Normally Derek and I listen to records in the evening when the kids are asleep, but as it was rather warm out and he and I were bored with movie night (we are those kind of parents who limit the number of hours the TV can be watched), we took a chance on the kids enjoying the records too.

We brought up a few stacks, let them dig through them, and played their selections (as well as a few of our own favorites). Be it genetics or environmental, nature or nurture, all three were hooked instantly. So hooked, that the next day we had to head out to the thrift stores to let the kids buy their own records.

Thrift stores always have a record section, and in our area, most of them are sold for $1. Oh sure, a few of the stores price them individually with prices of $5 or more. But for the most part, a kid can bring in their allowance or, as in this case, their birthday money, and walk out with quite a haul. (No one spent more than $1.50 for a record.)

Allie, the oldest at 18, is utterly smitten with musicals and had just finished the summer theater program at Trollwood Performing Arts School, so it was no surprise that she went for the musical soundtracks.

(And it’s a nice break from the Anime obsession!)

She prefers the original Broadway shows, but also likes some film productions too.

On the plus side, these soundtracks are plentiful. Most everyone bought them, and now they fill thrift shop record sections.

On the negative side, Mom had “I’ve got your horse right here, his name is Paul Revere” (from Guys and Dolls) stuck in her head for two days — and it was painful for the entire family (until an attempted assassination by clown knocked the song out of my head).

Allie’s favorite musical is the movie Sound of Music. She learned that while this is an easy-to-find album, conditions are important.

All the kids got lessons in how to evaluate scratches, but Allie had her work cut out for herself and inspected at least seven copies before finding a copy with both vinyl and cover in good enough condition to part with $1.50.

Destiny, the 11 year old, had a bit more of a difficult time selecting records for herself. A perfectionist, Destiny doesn’t like to make mistakes and unsure of what things would sound like, she was hard-pressed to find vinyl she could trust.

One was this retro 70’s recording of Andre Kostelanetz & His Orchestra, For All We Know, because, “I liked the lady on the front and thought it looked cool and I haven’t heard it.” No surprise, Destiny the Goth girl went for the lady in black with the black choker. (I don’t think she was as thrilled with it once played — she prefers to listen to one of Dad’s Frank Zappa albums.)

Of the (only) three albums she purchased, one was the original soundtrack to Annie. Selected “Because I loved the movie!” this one was a hit.

Des was only willing to risk $3 on records, and quickly returned to her favorite thrift store item, books. She apparently feels more comfortable judging a book by its cover. *wink*

Hunter, the youngest, was perhaps the most enthusiastic. Not only did he spend the most money ($12!), he was completely absorbed by the process.

He sat on the floor, contentedly sorting through all the covers. Anyone with a young boy knows that this sort of seated attention is nearly a miracle. (At seven, he’s a new reader yet he found us a new-to-us Trini Lopez record — at our house, we all love the Trini!)

Hunter’s favorite find that day was a collection of 70’s hits LP which contained the theme song to Star Wars. (Hm, maybe ‘movie night’ hasn’t totally passed… all of them are very interested in film related recordings.)

When asked what he loved about records the most, he said, “They are black, and shiny, and when you turn them I love to watch the lines move.”

It may not have been the reply we were seeking, but it was honest.

The kids are extremely fascinated with records. So much so that listening to records currently replaces our weekly family movie nights as entertainment.

As parents, we’re thrilled because listening to records involves much more interaction. We can discuss music, how records are made, and have the kids explore new things. And with records, you can still do other things like play board games and dance together. We’d like to think this is one family hobby we’ll all continue for years to come.

The tricky thing is now that we’ve turned them onto vinyl, we need to find two more working record players. Destiny is the only child who currently owns her own (a Fisher-Price kids player) and she’s the envy of the other two.

Meanwhile, Derek and I are enjoying sharing our record player and making new family memories.

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Article Tags: album, evaluate, LP, record, vinyl

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This entry was posted on Monday, July 9th, 2007 at 6:30 am and is filed under collecting fyi, flea market finds. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.