You Spin Me Right 'Round, Baby!

(On the Nostalgic Magic of a Vinyl Record Player)

by aLfie vera mella

"Heaven, a gateway, a hope

Just like a feeling I need, it's no joke..."

I have long planned to buy a turntable—I started planning this almost more than a decade ago, but I always passed it for another time, for other priorities. At first, what I wanted was a nice new model of turntable—one which could convert the vinyl music to digital format. However, I realized that, what's the point of converting my vinyl records into MP3s when I have most of them on both CD and digital formats anyway?

So, I thought what I was aiming for was just to have a turntable to play vinyl records for nostalgic purposes.

Finally, when I saw the vintage-type record player of my friend Jhun, which he got for a very affordable price, it inspired me again to buy one. And what I finally wanted to have was like the one my friend has, something to use when I'm in a nostalgic mood.

This morning, Inna and I bought my first-ever record player (I never had one of my own—ever! Although, I have a good number of vinyl records in my music collection.) What I used to play vinyl records with were my uncle's in Makati (back in the 1970s) and my aunties' in Better Living (back in the 1980s).

Our new vintage-style record player

You can imagine my joy when I was finally able to put a record on the player this afternoon. The first vinyl record I played—New Order's FEP 313 - 1982—first song, “Temptation."

Listen to the first song I played on my new vintage-style record player

And then, after I dropped off Inna at work (she's working the evening shift again), I decided to check out some used vinyl records at a record shop known as Into the Music. After about two hours of rummaging through the stacks of LPs (long-playing vinyl records) in the bargain section, I went home a very happy music collector with 30 mostly New Wave vinyl records bought at only a dollar each!

ABC - Beauty Stab (1983)

The Boomtown Rats - The Fine Art of Surfacing (1979)

Alison Moyet - Alf (1984)

Breathe - All That Jazz (1988)
Bryan Adams - Reckless (1984)

Cactus World News - Urban Beaches (1986)

China Crisis - Difficult Shapes & Passive Rhythms (Some People Think It's Fun to Entertain) (1982)

China Crisis - Working with Fire and Steel (Possible Pop Songs vol. 2) (1983)

China Crisis - Flaunt the Imperfection (1985)
Cutting Crew - Broadcast (1986)

Dead or Alive - Nude (1989)

The Dream Academy - The Dream Academy (1985)

The Explorers - The Explorers (1985)

New Wave vinyl records at one dollar each; seek and you shall find!

The Fixx - Shuttered Room (1982)

The Fixx - Reach the Beach (1983)

The Fixx - Phantoms (1984)
Haircut One Hundred  - Pelican West (1982)

Japan - Assemblage (1981) (compilation)

Lloyd Cole & the Commotions - Easy Pieces (1985)

Midge Ure - The Gift (1985)
Naked Eyes - Naked Eyes (1983)

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Crush (1985)
Real Life - Heartland (1984)

Roman Holliday - Fire Me Up (1984)
Spandau Ballet - True (1983)

Strange Advance - Worlds Away (1982)

Styx - The Grand Illusion (1977)

'Til Tuesday - Voices Carry (1985)

Yazoo - Upstairs at Eric's (1982)

I played these records one after the other as soon as I got home; so far, every one is in good condition.

 This afternoon I purchased 30 mostly New Wave vinyl records at Into the Music, a used-records shop in Downtown Winnipeg.

I'll surely start beefing up my vinyl record collection again, considering that I can play them now and that there are many used-records stores here in Winnipeg.

Final Note

Of course, I will still listen to my countless CDs and MP3s in my music collection, but when I'm in the mood for a nostalgic way of listening to music, I will definitely wipe the dust off my vinyl records, carefully remove them from the sleeve and place each on the player, and then carefully guide the stylus onto the vinyl record's groove.