Sir, – I, like Tom McGrath (Letters, February 6th), am a big fan of “old-fashioned” vinyl records, though my collection is a mere 800, rather than Tom’s 1,000-plus. I have mine sorted alphabetically by artist, rather than chronologically, but that is a personal choice.
However, I must correct one error in Tom’s letter. The album Stormbringer was released by John and Beverley Martyn in 1970; Richard and Linda Thompson’s first album together was I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight in 1974 (both are in my collection), although Richard Thompson had released a solo album in 1972 titled Henry The Human Fly.
Why do I prefer vinyl LPs? As Tom says, the tactile sensation of holding the album, admiring (or not!) the cover art and reading the sleeve notes (without the magnifying glass required for CD booklets) are a joy. Then there is the matter of sound quality – far superior on an analogue-recorded LP than a digitally-recorded CD (or, God forbid, an MP3 recording).
I wish Tom many more years of enjoyment with his LP collection. His musical tastes seem similar to mine – John Martyn, Richard Thompson, Pink Floyd, although I do draw the line at what I call “The Unlistenable” (rather than Incredible) String Band! – Yours, etc,
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RICHARD WALSH,
Stillorgan,
Co Dublin.