Vinyl Junkies: Adventures in Record Collecting

Bought this for a gift for a friend who is an audiophile. Started reading it and could barely put it down. Fascinating to learn of collective habits of musicians and everyday folk. Delves into some history of music but mostly is about the habits of obsessive record collectors, which is interesting. It arrived in an excellent package in plenty of time. In perfect condition. Made a wonderful surprise gift. It was written in 2003 and according to my friend the obsession for vinyl collecting had gotten even more popular!

I found myself smiling several times while reading this book, recognizing myself in several of the portraits of "obsessive" collectors. Although every collector mentioned here is in some level of denial ("I'm not as bad as _____", or "At least I don't listen to _____"), it's very interesting to hear some of their explanations (rationalizing?) for their collecting. I also discovered a few records I must track down myself (The "Scythian" and "Naughty Rock and Roll"!).I have a few suggestions for the author, if there is a second edition - I was thinking that both Lux Interior and Poison Ivy (of The Cramps) would have been excellent subjects for the book, as well as Jello Biafra. I've heard that they have amazing collections, as does the former lead singer of Canned Heat. Also, it would have been awesome for the book's actual cover to have graphics of some of the titles mentioned inside (like the former Searchers lead singer's solo EP, or The Click Kids LP). The Mohammed El-Bakkar LP was a nice touch, but Vol 3 ("Music of the African Arab") is the one you want! (I know, I know...)Finally, one correction --> In Pulp Fiction, Uma Thurman plays a reel-to-reel tape of "Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon," not a CD.This is a great book about a very interesting topic, and I'd recommend it to any record collector I know, or anybody interested in wild record collections and why people collect them!

This book works two ways. It interviews guys from big bands like REM and Sonic Youth about their collecting habits, and collectors who accumulate 78s, punk, old industrial records, any fetish you can name.An ok concept for a book, but not a great one. Vynal Junkies comes across more as an attempt to explain the fetish--which I am happily afflicted with--to the non-infected then a book for insiders. A carrier, i can tell you no one who does not enjoy this passion cares to understand it.The book's focus on vynal was also a letdown. I collect music, not records. Some people may hone in on records as an end, but most hardcore music heads go for all kinds of music, regardless of format. Albums, I got em'. CDs, 1000s. Reel to Reel, a few. If they find a way to put music into hamburger meat, I will be buying that, too. I would rather buy fifteen great records for $75 dollars than blow my wad on a 1970 Bulgarian mono pressing of Magical Mystery Tour on yellow delicious Apple vynal. It's the music, stupid, not the hen's tooth.Vynal Junkies narrows the scope by making it seem more about a fixation on the black disc than what collectors really want; orgasmic never ending tidal waves of great music.i also expected to come away from this overwhelmed, with 100s of new titles i did not know and had to get. Where to begin? The book does not do this.Still, it is worth a read if you like music, as the writting is good and there are some very funny moments, and very eccentric characters.

My husband collects vinyl albums, and has done so for years. We literally have over 25,000 in our house. Or I should say the garage which as been converted into a big man cave where he can stash them all. The walls are filled from top to bottom, both alphabetically and in ways only his mind could conjure up.I got him this book because it sounded like something he would like. Normally I buy him biographies or art books displaying such things as the top album covers or the like. He usually glances at them and maybe reads a bit.Not so with this book. He picked it up and didn't put it down until he finished. He was cackling on almost every page and he would read aloud the parts that especially amused him - and they were pretty funny.Here's the thing - for the hardcore vinyl collector this book is a must. Filled with stories from other collectors (some well-known musicians) it will completely resonate for those with whom collecting is a passion.Highly recommended. Even funny for the rest of us....

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A light, entertaining read. It isn't a reference book or guide on how to collect records. If that is what you are looking for, this book will be of no use to you and won't help you on your journey. If you are a recent or longtime record collector that would like to read some stories and thoughts of various collectors (some famous musicians, others not) about the procurement of records, then it is a quite enjoyable little book. I found it engrossing enough to finish in a few sittings.

This book was amazing. I am the only person out of my friends that has 100+ vinyl records and this guy was speaking directly to me. It reads like a story yet gives a lot of insight into what it means to be an actual vinyl junkie. This is a book that I could reread over and over again because it affirms what I do on a monthly basis. I travel to find records that I want and I make sure that I have all of my pre-orders filled out for albums that are coming out in the future. I would not say that I go to the extent of having records everywhere in every corner of my apartment but I could definitely see it happening one day!

Brett Milano & I had many of the same haunts for record shops & local shows in common & I wanted a book that brought me back to a time when many of those record stores & venues of the early 00’s still existed. Nice to reminisce. Highly recommended.

Confession up front: I'm a collector. Perhaps not as avid as the people described by Milano in Vinyl Junkies, but I have several (ahem) thousand LPs and CDs. But I'm not quite as extreme as those described in the book. Which brings us, quite naturally, to the book...I had expected this to be about the accumulation of LPs; the hunt for the obscure, the different types of collectors, and the passion that drives them. Instead, Vinyl Junkies is more about the people who are collectors. Milano interviews and describes dozens of people in the book, explaining their particular passion whatever genre it may be, and stressing how dysfunctional these folks, for the most part, are with social life. There's brief mentions throughout the chapters about the "why" of collecting, but these are virtually throw-away comments about the driving force behind the passions. There's little really to discover in the book, other than reading about others who collect, and the extremes they go to in order to feed their passion.So while this was an entertaining read, for several chapters at least, about those who collect and the types of collecting they do, each chapter just brought a variation on the theme. There's no description of the collector's need to index, catalog, and amass along different tracks, no talk of audio reproduction (which Milano dismisses as almost secondary to the passion of collecting for collecting's sake), no talk of labels other than in passing, and no examination of the ways in which collecting and enhance (or detract) from life. It's too bad, really, as his writing style is entertaining and this could have led into some interesting areas.I also found the printing in the book to be a bit of a let-down. It's a thick font, fuzzy at the edges, almost like it was photocopied several times (it wasn't, of course). A nice, crisp clean font would have made this much more readable and visually appealing.In the end, I was disappointed by the book and where it went. A few stories, maybe a third of those presented here, would have been interesting to intersperse with the discussion of other aspects of collecting. Instead, we get tales of the extremes of collecting, so someone like me, who collects repertoire of composers and artists, can't identify with these "collectors". And so I keep searching for a decent book about music collectors, whether LP or 78 or CD doesn't matter. But this book, unfortunately, wasn't what I was hoping for.

A very entertaining read, not too taxing, and not too involved. so it doesn't lose your interest.This is an achievement for two reasons. 1. The author is American (and I'm not) so the book is very US-slanted, although there is a small piece relating to the UK. 2. By its nature, the book deals primarily with obscurities - that's what makes collectors foam at the mouth. It is difficult to understand the excitement felt by a collector over a 1930s blues record which sold only a handful, and which the collector has no intention of playing - UNLESS YOU'VE BEEN THERE!!..and that's what makes the book. If you've been there, you'll "get it". If not, you might just think we're all nutters, but you'll still enjoy reading about us.Now can someone rise to the challenge and produce a (decent) UK equivalent??

Brett does a marvellous job at trying to convey how collectors are. We are a sorry lot I say, but he misses the boat terribly when he concentrates on the poor few that can ill afford collecting and that seem to be freaking crazy and needing medication.Much more could have been attained by also concentrating on those sane collectors that are not delusional. But I suspect he could not relate to these sane types. Its like Brett is highlighting that the whole bunch is off the charts. Its a good read to start with, it holds your attention, then it becomes like looking at a car accident as you pass it on the highway, makes you wonder why. Like a said, a good read, but many missed opportunities are about when one reads this book.Nevertheless Brett, good job trying.CheersLM

Never realised that Robert Crumb was a major record collector of 78s. Did learn a lot about all kinds of people who love to collect records, collect the covers (and occasionally listen to the music once or twice), search garage sales, charity shops, Mom and Pop stores, visit people's attics etc. As mentioned in book, a lot of that world has changed with the advent of auction sites on the web as well as people realising (rightly or wrongly) that the record has 'value' (even if it nigh on worthless). Would love to see an equivalent of comic collector's book (comic junkies), I would buy that also

This not a page turner ....but there's always something that keeps you hanging on. In some chapters the eyes start to glaze over - but then there's a chapter such as the one about Jim Labatt from the BBC that is rivetting! ..and then you know you're not alone - and that you're not the worst by a long way! If you collect records then you'll recognise much in this and feel a warm glow.. although there are chunks that are like wading through treacle. Fewers words and more storytelling would help. Worth buying if you see it cheap.