3/20/10 Over 100 vinyl record albums, sold on craigslist for $20The downsizing of my turntable two weeks ago made this day inevitable. Without a record player, there really can't be any justification for holding onto the records, can there?
Even in 2010, I think we can admit that records are cool. They're just not practical.
Almost all of our collection used to belong to Joanna's mother, which is why, of course, we continued to hold on to them. Even with a working turntable, we hadn't listened to a single record in at least three years. But, they were valuable because they provided another link to Joanna's childhood and her mother. Letting them go seemed, somehow, like an act of infidelity.
As we sorted through the albums in preparation for putting them up for sale, Joanna wrote down some of the song titles that she most remembered her mom playing.
The other day, I walked into our bedroom as Joanna nursed Chase, and she was listening to the songs on her iPhone. She'd gone to iTunes and downloaded digital copies. True, those copies of the songs may not have the scratchy character of vinyl, but they have one distinct advantage over the music on our records: they will actually get listened to.
That's the irony of selling the albums: it has led Joanna to actually listen to some of the music on them. And now, she'll be able to keep listening to it, whenever and wherever she wants.
To me, that's being faithful to the music and the memories.
Surely there was some Tony Bennett in that collection. Because of Mrs. Payne, I will always know that his daughters were named Joanna and Antonia. I have that trivia at the ready thanks to that smart, classy lady - Mrs. Payne. xoxo
ReplyDeleteHilary,
ReplyDeleteThat's another great example of how music is so much more than music -- it creates some kind of psychological bridge to other times, places, and people. Fortunately, we don't need to have the physical records to make those connections. Thanks for the memory of Maggie!