Why I Love 45’s
Vinyl records, in general, are my preferred medium for listening to music. Sure digital music formats (CD’s, iPod, Streaming), are great for when I’m “on the move” in my car, walking, etc. For me, digital music is mostly “passive” listening, generally in the background. I can simply insert a CD, plug in my iPod, or pull up Spotify and a seemingly endless “stream” of music plays on and on. My wife will load one CD into her car’s system and she will let it repeat over and over again for the entire trip, sometimes leaving it there for weeks at a time (Drives me nuts!)
Listening to vinyl recordings, however, requires the listener to be more actively involved in the process. Phonograph machines are much less portable, requiring the listener to remain in one general area to be able to enjoy the music. Oh sure, I listen to vinyl recordings as I cook dinner, or do chores around the house, or surf the web on my phone. But one needs to physically change each side or disc when the music has finished. Vinyl discs are more tactile. They have an unmistakable “feel” to them, the weight, the texture of the cardboard or paper sleeves. Much more satisfying than a cold, hard jewel case or, as with streamed music, no “feel” at all! I also enjoy reading the liner notes and production notes as I listen. I especially like following along with the lyrics (if they’re included) as a song is playing.
And then there is the actual sound of Vinyl. To me, vinyl has a warmer more “personal” sound . Even the occasional “pop” or “click” gives vinyl a certain charm. There is no mistaking the sound when the stylus first hits the record and finds the groove, or when the tone arm reaches the end of the song and returns to it’s original position to wait for the next record to be loaded.
All of these factors combined make for a true sensory experience. This, of course, is my personal opinion. An opinion, to be sure that has been formed over many decades and may be tinged with a certain amount of nostalgia for my youth. One could argue all day long about digital being more pure and clean than vinyl and one would have a point. In the end it’s all about one’s individual taste, and there is no right or wrong.
It was not until I was in my late forties and early fifties that I began to collect 45’s. (See my previous posts – “The Billboard Hot 100’s” parts 1 & 2). It was at this time that I set a goal to collect the top 100 songs (in the 45 rpm format) from each year of the “Rock Era” in which 45’s were produced – 1955 to about 1993. I suppose we are still in the “Rock Era” but 45’s started to go out of mass production with the advent of digital music formats in the 90’s.
I only began buying 45’s as an inexpensive way to get content for my iPod by converting them to mp3’s with my USB turntable. I could buy a 45 that had the hit song I was looking for rather than buy an album with the song on it. I could get a 45 for around 50 cents rather than pay 3 to 5 dollars (or more) for an album with the same song on it and a bunch of other songs I didn’t want or need. At the time, 45’s were a means to an end and when I got what I needed from them I tossed them into a box or bin to be dealt with later.
As I was going through this process, my perception of the “lowly 45” began to change. Like albums, there were a lot of interesting things to be discovered in this small package. Each record was like a little “time capsule”. Sure, there was the song name and who performed it in big letters but if you look closer there is even more. Information such as: the songwriter(s); producer(s); record company or “label”; whether the song was in stereo or mono; the year the record was produced; what the length of the song is in minutes and seconds; where the record was manufactured; what album the single was taken from; name of the music publishing company; where the song was recorded; catalog number (and other identifying numbers). All of this information is printed on a paper label that has colors and graphics that additionally identify the disc as belonging to a certain record company. Then there are the markings etched or engraved into the vinyl itself, usually in the “run-out” portion of the disc.
All of this intrigued me and I began to do research to find out more. Over time I got a feel for which artists recorded for which labels; which types of music were generally recorded by those labels or sub-labels (for instance Reprise Records is a sub-label of Warner Brothers Records and was created as a project for Frank Sinatra). Catalog numbers still perplex me but I know that each company has it’s own rules for cataloging, and certain letter and number combinations mean different things to each company. I enjoyed learning how a song did on the charts, and when it was on the charts. It was interesting to know what other songs were popular at the same time. I wanted to know the stories behind the music and how the songs were written. I was amazed discovering that some major artists didn’t just record their own music, but worked with other artists (often un-credited) singing background or playing the role of a studio musician. Two of my favorite artists – James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt – have done an incredible amount of work, not only with each other, but countless other artists as well.
I began to notice that certain artists seemed to work with certain producers and engineers and I could start identifying some of these collaborations by the “sound” of the recording.
For instance, one day I was listening to an album by Pink Floyd. Pink Floyd, as we all know is a tremendously innovative group. They definitely have a signature sound. As I was listening I heard something in a particular passage that sounded like something else I had heard from another group. Not plagiarism, mind you, but more of a feel or groove or an instrumentation that sounded familiar. I puzzled about this as I played it over and over again. Then it hit me “That sounds like something the Alan Parsons Project would play!” Now the Alan Parsons Project was one of my favorite groups when I was in my teens and I’m ashamed to admit it but, for whatever reason, I was not as much into Pink Floyd at the time. Anyway, I got the record sleeve from the Pink Floyd album and began reading about the album and suddenly there it was – the engineer of that album was none other than Alan Parsons himself! Blew – My – Mind! (BTW – the Pink Floyd album was “The Dark Side Of The Moon”!)
I realize that up to this point everything I’ve talked about is equally true for LP’s as it is for 45’s. It’s from this point on, though, that they start to diverge.
The graphics on 45’s also appealed to me. LP’s have much larger and sturdier packaging to act as a “canvas” for artwork and information. However, 45’s have much less space to work with to have an impact on the buyer. The majority of 45’s were not sold with “picture sleeves”. Many were sold in record label sleeves and a lot more were sold in plain paper sleeves. This meant that visual impact had to come from the disc label itself. 45 labels generally have bright colors and easily recognizable logos. Of course, those that have picture sleeves are even more desirable.
I was also discovering that well cared for 45’s sounded great! And even ones that have been mistreated over time can still sound really good if they are cleaned well. 45’s seem to be more forgiving of surface scratches and abrasions. The weight of the vinyl, relative to it’s size, seems to be beefier than an LP which, from what I can gather, allows for deeper grooves which can carry more “sonic information” and make the recording sound richer. (Now I’m not an engineer, so if I have oversimplified or even misrepresented this concept, I deeply apologize.) I have compared songs on 45’s with the same songs on their respective LP’s and I must admit that often the LP version sounded “thinner” and less dynamic than the 45 version. (Just my observations.)
Also, let’s face it, even though there are many amazing LP’s on which most or all of the music is important and desirable, the vast majority contain only one, or maybe two “hits”. I find it more satisfying to buy a popular song as a single rather than buying an entire album just for that one song. Don’t get me wrong, I love LP’s too, but I prefer to buy those that offer more than just one good song.
And then there is one of the most recognizable features of the 45 – The large center hole! There are marketing and scientific reasons that the hole in a 45 is larger than that of an LP, and rather than trying to explain them to you and possibly be guilty of plagiarism, I’ll let you read about it here. However, I like the larger hole in the 45 for a much different reason – you can carry 15 to 20 records on your thumb! (Depending on the size of your thumb.) This makes it easier to inspect the records when I’m picking. Just grab a stack, put them on your thumb, examine the first side, transfer it to the other thumb and examine the second side working your way through the stack. Simple and fun! Of course this doesn’t work with picture sleeves or those rare and annoying 45’s with a small hole (usually from other countries)! Still, much easier than crouching or kneeling to flip through LP’s that always seem to be stored in heavy boxes on the floor.
Then, of course, there’s the thrill of the hunt! At this point in my collecting career I am more excited to see a basket or bin full of 45’s than a box of LP’s. This is probably because I currently have a specific goal in mind for buying 45’s. It is especially fun to find a bunch of 45’s and to negotiate with the seller to buy them in bulk rather than individually. This is the way to get the most bang for the buck. Why just today Cheryl and I were at an indoor flea market when I stumbled upon a booth that had 45’s in a couple of bins and laying around loose. I began quickly looking through them and saw a lot of great titles. A few records were in picture sleeves. Quite a number were in record label sleeves, and quite a few were not in sleeves at all. Most seemed to be in good condition. However, there were no prices displayed anywhere.
I said to Cheryl, “I really would like to see if I can get all of these.” Just about then the vendor came along and Cheryl asked “How much for the 45’s?” The vendor said “Two for a buck.” Now, that’s a really fair price if your going to buy a few and want to cherry pick the best ones. I knew that there had to be two to three hundred records here and realized that at that price I would spend well over a hundred dollars – Not in the budget today! I quickly asked “How much for all of them?” This seemed to surprise the vendor and she rifled through them to get her own rapid count. After a little mental math she said “How’s forty-five dollars sound?” I tried to look nonchalant as I blurted out “Sold!”
When we got home we counted 239 records – A little more than 18 cents apiece! Not too shabby! I have yet to determine exactly which ones I need for my collection, or how many others I’ll want to keep. Some will be duplicates of what I already have. Others will be damaged. And even others may be undesirable. It’s a lot of fun sorting them out and I’m betting that once I decide which to keep and sell the ones I don’t want to keep, the overall cost for those I do keep will still be less than 50 cents apiece.
Cheryl and I enjoy pulling out the 45’s and listening to them. I’ll say “Pick a Year”, and she will choose one and I’ll find the records I have from that year and play DJ. We’ll listen to them in order from bottom to top of the Billboard Year-End Hot 100’s and “Google” interesting facts about the songs and artists as we listen. This was especially enjoyable during our recent COVID quarantine! It takes two or three evenings to get through an entire year of songs.
And finally, the most satisfying thing to me about collecting 45’s is when, after searching for and obtaining the 45’s I need to add to my collection; after cleaning them up; after listening to them; after converting them to mp3’s, after researching the history of the release; after cataloging them into my database software; after providing them with a suitable sleeve for protection; after checking them off of my wish list – after all of this;
I get to place them in their rightful position among the Top 100 Songs of their respective years and get one step closer to my goal of collecting them all!
Ahhhhhh! Heaven!
Until next time . . .
Keep It In The Groove!
