Listening to all my records

brianlux
brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
in Other Music
This afternoon, this thought came to me that I want to listen to every  record I have-- lp's and 45's. I'm guessing that's a good 500 to 600 hours of listening.  I starting thinking, since I own the records,  I really owe to the fact of having them, and owe it to all of the people that made the records, and owe it to myself as well, to all to listen to them all. It's become a "music bucket list" thing for me.

I'm starting at one end of my collection and going all the way through, one end to the other, one record at a time. I'll put a colored divider after each listen to keep track of where I am. This will take longer than 500 hours because I'll listen other records when I feel like it. That means the card could move slowing because I might not feel like listening to the next in line for a while. But eventually (hopefully!), I'll get to the end of all my records before kicking the proverbial bucket!
"It's a sad and beautiful world"
-Roberto Benigni

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Comments

  • 2-feign-reluctance
    2-feign-reluctance TigerTown, USA Posts: 23,462
    Yes!! 
    www.cluthelee.com
  • May 30th
    May 30th Posts: 1,900
    great idea.  
  • MedozK
    MedozK Tennessee Posts: 9,212
    Awesome! What do you do when you buy something new, where does it fit in the rotation?
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
    MedozK said:
    Awesome! What do you do when you buy something new, where does it fit in the rotation?
    Good question, M.

    Let's say I've started with The Alarm's first, self-titled, LP and I've listened up through Fairport Convention's Unhalfbricking and the next day I run across a copy of Donovan Hurdy Guri Man.  "D" as in Donovan comes between "A"  and "F"-- what I've listened to so far.  In any case, because it's new to me so I'll listen to the whole record and then file it alphabetically.  Then I will go back to the next record where I left off which is Fifty Foot Hose's "Cauldron" and keep listening from there.  But then if Pearl Jam comes out with a new record I haven't heard yet.  Even though it is beyond the F's  where I left off, because it's new to me, I'll probably listen to it anyway, file it, and then when I've worked my way up to it, I'll listen to it again.  If I want to save it for when I get up to the P's I can do that, although it's not likely I'd wait!

    I'll also take breaks from the progression and listen to anything on the shelves and sooner or later (probably sooner), go back to working through the line.  That way I stay flexible enough to listen to stuff I'm in the mood for and at the same time know that eventually I'll go back to the alphabetical progression and eventually will have listened to everything, all the way through, at least once.

    So depending on how side tracked I get and how many new albums and singles I had to my collection, this could take a while (thus the half- joking about doing this before I kick the bucket, lol!)

    I just think it will be great to know I've not missed a single note.  Kind of like honoring all that music. 
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • RS151862
    RS151862 Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 2,726
    edited September 2018
    Did you consider going chronologically instead of alphabetically. That way you don’t have to listen to one bands entire catalogue in a row. Everything is mixed up. 

    Edit.. putting 600 records in chronological order might take a minute. I didn’t think of that. 
    Post edited by RS151862 on
    Pittsburgh 1998 • Pittsburgh 2006 • 2012 Isle Of Wight Festival • 2012 Made In America Festival • Baltimore 2013 • Seattle 2013
    St. Paul 2014 • Mexico City 2015 • Philadelphia II 2016 • Ottawa 2016 • Amsterdam I & II 2018 • Wrigley Field II 2018 • Phoenix 2022
    Apollo Theater 2022 • Chicago I 2023 • Baltimore 2024 • Pittsburgh I & II 2025

  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
    RS151862 said:
    Did you consider going chronologically instead of alphabetically. That way you don’t have to listen to one bands entire catalogue in a row. Everything is mixed up. 

    Edit.. putting 600 records in chronological order might take a minute. I didn’t think of that. 
    825, plus 125 7" singles, but who's counting?  LOL  Yeah, that would be quite a task.

    Actually, I hadn't thought of that.  It'll take weeks just to get through Neil Young alone.  I might want to think about interspersing one Young LP a week or something like that. 
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • HesCalledDyer
    HesCalledDyer Maryland Posts: 16,498
    edited September 2018
    I've thought about doing this with PJ bootlegs in chronological order.  It seems like a daunting task and, compared to some people, my bootleg collection is minuscule.
    I should do this with records, too, though.  I have a bunch that I've never listened to (mostly old ones inherited from my grandmother's collection).
    Star Lake 00 / Pittsburgh 03 / State College 03 / Bristow 03 / Cleveland 06 / Camden II 06 / DC 08 / Pittsburgh 13 / Baltimore 13 / Charlottesville 13 / Cincinnati 14 / St. Paul 14 / Hampton 16 / Wrigley I 16 / Wrigley II 16 / Baltimore 20 / Camden 22 / Baltimore 24 / Raleigh I 25 / Raleigh II 25 / Pittsburgh I 25
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
    HesCalledDyer said:
    I've thought about doing this with PJ bootlegs in chronological order.  It seems like a daunting task and, compared to some people, my bootleg collection is minuscule.
    I should do this with records, too, though.  I have a bunch that I've never listened to (mostly old ones inherited from my grandmother's collection).
    I love organizing things, probably to the point being at least a little OCD.  My records are organized in clumps of separate categories like general rock and pop, punk, paisley underground/ neopsychedelia, jazz, blues, soundtracks, country, etc.  Bands that I have larger numbers of records by are filed separately from the general categories and are lined up in alpha order and chronologically within themselves.  Within each general category, again, the records are filed alphabetically and within an artist or band, chronologically.  IN the rare case of a band with a number for a name (i.e. 10,000 Maniacs), numbers come before letters.  (I do the same with books at the bookstore- 101Dalmations comes before Aladdin  in the kid's Disney book section.)
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • goldrush
    goldrush everybody knows this is nowhere Posts: 7,819
    Great idea Brian!
    I will sometimes listen to every record by an artist in chronological order (especially if a new album is released), but I've never thought of listening to everything I have before.

    I have one challenge for you though...

    https://youtu.be/AQvOnDlql5g
    “Do not postpone happiness”
    (Jeff Tweedy, Sydney 2007)

    “Put yer good money on the sunrise”
    (Tim Rogers)
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
    goldrush said:
    Great idea Brian!
    I will sometimes listen to every record by an artist in chronological order (especially if a new album is released), but I've never thought of listening to everything I have before.

    I have one challenge for you though...

    https://youtu.be/AQvOnDlql5g
    "Deep Purple to Howlin' Wolf in just 25 moves..."  :lol:

    Thanks but, ahhh, no way!  :lol:

    I'm going to have to watch that film again soon!
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • goldrush
    goldrush everybody knows this is nowhere Posts: 7,819
    brianlux said:
    goldrush said:
    Great idea Brian!
    I will sometimes listen to every record by an artist in chronological order (especially if a new album is released), but I've never thought of listening to everything I have before.

    I have one challenge for you though...

    https://youtu.be/AQvOnDlql5g
    "Deep Purple to Howlin' Wolf in just 25 moves..."  :lol:

    Thanks but, ahhh, no way!  :lol:

    I'm going to have to watch that film again soon!
    I love that scene :lol:
    When I saw High Fidelity in the cinema, my friend leant over after that scene and just said “that’s you...”
    “Do not postpone happiness”
    (Jeff Tweedy, Sydney 2007)

    “Put yer good money on the sunrise”
    (Tim Rogers)
  • madtowndave
    madtowndave Minneapolis, MN Posts: 4,013
    I started doing this. Made it to about F, kept adding new vinyl and lost track. Good luck on your endeavor!
    Nashville-00
    Nashville-03
    Chicago-07
    E.V. Milwaukee-08
    Chicago 1 & 2-09
    Alpine Valley 1 & 2-11
    Wrigley-13
    St. Paul-14
    Milwaukee-14
    Denver-22
    St. Paul 1 & 2 - 23
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
    I'm halfway through "A"s !!

    Oh wait... that's just the general rock section.  I still have punk (Adolescents), shoegaze (Axxess and Ace), jazz ( a few Mose Allison and several Albert Ayler's)...

    Yeah, this is going to take awhile! 
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • PJ_Soul
    PJ_Soul Vancouver, BC Posts: 50,759
    I once kind of did this, but to avoid listening to all of one artist's albums in a row, I listened to one album by each artist, alphabetically, at a time. So start with artist A's first album, move to artist B's 1st album, and so on, and once I finished artist Z's first album, I went back and played artist A's 2nd album, etc. I actually really enjoyed it!
    With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be careful. Strive to be happy. ~ Desiderata
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
    PJ_Soul said:
    I once kind of did this, but to avoid listening to all of one artist's albums in a row, I listened to one album by each artist, alphabetically, at a time. So start with artist A's first album, move to artist B's 1st album, and so on, and once I finished artist Z's first album, I went back and played artist A's 2nd album, etc. I actually really enjoyed it!
    Nicely done, Allison!
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • goldrush
    goldrush everybody knows this is nowhere Posts: 7,819
    Where do your singles fit in? Are you playing them chronologically with the corresponding album, or separately after you have finished all of the albums?

    It'd be interesting to hear your reactions to something you haven't heard for years (or not at all) as well. Does a record that you loved years ago still hold up? Or is there something you weren't blown away by originally that sounds better now?  
    “Do not postpone happiness”
    (Jeff Tweedy, Sydney 2007)

    “Put yer good money on the sunrise”
    (Tim Rogers)
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
    goldrush said:
    Where do your singles fit in? Are you playing them chronologically with the corresponding album, or separately after you have finished all of the albums?

    It'd be interesting to hear your reactions to something you haven't heard for years (or not at all) as well. Does a record that you loved years ago still hold up? Or is there something you weren't blown away by originally that sounds better now?  
    I have 12" singles filed in front of the corresponding band's LP's so they get played first, then the LP's.  I decided to save the 7" 45's (which are separately boxed) for last.  I have a Project Carbon Debut that requires lifting the platter to change the belt speed, plus most of the small singles require a hole adapter, so it will be easier to listen to all of them in a row.

    Yes, one of the fun things about doing this is that I know I will hear records all the way through that I haven't heard in quite a while.  That, and already there have been some songs that I've probably heard but don't recall ever having done so like The Alarm's "Thoughts of a Young Man" and "Second Generation."

    Last night, I listened to Lauri Anderson's LP Big Science.  Great record!  But as much as I love some of the songs and find them all interesting, it's a challenging album to listen too all the way through and I was tired last night, so it felt a bit like work to sit through the whole album but I felt good about doing it.

    I've also (so far at least) been reading along with the lyric sheets when available.  That was very rewarding with the two 10,000 Maniacs LP's I have because Natalie Merchant's singing is a hard to follow on those early albums.  That was a lot of words! 

    So far, everything has held up well... but I'm only 8 records in so far.  I'm guessing this little venture may produce a few cull- but maybe not!
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • madtowndave
    madtowndave Minneapolis, MN Posts: 4,013
    brianlux said:
    goldrush said:
    Where do your singles fit in? Are you playing them chronologically with the corresponding album, or separately after you have finished all of the albums?

    It'd be interesting to hear your reactions to something you haven't heard for years (or not at all) as well. Does a record that you loved years ago still hold up? Or is there something you weren't blown away by originally that sounds better now?  
    I have 12" singles filed in front of the corresponding band's LP's so they get played first, then the LP's.  I decided to save the 7" 45's (which are separately boxed) for last.  I have a Project Carbon Debut that requires lifting the platter to change the belt speed, plus most of the small singles require a hole adapter, so it will be easier to listen to all of them in a row.

    Yes, one of the fun things about doing this is that I know I will hear records all the way through that I haven't heard in quite a while.  That, and already there have been some songs that I've probably heard but don't recall ever having done so like The Alarm's "Thoughts of a Young Man" and "Second Generation."

    Last night, I listened to Lauri Anderson's LP Big Science.  Great record!  But as much as I love some of the songs and find them all interesting, it's a challenging album to listen too all the way through and I was tired last night, so it felt a bit like work to sit through the whole album but I felt good about doing it.

    I've also (so far at least) been reading along with the lyric sheets when available.  That was very rewarding with the two 10,000 Maniacs LP's I have because Natalie Merchant's singing is a hard to follow on those early albums.  That was a lot of words! 

    So far, everything has held up well... but I'm only 8 records in so far.  I'm guessing this little venture may produce a few cull- but maybe not!
    I have the same turntable, and I bought a Project Speed Box so I don't have to lift the platter and adjust the belts. Well worth the money.
    Nashville-00
    Nashville-03
    Chicago-07
    E.V. Milwaukee-08
    Chicago 1 & 2-09
    Alpine Valley 1 & 2-11
    Wrigley-13
    St. Paul-14
    Milwaukee-14
    Denver-22
    St. Paul 1 & 2 - 23
  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
    madtowndave said:
    brianlux said:
    goldrush said:
    Where do your singles fit in? Are you playing them chronologically with the corresponding album, or separately after you have finished all of the albums?

    It'd be interesting to hear your reactions to something you haven't heard for years (or not at all) as well. Does a record that you loved years ago still hold up? Or is there something you weren't blown away by originally that sounds better now?  
    I have 12" singles filed in front of the corresponding band's LP's so they get played first, then the LP's.  I decided to save the 7" 45's (which are separately boxed) for last.  I have a Project Carbon Debut that requires lifting the platter to change the belt speed, plus most of the small singles require a hole adapter, so it will be easier to listen to all of them in a row.

    Yes, one of the fun things about doing this is that I know I will hear records all the way through that I haven't heard in quite a while.  That, and already there have been some songs that I've probably heard but don't recall ever having done so like The Alarm's "Thoughts of a Young Man" and "Second Generation."

    Last night, I listened to Lauri Anderson's LP Big Science.  Great record!  But as much as I love some of the songs and find them all interesting, it's a challenging album to listen too all the way through and I was tired last night, so it felt a bit like work to sit through the whole album but I felt good about doing it.

    I've also (so far at least) been reading along with the lyric sheets when available.  That was very rewarding with the two 10,000 Maniacs LP's I have because Natalie Merchant's singing is a hard to follow on those early albums.  That was a lot of words! 

    So far, everything has held up well... but I'm only 8 records in so far.  I'm guessing this little venture may produce a few cull- but maybe not!
    I have the same turntable, and I bought a Project Speed Box so I don't have to lift the platter and adjust the belts. Well worth the money.
    Thanks, that looks helpful.  But I also noticed that places including Crutchfield and Amazon no longer carry it.  The other thing I don't like about the Carbon Debut is the annoying motor hum.  I'm saving up my dollars and looking to get something different- probably a Rega Planar 3 with Elyse 2 cartridge although I'm tempted to go with an Audio-Technica AT-LP5 with a cartridge upgrade to save some money. 
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

  • brianlux
    brianlux Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 43,671
    Because my wife is not a Captain Beefheart fan and she is gone for the day, I've listened to all 8 sides of the Magic Band LP's in my collection today plus a four song EP.  I expect I'll have strange dreams tonight!
    "It's a sad and beautiful world"
    -Roberto Benigni

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