In 2022, vinyl records outsold CDs for the first time since the 1980s.
This week independent record store owners are receiving the disks they ordered for Record Store Day, which is Saturday. Many of the featured records are limited editions, such as Fred Davis’ “Cleveland Blues” album. The guitarist from Hough was a fixture on the city’s blues scene until his murder in 1988. His music gets its first wide release this year, including a limited edition pressing for Record Store Day.
One of the shops hoping for a copy is the Vinyl Groove in Bedford, owned by David Wolfe and his wife. David feels that after several years of COVID-19, the crowds will be back this year – even more than last year.
“The list was lackluster last year,” he said. “The year prior to that, they broke Record Store Day up into three days. And I think people were like, ‘Oh, not this again.’ So, I think this year is going to be different because now we’ve had enough of a break-in period. And the list is really good!”
Highlights for Wolfe include an archival release by the Black Keys, recorded at the Beachland Ballroom Cleveland in 2002, and a double album from Taylor Swift, “folklore: the long pond studio sessions.”
“There's [also] a nice smattering of jazz and punk and rock that is on the list this time,” Wolfe said. “There's things that people have been asking me about, like the Verve Pipe; that's been out of print forever.”
The Vinyl Groove also features a large used section. Wolfe said it’s one way to beat the price of new disks.
“I mean, what kind of entertainment can you get for 10 bucks nowadays?” he asked. “I guess you could get a streaming service for a month, but it's not the same.”
At Blackbird Records, owner Joshua Lehman is processing hundreds of used disks ahead of Saturday. It will be the first Record Store Day for his store in Medina.
“I'm seeing a lot of teenagers, college age kids, that are into vinyl and actually taking the time to play those instead of just streaming from phones,” he said. He anticipates customers lining up for the Taylor Swift album at his locations in Wooster and Mansfield too, and seeking out limited edition vinyl from the Cranberries, U2 and the Cure.
“We'll see people drive a couple of hours… to check out multiple stores and just kind of make a whole loop out of it,” he said. “Record Store Day is the vinyl collectors’ holiday. I think we're going to see a lot of out-of-town people maybe hit their local stores in the morning, when they open, and then come out throughout the day and hit ours.”
The list of this year's exclusive releases is here.
