The record player had been relegated to the loft several years ago, and the rest was initially put up in the loft as I didn’t know what else to do with it, but now the time has come to put it on ebay. There is also the added point that I found all the manuals when we cleared the loft!
So I brought it all out yesterday and set it up in the bedroom – record player and all, and, with Alexander’s help, tested that each component still works.
We has great fun with the records! Alexander had been listening to Michael Jackson at school, so I was able to dig out my copy of ‘Beat it’ – the 7” single. And after Michael Jackson, I took a trip down memory lane, through my singles collection with ‘Drive’ from the Cars, ‘If I Was’ (Midge Ure), ‘Stairway to Heaven’ (Far Corporation), ‘Solsbury Hill’ and ‘Sledgehammer’ (Peter Gabriel), 'Golden Brown' (the Stranglers), ‘Paperlate’ (Genesis).
It was a very atmospheric adventure! Somehow, the playing of a record feels so much more tactile than playing a sterile CD. The background interference of needle on vinyl just adds to it. And then of course, I remember the teenage excitement and anticipation of going up to Woolies on a Saturday morning, buying my single, and then walking home again, to sit on the floor in front of my parents’ stereo and play the precious vinyl. I remember being puzzled, until I got home, as to why it said ‘Clear Vinyl’ on the sleeve of Midge Ure’s ‘If I Was’. You can’t exactly get clear vinyl CDs!
And now my precious, 20 year old stereo is up for sale on ebay.
It’s the end of an era - I feel quite sad about the whole thing. In the mean time, I’m quite enjoying having it all set up in the bedroom – I just have to make sure I don’t kick it when I open the wardrobe!
