Month: April 2024

In The Digital Age, Is Vinyl Back?

I didn’t even think that vinyl record albums were still a thing. I’ve had some recent vague awareness of albums being sold in Target or Barnes & Noble. But the ubiquitous little record stores of my youth seemed to have trickled away. Later on there was still a remaining Amoeba Music in LA, but no more Sam Goody’s, and no more Tower Records (unless you want to fly to Japan to visit one). I believed that CD’s and then online shopping and streaming had elbowed record albums into the dustbin of nostalgia. All the record stores of my youth were a thing of the past, done in by the digital age. Or so I thought.

But now my faith in the younger generations has been restored. Even though Record Store Day has been around since 2007, I just recently learned about them. RSD is a yearly celebration conceived by independent record store owners and employees. Record Store Day’s purpose is to celebrate the culture and music of the independent record store, to bring together fans, artists, marketers and labels- with vinyl records at the heart of it all.

Around the world, record stores hold Record Store Days on a Saturday in April every year, and every Black Friday in November. Hundreds of recording and other artists make special appearances and performances, do fund raisers and issue special vinyl, CD releases and promotions.Yearly there is an honorific title of “Ambassador” bequeathed on artists- ranging from Metallica, Ozzy Osbourne, Iggy Pop, Run the Jewels, Brandi Carlisle, Paramore, and 2024’s Kate Bush. 

My happy revelation that many younger folk are (re)discovering music on vinyl records came about by a fluke. My friend got some information on Facebook telling her about promotional music items for one of her favorite groups for RSD 2024. So we ended up heading for the nearest participating record store on Saturday April 20 Record Store Day to see what we could find. 

The record shop we visited was Factory Records 440 East 17th Street Costa Mesa CA 92627. The small shop was buzzing with people waiting to get in. Store owner Dave Noise was overseeing the line, chatting with everyone. He seemed to know each person by name (even their dogs). Dave has collected, traded and sold record albums/CD’s since 1979, and has owned this Costa Mesa store since 2010 (follow him @factoryrecordsdavenoise on Instagram). He also runs the Noise Noise Noise Records Label with his wife Lisa. 

The promotional item we were trying to find was sold out at Factory Records, but Dave Noise graciously took the time to call at least five other local places for us, to see if they had it. He didn’t seem to mind that he was possibly sending business to some other record shop. Record shop folk must be a tight-knit community that look out for each other- Dave had all these  contacts immediately in his phone and briefly chatted on each call. None had the item, but it was not for lack of Dave Noise trying hard that we didn’t find it.

Attendees for this Record Store Day were not just older folks that actually grew up listening to physical musical formats like vinyl and CD’s. This was a dedicated crowd of avid collectors and music fans, with plenty of Gen Z and Millennials represented.  There’s apparently a growing appreciation by the younger set for the nuanced sound of analog music, away from the colder technical nature of digital. Plus nothing can beat some the cool artwork of album covers. Think of the Beatle’s famous Abbey Road, Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, The Velvet Underground and Nico with Andy Warhol’s banana graphic, David Bowie’s Aladdin Sane, Prince’s Purple Rain…the classic album artwork list goes on.  

So when I realized there were so many younger people that love vinyl record albums, I did a little research. According to Billboard, 49.61 million vinyl albums were sold in the US last year. That has gone up 14.2% from 2022. 7% of all US records sold in 2023-3.484 million records– were from Taylor Swift (1989, Speak Now, Midnights). 

Despite not finding the promotional item I wanted, RSD was a hit for me anyway. Discovering the existence of Record Store Day made me happy, realizing that upcoming generations are discovering the value of older technology that I fondly favor. It gives us common ground.

Maybe I’ll dust off some albums in my record collection, and listen for the fun memories. I could also try an app such as Discogs or Vinyl Price Lookup and see what current value my old albums might have. I know I don’t have Wu-Tang Clan’s very valuable Once Upon a Time in Shaolin– there was only one copy made, and it sold for 2 million (!!). However I could have another album of worth. Maybe one of those 18 (mostly destroyed) Rolling Stones’ Street Fighting Man albums would be a nice surprise- at $17,000 or so…?

Who says retirement income has to just be from a 401k?  

Record Shop Day 2024 at Factory Records

The Impossible Dream

As I am getting older, it is usual to hear about people in my age group facing serious medical issues. Heart disease, cancer, or sometimes the dreaded “old-timers” disease, dementia…such serious conditions just seem to be an unfortunate part of senior life. As time goes on, the odds increase for an older person to face those conditions in themselves or those around them. 

But as hard as it is to hear about seniors and loved ones dealing with these serious medical things, it is so much harder to hear about a younger person facing terminal illness. 

A situation like this hit me particularly hard recently. 

I attended “A Broadway Birthday: Sondheim, Lloyd Webber, and Friends” at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, CA. It was a spectacular show- with brilliant musical performances by so many Broadway greats. There was Betty Buckley (whose stellar career has spanned 1964 to present), and Liz Callaway (a Broadway singer whose voice is Jasmine in the Aladdin sequels, or Kiara in Lion King, along with her playing the part of Ellen in Broadway’s Miss Saigon, and many more…). Orange County’s own Matthew Morrison (who starred in TV show Glee for years) performed, as did wonderful pianist John Boswell… the star-power just didn’t stop. 

And then there was TV actor and Broadway star Aaron Lazar. The young man entered the stage area- walking with difficulty and using a cane. I expected some jokes about some skiing gone wrong as explanation. 

Alas no. Lazar’s 20 year Broadway and television career has been impacted with an ALS diagnosis two years ago. ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease is a nervous system disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, leading to loss of muscle control. It has no cure and is fatal, with a life expectancy of maybe 2 to 5 years, though some people have lived 10 years or even longer. 

So for his performance, Lazar perched uncomfortably on a stool by the piano. There was some joking with the pianist about a strict rule of never putting anything on top of a grand piano- but Aaron set his cane on it anyway. And then he sang the song “The Impossible Dream” for us all at the Segerstrom Center that night. As his beautiful voice swelled out over the audience, I am sure everyone- not just me- was crying and praying healing for this talented young singer. 

Among his many career highlights, Aaron Lazar had been known for his part as The Man of La Mancha, first singing “The Impossible Dream” 23 years ago at CCM (University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music). Back then the song had a personal meaning for him. Lazar has explained, “My ‘impossible dream’ at the time was to be an actor. But I had no idea what ‘impossible’ really meant. When I got diagnosed, I thought, well, my new impossible dream is to beat this…”

I read later that Lazar hopes to inspire others with the song and his story. He has changed his  idea about his impossible dream being the “beating” ALS. Lazar now feels that he does not want to fight, or resist- he simply wants to meet ALS “with ease and joy and healing. So my impossible dream is possible. It’s just to heal- not just the physical, but my whole self.”

So I fervently hope that Aaron Lazar, his medical team, his two young boys, his family and friends, and his extended Broadway family work together to make that impossible dream possible. Since seeing him at Segerstrom Center I’ve been listening to Lazar perform “The Impossible Dream” often (at AaronLazar.com). When he first sang that song, I am sure Aaron Lazar never dreamed that it would become such a personal bittersweet anthem. 

I find it extremely hard to watch a young person facing a terminal illness. It’s somehow not right or natural. Even the statistics of the ALS disease seem to support this. Usually ALS is most common in people between the ages of 60 and the mid-80’s. Seeing Aaron Lazar with ALS is horrifically terribly wrong. Things such as ALS or pediatric cancers happen so routinely in the old order of this life. 

Such darkness for me can only be countered by faith in a heavenly order with no more death, mourning, crying or pain. Many long for that infinitely better world. In the meantime, while we are here, Aaron Lazar and all of us work on our own impossible dreams, big and small. 

And as a footnote, if I ever get discouraged about being forgetful, or having arthritis pain, or dealing with some medical issue, I remember something I once read-  

 “Do not regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to many.”