise up to this now, we are not going to live forever, and many people are going to be left with thousands and thousands of records which could have been converted into cash.

 

In the last year alone I've sold things like The Classics (Yan G), The Salvadors, The Del Larks, John & The Wierdest - these are straight out of the collections of people realising that every bubble has to burst and they and their families can really use the money for something.  You may have noticed some of the quality originals I'm selling at the moment, every week, again given to me to sell by someone who bought them mainly to get DJ spots but as they weren't forthcoming, realised that they were just going to sit there forever in their boxes.

 

So basically, if you can find something to fill the void left by not collecting records, you'll be okay - but I must warn you, you'll probably replace the non-collecting of records by starting to collect something else...that's the bug that you can never shake off.

Edited July 27, 201410 yr by Pete S

Exactly the same philosophy as me. When I can get my collection down to 2 x 500 count play-out boxes for 7" and 12" records then I'll finally be getting there! 

 

Ian D 

 

That's sounds about right. A 250 box is a nice size to start up a soul night when I retire.

I sold everything I had over £50 except for 2 tunes ray pollard soul mate and dennis robinson and the original tams wings for my baby.

I now collect cheapies and labels such as rictic duke curtom etc where a lot can be picked up for a tenner or less , buy a soul pack here and there ,the odd album and cd.

Just because the records i buy dont cost a lot it doesnt mean they are not very good , Just they are unknown or very common.

The music will always be available on  legit cd , cdr , mp3, youtube etc.

 

John powney and des parker both regulaly list stuff for sale that is no more than about £20 and i know if john lists something for £30 i could get more the next day selling it on if i needed to.

 

The desire for unknown music is the thing i like , not knowing what i am going to hear till the stylus hits the record as others wont play it as its too cheap

There's a filtering system you can use if you think you've stripped your collection down to nothing but favourites.  Go through them and ask yourself can you really live without having this record in your collection?  I got my last great Reggae & Ska collection down from around 250 pieces to 15 using this method.  I still have the 15.  I sold records I thought I could never ever sell like "Jet 707" (but replaced with a bootleg).  I only really really regret selling maybe a dozen of them and I've never been able to replace them.

This is a conversation I have with my wife as she always calls my collection her pension (so we know who's going first in our house ) I've told her the top end stuff will go without much problem but she'll be left with a good few cheaper tunes that are great records but everyone has them?So the dilemma is does she try to get the £5/10 they are worth,keep them or as I've told to do she should sell them at £1/2 pound each & then at least most will go & she'll have a few extra quid as they are no use stuck in a box in the bottom of a wardrobe?

I have thought on occasions about selling up but just can't bring myself to do it,the thought of a 300 box also appeals to me but never done anything about it?I go back to when I had my stroke & was out of work I still collected,so I more or less know I'll collect til the end?

My names Marty Bird I'm a vinyl addict

Cheers

Martyn

Don't chuck towel in Mart, your still a young feller, can understand you packin your team up the M1 in but not your records .... Neil

I sold everything I had over £50 except for 2 tunes ray pollard soul mate and dennis robinson and the original tams wings for my baby.

I now collect cheapies and labels such as rictic duke curtom etc where a lot can be picked up for a tenner or less , buy a soul pack here and there ,the odd album and cd.

Just because the records i buy dont cost a lot it doesnt mean they are not very good , Just they are unknown or very common.

The music will always be available on  legit cd , cdr , mp3, youtube etc.

 

John powney and des parker both regulaly list stuff for sale that is no more than about £20 and i know if john lists something for £30 i could get more the next day selling it on if i needed to.

 

The desire for unknown music is the thing i like , not knowing what i am going to hear till the stylus hits the record as others wont play it as its too cheap

Good philosophy, some 10 quid tunes sound really expensive. Some belters on Blue Rock & Galaxy

Don't chuck towel in Mart, your still a young feller, can understand you packin your team up the M1 in but not your records .... Neil

Neil

Remind me next time I bump into you,I've got a pint for you............"Young Fella"

You leave LUFC alone  

This threads depressing me

Cheers

Martyn

When I stopped DJing several years ago now I started to off load all the big stuff slowly over a period of time, always bought and sold when active on the scene to fund new records etc. I think it depends on many factors if you decide to sell, I didn't feel I could justify sitting on the likes of Jimmy Burns, George Blackwell, Cashmeres, Johnny Rodgers, Hayes Cotton and dozens more, I have firstly no regrets at all, miss them yes sometimes but it's funny I still collect little bits and bobs so it's certainly right about being in your blood, someone made the point of if you have big records it's nice to play them to an audience which from my perspective was very true as there is no better feeling in the world than sharing the music with others, if I won the lottery would I buy them back bet your life I would lol, not really being involved with the scene anymore certainly made selling some of the records easier as I think when you a caught up in the moment the thrill of DJ'ing the buzz of the scene chasing the next big tune etc. all plays it's part in the magic and passion for collecting, when it becomes less important and you can separate the emotional attachment to the records then that also makes it easier to part with them.

It's a really interesting phenomena and I've thought long and hard about since I auctioned my first serious Northern Collection off in 1975 to fund my first visit to the U.S. So, I've had 40 years to examine this.

 

The first time, in a way was easiest because the decision was made for me and I had a romantic notion that I'd manage to replace everything I'd auctioned within 10 minutes of landing in New York.  So any potential pain at losing some extremely rare records in the UK was somewhat nullified by the fact that I would be sifting through tens of thousands of records for 10 cents each in the US, so my addiction would be satisfied. And boy, was it satisfied. Whilst I didn't manage to replace everything, I effectively built the foundation of a great 2nd collection with a huge amount of unknowns and 70s killers which eventually became big over the next 30 years at different points. However, by 1977 I was heading in a different direction what with Shalamar, the Jazz-Funk scene and working in the music business. But I was still collecting but a much much wider area than just Northern and so I was into 12"'s, albums and anything else that looked interesting. So, by 1978 I had 40,000 records in total. It gave me security being surrounded by tons of vinyl for some reason and that was when I sort of realised that I was very much defining myself by my record collection.

 

However, maintaining and cataloging that amount of records was taking up a LOT of time and space. Ridiculous really but I didn't want to get rid of anything. So I spent the next 30 years lugging around this huge amount of records to various different homes. From the mid 80s onwards I realised that I never had time to play them and that it was becoming a day or two's work every month to keep them in order as I was always pulling different stuff out for different deejaying gigs so there'd always be piles of records waiting to be re-filed. Organised chaos. Plus, once I examined things objectively, I realised that I was only actually using perhaps 5% of my collection at most. The other 95% on my shelves were gathering dust literally, desperately looking for some love and to be played even.

 

I think the penny eventually dropped in 2008, when I realised that I was hardly playing any records at that point, apart from deejaying. All of my home listening was now via CDs and sound-files which were quicker and more convenient. My CD collection (which was now taking over the whole lounge) was also doubling up all the stuff I'd already got on vinyl which was in a dedicated room upstairs, all the space under the stairs and the overflow in either a garage or storage unit. Ridiculous.

 

So for my own sanity, I realised that I need to seriously thin-down my vinyl. So since 2008 they've been going steadily hopefully to better homes who will give them more love and affection then I've been able to for the last 40 years. I still have several thousand to go yet, so it's been a systematic wind-down operation for the last 7 years and will be ongoing for another 3 years at least I reckon. Plus I still can't resist buying stuff but these days I make sure that more stuff is going out rather than coming in.

 

It's a compulsive obsessive disorder in my opinion, not a gazillion miles different from that program "Hoarders". Except record collectors are much much neater and better organised!  

 

Ian D 

You haven't seen my record room mate. It's like Gaza.

Two little boys has definitely curbed the madness and I'm not going to soul nights at all anymore really. Also lost interest in djing so that's been sacked off.

I'm not saying this in a negative way. I'm happy now I'm out of the game. Used to have regular chats with people about packing it all in.

 

Sounds like burn out. It can afflict any of us at any time when we pursue our passions relentlessley, even if they start out as an enjoyable addiction.  Never say never and a change is a good as a rest and all that jazz......soul...........

It's obvious records are meant for putting in order and looking at now and again.

Otherwise why would artists or labels all start with a different letter of the alphabet and why would they fit so handily into a record box or on a shelf.

I rest my carver-less case

ROD

stopped collecting Northern about 18mnths ago, and decided to start thinning my collection, not just the northern and 7 inches but every genre. Spending the money on bicycles now, LOL. I still cant stop buying though, at least the tunes i'm purchasing ( 8ts and  9ts house and garage) are afforable right now, for the average guy NS is frustratingly expensive. I can buy  a stack of 12's for £30, where would that get me with 6ts northern?

stopped collecting Northern about 18mnths ago, and decided to start thinning my collection, not just the northern and 7 inches but every genre. Spending the money on bicycles now, LOL. I still cant stop buying though, at least the tunes i'm purchasing ( 8ts and 9ts house and garage) are afforable right now, for the average guy NS is frustratingly expensive. I can buy a stack of 12's for £30, where would that get me with 6ts northern?

Exactly the same with me. Got three triathlons on this year and that costs a lot for all the gear you need.

I'll buy house and hip hop tunes for literally pence rather than telling myself a £50 funk record is a cheapie.

The thing with soul records is nothing ever changes with collecting them. A bit like hammering booze, its always the same outcome.

Prob 8 months since I paid more than £10 for a record and I've never missed it once.

stopped collecting Northern about 18mnths ago, and decided to start thinning my collection, not just the northern and 7 inches but every genre. Spending the money on bicycles now, LOL. I still cant stop buying though, at least the tunes i'm purchasing ( 8ts and  9ts house and garage) are afforable right now, for the average guy NS is frustratingly expensive. I can buy  a stack of 12's for £30, where would that get me with 6ts northern?

 

A lot more shelf space.

I have lots and lots of records, all kinds of black music, and for the last year have been selling a few bits on discog at a nice profit [mainly]. My criteria for selling is if a record has been sat on a shelf unmoved and unplayed for twnty plus years then do you need it? Flog it to someone who wants to play it and make a little cash. I call it giving the collection a haircut. The playing out boxes remain intact....maybe in twenty years time.

Of course I'm still buying..teehee

your better off excepting your an addict and live your life out as one...go on just one more!

 

besides your not on your own,were all here keep the addiction flowing,plenty of dealers to keep feeding you.

The more people that sell up, means more records for me to buy!!!

Been collecting original Northern Soul for over 35 years without a break, and won't be selling any of the best ones!

It's not about money, fame or Dj'ing for me, it's about the privilege of owning these great records!

Edited July 27, 201410 yr by Guest

The more people that sell up, means more records for me to buy!!!

Been collecting original Northern Soul for over 35 years without a break, and won't be selling any of the best ones!

It's not about money, fame or Dj'ing for me, it's about the privilege of owning these great records!

Wow ! someone with a genuine collecting mentality now today, that is rare !

Top post that man

Dave

I Like buying records "I like it alot!!"

https://youtu.be/28GLa9T2CtI

 

Personally, I treat it as money "spent" rather than money I'll get back. Gone and never to be seen again. And only buy things I want to own for good.

The more people that sell up, means more records for me to buy!!!

Been collecting original Northern Soul for over 35 years without a break, and won't be selling any of the best ones!

It's not about money, fame or Dj'ing for me, it's about the privilege of owning these great records!

That's it in a nutshell for me. These beautiful little pieces of vinyl or styrene have been around a very long time and some have gone through hell (and a couple of thousand miles of ocean) to get to us. I feel very lucky to own my records - even the cheapies..

 

There's a couple of minutes of magic in the grooves of every one and as the icing on the cake they have beautiful labels. Whether we can instantly access the sound files or not is irrelevant - I personally get an enormous amount of pleasure every day simply looking through them reminding myself of what I have.

 

Also each record has a personal story for me - whether I hassled a mate for it as a teenager until he relented or simply bought one online at a good price from a good seller.

 

I don't think I'm a weirdo or a nerd - just grateful for what I have, and when I'm gone the missus gets 'em...and guess what - she loves 'em too!

I've had times that I've not bought records just to have a break, but I've never felt like I was going to throw the towel in with it. This time feels really different and that buzz and desire has gone.

Now I'm doing other things in life and having money for a change and it feels good.

Anyone else ever felt like record collecting isn't the best thing to have in your life? I've always collected things and always will, but I think rare 45s have had their day with me.

 

I feel the same. Once the buzz is gone it simply doesn't make sense to keep on buying.

I've been batting this around for a couple of years now and wonder why I keep my records and wonder why I continue to buy.

I doubt I'm ever going to DJ again and so perhaps I should just record them and sell them on to someone who is going to make better use of them. Some of them are like old friends though and some I've bought recently I've wanted for ages.

Tough, tough decision.

I wish to nominate Ted Massey as the most dedicated and fervent collector ever, nothing but nothing could switch this man off

Interesting topic... I often wonder about the obsession with owning objects, that goes along with this scene. I'll bet there's loads of members on here who get an urge to hear a tune, know it'll take about an hour to find it, so just listen to it off youtube instead. Which begs the question - why is owning the artefact SO important?

It IS an addiction, much as people like to joke about it. If I ever have a day off work, a day record shopping is first thing planned. At least once a week I'll go to a carboot sale. Pretty much every day I'll check a charity shop and spend time on ebay or checking sales lists on here. If I decided to give up, I'd have a lot of time to devote to something else. But, as Pete points out, what?

It's handy that records are all basically the same shape and size, since my house would be a total mess otherwise. Imagine collecting antique vases or cars?

A lot more shelf space.

very true, at least 7 inches are a handier size! lol. 

I think we all suffer from this , its the "strange world of northern soul " and never described fully  in any TV documentary , a friend and one the best collectors

in Manchester recently told me  " if you ever feel like stopping buying , give me a ring , and we can talk it through " , I am afraid I am hooked  and

subject to me remaining solvent ( or sort of , until I retire ) then cant see me giving this up anytime soon , anyway who needs to eat and buy clothes !!

I wish to nominate Ted Massey as the most dedicated and fervent collector ever, nothing but nothing could switch this man off

Only because he is Dj'ing every weekend. Don't think he would still have them otherwise. I may be wrong and if so I apologise, but that's the main criteria for having many thousands of pounds worth of vinyl.  

stopped collecting Northern about 18mnths ago, and decided to start thinning my collection, not just the northern and 7 inches but every genre. Spending the money on bicycles now, LOL. I still cant stop buying though, at least the tunes i'm purchasing ( 8ts and  9ts house and garage) are afforable right now, for the average guy NS is frustratingly expensive. I can buy  a stack of 12's for £30, where would that get me with 6ts northern?

Pushbikes? That's the Anton factor - sold another chunk of mine off early this year - but still have a about 500 that I just CAN'T sell - plus a load that ain't worth selling.

Dx

Edited July 28, 201410 yr by DaveNPete

I have been aiming to keep the condition of records high as I build my collection so that if I ever decide to sell anything, that it'll be easier to sell records in better condition.

 

However, it seems like I'm getting close to the point where the records I would have an interest are beyond my budget and therefore out of my reach, and they're likely rare enough that I won't find them in good condition either.

 

There are times it seems that it would make sense to sell off the records, as it would free up money to do a lot of things around the house that would be nice to do, plus it's hard to find time to listen to them.  

Also, it's very arguable that if you are sitting on a big expensive collection, in just one generations time, you are not going to see any monetary value pay you back what you have invested even, as values plummet as the last of that 'real' generation exits this mortal coil.

This is a very real possibility.

I'm not saying the scene will die, of course not, but it will evolve & the ones that take up the slack are from a digital age don't forget, that shiny plastic doesn't have the same appeal.

This will happen, 15 years max IMO.

While there will always be a market, not unlike old stamps or something, but this market will be a fraction of the size.

I know a very well known DJ we all know who agrees & thinking of getting rid of stuff just sat at home too, for these very reasons given his age & he has NEVER sold from his collection on the past.

The clock is ticking all the time.