10 Rules for Record Buying

It's sure to happen...

You are in a great record store and you are overwhelmed with choices. You want to buy 100s of albums, but can't really afford to spend all of your money that way.

I have to make tough music decisions... and here is some criteria I use:

(I will start with just 10 rules. I could go on an on with this.)

1. If you are out-of-town, never buy an album you can buy back home. Unless the album is so cheap that you know you will save money. Remember, you spent time and money to get to this 'far away' location. You might not be back in a while (or ever).

2. Don't get too genre specific. Sometimes I will dig deep into a section of 80s dance music... or find a magical pile of experimental Japanese pop... or find a collection from a single record label... and I will get too focused on just that area. Don't forget that there is a whole spectrum of great genres to dig through. It's OK if you don't own the complete "Rap-a-Lot Records" catalog. Don't forget the big picture. There might be a great country or jazz record just one bin away.

3. Find a date (part 1). Flip the album over... look at the back. Always check for a date. This will help orient yourself... give you a point of reference. If you know that disco was great before 1980... don't buy a 1983 disco single. If you know that an artist hit their creative peak around a certain year... don't buy the stuff they were obligated to record for the next 10 years because they were stuck in a contract.

4. Find a date (part 2). If you see 2 copyright dates, chances are good that you are holding a reissue. Although a lot of albums are reissued because they were great in the original form... reissues don't have nearly as much collector value. Many reissues are not on the original label. Lots of companies buy music and redistribute (reissue) albums under new labels. And... some reissues are remastered, which can cause much of the original charm and ambiance to be lost. There's something to be said for a little crackle noise.

5. Find a date (part 3). Some genres were just better long ago. Some people may disagree with me, but some music styles were just better before they were worn out and copied... Like: funk, punk, soul, reggae, disco... So the basic rule here is (for the mentioned genres...): The older the date... the better. Buy the oldest one in the bunch.

6. If you are torn about what to buy, go with the album that the store only has one copy of. If you see 10 copies of something, chances are you will find that album again. It's better to buy the last copy of something else. There have been plenty of times that I or my friends will call each other to let everyone know that we have just bought the last copy of (whatever) in Tyler. It's a double-edged sword... You will save them the time of looking, and you get to tease them that they won't be able to get it yet. This leads me to my next point...

7. Rare is better. All collectors know this. Everyone knows this. I don't collect baseball cards, but I know that if I stumble upon a Honus Wagner card, I'm buying it without a doubt; and later selling it for way more money than anyone should pay for a card. The same should go with album buying. Even if you don't like some music... you should recognize a rare treasure. Buy that treasure.

8. Check the quality. This is a simple one. Buy the one that is in good shape. It doesn't matter how cool an old record is... if it won't play. I bought a Lenny Kravitz single that was remixed by Outkast. It was warped. It will never play right. I will never be able to show off that album because I bought it without checking the quality.

9. Trust the record label (sometimes). I know this contradicts what I said earlier about not getting too focused on one single genre, label, etc... But certain record labels are consistent. Some labels will almost always put out quality. A lot of times I will find an artist that I have never heard before and will buy their album just because of the record label. Look at the music you already own. If you start to see a certain label show up over and over... you might want to shop specifically for that brand. I should note that this rule works best with independent labels. Beware of huge record labels that sign hundreds of artists a year. Some of my favorite labels are: Warp, Anticon, Kill Rock Stars, Secretly Canadian, Matador, Astralwerks, Def Jux, Morr, Sub Pop... actually it's a really long list.

10. Ask somebody. This is another simple rule. Don't be afraid of other music fans. Well...actually this is a bit tricky. You might get some great advice or you might run into a crazy person (like myself) that will get a bit too excited that you asked them for help... and get a biography about 20 different artists that you don't really care about. You might run into a music snob. You might accidentally talk to a 'scene kid' who hates the idea that anyone has taste similar to their own... thereby destroying their fragile sense of originality that they have spent so much time and money developing. Still take that chance of asking someone. It flatters me when I get a call about which album to buy. And I promise that I won't steer you in the wrong direction. That just makes me look like I don't know what I'm talking about.

...that's it for now. If you read this whole thing; thanks. If you didn't... then I'm probably not the person you would ask about music anyway.

More later...