Why are posters and vinyl so coveted?

Come Back in Black

Born2Jam wrote:

There's a difference between having a 'hobby' and being a 'collector' of something.

What if your hobby is being a collector?

aNiMaL

stevieraveon wrote:

First of all, I'm just asking, I'm not putting down the people who want these so bad...I'm generally curious.

Why is everyone so into posters and vinyl (or at least why is the monetary value so obscene...I know, supply/demand will be the answer probably...but why the demand?)

I understand wanting a poster for a show you were at, or maybe one of your favorite bootlegs. Why the desire for other posters...Is it the coolness of the artwork, loyalty to the artist, or just to say you have something rare?

Also for vinyl, what's the appeal...especially all the posts I've seen of "Still in wrapper". What's the point of music if it's not being listened to? Do any of the owners have a record player. Has "Spin the Black Circle" put a spell over everyone?

As for posters - I only like getting the ones from the shows I attended. I have never had that poster collecting bug.

Vinyl records are a different subject for me all together - Personally I do play all of my vinyl records - I have a working turntable. I do like purchasing brand new (still sealed) records only for the fact of knowing that I was the first to play it. I own all Pearl Jam studio LP's, a couple live LP's (Benaroya and LOTL), and a couple compilation LP's (LD & RVM) and all of them have had at least a couple spins on the turntable.

Not to mention all the other artists I own on vinyl that I also play: The Beatles; Srgt. Pepper, Abbey Road, Revolver. Led Zeppelin; II, III, IV, Physical Graffiti, In Through the Out Door, Houses of the Holy. Violent Femmes; self titled. AC/DC; If You Want Blood You Got It, Highway To Hell. Sublime; just about every record and EP released. Soundgarden; Loud Love, Badmotorfinger, Superunknown, Down on the Upside. Audioslave; Cochise. Traveling Wilburys; Volume 1. Van Halen; I, II, Woman and Children First, Diver Down, Fair Warning, 1984. Huey Lewis; Sport. And I am sure more that I just can't think of sitting here at work.

Come Back in Black

stevieraveon wrote:

First of all, I'm just asking, I'm not putting down the people who want these so bad...I'm generally curious.

Why is everyone so into posters and vinyl (or at least why is the monetary value so obscene...I know, supply/demand will be the answer probably...but why the demand?)

I understand wanting a poster for a show you were at, or maybe one of your favorite bootlegs. Why the desire for other posters...Is it the coolness of the artwork, loyalty to the artist, or just to say you have something rare?

Also for vinyl, what's the appeal...especially all the posts I've seen of "Still in wrapper". What's the point of music if it's not being listened to? Do any of the owners have a record player. Has "Spin the Black Circle" put a spell over everyone?

I see all your points and personally agree with them. But.. its kind of like asking why a coin collector collects coins. If you dont collect coins then you are going to think its pretty retarded. It has no apeal and seems a waste of time, money, and is boring. To each his own.

aNiMaL

markymark550 wrote:

Well, I can maybe understand the vinyl for those that actually listen to them, even though it seems that CDs are easier and less hassle.

CD's are definitely easier and more convenient. But, for me its the throw back to my childhood (I grew up on vinyl records). So, every once in a while I like to spark up a doobie and spin some vinyl.

norm

aNiMaL wrote:

Vinyl records are a different subject for me all together - Personally I do play all of my vinyl records - I have a working turntable.

Vinyl Records - Todd Snider

I've got a dusty old pile of vinyl records sittin' on my floor
I've played each one of 'em over and over a dozen times or more
All I've got is a beat up chair a mattress a fork and another to spare
And that dusty old pile of records on my floor

I got Willie, Waylon and Woody Guthrie
Jimmy Buffett, Lyle Lovett and Bobby Gentry
Jerry Jeff, Bob Dylan, Donnie Fritts,
The Dead, The Doors, Patsy Cline, John Prine and more
I got Jackson Browne, Townes Van Zandt, Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd
Harry Chapin, Guy Clark and Van Halen
I got Rita, Kris, Keith Sykes and Country Joe when he was singin' with the Fish you know
I got Emmylou, U2 and Arlo, James Taylor, Jimmie Rodgers, Hank Williams, Mojo Nixon,
Hendrix, Haggard and a whole lot more
In that dusty old pile of vinyl records I got sittin' on my floor

One time in San Francisco
I was standin' in an airport line
In one bag I had all my clothes and in the other was all them ol' records of mine
The lady said I could only bring one bag
I had two, Oh what a drag
I had to jump on the plane and leave all my clothes behind

But I got Willie, Waylon and Woody Guthrie
Jimmy Buffett, Lyle Lovett and Bobby Gentry
Jerry Jeff, Bob Dylan, Donnie Fritts,
The Dead, The Doors, Patsy Cline, John Prine and more
I got Jackson Browne, Townes Van Zandt, Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd
Harry Chapin, Guy Clark and Van Halen
I got Rita, Kris, Keith Sykes and Country Joe when he was singin' with the Fish you know
I got Emmylou, U2 and Arlo, James Taylor, Jimmie Rodgers, Hank Williams, Mojo Nixon,
Hendrix, Haggard and a whole lot more
I got all of Booker T's, Tom T. Hall's,
Bobby Bare, Belafonte and the New York Dolls,
Billy Joe, Jimmy Croce, Kiss, Crosby Stills and Nash,
John, June and Roseanne Cash
I got Forbert, Fromholtz, Stevie Ray,
T-Birds, Yardbirds, Sam and Dave,
And as some of y'all mighta guessed already
I got piles and piles and piles of Tom Petty
In that dusty old pile of vinyl records I got sittin' on my floor

aNiMaL

Plus, I think Pearl Jam has had a great influence on a lot of us to start collecting their material on vinyl with them releasing a Christmas single every year (except 1994) on vinyl to the 10C members.

markymark550

aNiMaL wrote:

Plus, I think Pearl Jam has had a great influence on a lot of us to start collecting their material on vinyl with them releasing a Christmas single every year (except 1994) on vinyl to the 10C members.

excellent point....I think that could have been a big influence on a lot of people

aNiMaL

markymark550 wrote:

excellent point....I think that could have been a big influence on a lot of people

It certainly helped me re-discover the music format of my youth.

Born2Jam

Skitch Patterson wrote:

Throwing big money just to buy a rare vinyl off ebay is "collecting"... spending a saturday afternoon going from record store to record store to find something cool is a hobby.

With records, I can see your point.
My comment was really more directed at poster collecting.

Sitting behind the computer, salivating whilst waiting for another poster to be thrown up for sale is not a hobby.

knitted

i have a lot of 'art' on the walls of my house, and while i used to have rock posters on my wall when i was younger, they would look kinda tacky now.

but i have framed pj posters here and there and they don't look tacky - they look cool and it's nice to have visual reminders of my favourite band around the place. they're very stylee, great graphic art and they make me smile.

that said, i'm not a mad keen poster collector - in fact i haven't bought a poster since 1996! but i'm real happy with the ones i've got, and being a 'collector' of other things i understand the bug.

i also have a bunch of pj vinyl, but that's coz i love pj, i love vinyl, i play it...the irony is that i managed to buy vinyl exclusively until ten came out, pearl jam forced me to buy my first cd!

i don't think there's only one answer to that question. but i think collecting posters and vinyl is another way to 'connect' with the band - especially when you haven't seen 'em play live for ages! (grrr)

HollisBrown

I grew up on vinyl. Just like rock & roll, vinyl will never die. Nicer sound than cd's, larger format for artwork, and most of all i can read the fuckin' liner notes.

NeilJam

As others have said about the records, to many it's about listening to the music on vinyl rather than a CD. I have a vast record collection which includes most of what has been released by Pearl Jam.

As for posters, I would buy the ones at the shows I attended. I have 6 framed and on display plus a poster from Phish's IT festival in 2003. I have a bunch of others that I plan on getting framed, but lately have been thinking of selling off some that I don't like as much. I don't have enough wall space for every poster.

camaros

vinyl rules

Lizard

i like to collect anything connected with PJ so I have vinyl and posters. I also cut out any article i read about them.

AloneWV

I love my vinyl..simple..great to listen to on a rainy day....

I have a buddy who puts his vinyl in frames..puts em' on the wall-calls them 'artwork'...seems ok..

my posters..based on shows i have seen....

good thread ..interesting perspectives

TheLab

Posters were so fucking cool when I was like 10-20 years old...
if you are over 20 perhaps the poster thing is just wearing off...

When I was growing up I had posters covering EVERY inch of my wall.

Vinyl is the source. The source is sacred stuff man... Mp3s are a wonderful compression algorithm but I would never play it LOUD and if I do I feel like
I am listening to a microwavable TV dinner or something.

Vinyl is the Phattest Dopest iLLest medium for music I think its unfortunate that some people don't get that... but maybe it doesn't really matter. If you agree you know what I am talking about.

Vinyl is real physical waveforms molded on wax - what could be cooler then that and ipod? I don't think so.

The Lab

aNiMaL

Wow, didn't realize how old this thread was and that i had already given this almost exact same answer.

Strangest Tribe

Why is gold and jewelry so valuable?

think about it

Cosmo

I collect 'some' of the posters of shows I have been to. I framed them and hang most of them on the walls.
As for the vinyl... I started buying the first ones... then, it gets to a point where you end up buying all of them. I did the same thing with the Foo Fighters. I used to play them... til the belt on my turntable stretched out.
...
That reminds me... I need to get a turntable belt.

edderlyj

green disease