Joe Jurney - Transmissions from Mebane

A recent story in the Accent section about vinyl made me remember about the first time I realized the superiority in sound of albums to CDs.

I was skeptical at first about the theory that vinyl sounded better than CDs, thinking some people were just resistant to change.

But then in the early ’90s, I saw the light. It came in the form of Neil Young & Crazy Horse’s “Rust Never Sleeps.” I had worn out my sister’s hand-me-down vinyl copy and decided to buy it on CD. Instantly, I could tell that the sound on CD was not as rich. It tended to sound flat and hollow. Needless to say, I have never bought another Neil Young album on CD. I just can’t imagine listening to “Tonight’s The Night” or “After The Goldrush” on a digital format. This will probably change, however, because I recently received an iPod as an anniversary gift from my wife.

My love for vinyl is more than just about sound. It is an overall feeling, experience. Unwrapping the album, gingerly placing it on the turntable, and dropping the needle gets the dopamine flowing. The first few crackles on the outer rim of the records keep you in anticipation of the sound to come.

Playing records takes me back to my late teens and early 20s. I can’t help but to remember the first time I put on Nirvana’s “Bleach” in my bedroom and being blown away by it. Or listening to the Ramones’ “Leave Home” that I got for 88 cents at Goodwill in Danville. What makes that find so special is that it contains the song “Carbona Not Glue,” a song that was eventually removed because of a lawsuit.

That Ramones record is probably the greatest find of my crate-digging career. Vinyl collectors are like archaeologists. We are always looking for the Holy Grail, although, it differs from person to person. My Holy Grail is The Count Five’s “Psychotic Reaction,” anything on the ESP label (especially the Godz or Fugs)or the first Misfits 7-inch. Sure, I could take out a small loan and just buy these records but I want to find these gems tucked away in somebody’s old collection that they’re selling or in some flea market or, of course, a used vinyl store.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 20th, 2008 at 9:09 am and is filed under Entertainment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.