h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Not that I don't like my records - for the most part I love them. It's always a nostalgia trip when you open that Vangelis gatefold sleeve and think "ah! That's where my Rizzla papers went"

But ... then there are the records that you married. Yes, is a big fan of prog-rock. Now, I like a bit of Genesis. The aforementioned Vangelis and the Enid (mine) probably belong in there too. Certainly Pink Floyd and (early) Genesis. But on my goodness. Camel, Colusseum II (the Gary Moore lot) and Tangerine Dream. Just say no, folks.

It's not even that I don't like the odd minute or two of Twiddly-Twaddly self-indulgent guitar/moog combinations. Sheesh, I saw Jean-Michel Jarre (aside: ) in the Docklands that time.

But try to split that stuff into recognisable tracks. Especially when you have

a) just done 7 of them already
and
b) have Seconds Out (currently: The Carpet Crawlers) blasting out from the living room.

No amount of strands of ancient tobacco, torn out insides of cigarette packet lids and Rizzla papers can make up for hours and hours of noise with no end. No breaks. No recognisable tunes.

Mannnnnn did we really listen to that stuff? I'm off for some Duran Duran. You know where you are with those boys.

I like it. It takes me back to endless Sunday afternoons when you lay on the floor listening to that vinyl. Another generation, I suppose.

Sho, I might have to take you off my friends list for that comment on Tangerine Dream! Yes, it is boring and takes hours to actually get anywhere. But. BUT. I mean. It's like, you know. Come on! They are Tangerine Dream, right?

And Jean Michel Jarre's only connection to TD is the electrical power outlet. TD wrote worlds, where Jarre wrote songs*. (Note the use of past tense. I see that TD are still around. Actually they were around my house last fall. I did not bother going. And as to Jarre... well, maybe he comes back to making *music* one day. "Teo & Tea" probably means nothing to you, and let's just say, good for you...)

But, Sho... Duran Duran? Why not go all the way and resort to Wham! and Modern Talking?

Y.

*) And very good ones, too.

What I really love are listening to my absolutely favourite albums, that I've already replaced on CD, on my mp3 player with all the crackles and slight background noise. And in some cases the little jump or stick that I have never ever quite forgotten.

*offers Olive Branch to Y*

Well, I like Tangerine Dream. But... listening to a whole pile of their stuff, one after another, when I'm not drunk, stoned or otherwise high on life. Interrupted by "mum, how do I find the lowest common denominator?" and/or "mum, tell her to give back my eyleiner/calculator/best blouse" and "what do you want for dinner?"

But I see that my Liquorice flavoured cigarette papers were in a Lynnrd Skynnrd album.

You went to see JMJ at Docklands? Me too! We must have been within yards of each other

Camel... dear Bob no. Colosseum II... dear Bob no (didn't mind the original Colosseum too much though, especially Valentyne Suite). Tangerine Dream... yes please! Early Genesis... yes please! Curved Air, Pink Floyd, Caravan, Greenslade, Hatfield and the North, PFM, Gentle Giant, Wiahbone Ash, Mike Oldfield... yes please

Yes, we did really listen to that stuff and loved it! And even though we turned to punk in the late 70s and new wave in the 80s (and whatever genre The Smiths belongs to... probably one with only them in it), we still never gave up on our prog roots

I have to listen to The Rotters Club at least once a month. I used to listen to it every day, way back when.

You went to see JMJ at Docklands? Me too! We must have been within yards of each other

Camel... no. Colosseum II... no (didn't mind the original Colosseum too much though, especially Valentyne Suite). Tangerine Dream... yes please! Early Genesis... yes please! Curved Air, Pink Floyd, Caravan, Hatfield and the North, Gentle Giant, Wiahbone Ash, Mike Oldfield... yes please

Yes, we did really listen to that stuff and loved it! And even though we turned to punk in the late 70s and new wave in the 80s (and whatever genre The Smiths belongs to... probably one with only them in it), we still never gave up on our prog roots

I have to listen to The Rotters Club at least once a month. I used to listen to it every day, way back when.

Ummm... why did I do that>

Well, since I'm here anyway...

Focus

Ah, Curved Air. I'm always reminded of that Young Ones ep where Niel went off to be a policeman and had to raid a party. When he went in he said "got any Hawkwind or Marillion?" but then taking his truncheon to the record player he said "oh no Steve Hillage".

JMJ at Docklands - we'd parked at Hendon (easy for getting back to Sheffield... and got back to our car - bearing in mind we didn't stop for anything just got there as quick as we could, at 2.30 in the morning. I had to drive to Sheffield, turn around and go on a course at Guildford the next morning. And wore my T-Shirt of course.

About half the women on the course said "we wanted to go to that, but we didn't want to be tired to start this..." Knackered, but worth it. It was sensational.

This could go on to become the longest and most heated thread ever

Be my guest, I'm going to listen to Procol Harum with The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and the Da Camera Singers for the 42.000 time

>> But, Sho... Duran Duran? Why not go all the way and resort to Wham! and Modern Talking? <<

Erm...because Duran Duran are accomplished musicians who write good songs on worthwhile albums?

Just a thought...

RF

I thought you'd show up.

Pierce - I like a bit of Procul Harum. But for now, I'm going to listen to some Vangelis.

OK folks. Which music from your youth has stood the test of time?

For me, it's Ziggy Stardust. Possibly, with the exception of Revolver, the most perfect perfect album ever in the history of Vinyl.

I'm with you on Ziggy and the of

Colosseum's Valentyne Suite was a favourite of mine for years

Then there is good old Johann Sebastian Bach's Toccata und Fuga in D-moll, BWV 565

But I could go on and on, my taste in is almost unlimited

I don't do line dance, though

On a prog rock-y tangent - haven't you discovered the joys of Ougenweide since you went to Germany, Sho?

Not a fan of prog rock myself (and ever so grateful that K and I have such very similar tastes- though oddly enough we had almost no overlap in our collections). Not even Genesis. Though I do occasionally enjoy Tangerine Dream (especially some of their soundtrack work).

I've ripped dozens of LPs to the hard drive with the intention of converting them to mp3 (and even burned a couple to CD), but editing those tracks is a huge pain in the backside.

I have had all the equipment necessary to convert my vinyls into mp3's for years already but so far I can't seem to pull myself together to actually do it

Mind you, I have 41 days (and nights) worth of music on my harddrive

we're the same, weeks worth of music on the PC already. But we didn't replace most of the vinyl and now we're all mobile with music (the Gruesomes included) it's time to relisten to the old stuff (me and ) and get the Gruesomes' eyes open to the real thing.

We paid extra for a record player that converts directly to mp3. That has made all the difference, I did one at my mum's with the usual "rip" the LP, convert to mp3, faff about with labels...

All I have to do is split the tracks (apparently it can be done automatically, but only bands like Rainbow and Duran Duran have worked so far - it just finds a "space" and separates the tracks there) and then label them. I can then search the net and tag them. Or not in the case of some of the weirdy stuff.

KB, I'm not actually that keen on Prog Rock all the time, but sometimes I'll be in the mood. But then I'll more than likely go for Vangelis or Tomita. So kind of 80s electronic stuff.

Which reminds me - someone has got my Yellow Magic Orchestra LP and now I'm . (I must check my Mum's records when I go there next)

I'm still a compact disc person. I never made it to MP3s.

*Yelbakk cracefully accepts Sho's olive branch*

Vinyl, CDs, MP3... Same thing and yet totally different, I think. MP3 is what tapes used to be, only much more reliable: You take them with you when you go jogging. MP3 is for music consumption. Which is not meant as a negative. In a way, music is meant for consumption. MP3 don't wear out like tapes used to do. But as for tapes, I never understood why people would buy original recordings on tape? Why spend a given amount of money on a medium that is not capable of storing music in a satisfactory way? Play the tape 10 times and it will start to deteriorate (or whichever way you spell that son of a word). Place the tape too close to your speakers and the magnetic field coming from the speaker might destroy the songs. And don't get me started on "tape salad" - when your tape player gobbles up the tape, twisting and crunching it between the cogs of its drive.

But anyway...

CDs are great. They cannot get scratched (as easily as vinyl does), the sound quality is perfect and yadda yadda yadda.

But vinyl. Vinyl is for "those moments". You take the record out of its sleeve. You take it out of that extra protection pocket. You wipe it carefully with a special cloth. You even look at the grooves while meditating about the fact that you are actually only looking at one groove. You put it on. Placing the needle on the record gives you that specific sound. You know and love all the cracks and the clicking and clacking. Listening to vinyl has become something of an act to me. Fun, but not something you would ... *I* would do every day, or even every week.

Oh... And I did not see Jarre at Docklands. I bought a tape of that concert. That tape was, of course, a pirated copy (but they did try to get the cover right), the quality was poor and yet it was fun. I did see Jarre later in Berlin (first ever concert in Germany) and later yet again in Berlin (indoors this time), and I did not go to see him last week or so, when he played in Braunschweig.

Y.

I still have all kinds of cassettes- when I was a kid I only had space in my room for a boombox so I bought more stuff on tape than vinyl because my folks wouldn't often let me play records on their hi-fi (they hated my music). I've been copying those to mp3 format as well. Now to get the tracks split- I find the automatic splitting doesn't work for all recordings as well.

I also have a similar device for copying VHS tapes to DVD but I'll be damned if I can get the audio to synch with the video correctly.

I digress. I also enjoy vinyl and love the familiar clicks and crackles. Plus they're more fun for deejaying with.