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Vinyl record sales keep spinning and spinning – with no end in sight

<p>Over the past decade, vinyl records have made a major comeback. People purchased US$1.2 billion of records in 2022, a 20% jump from the previous year.</p> <p>Not only did sales rise, but they also surpassed CD sales for the first time since 1988, according to <a href="https://www.riaa.com/2022-year-end-music-industry-revenue-report-riaa/">a new report</a> from the Recording Industry Association of America.</p> <p>Who saw that coming?</p> <p>I certainly didn’t. In the mid-1990s, I sold off my family’s very large collection of records over my wife’s protests. I convinced her we needed the space, even if the buyer was picking up the whole stash for a song.</p> <p>Back then, of course, there were far fewer options for listening to music – it was years before <a href="https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/9986-the-year-in-streaming-2016/">on-demand streaming</a> and <a href="https://www.shockwave-sound.com/blog/music-on-the-move-a-short-history-of-mobile-listening/">smartphones</a>.</p> <p><a href="https://www.bu.edu/questrom/profile/jay-zagorsky/">I now teach at a business school</a> and <a href="http://businessmacroeconomics.com/">follow the economy’s</a> latest trends. Sales of records have been increasing since 2007, and the data shows the vinyl record industry’s rebound still has not peaked. Last year, the music industry sold 41.3 million albums, more than in any year since 1988.</p> <p>This resurgence is just one chapter in a broader story about the growing popularity of older technologies. Not only are <a href="http://www.the-standard.org/life/vinyl-records-making-a-comeback-after-30-years-of-being-behind-cds/article_9108143e-3bdd-11ea-be0d-97edd557218b.html">LP records coming back</a>, but so are <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2018/09/24/sales-are-booming-manhattan-typewriter-store-mostly-thanks-young-people-tom-hanks/">manual typewriters</a>, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/12/24/board-game-popularity/">board games</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-are-so-many-gen-z-ers-drawn-to-old-digital-cameras-198854">digital cameras from the late 1990s and early 2000s</a>.</p> <p>There are many <a href="https://blog.technavio.com/blog/reasons-behind-upsurge-vinyl-record-sales">theories about why records</a> are <a href="https://www.readersdigest.co.uk/culture/music/why-is-vinyl-making-a-comeback">making a comeback</a>.</p> <p>Most of them miss the point about their appeal.</p> <h2>Why records and not CDs?</h2> <p>One suggestion is that sales have been spurred by <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p057l522">baby boomers</a>, many of whom <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/11/09/the-pace-of-boomer-retirements-has-accelerated-in-the-past-year/">are now entering retirement</a> and are eager to tap into the nostalgia of their youth.</p> <p>Data shows this theory is not true.</p> <p>First, the <a href="https://www.billboard.com/charts/vinyl-albums">top-selling vinyl albums right now are current artists</a>, not classic bands. As of this writing, <a href="https://illustrationchronicles.com/jamie-hewlett-gorillaz-and-the-enduring-evolution-of-pop">Gorillaz, a band formed in the late 1990s</a>, was at the top of the vinyl charts.</p> <p>Second, <a href="https://www.riaa.com/reports/2021-u-s-consumer-music-profile-musicwatch-inc/">data from the recording industry</a> shows the most likely person to buy a LP record is in Gen Z – people born from 1997 to 2012.</p> <p>Another theory is that records are cheap. While that might have been true in the past, today’s vinyl records command a premium. “Cracker Island,” the Gorillaz album that is currently topping the vinyl sales charts, <a href="https://usstore.gorillaz.com/products/cracker-island-standard-vinyl">lists for almost $22</a> – twice the cost of the CD. Plus, subscribing to an online service like Spotify for 15 bucks a month gives you access to millions of tracks.</p> <p>A third explanation for the resurgence is that <a href="https://www.sciencefocus.com/science/does-vinyl-really-sound-better/">people claim records have better sound quality</a> than digital audio files. Records are analog recordings that capture the entire sound wave. Digital files are sampled at periodic intervals, which means only part of the sound wave is captured.</p> <p>In addition to sampling, many <a href="https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/what-data-compression-does-your-music">streaming services and most stored audio files compress the sound</a> information of a recording. <a href="https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/courses/soco/projects/data-compression/lossy/mp3/concept.htm">Compression allows people</a> to put more songs on their phones and listen to streaming services without using up much bandwidth. However, <a href="https://electronics.sony.com/hi-res-audio-mp3-cd-sound-quality-comparison">compression eliminates some sounds</a>.</p> <p>While LP records are not sampled or compressed, they do <a href="https://www.perfectvinylforever.com/faq">develop snap, crackle and popping sounds</a> after being played multiple times. Records also skip, which is something that doesn’t happen with digital music.</p> <p>If you’re really going for quality, CDs are usually a superior digital format because <a href="https://www.gearpatrol.com/tech/audio/a731474/reasons-to-buy-cds/">the audio data is not compressed</a> and has much better fidelity than records.</p> <p>Yet even though CDs are higher quality, <a href="https://www.riaa.com/u-s-sales-database/">CDs sales have been steadily falling</a> since their peak in 2000.</p> <h2>The ultimate status symbol</h2> <p>In my view, the most likely reason for the resurgence of records was identified by an economist over a century ago.</p> <p>In the late 1890s, <a href="https://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/bios/Veblen.html">Thorstein Veblen</a> looked at spending in society and wrote an influential book called “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Theory_of_the_Leisure_Class">The Theory of the Leisure Class</a>.”</p> <p>In it, he explained that people often buy items as a way to gain and convey status. One of Veblen’s key ideas is that not everything in life is purchased because it is easy, fun or high quality.</p> <p>Sometimes harder, more time-consuming or exotic items offer more status.</p> <p>A cake is a great example. Say you offer to bring a cake to a party. You can buy a bakery-made cake that will look perfect and take only a few minutes to purchase. Or you could bake one at home. Even if it’s delicious, it won’t look as nice and will take hours to make.</p> <p>But if your friends are like mine, they’ll gush over the homemade cake and not mention the perfect store-bought one.</p> <p>Buying and playing vinyl records is becoming a status symbol.</p> <p>Today, playing music is effortless. Just shout your request at a smart speaker, like Siri or Alexa, or touch an app on your smartphone.</p> <p>Playing a record on a turntable takes time and effort. Building your collection requires thoughtful deliberation and money. A record storage cube alongside an accompanying record player also makes for some nice living room decor.</p> <p>And now I – the uncool professor that I am – find myself bemoaning the loss of all of those albums I sold years ago.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p> <p><em>This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/vinyl-record-sales-keep-spinning-and-spinning-with-no-end-in-sight-201444" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>. </em></p>

Music

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This NSW hotel has its guests reminiscing about vinyls

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Back in 2014, Steve Dossel was a chief financial officer of a large fashion company. A few words from his son projected him in a different direction.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Daddy, don’t you love me? You’re never home to tuck me in”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It just broke my heart,” he said to </span><a href="https://thenewdaily.com.au/life/travel/2019/08/30/boogie-woogie-beach-house/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The New Daily</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">. “I saw this place for sale two days later on the Friday. And bought it sight unseen over the phone on the Monday.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The place up for sale was Boogie Woogie Beach House.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The music-themed hotel with seven guestrooms, a restaurant, bar and live music venue downstairs known as FLOW BAR as well as being close to beaches and national parks.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Each of the rooms has a different theme. The Ziggy Suite will be popular with fans of David Bowie, as there’s a mosaic portrait in the shower.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">However, if you’re a bit more nostalgic for the days of mixtapes, the Mix Tape room features a cassette-print bedspread.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/ByUBpX2l9Zl/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/ByUBpX2l9Zl/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">Do you think this little guy even knows what those things on the wall are? #mixtape ... #Repost @sydneykids.co ・・・ Rooms inspired by the love of music 🎶 ❤️ record library to play your favourite vinyls on the record player in your room. Delicious food, bar, live music on weekends and a 3 minute walk through the rainforest to get to the beach 👌🏼</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/boogiewoogiebeachhouse/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank"> BWBH</a> (@boogiewoogiebeachhouse) on Jun 4, 2019 at 8:25pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">There’s also a record player in every guestroom and there’s a stack of vinyls for guests to choose from to take back to their room and play.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“You see them immediately start reminiscing,” Mr Doessel says. “Their faces just light up. You can see them remembering different parts of their youth or their early 20s or whatever it might be, and it’s taking them on a journey.”</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BwK46TlgUxm/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BwK46TlgUxm/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">It’s Record Store Day!! We need more wall space! . . 📸 @jordanroachphoto #rsdaus #recordstoreday #recordstoreday2019 #barringtoncoast #musichotel #midnorthcoast #midnorthcoastnsw #oldbar</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/boogiewoogiebeachhouse/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank"> BWBH</a> (@boogiewoogiebeachhouse) on Apr 12, 2019 at 2:12pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Despite the hustle and bustle of having a live venue underneath the hotel, Mr Doessel and staff encourage guests to relax.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We once had a couple, CEOs of different companies, and their two daughters stay for two weeks,” he says.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The first few days they were like, ‘Where can we can go? What can we do?’. They were a million miles an hour and I was like, ‘Guys, there’s not a lot to do here. It’s just about relaxing, going to the beach, leaving your phones in your rooms. Just take a step back from your life for a bit.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“By the time the second week came around, they were like, ‘This is the best place ever’, ‘This is the best holiday we’ve ever had, doing nothing’. It was great to watch.”</span></p>

Domestic Travel

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The 9 most expensive, valuable and collectable records of all time

<p>Records give more a sense of the history of music than anything else and somehow their market value reflects this; for example, manufacturer’s mistakes/alterations or the death of the artist can dramatically affect the resale value of a record.</p> <p>And generally speaking, rare records from the ‘60s and ‘70s (the ‘golden era’ of music), which only had a few hundred copies pressed, are the most valuable (even if that band is largely unknown) – commanding four-figure sums in some cases.</p> <p>Moreover, singles in many cases are more valuable than both EPs and LPs.</p> <p>But who sits at the top of the pile with the most valuable and collectable record that ever went to market? And which records still in circulation are worth a few quid?</p> <p>Spoiler alert: this list contains The Beatles</p> <p><strong>Nick Drake – <em>Five Leaves Left </em>(1969)</strong></p> <p>Nick Drake fits the description of musician-turned-legend following his untimely death at the age of 27.</p> <p>With only three albums released by the young artist, Drake’s records are extremely rare and an original pressing of the artist’s debut, <em>Five Leaves Left</em>, can sell for upwards of £1000 depending on its quality, of course.</p> <p><strong>The first pressing</strong></p> <p>There is debate over which is the true first pressing but it is largely accepted that the textured pink label with incorrect 4th and 5th song order (<em>Way To Blue</em> <em>and Day Is Done</em>) printed on its sleeve, and machine stamped matrix numbers is the real McCoy. NB: You will find no A1/B1 matrix on first pressings; a first pressing will read A2/B2.</p> <p><strong>The pink label</strong></p> <p>There are two types of ‘smooth’ pink label variants out there also, one with incorrect running order on the label and one corrected. But the textured label pressings, with all aforementioned characteristics, tend to be the most valuable. All three variants have ‘Made In England’ printed on the label whereas reissues do not.</p> <p><strong>The Beatles – <em>Please Please Me</em> (1963)</strong></p> <p>Records by The Beatles are of course very collectable, but this in itself is strange when you consider that there are literally millions out there and most are relatively easy to get hold of. To collect records properly, you must be prepared to put the hours in authenticating a record, so get comfortable!</p> <p><strong>The Beatles anomaly</strong></p> <p>Generally speaking, the fewer records pressed by bands/artists, the more valuable it will invariably be. However, The Beatles command a different value. As the pioneers of modern pop music, the appeal is worldwide. Any first pressing will be worth something, yet condition is still essential if you want to make/spend the big bucks.</p> <p>Having pressed and sold millions of records, it’s near impossible to find a first pressing of a Beatles record in mint/near-mint condition, so when one comes along, collectors will pay a premium.</p> <p><strong>Please please tell me what it's worth</strong></p> <p><em>Please Please Me</em> was first pressed on the gold and black Parlophone label but it soon switched to yellow and black. These minor details can mean everything. Stereo copies on the gold and black label will fetch you in excess of £5000.</p> <p><strong>Queen – <em>Bohemian Rhapsody</em>/<em>I’m In Love With My Car</em> (1978)</strong></p> <p>Extravagance all round!</p> <p>A rare edition of Queen’s most celebrated anthem was also served, at one time, as an invite to an EMI event replete with goodies including the entry ticket, matches, a pen, a menu, an outer card sleeve, EMI goblets(?) and a scarf! So, the record stands out quite a bit.</p> <p>Never ones to shy away from a bit of colour, the Queen single was pressed on a brilliant royal blue vinyl and this copy/set is valued at the rather colourful sum of £5000.</p> <p><strong>The Beatles – <em>The White Album</em> (1968)</strong></p> <p><strong>The Beatles anomaly #2</strong></p> <p>What can I say? The Beatles just about dominate any musical list. But they also take on a special kind of reverence and mean different things to different people making their value susceptible to change on an individual's basis.</p> <p><strong>Valuation of <em>The White Album</em></strong></p> <p>Ok, this is the hard part. There are a multitude of criteria to adhere to and hoops you have to jump through to guarantee yourself/part with some dough. Ready? Here we go:</p> <ul> <li>Is it a US copy, a UK copy?</li> <li>Is ‘The Beatles’ embossed or printed on the front?</li> <li>Does it contain the poster, all portraits?</li> <li>Are all known misspellings present (i.e. ‘Rocky Racoon’, not ‘Raccoon’)?</li> <li>Is the serial number a seven-digit number and is it preceded by the correct number of zeros, is it then preceded by a prefix ‘A’ (wide), ‘A’ (thin), a black dot or the prefix ‘No.’ (Two variants)?</li> <li>Is it one of only 12 made with the serial: A2000000 to commemorate 2,000,000 copies sold?</li> </ul> <p> And, so on and so on...</p> <p>Essentially, if it’s a US first pressing, with all misspellings, a serial number and embossed lettering you’re looking at $800 for one in good condition. But, if the serial number is low, it is worth more (serial number 0000001 sold for $15,000 in 2009). If the serial number is between 2 and 9 add 2000 per cent. For serial numbers under 10,000 add 50 per cent. Add $15 if poster is included and $7 for each Beatles portrait.</p> <p>A UK first pressing with all the trimmings in very good condition could cost you a maximum of £1000 but expect to add 50 per cent with serial numbers below 10,000 and an extra couple of quid for posters and portraits. Got it? Good!</p> <p><strong>Sex Pistols – <em>God Save The Queen/No Feelings</em> (1977)</strong></p> <p>This is an interesting one because the 1977 run of the Pistols’ single doesn’t just exist on one label.</p> <p>On A&amp;M, only 300 copies are said to exist after it was withdrawn from sale. This pressing is valued at approximately £10,000.</p> <p>A&amp;M also circulated promo copies and one of the few known to be in circulation recently sold on eBay for $17,179 (£11,728). However, there is an even rarer copy on L.T.S.</p> <p>Only two copies are to exist, one of which sold recently for no less than £12,629.</p> <p>And finally, a third label, The Town House, is known to have pressed the 7” single in 1977 onto a single-sided 10” acetate. Although an unknown amount of copies were produced, one of the only ones believed to exist sold in 2011 for a mega $23,000 (£15,702).</p> <p><strong>Anarchy in the record industry</strong></p> <p>That there are three separate, very small releases of this single highlights the band’s turbulent relationship with labels, all of which contribute to and complement their punk legacy; their value and their place in history. But it also shows the lengths collectors will go to get their own piece of history. Added to that is the irony that music’s most outspoken non-conformists, the epitome of anti-establishment attitude, are among the world’s most collectable and thus the most expensive bands.</p> <p><strong>The Five Sharps – <em>Stormy Weather</em> 78rpm single (1952)</strong></p> <p>The story of this particular record is as wild as the track suggests.</p> <p>The band was famously paid in hot dogs and soda for the session in New York where they cut two songs in one day. The single was put out on Jubilee #5104 and the members had to buy their own copies (despite not being paid for the session) because sales of the record were so poor.</p> <p>But the legend of this 78 is just beginning unbeknownst to the band.</p> <p><strong>From hot dogs to big bucks</strong></p> <p>Initially, <em>Stormy Weather</em> encounters some misfortune of its own and takes a turn for the worst in 1961.</p> <p>Record collector, Billy Pensabene, took a copy of the 78 he had found to Times Square Records, run by Irving “Slim” Rose, who borrowed the 78 to play on his ‘Sink Or Swim With Swingin’ Slim’ radio show which broke whilst in his care.</p> <p>The story goes that Slim promised Billy a replacement copy of the 78 and so put adverts up in the shop window offering $25-$50 for a copy. Time went by and still no 78.</p> <p>Then things went from bad to worse. Slim, in a last-ditch attempt to be a man of his word and reclaim a copy, visited Jubilee Records and asked owner, Jerry Blaine, to reissue the 78.</p> <p>Unfortunately, The Five Sharps’ session was one of a batch of 80 masters that had been destroyed in a fire. A nationwide search was underway and <em>Stormy Weather</em> became the most sought-after doo-wop record in history.</p> <p>Despite a somewhat roguish attempt by Jubilee to re-record the track using completely different musicians under the same Five Sharps moniker, the legend continued to grow for that original 78.</p> <p>Over the next 15 years only three copies ever turned up; one chipped, one cracked and one in very good condition.</p> <p>The third was sold in 1977 and is now valued at around £16,910.    </p> <p><strong>The Velvet Underground ­– <em>The Velvet Underground</em> and <em>Nico '66</em></strong></p> <p>An early version of the band’s debut cut to acetate is the only known version to exist and was bought with two other records for just 75 cents at a New York City stoop sale.</p> <p>The band’s agent at the time, the eminent pop artist, Andy Warhol, assembled the acetate to ship around to various labels and differs in order to the album now affectionately known as The Banana Album.</p> <p>In 2006, owner, Warren Hill, sold it at auction for $25,200. Following Lou Reed’s death in 2013 and the rise in interest in both the band and records, who knows how much it is worth today.</p> <p><strong>The Quarrymen – <em>That’ll Be The Day/In Spite Of All The Dang</em></strong></p> <p>The only known pressing of this pre-Beatles cut is as rare as they come and with a price tag to match.</p> <p>It is said to be the most valuable record in the world according to industry bible, Record Collector.</p> <p>The Quarrymen (McCartney, Lennon, Harrison, drummer Colin Hanton and pianist John Duff Lowe) cut the single at a local studio.</p> <p>McCartney recalls: “We shared the record. I kept it for a week, George kept it for a week, John kept it for a week, Colin Hanton kept it for a week, then Duff kept it for 23 years.”</p> <p>Worth a mesmerising £200,000-plus it’s no surprise this is the Holy Grail in the collector’s world. Even the 1981 replica copies (only 25 made) are worth £10,000. Paul McCartney is said to be the current minder of the original who bought it back from band-member and long-time guardian, Duff, for an undisclosed amount.</p> <p><strong>John Lennon/Yoko Ono – <em>Double Fantasy</em> (1980)</strong></p> <p>And finally, surprise surprise, a Beatle!</p> <p>Lennon and Ono’s album is on this list for sheer shock value. It’s value is somewhere in the region of £355,173. But before you spit your tea out and dust off your copy of this classic, there is only one copy worth this much, and its history is chilling.</p> <p>On December 8th 1980, outside John Lennon’s apartment building, Mark David Chapman asked Lennon to sign his copy of the LP. Just five hours later, Chapman would return and murder Lennon.</p> <p>Not only does the album have the last known signature Lennon gave, but it also has Chapman’s fingerprints on it.</p> <p>A disturbing logic it seems as to its apparent value, but like I have outlined: records offer more of a sense of the history of music than all other formats and you can’t get more of a sense of music history than the last signed artefact of one of the world’s greatest musicians owned by his assassin.</p> <p><em>Written by Andy Richardson. This article first appeared in <span><a href="http://www.readersdigest.com.au/true-stories-lifestyle/thought-provoking/9-most-expensive-valuable-and-collectable-records-all-time">Reader’s Digest</a></span>. For more of what you love from the world’s best-loved magazine, <a href="http://readersdigest.innovations.com.au/c/readersdigestemailsubscribe?utm_source=over60&amp;utm_medium=articles&amp;utm_campaign=RDSUB&amp;keycode=WRA87V"><span>here’s our best subscription offer</span></a>.</em></p> <p><img style="width: 100px !important; height: 100px !important;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7820640/1.png" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/f30947086c8e47b89cb076eb5bb9b3e2" /></p>

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7 more vinyl records that are worth a lot of money

<p>Last year, we had you dusting off your old vinyl collection to look out for <a href="http://www.oversixty.com.au/entertainment/music/2016/11/vinyl-records-that-are-worth-a-lot-of-money/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">11 records that could make you a small fortune</span></strong></a>. The response was so overwhelming, we decided to find another batch of valuable vinyl to encourage you to go over that record collection again.</p> <p><strong>1. <em>The White Album </em>by The Beatles</strong> – Because they were so popular, most Beatles records won’t fetch much today. However, first pressings of any singles, EPs and LPs are another story. If you have a low-numbered original copy of the “White Album” with an opening at the top and original Apple logo, you could be sitting on a four- or five-figures.</p> <p><strong>2. <em>Their Satanic Majesties Request </em>by The Rolling Stones</strong> – This album sold a lot of copies, but the original mono pressings, which came in a 3D lenticular sleeve, are a lot rarer – in fact, one could earn you up to $3,500.</p> <p><strong>3. <em>The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan</em> by Bob Dylan</strong> –<em> The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan</em> sold many copies and are thus not too valuable, but with so many editions out there, rare ones can be worth a motza. In 2012, the owner of a rare edition sold it for almost $43,000.</p> <p><strong>4. <em>Diamond Dogs</em> by David Bowie</strong> – The late, great David Bowie’s 1974 album’s artwork, which depicts the music icon as half-man, half-dog, originally showed Bowie with canine genitalia. After being deemed too controversial, the sleeve was pulled and replaced. If you have the original, you might earn over $5,000.</p> <p><strong>5. <em>Elvis</em> by Elvis Presley</strong> – You won’t fetch thousands for an Elvis record, since they’re so widespread, but mono copies of his debut album (which was dubbed <em>Rock and Roll</em> in the UK) could earn you a neat thousand.</p> <p><strong>6. <em>Spirit in the Night</em> by Bruce Springsteen</strong> – One of his earliest singles, released in 1973 from the album<em> Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.</em>, it’s not unusual for mint condition copies to sell for upwards of $7,000.</p> <p><strong>7. <em>Axis: Bold as Love</em> by The Jimi Hendrix Experience</strong> – Original pressings of <em>Axis: Bold as Love</em> can earn you a few hundred bucks, but mono copies with black or silver labels can sell for well over a thousand dollars.</p> <p>Have you got any of these rare records in your collection? Let us know in the comments below.</p>

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