For those who haven't heard, vinyl is back. It is the highest-selling form of physical music. Sure, there was a time when it was replaced by cassettes and CDs and eventually the mp3. But vinyl records hung around, just waiting for their moment in the sun. Record stores have popped up all over Eastern Iowa making the art of collecting your favorite albums a bit easier. So what makes vinyl so special?

In this music lover's humble opinion, it starts with the sound. An album on vinyl sounds fuller and richer than any other format. And if you have a decent audio setup to play it,  your ears might just die and head to heaven! I got into collecting records when my parents dropped off what was left of their record collection from their youth. Admittedly, there wasn't a lot that interested me, except for a couple of albums. My mom loved The Beatles so I had some original albums from the Fab Four. My dad loved The Beach Boys, so I had some of their hits on vinyl too.

Ryan Brainard
Ryan Brainard
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Then several years later, Holly's great-uncle passed away. In his house sat a 1969 Magnavox console record player. It was in great shape. I put a new stylus, or needle, on the arm and it continues to play records in our house to this day. Nothing beats the sound of those old warm tubes.

Record collecting can be addictive. I've slowed down in recent years. I figure if I have something and it never gets played, why own it? Here are just a few of my favorite albums I currently own and listen to. Remember, I grew up in the 1980s. That should be obvious when you see some of my favorite records! Happy collecting!

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