Vinyl is now king

I've written here in the past about the surprising comeback of the vinyl medium,but that facts are that far from being a short lived trend driven by hipster culture it seems that the writing is on the wall - this ancient physical form of music delivery is trouncing digital sales. This is happening right across the board and not only with brand new vinyl  but the secondhand market is also booming.


 In 2017 the British Heart Foundation reported that sales of secondhand vinyl record topped sales of half a million pounds.

Earlier this year Anthem Publishing released a monthly magazine devoted to the format - I Love Vinyl is available on the high street, sold alongside the regular music magazines which is further proof, if any was needed, that vinyl is now mainstream. There is even an official vinyl chart compiled by the Charts Company - at the time of writing Nick Deep, the Welsh band from Wrexham, are at No 1 with their album The Peace and the Panic. And whilst there are a lot of reissues in the top 40 there is a healthy chunk of newer stuff too, in fact the first reissue doesn't appear in the charts until no 7,  so vinyl is not only being bought by aging hacks such as myself.  It may have been the older demographic that initially sparked the vinyl revival but this no longer the case, and younger music lovers are falling for the allure of vinyl records.

 According to a new ICM poll, nearly 50% of vinyl buyers are under the age of 35.  Approximately 16% of people buying vinyl records are aged 18-24 and 33% are aged 25-34.

Personally I think it's great - I'm too long in the tooth for all this digital streaming - I come from a generation where there was only two ways to own music and that was on vinyl and cassette - christ, I was in my late teens when CD's first came out.

Long live vinyl.

More Yesterday's papers

This is a continuation of the article HERE.

The NME in an article dated October 1967 asks, - Who Killed Flower Power?

"Last Christmas, illuminated by the gentle shining of Christmas trees all over London, came a UFO. It landed and opened up its doors and lo the air was good."

The article then goes onto explain that UFO was a club - more than that, it was a coming together of the youth, the underground coming up for air. However ten months later this hippy paradise had closed down. The NME blames the commercialisation of the hippy movement. In the same issue the paper is mourning the loss of Otis Redding in a plane crash.

Jumping back an issue of Melody Maker from 1966 informs us that Elvis had bought Pricilla a horse for Christmas and then proposed to her. They would of course be married in May 1967. However the same year it was reported that Elvis was in financial trouble and that tractors, TV's and fittings from Presley's ranch had been sold off at auction.

In September 1969 the NME were reporting - Beatles; wealth is a myth. The following article went onto inform us that John Lennon hadn't had a royalty cheque in three months and was feeling the pinch. The reason for this was that the Beatles' company, Apple was a monster that was out of control.

"The problem is that two years ago our accountents made us sign over 80 per cent of our royalties over to Apple." John Lennon told reporter, Richard Williams. When asked of the future for the Beatles Lennon said - "After Get Back (the album became Let it Be) is released we'll probably go back into the studio and record another one. It's a shame that we can't get more albums out faster."

There is much in Melody Maker dated August 13th 1966, about John Lennon and his remarks that the Beatles were bigger than Jesus Christ. The Beatles management NEMS said that neither they nor the band would be making any statement prior to the group setting off for another US tour.

The Small Faces Ogdens Nut Gone Flake is called by the NME - 'a magnificent attempt at a musical space-age fairy tale.'

And in 1969 the NME were calling Led Zeppelin - "a gas new band."


The future awaited

Liam Gallagher new band first pic

When Oasis split recently I expected it to be Noel who made the first move but apart from giving the odd solo concert he's remained silent. Younger bro and certified lovable lunatic Liam though has formed a new band, Beady Eye and released the first photographs.

The pic reminds me somewhat of the cover image for Definately Maybe.

That genre curse

For years, probably since time began, we've been slotting everything into neat little genres - that one's a thriller, that's a mystery, this is a post-modern experimental abstract narrative (hey, that sounds clever) and this is horror. In the book world author's have long been arguing that there should be no genres and everything should be marketed as general fiction. The thinking behind this is that someone may be prejudiced against a certain genre and yet would enjoy some titles marketed in the genre if only they tried them. And not only books - it's the same with films and music.

I can see the point in the argument - for instance I don't really like country music, finding it too sweet for me and yet I absolutely love Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson. Merle Haggard Ryan Adams, Don Williams and Willie Nelson and yet all these guys are marketed as country. Even though there is a world of difference between the bite of Johnny Cash and the whimper of say, Kenny Rogers. So maybe it's not country music I dislike but a certain type of country music.

Another example - you won't find me dead watching a romantic movie and yet because Clint's in it I watched Bridges of Madison County and loved it, old softie that I am. The same thing with the Eastwood directed Breezy about a love affair between different generations. But old squinty eyes is one thing and I still don't think I'll be trying Barbara Cartland any time soon.

Where is this all heading?

Well recently I was involved in a debate on a western fiction forum and many people were moaning that westerns should actually be marketed as historical fiction. Westerns, they said, were not taken seriously. And again that is largely a valid point but whilst some westerns could indeed qualify as historicals I wouldn't be comfortable if any of my westerns were called historicals. I could get away with the title, Americana maybe but not historicals. Maybe that's a good alternative genre title to western - "Americana literature", but then that's too pompous. And reminds me of the time they started marketing horror as dark fantasy and that fell flat on its face. Most readers of horror fiction found that a little too pompous. And besides my westerns already have a sub-genre of their own, Taffy Westerns.

So I guess we are stuck with genre titles and people will miss much good work because they have a dislike of that specific genre. I'm not particularly keen on science fiction and fantasy and yet I enjoy Phillip Dick, Michael Moorcock, Robert Howard and it's the same with horror, the majority of it I avoid but I'm a huge Stephen King, James Herbert and Clive Barker fan. I don't like cozy crimes and yet I dig a lot of Agatha Christie and admit to a weakness for Lord Peter Whimsey.

I guess my preferred genres are the westerns and harder edged crime writing, and yet I regularly enjoy writers such as Tom Sharpe (god know what genre he's in), Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaimen.

So what I propose is that Archive readers make a pledge to try a film, book, album whatever, outside of their usual genre, pick a genre that you think you hate. You never know you may be surprised and discover some great work that will stay with you for life, maybe even change the way you think. And if you wish email me a short review ( garydobbs@hotmail.co.uk) and I'll post it here on the Archive.

NUFF SAID!!!!!!!!!!

NEXT ON THE ARCHIVE - MAY SEES CLINT EASTWOOD CELEBRATE HIS 80TH BIRTHDAY AND THE ARCHIVE, BEING HUGE HUGE FANS OF THE MAN, ARE CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF OUR SECOND FAVOURITE AMERICAN WITH THE ARCHIVE EASTWOOD MONTH. 80 FOR 80 - THAT'S 80 EASTWOOD CENTRIC POSTS COMING UP.

Make his day and be here for the entire Eastwood month.


"This is the Tainted Archive, the most powerful blog in the world and will waste tons of your time. Now I'm not sure if you've read it all. So it's time to get reading, punk."

WOULD THE REAL ELVIS PRESLEY PLEASE STAND UP

There are two predominant images of Elvis Presley's in the public psyche - the beautiful young rocker, virile and dangerous and then there is the bloated Elvis, the victim of tasteless excess. There was a million miles between the revolutionary force the young Elvis was and that parody of later years. As brilliant as he was, Elvis died a sad pitiful wreck of a man - someone who had been chewed up and spat out by the money men of show business.

I've written in the past about my admiration for Elvis but I've always been more tuned to the early period, the blues and rockabilly mesh ups like Mystery Train, That's All Right and I forgot to remember to forget, belted out by the prototype punk. I still think those songs he cut with Sun Records are among the best songs ever recorded.


I usually avoid those latter tracks, those tacky ballads and over produced show-tunes. But lately I've been listening to a lot of the later work and discovering that I had been too harsh - even in the comedy jump-suit days Elvis could rock when he truly wanted to. For every person who thinks Elvis was a revolution, there is another who considers him a joke. But can anyone realistically deny that he was not the single most important voice in the history of modern music? I think not.

If you use your ears rather than the years of prejudices to listen to Heartbreak Hotel then you'll feel that magic, that brilliance, that genius in the voice. And the same goes for later day classic such as Separate Ways and Way Down.

As John Lennon said, before Elvis there was nothing.