The new official vinyl chart…

For lovers of good music from the sixties and seventies it seems the only news one ever receives on the subject these days is another obituary to read and reminisce over. Those rock gods, once so revered are now greying old men counting down the clock along with the rest of us, but unlike us they have the chance of yet another pay day in their dotage; the royalty check.

It’s not a bad life being a rock star, you creamed it on the original album and singles sales, enjoyed the re-releases on CD, the concerts on VHS before they were flogged out on DVD and now we’re repeating the cycle with new vinyl sales! Such has been the rise in album sales that there is now an official vinyl record chart and Led Zeppelin, who could do with the cash, have three albums in the top thirty.

Last year saw vinyl sales reach the one million mark in the UK for the first time since 1996 and the trend is set to continue as producers latch on to why vinyl is popular. Unlike previous formats, an LP attracts buyers for different reasons, there are those who swear by the sound quality, those who love nostalgia and those fans who crave anything and everything by an artist. What you get with a vinyl album, unlike any other system is a physical connection, it requires a degree of affectionate work and a modicum of understanding if you are to fully ingratiate yourself with the audio experience. But it comes at a price (what doesn’t?) a standard re-release of a Zeppelin album will set you back twenty quid. You can always upgrade to the £32 option or indeed the £99 version depending on your loyalty to Jimmy Page. There isn’t much out there below £18 and because of that one can but hope for the reincarnation of the second hand record shop.

I am fortunate to have one such shop in my home city and if you never buy anything it’s worth going in to relive the sensation of feeling your fingers flick over the albums in search of a hidden gem. Now is the time to get the bargains, there may well be the odd scratch but therein lies the erm, appeal. Who knows, before long the current number one could well become collectable? ‘All Time Low’ by Future Hearts (no, I haven’t either) is top of the tree, closely followed by Drenge’s  ‘Undertow’. If you are reading this then I am sure you’ll be more interested in the number 24 LP by a band called Pink Floyd. The album is called ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ and it’s going up the charts as we speak. Sure I’ve heard of it before somewhere….