Vinyl Junkies: Adventures in Record Collecting [Paperback]

Brett Milano (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 10, 2003

Not too far away from the flea markets, dusty attics, cluttered used record stores and Ebay is the world of the vinyl junkies. Brett Milano dives deep into the piles of old vinyl to uncover the subculture of record collecting. A vinyl junkie is not the person who has a few old 45s shoved in the cuboard from their days in high school. Vinyl Junkies are the people who will travel over 3,000 miles to hear a rare b-side by a German band that has only recorded two songs since 1962, vinyl junkies are the people who own every copy of every record produced by the favorite artist from every pressing and printing in existance, vinyl junkies are the people who may just love that black plastic more than anything else in their lives. Brett Milano traveled the U.S. seeking out the most die-hard and fanatical collectors to capture all that it means to be a vinyl junkie. Includes interviews with Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth, Peter Buck from R.E.M and Robert Crumb, creator of Fritz the cat and many more underground comics.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Vinyl junkies are special. They hunt down Brazilian pressings of favorite artists, know the difference between vinyl and styrene, and call a 3,000-LP collection "modest." Milano's interviews aim to nail down what vinyl addiction means. Thurston Moore thrives on the renegade, archival nature of collecting. As a teenager, Peter Buck hitchhiked 15 miles to get an LP the night of its release. R. Crumb speaks fondly of rare, flexible 78s. Most of Milano's subjects believe the thrill is in the chase: seeking personal Holy Grails is often more rewarding than playing them, and comfort is knowing a certain record is finally in one's collection. The book works best when Milano lets his subjects do the obsessing, and if what being a collector means remains as elusive as Their Satanic Majesties Request with the original 3-D cover, at least we learn that, as former Cramps drummer Miriam Linna says, "You play someone a great record and they don't react to it, you know it's time to get them out of your house." Carlos Orellana
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

Brett Milano is a longtime Boston-based music journalist who once interviewed Joey Ramone and Barry Manilow on the same day. He compiled and annotated the Boston punk history CD Mass. Ave: The Boston Scene (on Rhino); and has written liner notes for albums by Todd Rundgren, the Cars, and the Smithereens. He has written for Billboard, Pulse and the College Media Journal; and can now be read weekly in the Boston Herald and the Boston Phoenix. Aside from a short-lived Boston Rock Trivia volume that still turns up on Ebay to this day, Vinyl Junkies is his first book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; 1st edition (November 10, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312304277
• ISBN-13: 978-0312304270
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #130,188 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #3 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Antiques & Collectibles > Records

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating look at obsession., April 30, 2004

By 

John Luiz (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Vinyl Junkies: Adventures in Record Collecting (Paperback)

This book is terrific. The author looks at record collecting from every possible angle -- from the Freudian aspects of the drive to the possible reasons why collectors have trouble finding girls. It's full of wonderful interviews with the famous -- Peter Wolff, Peter Buck, and Robert Crumb -- and not so-famous -- a guy with 150,000 records, a woman who collects all Olivia Newton John albums and memorabilia. A collector himself, Milano thoroughly understands the search and satisfaction of finding a record very few other people have. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in music, collecting, or simply good storytelling.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars very entertaining, December 29, 2003

By 

Simon Crowe (Greenville, SC United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Vinyl Junkies: Adventures in Record Collecting (Paperback)

VINYL JUNKIES is a very entertaining little book about hard core record collecting. We're not talking about making sure you buy the latest Britney album when it comes out, we're talking about spending lots of time, money, and social capital seeking out the one Guided By Voices seven inch you need to complete your collection. The book is full of anecdotes about people discovering something rare in a box of Lps in somebody's attic. Some of the collectors are famous (Peter Buck, Thurston Moore), but most are just regular guys (and a few gals) who have to navigate around a pile of Jeff Beck Japanese only Lps to get to the fridge. There are chapters about collecting imports, bubblegum pop, industrial records ("Got to Investigate Silicone") and also an attempt to explain why collectors collect. (Hint: serotonin)
My one complaint is that almost all of the collectors discussed in this book are either musicians, music writers, or record execs. How about some pointers for the beginner? Still, very enjoyable for music fans.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars what more?, September 30, 2005

By 

S. miralles "santi waka" (madrid spain) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Vinyl Junkies: Adventures in Record Collecting (Paperback)

The velvet underground & nico _ joe harvard

Vinyl junkie _ brett milano

If you consider yourself addicted to vinyl & those around you see your passion as something strange. This book is a treat, in it you will read stories about people who would need 2 or 3 life times to just hear the records they have accumulated or others that would fork out $4.000 for an odd 7 inch, not to mention one unbelievable story about a Hendrix collector who has in his prized record collection one that could contain Hendrix's dna.
Yes, vinyl record collector you are not alone.