So

been somewhere

I think the bit I am loving right now is the club classics

I'm loving the 60s club classic's again

very odd, loving things like Jackie lee the the duck rather than George pep

I am going to collect the records that mean something to

Thoughts?

Edited August 13Aug 13 by Gaz T

It's good to appreciate records for how good they are to oneself, and not just because they have a high price tag and are rare!

Sort of gone full circle for me last few years

I have been collecting the uk Atlantic label for example - so many great classic soul / mod records

From a record collecting point of view

We all do it mate,go through various phases of buying records,whether it be down to specifics of demo or issue,usa or uk,price tags,uptempo or beat ballads!....god forbid "modern" 😂 Until you eventually end up at a cd or youtube😂

I do collect many different things - love 60s boogaloo - rnb - Jamaican 60s - Mod Jazz

all within my context of mod influenced things I suppose

I still buy the odd expensive thing - just finding it really interesting collecting lots of little things - lots of classics

Hope this is relevant to yourquestion

I'd not played my vinyl for 30 odd years or so and sold some to mates,not a lot but enough to think I better put aside the ones that mean something to me,I'm guessing the type of record you are describing. I bought my first proper record case,until then my records had been stored in wooden boxes I made at work.

I quickly filled that box with the like of Brooks and Jerry, Billy Preston, Jerry Butler,Betty Everett etc.

Then a mate at work gave me his Dad's cheap home Dj set up, I thanked him and have cursed him ever since as I started buying again and the collecting bug took hold. It's something I've been thinking about recently, how many records do you actually need.

I like British but not exclusively, maybe because that's where my early memories of collecting started. The thing is I now have the desire to own the original UK issue hence I've got doubles of Getting Mighty Crowded, Billy's Bag etc. Even buying the original issue I couldn't part with the President copies as they have been with me for what seems like forever. I've tried explaining to non Soul people the feeling I get just seeing a Blue Stax record in a charity shop or market stall, even something as mundane as Dock of the Bay still has to be picked up and gazed at,it's just something inside me. I've lost count of the number of people who have told me I need help.

I'm trying now not to buy records I just like and pay a bit more if necessary for records I love. In the grand scheme of things my self imposed limit would to most be laughable with current prices being paid but there are plenty of records I want at the price I want to pay. I'm With Solidsoul above, high price or rarity has no bearing on what I buy, 90% are under 50 quid.

I recently started writing down in a book My Life In Music, I only add a record as it is playing on the deck, just a mixture of thoughts how the record makes me feel, where I first heard it, who it reminds me of, happy or sad memories, favourite part of lyric. It might when I'm gone give my kids a more personal insight into my life or they might just throw it in the bin.

I think the key to collecting is to buy what you love not the current in record. I do buy a limited amount of reissues on Kent etc which i could never afford on an original though I much prefer to spend 15 quid on an original lesser known

Edited Wednesday at 20:295 days by Twoshoes
Should have read I like British but NOT exclusively

"I recently started writing down in a book My Life In Music, I only add a record as it is playing on the deck, just a mixture of thoughts how the record makes me feel, where I first heard it, who it reminds me of, happy or sad memories, favourite part of lyric. It might when I'm gone give my kids a more personal insight into my life or they might just throw it in the bin."

...this is great...I'm sure it won't end up in the bin...

On 13/08/2025 at 01:02, Gaz T said:

I am going to collect the records that mean something to

Bare with me I'll get to the record part eventually. Away from the collecting and picking up on your "mean something to me" my Dad who died many years ago putting it politely liked the odd drink, he would regularly ride his bike home from work not an inconsiderable distance the worse for wear after stopping off at the pub. More than once with the clock approaching 10'30 Mum would ask one of us to go out and see if we could see him coming up the road. We would eventually see the dimming and brightening of his dynamo front light appear appear over the brow of the hill weaving from side to side, as he got closer we'd hear the dulcet tones of I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen fading into the night air.

Thankfully at that time of night in those days there was little traffic on the roads, it would maybe be a different story now as would the time he rode through the traffic lights on red, again the worse for wear getting a severe telling off from a patrolling policeman, remember them, who then proceeded to tell him to be more careful and sent him on his way.

Wind on 30 odd years in a charity shop I came across said record , not ashamed to say I had a little tear in my eye, guy behind the counter did a double take as to why I would be buying a beat up 45. After paying the princely sum of 10p he enquired was it any good and worth anything. I replied haven't the faintest, never heard the record but I've known of it all my life, in monetary terms it's worthless but the happy memories of my dad singing it are priceless. It will eventually be going on the wall framed with a picture of my Dad predictably downing a pint of mild at my sisters wedding.

Thanks for your replies

yes - the 45s i am appreciating are the 60s classics

Things like lee dorsey and solomon burke

I was just interested in where it ended up for collectors

I was dancing on the northern scene for years but I must admit

Billys bag and Harlem shuffle are still the reason

I got a great copy of Darrow Fletcher the pain gets a little deeper on London last year

This record means so much to me

To have a uk copy - I so love it

these little things make my day

I have been doing the exact same thing recently ☺️

It started off having a play on the decks at home, going through some records and putting Darrell banks - open the door to your heart on and that got the brain working .... I just stood back and went wow how good is this record an absolute classic at its best 👌

So I revisited some of these absolute classics on you tube and I had forgotten how fabulous they are it even drove me to buy a copy of The Shirelles - last minute miracle... Again I forgotten how good that was and it sounds so fresh today

At the end of the day there is nothing wrong with falling back in love with the great oldies ... Because they was great to begin with and they are still great today 😁

On 13/08/2025 at 11:38, Gaz T said:

I do collect many different things - love 60s boogaloo - rnb - Jamaican 60s - Mod Jazz

all within my context of mod influenced things I suppose

I still buy the odd expensive thing - just finding it really interesting collecting lots of little things - lots of classics

It sounds like we're cut from the same cloth, Gaz. My musical tastes, and record collection, cover the same genres, with the addition of the Mod revival period from 1979-1988ish (which I'm sure many on here wouldn't have the time of day for, understandably).

As Dobber said, record buying can go through different phases, but mine are usually determined by what I'm liking at a particular time, not necessarily what is current or in-demand. My purchases are purely for home listening, so why should I buy something for someone else's taste, which DJ's sometimes have to do. Today, for example, I've had 4 7' singles drop through my letterbox: Dave Anthony's Moods EP (Acid Jazz), The Maytals - Pain In My Belly (Prince Buster); The Maytals - Dog War (Prince Buster), and Small Faces/Rod Stewart & PP Arnold - Don't Burst My Bubble/Come Home Baby (Immediate - taken from the Immediate 3-CD Mod Box Set). Later this week I'm expecting deliveries of Little Milton - More and More (Checker); Bobby Bland - Good Time Charlie and Turn On Your Lovelight (both Duke), and Bobby Marchan - Get Down With It (Dial).

None of these are particularly rare or expensive (except Dog War, also known as Broadway Jungle on Island), but all of them except the Dave Anthony's Moods are tracks that I've heard out at different types of venues over the years and which have struck a chord with me, so to speak.

4 hours ago, Chilli said:

It sounds like we're cut from the same cloth, Gaz. My musical tastes, and record collection, cover the same genres, with the addition of the Mod revival period from 1979-1988ish (which I'm sure many on here wouldn't have the time of day for, understandably).

As Dobber said, record buying can go through different phases, but mine are usually determined by what I'm liking at a particular time, not necessarily what is current or in-demand. My purchases are purely for home listening, so why should I buy something for someone else's taste, which DJ's sometimes have to do. Today, for example, I've had 4 7' singles drop through my letterbox: Dave Anthony's Moods EP (Acid Jazz), The Maytals - Pain In My Belly (Prince Buster); The Maytals - Dog War (Prince Buster), and Small Faces/Rod Stewart & PP Arnold - Don't Burst My Bubble/Come Home Baby (Immediate - taken from the Immediate 3-CD Mod Box Set). Later this week I'm expecting deliveries of Little Milton - More and More (Checker); Bobby Bland - Good Time Charlie and Turn On Your Lovelight (both Duke), and Bobby Marchan - Get Down With It (Dial).

None of these are particularly rare or expensive (except Dog War, also known as Broadway Jungle on Island), but all of them except the Dave Anthony's Moods are tracks that I've heard out at different types of venues over the years and which have struck a chord with me, so to speak.

Yes

Exactly the same cloth

Thanks for sharing

It’s so cool to see and know that there are people with the same mindset

As for mod revival, of course !!!

That is where I came from

Last one from that area I bought was Eddie pillers fairly recent release on 7 inch of don’t burst my bubble by the prisoners , which sold out immediately

What a tune

1 hour ago, Gaz T said:

Yes

Exactly the same cloth

Thanks for sharing

It’s so cool to see and know that there are people with the same mindset

As for mod revival, of course !!!

That is where I came from

Last one from that area I bought was Eddie pillers fairly recent release on 7 inch of don’t burst my bubble by the prisoners , which sold out immediately

What a tune

Unfortunately I missed The Prisoners release, as I'm a massive fan. Saw them at the Assembly Rooms in Rotherham around 1985/86, and it's probably the best gig I've been to. I'm looking out for a copy but don't expect to get one any time soon, certainly not at a price I'd be happy to pay, but that's the joy of record collecting!!