You mention the smell, Andy, and you’re so right. It’s one thing that never really got recreated, except maybe for Madonna’s Like A Prayer patchouli experiment, when everything moved over to the sterile CD format.
Nothing could beat that smell of fresh vinyl filling your bedroom as you unpacked the new stuff (twelve-inches in my case) you picked up from one of your favorite record stores in Antwerp. It was literally the smell of happiness.
Since I mostly buy ‘70s and ‘80s records through Discogs these days and not the brand-new reissues, I’m not sure if today’s vinyl production still captures that feeling. I kind of doubt it though, if memory serves me right, it wasn’t just the vinyl itself, but that perfect combo of fresh vinyl and the plastic record store bag 😃.
The ones I get via Discogs now sometimes still carry a faint trace of that magic… but other times, it’s more of a musty whiff 😁. Not that I’m complaining though, at the end of the day, it’s all about the music and the joy of spinning it!
Thank you, Pe, for reading and commenting! I have the original European pressing of Madonna’s Like a Prayer and can you believe it still retains the patchouli scent. It was such a great marketing idea and I wish it was done more often.
As for new records, in my experience, they mostly smell like cardboard 😅 which is still cool but not quite the same.
Music in general and vinyl in particular are really something to enjoy using (amost) all our senses 😊
I notice that too - popping the shrink on a new LP doesn't emit the same scent that I remember from the '60s & '70s. I wonder why that is? Purer vinyl, or different components in it?
I kicked off my music retail career on the day that Madonna CD was released. Warner had organized a special Saturday delivery so that every shop could start selling first thing Monday morning. The catch was that the stock had to stay hidden until then.
It was early spring, but we were having a rare stretch of sunny, warm weather, perfect for any outdoor activity, not so much for storing CDs. The Patchouli-scented CDs sat in a warm back room all day Saturday, and with the shop doors shut tight on a blazing Sunday, the heat worked its magic.
There are simply no words to describe the smell that hit us when we opened the shop Monday morning. Thankfully, the store had two entrances, so we threw open all the doors and windows, otherwise, I’m not sure we would have survived it.
Madonna sure knows how to make a(n) smell/entrance. 😁
Exactly! And you wonder which other records it was “hanging out” with 😅 and whether they got along. A bit like the puppy metaphor I mention in the voiceover 😂😂😂
As a long-time DJ, who went from playing vinyl to CDs and then a computer, going back to playing music on vinyl has been one of the greatest joys of my now 20 year full time career. Thank you for this post!
Ah! This was so great to settle down to after a busy first week trying to get the new house organized (we check out of the Airbnb in the morning and spend the first night in the house tomorrow!). It’s been a crazy busy week of buying stuff, unpacking stuff, cleaning, putting away, etc etc so hearing your opening “hello my beautiful vinyl lovers!” was music to my ears.
As you know, I’m currently still a “streamer” with a potential interest in vinyl. My collecting history (with antiques and art) and my addictive personality suggests that getting into vinyl may not be the best thing for me (particularly given we’re now on a fixed income). But we’ll see. But I can totally see the appeal of vinyl. I still have vivid recollections, almost 40 years later, of albums I’d bring home from the record shop, open up, stick on the turntable and start listening, walking (or dancing) around my bedroom listening and reading the liner notes. Flashbulb memories still, all these decades later.
But I’m still a voracious consumer of new (both brand new and new-to-me) music and probably listen to at least a dozen new albums a week in their entirety. That’s where streaming is a boon as it gives me the ability to deeply sample so many releases. The trick for me in 2025 is to find a better way to monetize my favorite albums for the artists that bring me so much joy, whether by buying physical media or purchasing an album digitally.
I have to say, your bar for the music you want to listen to is extremely high. I’m not sure I’d find 30 albums a year that move me in quite the way you’ve described. But I’m also very much a lyrics guy so it’s not purely the vocals or technical acumen that draws me in and grabs me.
Out of interest, how many records do you own? And how many albums would you say you spin each week?
Thank you, Mark! I am so glad to hear it’s all going well with the move! How exciting. I am sure you guys will make it your home in no time.
I am pleased to hear that my voiceover helped you relax and unwind after a very busy couple of days!
I see what you mean regarding streaming, especially in your case as you find so many new artists/tunes that you like so much and that seem to become new favourites, in a way. Most of what I listen to is at least 20 years old (with some exceptions, of course). I’m lucky if, by the end of a given year, I find one new release that I can genuinely call a favourite.
I have around 570 records, and I spin at least 7 per week (at least one a day), except when travelling, of course. At weekends I tend to spin more; a rough average would be 10 records a week, give or take.
In my opinion, given that you enjoy streaming so much, and at the same time, have fond memories of your vinyl days (coupled with a renewed interest), it wouldn’t be difficult for you to choose what to stream/what to buy on vinyl.
My main limitation is I have very little patience with streaming platforms so everything I really want to listen to I end up buying 😂
There are some records I barely spin nowadays and I don’t discard selling some of them at some point. But my collection keeps growing, albeit at a slower pace than before.
Thanks again for reading and commenting! Good luck with the rest of the move!
Asides: A+. Seriously, man, you're actually having fun which, if Substack finds out, you're in big trouble.
I think it's time to throw Marie Kondo out the window and start cluttering up our lives a bit with physical objects. I'm doing a thing on books this week which has a very similar slant.
This is one of the things that our oligarchic masters have foisted on us: we are renting EVERYTHING. Subscribing. Everything evaporates.
Having been born considerably before 1975, I did have the pleasure of running home with a record that I couldn't wait to get on the turntable. It was SUCH a physical experience. Touch, yes, but smell was huge. (Smell being the most primal of senses, I can remember opening up the Beatles White Album and just being overpowered by a bouquet of olfactory flavors. And so many other things to touch—pictures, liner notes, etc. And when it went on the turntable and the sound of jet airplanes panning between the left and right speaker ... heaven.)
(A new hardcover book from a good publisher can do a similar thing.)
This attraction to vinyl isn't being a Luddite. It is being a human.
I am one week away from asking your turntable recommendation.
Thank you so much, John. I really appreciate your kind words.
I wholeheartedly agree that the physical connection with works of art is one of the unique things that makes us human (in the purest sense), and sadly, we are increasingly being pulled in the opposite direction.
Thanks for sharing that beautiful White Album story, and for the books comparison which is spot on.
Always happy to give turntable recommendations and advice! You know where to find me 😉
and reading the jacket, getting sucked into the album art! If that kind of effort was put into the graphics I always hope it would be translated to the grooves as well. Disappointed occasionally, yet for the most part there was a “Yes” somewhere in there.
Andres, you’ll love retirement when there is much more open time to listen to that newly acquired album.
Thank you, Clark! Yes, absolutely: reading the jacket, with lyrics and/or credits, admiring the artwork… it’s such an integral part of the listening act. I’m buying as much vinyl as I can while I’m still working in full knowledge I’ll enjoy them more when I am able to retire 😊
You mention the smell, Andy, and you’re so right. It’s one thing that never really got recreated, except maybe for Madonna’s Like A Prayer patchouli experiment, when everything moved over to the sterile CD format.
Nothing could beat that smell of fresh vinyl filling your bedroom as you unpacked the new stuff (twelve-inches in my case) you picked up from one of your favorite record stores in Antwerp. It was literally the smell of happiness.
Since I mostly buy ‘70s and ‘80s records through Discogs these days and not the brand-new reissues, I’m not sure if today’s vinyl production still captures that feeling. I kind of doubt it though, if memory serves me right, it wasn’t just the vinyl itself, but that perfect combo of fresh vinyl and the plastic record store bag 😃.
The ones I get via Discogs now sometimes still carry a faint trace of that magic… but other times, it’s more of a musty whiff 😁. Not that I’m complaining though, at the end of the day, it’s all about the music and the joy of spinning it!
Thank you, Pe, for reading and commenting! I have the original European pressing of Madonna’s Like a Prayer and can you believe it still retains the patchouli scent. It was such a great marketing idea and I wish it was done more often.
As for new records, in my experience, they mostly smell like cardboard 😅 which is still cool but not quite the same.
Music in general and vinyl in particular are really something to enjoy using (amost) all our senses 😊
Thanks again!
I notice that too - popping the shrink on a new LP doesn't emit the same scent that I remember from the '60s & '70s. I wonder why that is? Purer vinyl, or different components in it?
Cheers, Hugh! Different components, I reckon… if I had to hazard a guess.
Needs some investigation Andy 😁 The smell of vinyl and how it changed over the years! I "smell" the subject for a future vinyl room piece 😃
Thank you, Pe! Imagine the voiceover 🤣🤣🤣 It’s a yes!!!
I kicked off my music retail career on the day that Madonna CD was released. Warner had organized a special Saturday delivery so that every shop could start selling first thing Monday morning. The catch was that the stock had to stay hidden until then.
It was early spring, but we were having a rare stretch of sunny, warm weather, perfect for any outdoor activity, not so much for storing CDs. The Patchouli-scented CDs sat in a warm back room all day Saturday, and with the shop doors shut tight on a blazing Sunday, the heat worked its magic.
There are simply no words to describe the smell that hit us when we opened the shop Monday morning. Thankfully, the store had two entrances, so we threw open all the doors and windows, otherwise, I’m not sure we would have survived it.
Madonna sure knows how to make a(n) smell/entrance. 😁
This anecdote is everything. I cannot even begin to imagine the smell of patchouli! Of course it had to be Madonna 😅😅 bless her
Sometimes I can clearly imagine the basement where a record might've sat for years until it found it's way to me.
Exactly! And you wonder which other records it was “hanging out” with 😅 and whether they got along. A bit like the puppy metaphor I mention in the voiceover 😂😂😂
As a long-time DJ, who went from playing vinyl to CDs and then a computer, going back to playing music on vinyl has been one of the greatest joys of my now 20 year full time career. Thank you for this post!
Thank you, Alex, for reading and commenting! Long live vinyl!
Ah! This was so great to settle down to after a busy first week trying to get the new house organized (we check out of the Airbnb in the morning and spend the first night in the house tomorrow!). It’s been a crazy busy week of buying stuff, unpacking stuff, cleaning, putting away, etc etc so hearing your opening “hello my beautiful vinyl lovers!” was music to my ears.
As you know, I’m currently still a “streamer” with a potential interest in vinyl. My collecting history (with antiques and art) and my addictive personality suggests that getting into vinyl may not be the best thing for me (particularly given we’re now on a fixed income). But we’ll see. But I can totally see the appeal of vinyl. I still have vivid recollections, almost 40 years later, of albums I’d bring home from the record shop, open up, stick on the turntable and start listening, walking (or dancing) around my bedroom listening and reading the liner notes. Flashbulb memories still, all these decades later.
But I’m still a voracious consumer of new (both brand new and new-to-me) music and probably listen to at least a dozen new albums a week in their entirety. That’s where streaming is a boon as it gives me the ability to deeply sample so many releases. The trick for me in 2025 is to find a better way to monetize my favorite albums for the artists that bring me so much joy, whether by buying physical media or purchasing an album digitally.
I have to say, your bar for the music you want to listen to is extremely high. I’m not sure I’d find 30 albums a year that move me in quite the way you’ve described. But I’m also very much a lyrics guy so it’s not purely the vocals or technical acumen that draws me in and grabs me.
Out of interest, how many records do you own? And how many albums would you say you spin each week?
Oh, and as for the bar I set for the music I want to listen to… I know 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 I try to be more open, but I just can’t. I need to feel that fire
Thank you, Mark! I am so glad to hear it’s all going well with the move! How exciting. I am sure you guys will make it your home in no time.
I am pleased to hear that my voiceover helped you relax and unwind after a very busy couple of days!
I see what you mean regarding streaming, especially in your case as you find so many new artists/tunes that you like so much and that seem to become new favourites, in a way. Most of what I listen to is at least 20 years old (with some exceptions, of course). I’m lucky if, by the end of a given year, I find one new release that I can genuinely call a favourite.
I have around 570 records, and I spin at least 7 per week (at least one a day), except when travelling, of course. At weekends I tend to spin more; a rough average would be 10 records a week, give or take.
In my opinion, given that you enjoy streaming so much, and at the same time, have fond memories of your vinyl days (coupled with a renewed interest), it wouldn’t be difficult for you to choose what to stream/what to buy on vinyl.
My main limitation is I have very little patience with streaming platforms so everything I really want to listen to I end up buying 😂
There are some records I barely spin nowadays and I don’t discard selling some of them at some point. But my collection keeps growing, albeit at a slower pace than before.
Thanks again for reading and commenting! Good luck with the rest of the move!
Asides: A+. Seriously, man, you're actually having fun which, if Substack finds out, you're in big trouble.
I think it's time to throw Marie Kondo out the window and start cluttering up our lives a bit with physical objects. I'm doing a thing on books this week which has a very similar slant.
This is one of the things that our oligarchic masters have foisted on us: we are renting EVERYTHING. Subscribing. Everything evaporates.
Having been born considerably before 1975, I did have the pleasure of running home with a record that I couldn't wait to get on the turntable. It was SUCH a physical experience. Touch, yes, but smell was huge. (Smell being the most primal of senses, I can remember opening up the Beatles White Album and just being overpowered by a bouquet of olfactory flavors. And so many other things to touch—pictures, liner notes, etc. And when it went on the turntable and the sound of jet airplanes panning between the left and right speaker ... heaven.)
(A new hardcover book from a good publisher can do a similar thing.)
This attraction to vinyl isn't being a Luddite. It is being a human.
I am one week away from asking your turntable recommendation.
Thank you so much, John. I really appreciate your kind words.
I wholeheartedly agree that the physical connection with works of art is one of the unique things that makes us human (in the purest sense), and sadly, we are increasingly being pulled in the opposite direction.
Thanks for sharing that beautiful White Album story, and for the books comparison which is spot on.
Always happy to give turntable recommendations and advice! You know where to find me 😉
Thanks again!
and reading the jacket, getting sucked into the album art! If that kind of effort was put into the graphics I always hope it would be translated to the grooves as well. Disappointed occasionally, yet for the most part there was a “Yes” somewhere in there.
Andres, you’ll love retirement when there is much more open time to listen to that newly acquired album.
Thank you, Clark! Yes, absolutely: reading the jacket, with lyrics and/or credits, admiring the artwork… it’s such an integral part of the listening act. I’m buying as much vinyl as I can while I’m still working in full knowledge I’ll enjoy them more when I am able to retire 😊
30 seconds in … never enough, 90 best!!