One recent question had to do with grading vinyl records. How does a newcomer to record buying and selling accurately judge the quality of a record or get a good idea of the record album’s condition as described for sale on eBay, Discogs.com or Etsy?

An Introduction To Vinyl Grading

Many record sellers use the Goldmine standard or a variation of it. Basically, Goldmine standard grading runs from Good, Very Good, and variations of VG (Very Good Plus, VG++. etc.) to Near Mint, and Mint.

Grading applies separately to album covers and the vinyl records themselves–or at least it SHOULD.

Some use an alternative system of vinyl grades like “Clean” or “Exceptionally Clean”, but some of us in the vinyl collecting and selling community distrust such descriptions because they seem to be trying to hide something.That is obviously not true in every case but for some buyers it can be a red flag.

No matter–nobody forces you to buy vinyl without inspecting it and if you’re uncomfortable with a seller’s grading system, don’t buy unless you can inspect.

Mint condition records are generally those that have never been played or seem to have never been played. A conservative grader is your friend when it comes to buying records on line, and those who claim that a vinyl record is “Mint” are usually saying it’s never been played or played once.

That does NOT mean “still sealed” but obviously sealed records are in Mint condition unless there’s been poor storage and handling.

Rather than take the time to run down the entire list of possible record conditions and hope it’s been communicated properly (we WILL do that in another post, this is a GETTING STARTED guide) there is an easier way for you to begin learning what record grading is all about.

Find a record store that sells used vinyl and lists the condition of that vinyl on a label on the sleeve. Study what that record store considers to be a “Good” condition record. Records in Good condition are often anything but.

Now compare what that store considers to be in Near Mint condition. See the vast difference? Once you get an idea of what the extremes are–again, according to THAT STORE–have a look at the Very Good condition records and compare them with the Near Mints.

You may begin to notice less difference in some cases between Very Good or Very Good Plus and Near Mint.

That’s because every record grader, like it or not, has their own pet peeves. Some will decide one vinyl LP that is considered Near Mint by one grader is actually Very Good Plus album because of a certain type of scratch, nick, or other type of wear.

Conservative record album graders–the fussy ones, the people who don’t give away Near Mint status very easily–are your best friend when it’s time to buy online. Near Mint records are not always pristine and perfect, but Very Good records aren’t always scratchy or obviously worn, either.

What you’re after is a better idea of the range of tolerances in your own purchasing and/or selling habits.

What does Very Good or VG+ mean to you the buyer when you play the record? Do you care if the album is NM or NM-?

Some do and some do not. It’s all down to personal preference. In another blog post (several, I expect) we’ll tackle the more in-depth complexities in record grading. In the meantime, the more records you study yourself, the better you’ll get at determining condition and whether you’re personally comfortable buying an album in the specified condition.

Don’t forget that this is NOT an exact science and your preferences have much to do with how you interpret the grading system. I’ll be writing much more on this subject in the weeks to come.

–Joe Wallace

Jack White started Third Man after his recording contract expired with V2. The White Stripes signed with Warner to record Icky Thump, but Jack White pulled off a shrewd deal to keep the rights to vinyl pressings…and Third Man wasn’t far behind with reissues of the back catalog, plus new releases by bands like The Dead Weather.

If you’re into learning about the entire saga of Third Man, have a look at this excellent interview with one of Third Man’s major players, as published by Collector’s Weekly. It’s a pretty interesting look behind the scenes at Nashville’s prime iconoclast labels/record stores.

For those just joining us, Vinyl Road Rage is Turntabling’s annual cross-country road trip to find the coolest record stores in the USA. Shangri-La Records, at 1916 Madison Avenue in Memphis, was definitely a “mission accomplished” moment in that regard.

For some reason, most of the best record stores found during Vinyl Road Rage are basically converted houses. Maybe it’s the large number of rooms packed full of vinyl, plus the attention to detail that most of these stores pay to the whole record shopping experience….whatever the reason, Shangri-La Records is one of those stores that makes a road-weary traveler remember why an extended journey in search of cool vinyl records is a good thing to do.

Shangri-La Records has a very respectable 80s alternative/New Wave/Industrial section and the soundtrack selections were pretty excellent, too. There is a staggering amount of vinyl to look through here. Dedicated crate diggers, don’t bother coming in as a first-timer until you have an extended amount of time to marvel at all this.

And like all truly great record stores, it’s a friendly, chatty place. Shangri-La has a high pain threshold for vinyl geek chattiness–kudos to the poor soul running the show when the most socially awkward record shop denizens in the USA are firing non-stop questions at light speed. Maybe this store should be renamed “Patience Of A Saint Records” instead.

There were some excellent rarities, some common-but-collectible finds, and a great selection of new releases and re-issues. The Sun Ra spoken word titles on display there were of particular interest, and reasonably priced. All in all, a most satisfying stop indeed. Don’t pass up a chance to stop at Shangri-La, it’s aptly named.

–Joe Wallace

Lovely to watch, isn’t it?

My major complaint with most of the vinyl documentaries I’ve seen over the past year and a half is that the filmmakers all seem compelled to spend an inordinate amount of time discussing why vinyl is superior to digital. This is completely unnecessary and really sounds like a sales pitch. But that doesn’t spoil my enjoyment of this production in the long run…

And while I’m feeling feisty, additionally vexing to a nitpicky writer/editor is referring to more than one record album as “vinyls”. People! “Vinyl” is both singular AND plural.

–Joe Wallace

On some of these tracks, Trythall manages to make them sound nearly authentic in terms of having a C&W vibe–Foggy Mountain Breakdown nearly fools you into thinking there’s a real violin (sorry, fiddle) playing. Almost. The version of Floyd Cramer’s Last Date wouldn’t be that hard to translate–it sounds almost out of place here because it’s so…normal.

The version of Gentle On My Mind wouldn’t sound odd at all on an Italian Star Wars rip-off movie soundtrack…but I can’t help going back to that cover of Folsom Prison Blues–worth the price of the entire record.

This is a WTF album of the highest caliber. Country Moog — Switched On Nashville can’t be dismissed, it demands to be heard in all it’s effing bizarre glory. VCP is an awesomely mutated accomplishment!

Is this the most expensive turntable ever built? If it’s not, it probably was at one time. But with all that fine, precision German-built analog attention to detail, can it really compare to the ultra-high tech wonder that was my first record player ever?

Really, no amount of $650,000 high-tech inventiveness could ever create the thrill of discovery comparable to what I had as a kid plopping down this Power Records vinyl (see below) down on the Close ‘n Play and hearing the psuedo-Morricone Italian crime soundtrack music blasting out of those crap speakers.

I realize now that the music on the following clip was the gateway drug for my now-insatiable soundtrack collecting obsession when it comes to Morricone, Stelvio Cipriani, Piero Umiliani and others. Strange that you can pin down a lifetime of music obsessions to a single, very obscure record heard as kid:

P.S. The story on the Batman: Stacked Cards vinyl is HILARIOUS. Listen all the way to the end to hear Batman ruminating that a frontal lobotomy could return The Joker back to “normal society”! Hell, yeah–let’s save time and bother and lobotomize EVERYBODY!

–Joe Wallace