(I’m listening to “Wishlist” by Pearl Jam)

I have a small collection of vinyl records.  No, I’m not a vinyl snob.  I won’t get into a debate about “what sounds better.”  I just like buying a vinyl record every now and then.  The hobby, if I can call it that, started a few years ago when I purchased a record player as a Christmas gift for the wife.  She had found Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” at a garage sale and wanted to listen to it, so, I bought her a record player.  Slowly, I started using the record player more and more, and soon, I found myself buying records.

I really enjoy vinyl for a few reasons.  The first reason is nostalgia.  Vinyl reminds me of a simpler time.  No cell phones, no internet, no iTunes; I just put the needle on the record, listen, and relax.  Second, I like more music listening to vinyl.  I can’t just put the record player on repeat and “wear out” a good song.  I actually have to listen to the whole record, so I end up liking more songs from said record.  Call it old-fashioned delayed gratification.  Third, vinyl sounds amazing.  I have purchased some of my favorite albums on vinyl and it’s like I’m listening to them for the first time.  It’s hard to explain, but I feel like the sound has more depth.  The highs are higher and the lows are lower.  It’s like I had been missing something until I listened to them on vinyl.

When first started buying vinyl, I did make a couple of unofficial rules: One, I could only buy music that was originally released on vinyl, and two, I had to buy vinyl at garage sales to avoid paying $40 or $50 for a record.  I stuck to them for a while, but they have both been broken.  I blame Led Zeppelin.  The wife bought me Led Zeppelin IV for a gift, and since then, I’ve been hooked.  Technically, that album did follow both rules.  It was originally released on vinyl, and since I didn’t buy it, I wasn’t in violation rule two; not that it mattered.  I put it on and I heard it in a whole new way.  I heard guitar riffs I had never heard before.  It was like Jimmy Page was playing two guitars at the same time.  “Stairway to Heaven” had never sounded so clear.  “Going to California” had picking in it I had never heard.  “Four Sticks” sounded like John Bonham was using eight sticks to play it, and Robert Plant sounded like he was in my living room.  That was all it took.  I violated rule two when I purchased Led Zeppelin II.

Rule one was still in tact, but after hearing Led Zeppelin, I started thinking about other music that would sound more amazing.  So, I broke rule number one with Pearl Jam’s “Vitalogy” and the downward or upward spiral into vinyl, depending on how you want to see it, began.  One of my favorite songs off of that album is called”Nothingman.” If you love that song and haven’t heard it on vinyl, you need to.  The chords just pop and the guitar strums hang in my ear for an extra fraction of a second before changing.  It’s really beautiful.

Vinyl is making a comeback and with so many great albums being reissued, I have a new rule.  If I buy a vinyl record, it has to have some sort of memory attached to it.  That’s led me to purchase albums like, Pearl Jam “Ten,” Pearl Jam “Yield,” Nirvana Unplugged, Oasis, Green Day, Coldplay, Hootie and the Blowfish, Temple of the Dog, and other albums from my youth.  My two latest purchases are the “Singles” Soundtrack, and Third Eye Blind.  They’re in the mail as we speak and I can’t wait to listen to them.  All of these albums have some sort of good memory attached to them.  The memories could be a funny story from college, times spent with friends, road trips, or the song I was listening to on the plane when I met my future wife, and they are all special to me, so that’s the rule.

The reason for the “new rule” is simple.  Music is an outlet for me.  I’m a dad most of the time, but music reminds me of when I was just a human.  Now, I’ll never be just a human again, and thankfully so because I love being a dad; but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t sometimes feel good to take off the “dad hat” for a few minutes.  It helps me reset, gives me a break, renews my energy, and in the end, makes me a better dad!  And that’s the point.  Certain music reminds me of great memories I have of a time when responsibilities were low, cares were cast aside, and time was limitless.  Sometimes, I just need to stop thinking about the bills that need to be paid, that important business presentation, the chores that need to be done, the house that needs to be fixed, or the upcoming schedule for the week.  Listening to music gives me that break, and, it just happens to sound better on vinyl.