If life is a symphony, Andrew Simpson is its conductor.
Sifting through the 40,000 or so records tucked away in the basement of SimpsonB次元官网网址檚 Gordon Head home is more than just a walk down memory lane B次元官网网址� itB次元官网网址檚 playing the soundtrack of an almost forgotten piece of history.
These arenB次元官网网址檛 just your ordinary records, theyB次元官网网址檙e the original 78s that captured the music from the early part of the 20th century.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 the grandfather to the vinylB次元官网网址� LP record albums most are familiar with, said Simpson, who also has a couple hundred cylinder records which originated in the 1890s to play on the phonograph invented by Thomas Edison as well as 1,000 or so Edison Diamond Discs that the inventor released in the 1910s and B次元官网网址�20s.
B次元官网网址淭he 78s were more practical because you could have two songs on a disc,B次元官网网址� he said.
The 78s continued in widespread use through the 1940s and into the early 1950s until LPs made their arrival, coinciding with the birth of rock and roll. But SimpsonB次元官网网址檚 love of the recordings stems more from their historic value than any musical taste.
B次元官网网址淓veryone whoB次元官网网址檚 on these records is dead, everyone who bought the records and enjoyed them is dead, so itB次元官网网址檚 kind of like a lost bunch of music. ItB次元官网网址檚 like the archeology of records,B次元官网网址� he said.
SimpsonB次元官网网址檚 interest in the hobby started almost by accident during a 2003 road trip to California and Nevada.
B次元官网网址淲e went into Virginia City, which is an old western town in Nevada B次元官网网址� itB次元官网网址檚 a tourist trap. There was a phonograph museum and it clicked in my head, B次元官网网址楾hatB次元官网网址檚 pretty neatB次元官网网址�,B次元官网网址� he recalled.
Upon his return home, Simpson picked up an old phonograph from an antique store up-Island then slowly began to amass his collection of records, picking them up online from sites like Used Victoria and garage sales.
B次元官网网址淵ou find people giving away lots B次元官网网址� giving them away or selling them for very modest prices,B次元官网网址� he said, adding most of the records can be picked up for 50 cents or $1. B次元官网网址淭here are gems you can find, just like with baseball cards, there are Babe Ruth records that are worth a lot.B次元官网网址�
Simpson said the one-sided 78s from the early 1900s are valuable because of their rarity, along with songs from the Roaring Twenties and early jazz era.
B次元官网网址淭he B次元官网网址�20s and B次元官网网址�30s is what everyoneB次元官网网址檚 after B次元官网网址� theyB次元官网网址檙e after the old blues and jazz, the good time music,B次元官网网址� he said.
But that music can be hard to find, as many of the old 78s were recycled in the 1940s to turn out the popular wartime music of artists like Glenn Miller, Frank Sinatra or Artie Shaw.
B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 the music that people will recognize. When I bring people down here they donB次元官网网址檛 want to hear the stuff from 1915. Pull out the rock and roll.B次元官网网址�
While Simpson has a few of the early rock and roll stars on 78s, he actually doesnB次元官网网址檛 own any of the traditional LP albums.
B次元官网网址淎ll the music that I grew up with and I listen to, I just have on Spotify,B次元官网网址� said Simpson, whose collection has brought more than a few bemused looks from his wife.
But Simpson has no intention of stopping now and his collection continues to grow B次元官网网址� the 78s lining shelves mounted to the walls of his basement, many in special sleeves to protect the delicate recordings that have started to crack.
Simpson hasnB次元官网网址檛 even heard all of his 40,000 records, saying he doesnB次元官网网址檛 get down into his basement studio as much as heB次元官网网址檇 like.
B次元官网网址淎s youB次元官网网址檙e sorting it, you pull out the ones you want to hear. IB次元官网网址檝e tabbed the ones I like, so they donB次元官网网址檛 get lost,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淓ventually, if I live long enough, IB次元官网网址檒l listen to them all.B次元官网网址�
